College football Week 1 best bets and predictions
Week One is finally here
College football fans finally got their fix last weekend. It was a fun seven game slate to get us back into the swing of things, but it left us wanting more. After overanalyzing Sam Hartman’s splendid start and USC’s still questionable defense for the last week, we now get to meet the rest of the country for their first action of the season.
We’re taking a look at five games on this weekend’s college football slate that might be worthy of an investment. Before placing your bets, make sure to read our reviews as to which Pennsylvania sportsbooks are best to bet college football at.
Nebraska @ Minnesota | Thursday, 8:00 p.m. EST
After a disastrous stint with the Carolina Panthers in the NFL, Matt Rhule returns to the college ranks as the new head coach of Nebraska. While his NFL stint did not go well, there’s no denying that Rhule has the chops to coach at the college level. He oversaw two impressive turnarounds at both Temple and Baylor. However, it’s worth noting that before he turned those two programs around, he had to endure some original pain. In his first season at Temple, Rhule went 2-10. He did even worse in his first season at Baylor, leading the Bears to a 1-11 record. Nebraska seems to be in need of a similar tear-down and rebuild.
With all of that being said, Nebraska does not match up well against Minnesota. Sure, the Golden Gophers will miss the veteran presence of Tanner Morgan at quarterback, but P.J. Fleck has built a well-oiled machine that relies on their offensive line and defense to control games. Minnesota has one of the top offensive lines in the country while Nebraska is rostering 240-pound defensive linemen. That’s not a recipe for success. Expect Minnesota to bully Nebraska in this one and win comfortably in their home opener.
Louisville vs. Georgia Tech | Friday, 7:30 p.m. EST
This game will take place at the Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta, and Georgia Tech will need their fans to show up if they want any chance of pulling off the upset under the Friday night lights.
Louisville is one of the winners of this past off-season’s coaching carousel, as they snagged their own prodigal son in Jeff Brohm away from Purdue. Brohm led Purdue to an 8-5 record last season and an appearance in the Big Ten championship game. He’s one of the smarter and more innovative coaches in college football.
California transfer Jack Plummer joins Brohm as a newcomer for Louisville. The quarterback threw for over 3000 yards and 21 touchdowns last season in the Pac-12. Don’t expect much from Plummer however, as Louisville should dominate this game on the ground. Jawhar Jordan is one of the top running backs in the ACC, and Georgia Tech struggles defending the run. Don’t expect the Yellow Jackets’ offense to keep up either, as they are returning just five starters on that side of the ball.
PennLive users after placing their first $5 wager.
Fresno State @ Purdue | Saturday, 12:00 p.m. EST
While I upgrade Louisville for hiring Jeff Brohm, the inverse applies to Purdue. Losing Brohm is a massive blow to the program, and as a result, they’re a team I’m looking to fade at the early part of this season. Not only is Brohm gone, but so is Aidan O’Connell who will be replaced by Texas transfer Hudson Card. Card has shown flashes in his time in Austin, but O’Connell was a consistent veteran.
Former Illinois defensive coordinator and first-time head coach Ryan Walters faces a stiff early test as his first game as Purdue’s head coach. Fresno State is the reigning Mountain West champion, as they won ten games in Jeff Tedford’s first season back on the sidelines. Sure, they’ll have to replace quarterback Jake Haener, but UCF transfer Mikey Keene has shown flashes over the last two seasons. More importantly, Fresno State has a stout defense that gave up fewer than 19 points per game last season. This line has been coming down all week long, so don’t be surprised if it settles near a field goal.
New FanDuel users who after placing an original $5 bet.
Ohio State @ Indiana | Saturday, 3:30 p.m. EST
The big news in Columbus is that Kyle McCord will take over the starting quarterback role from C.J. Stroud, who will now be playing on Sundays for the Houston Texans. However, outside of the quarterback spot, there’s not much changing at the skill positions for Ohio State. Both TreVeyon Henderson and Miyan Williams return at running back. Marvin Harrison Jr, Emeka Egbuka and Julian Fleming all return as well to form what is widely considered the best receiving room in the country. McCord doesn’t have to do too much, just get the ball in his skill position players’ hands.
On the other side of the football, Indiana ran nearly 78 offensive plays per game last season which ranked top-10 in the country. With the new clock rules, pace of play matters even more than ever when handicapping totals. If the Hoosiers continue at that pace, they’ll either have short drives that expose their defense to Ohio State’s offense, or they themselves will wear down the Buckeyes’ defense. Ohio State has three newcomers in the secondary, and one or two missed assignments is all we need for this game to soar over the total.
Make sure to check out our in-depth review of BetMGM sportsbook and any promotions available to PennLive bettors.
Oregon State @ San Jose State | Sunday, 3:30 p.m. EST
San Jose State plays their second game of the season this weekend, which in my opinion, gives them somewhat of an advantage. They are in game shape and have had live reps to work out some kinks. While the Spartans did lose 56-28 to USC, there were some positives to take away from that game. First and foremost, they covered the spread as a 30.5-point underdog. Secondly, their offense looked potentially interesting.
Chevan Cordeiro has 250 yards of total offense and three touchdowns at quarterback for San Jose State. This week, he’ll go up against an Oregon State defense that lost six starters from last season. Maybe he continues to roll with that momentum.
On the other side of the ball, Oregon State will be starting Clemson transfer D.J. Uiagalelei at quarterback. DJ crashed and burned at Clemson and while some are anticipating a change of scenery might do him some good, I’m not even close to sold on his abilities as a quarterback for a team that has some aspirations.
What makes FanDuel one of the industry leaders? Check out our in-depth review of FanDuel Sportsbook here.
Sidelines Group provides PennLive with original sports betting, lottery and casino content including odds, analysis, predictions and reviews to educate bettors. Please bet responsibly.
If you have a gambling problem and are located in Pennsylvania, call 1-800-GAMBLER or contact the 24-hour helpline chat at https://www.pacouncil.com/chatline.
If you purchase a product or register for an account through one of the links on our site, we may receive compensation. By browsing this site, we may share your information with our social media partners in accordance with our Privacy Policy.
