College Football Picks Week 13: Best Favorites to Bet Before Odds Change
The LSU Tigers are on a mission to put up as many points as possible to help Jayden Daniels' Heisman Trophy campaign.
Saturday's Week 13 clash with the Texas A&M Aggies marks the last chance Daniels has to impress Heisman voters.
The current Heisman favorite produced 1,115 total yards of offense in his last two games, which both featured 50-point performances from LSU.
The Tigers will do everything they can to run up the score against their SEC West rival, and that makes them one of the top favorites to trust in a week where favored squads may run into trouble in rivalry games.
In addition to LSU, two other double-digit favorites can be trusted on Saturday because of their potential to put up a ton of points on their opponents.
For the latest lines on these games, go to DraftKings.
Saturday, Noon ET, ESPN
Daniels needs to finish his regular season on a strong note.
The LSU quarterback is at a disadvantage in the Heisman race because Bo Nix and Michael Penix Jr. could square off in the Pac-12 Championship Game if the Oregon Ducks win on Friday night.
Some people will bill that contest as a battle for a College Football Playoff spot and the Heisman.
Daniels needs to get as close to 4,000 passing yards and 5,000 total yards as he can to potentially finalize some first-place votes in his favor on Saturday.
Daniels needs 423 passing yards and 409 total yards to reach those milestones, and if LSU's performance from the last two weeks is any indication, the Tigers will give him every chance to go after those numbers.
LSU put up 52 points on a weak Florida Gators defense in Week 11 and then scored 56 against the Georgia State Panthers in Week 12.
The Texas A&M defense faced some struggles against the best teams in the SEC, as it allowed 84 combined points to the Alabama Crimson Tide, Tennessee Volunteers and Ole Miss Rebels. A&M's highest concession in that set of games came against Ole Miss at the start of November.
LSU's defense has not been a trustworthy unit this season, but if it can one or two stops in each half, that should be enough for Daniels to break open the score.
We probably should not worry if the teams are separated by one score in the fourth quarter either because LSU will put in more effort than most teams would to put up more points in support of Daniels' final stat tally.
Saturday, 3:30 p.m. ET, SEC Network
The Vanderbilt Commodores have not had much of a rivalry with Tennessee in recent years.
The Volunteers beat Vandy by a combined score of 101-21 in the last two years and they shut out their in-state rival last season.
Saturday's clash of Tennessee schools will probably go the same way for Tennessee, who will use the game as a chance to take out some frustration after recent losses.
Josh Heupel's team suffered back-to-back defeats against the Georgia Bulldogs and Missouri Tigers in which it scored just 17 total points.
Vanderbilt's defense allowed over 30 points in each contest during its nine-game losing streak.
The Commodores scored 28 points in their last three games and they are one of the worst teams against the spread in the FBS.
Tennessee should blow out Vandy by five or six touchdowns if Joe Milton and Co. get back to their regular scoring ways.
The Vols scored over 30 points in six of their seven victories, and that trend should extend into Saturday.
Vanderbilt's meager offense should not make you concerned about the large spread in favor of the Vols.
In fact, a 27-point spread may be a bit disrespectful to Tennessee given where it stands in the college football hierarchy compared to Vanderbilt.
Saturday, 3:30 p.m. ET, CBS Sports Network
The Liberty Flames sit in an interesting spot going into their Week 13 clash with the UTEP Miners.
Liberty is the second-best Group of Five team in the latest CFB Playoff rankings. It needs to win big on Saturday and capture the Conference USA Championship Game to eclipse the Tulane Green Wave, or whomever emerges as the AAC champion.
Jamey Chadwell's team has done a fairly good job of blowing out opponents in recent weeks. The Flames won each of their last three contests by at least 24 points.
UTEP sits at 3-8 with three losses in four games, a stretch that started with a 28-7 defeat to the New Mexico State Aggies.
That performance is significant for Saturday's game because NMSU is the other team in the CUSA Championship Game.
UTEP allowed 439 total yards to NMSU, which means Liberty could be in for another massive offensive day.
The Flames come into Saturday with 30-plus points in each of their last six games. UTEP's offense can't match Liberty's explosiveness, so if the Flames score like they usually do, the Miners could be in for a rough home finale.
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