Arizona vs USC prediction, odds, pick, how to watch Week 6

college football odds series for our Arizona USC prediction and pick. Find how to watch Arizona USC.

The USC Trojans are 5-0 and are a huge favorite over Arizona, but all is not well in Los Angeles because Alex Grinch's defense gave up 41 points to Colorado one week after allowing 28 to Arizona State. This is not a level of performance which inspires confidence heading into bigger games against better teams such as Notre Dame, Utah, Oregon, and Washington. USC wants to contend for the Pac-12 title and the College Football Playoff. The current level of defense will probably not get the job done. The Trojans want to maximize the excellence of quarterback Caleb Williams and not squander his career, but the defense certainly leaves USC in a vulnerable position in spite of the dynamism of the team's offense.

Arizona just played the Washington Huskies closely. Arizona lost by only seven points to the unbeaten Huskies, putting up a fight before falling 31-24. USC just survived Colorado by only seven points (48-41), so the fact that Arizona lost by only seven to Washington should get the Trojans' full attention. USC will need to be on guard because the Notre Dame game is one week from Saturday. The Trojans can't get caught looking ahead to the Irish. They have to deal with Arizona first.

Here are the Arizona-USC College Football odds, courtesy of FanDuel.

College Football Odds: Arizona-USC Odds

Arizona Wildcats: +21.5 (-110)

USC Trojans: -21.5 (-110)

Over: 71.5 (-110)

Under: 71.5 (-110)

How To Watch Arizona vs. USC

Time: 10:30 pm ET / 7:30 pm PT

TV: ESPN

Why Arizona Could Cover the Spread

USC's defense is an obvious reason for Arizona to cover the spread. The Trojans simply aren't playing well enough on defense to cover spreads. They were a 35-point favorite over Arizona State and won by only 14. They were a 21.5-point favorite over Colorado and won by only seven. Sense a trend here? Alex Grinch continues to show that he is not a top-level defensive coordinator. USC is not getting nearly enough meaningful contributions from its full defense. A few players are playing really well, such as Bear Alexander, De'Jon Benton, Mason Cobb, and Christian Roland-Wallace, but the Trojans need everyone to play at a reasonably high level. If two or three players aren't doing their job on a given play, that's enough to ruin the plan for the defense.

The other reason why Arizona will cover the spread is that since human nature is undefeated, USC's temptation to look ahead to the Notre Dame game next week will cause the Trojans to be less focused than they could be. That is probably worth at least one touchdown for Arizona if not 10 to 14 points. That should be enough to prevent USC from blowing the doors off this game.

Why USC Could Cover the Spread

The Trojans are going to score at least 42 points if not more. They have scored at least 42 in every game this season with Caleb Williams leading the way. If we assume that USC scores 49 points in this game — which is a very reasonable expectation — Arizona will have to score 28 to cover. That's no sure thing given the uneven and unsteady offensive performances we have seen from the Wildcats so far this season. Arizona scored only 21 against Stanford and has not shown it can consistently move the ball against decent opponents.

Final Arizona-USC Prediction & Pick

The Trojans could easily win by 35, but they have not come close to covering big spreads recently. All in all, stay away from this game and consider a live-betting play.

Final Arizona-USC Prediction & Pick: Arizona +21.5