College Football Odds Week 5: Biggest NCAAF Spreads This Week
It’s time for Week 5 of the 2023 college football season, which means nearly every matchup will be a conference game. While that should mean closer lines across the board, there are still some mismatches on tap.
Let’s take a closer look at some of the big favorites on the board this weekend.
1. Oregon (-26) at Stanford
Dan Lanning‘s Oregon Ducks are 4-0, averaging 54 PPG on offense and allowing 13.2 PPG on defense. Fresh off dismantling the Coach Prime hype train, the Ducks will look to roll again in Week 5 against a weak Stanford Cardinal (1-3) team, albeit one that has given them trouble in recent memory. Bo Nix will look to strengthen his Heisman bid by padding his stats in a soft matchup.
2. Penn State (-25.5) at Northwestern
David Braun‘s Northwestern Wildcats (2-2) are at .500 after pulling off a stunning overtime 37-34 victory over the Minnesota Golden Gophers. It was a game that saw the Wildcats erase a 21-point fourth-quarter deficit. The books expect the fun to end in Week 5 against the Penn State Nittany Lions (4-0).
3. Nevada at Fresno State (-24.5)
Jeff Tedford‘s Fresno State Bulldogs (4-0) are undefeated and haven’t seen much dropoff from last year’s Mountain West championship team. They’ll look to stay undefeated as they host a winless Nevada Wolf Pack (0-4) team averaging 17 PPG on offense and allowing 41.2 PPG on defense that lost 33-6 to an FCS school (Idaho) in Week 2.
4. USC (-23.5) at Colorado
Deion “Coach Prime” Sanders‘s Colorado Buffaloes (3-1) fell back to earth in Week 3, losing 42-6 to the Oregon Ducks while being outgained 522 to 199 total yards. They’ll look to stave off another embarrassment as they host the nation’s leading scoring offense as Caleb Williams and the USC Trojans (4-0) come to town averaging 55 PPG and 569.3 total yards per game.
5. Charlotte at SMU (-22.5)
The Charlotte 49ers (1-3) have yet to win a game against FBS competition but did keep things pretty close in a 22-7 loss to the Florida Gators in Week 4. Biff Poggi‘s squad is expected to stay in the loss column as +22.5 underdogs on the road against Rhett Lashlee‘s SMU Mustangs (2-2). Both of the Mustangs’ losses have come against Big 12 schools (Oklahoma, TCU), and they’ll look to turn up the heat in conference play.
T6. Iowa State at Oklahoma (-20.5)
Matt Campbell‘s Iowa State Cyclones (2-2) rebounded from a down start to the year with a 34-27 home victory over the Oklahoma State Cowboys to move to 1-0 in conference play. They’re not expected to come close to going score-for-score with the Oklahoma Sooners (4-0), who are averaging 46.8 PPG, led by quarterback Dillon Gabriel, who had completed 78% of his passes for 1,227 passing yards on 10.4 yards per attempt while tossing 12 touchdowns and just a single interception.
T6. Bowling Green at Georgia Tech (-20.5)
Things aren’t going well for Scot Loeffler‘s Bowling Green Falcons (1-3), who are 0-3 against FBS teams. They are not expected to find a win in Week 5 against Brent Key‘s Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets (2-2), who are fresh off a 30-16 upset win on the road against the Wake Forest Demon Deacons.
T6. UAB at Tulane (-20.5)
The Tulane Green Wave (3-1) are one of the nation’s best Group of Five teams again after winning the Cotton Bowl a year ago. They’ll look to pick up their fourth victory of the year against arguably one of the nation’s worst teams in the UAB Blazers (1-3), who are coughing up 36.2 PPG on defense in Year 1 under Trent Dilfer.
T9. Michigan (-17.5) at Nebraska
Matt Rhule‘s Nebraska Cornhuskers (2-2) will look to grind this game down to a halt at Memorial Stadium as three-score underdogs against the visiting Michigan Wolverines (4-0). Jim Harbaugh‘s squad has the nation’s best scoring defense (5.8 PPG) but has yet to truly get things going offensively, averaging 31.8 PPG.
T9. Washington (-17.5) at Arizona
Kalen DeBoer‘s Washington Huskies (4-0) have been one of the most impressive teams in the country this season, and quarterback Michael Penix Jr. is a bonafide Heisman contender. They’re expected to roll again in Week 5 on the road against an Arizona Wildcats (3-1) team that just eked out a one-point win over the lowly Stanford Cardinal.
T9. Kansas at Texas (-17.5)
A year ago, the Texas Longhorns dominated the Kansas Jayhawks in a 55-14 win. It was revenge for 2021’s meeting in which Lance Leipold‘s squad shocked Steve Sarkisian‘s in a 57-56 victory. Both teams enter this contest with a perfect 4-0 record, but the Longhorns are expected to win by three scores as they possess a much better defense and have a win in Tuscaloosa on the resume.
