ESPN College Football Predictions: Weekly Odds & Best Bets

The first “week” of college football ended up being the longest stretch on record. Many FCS teams kicked off their seasons on Thursday, August 27, and the final game between SMU and Florida State on ESPN ended up stretching into Tuesday morning after a long delay. However, there is little time to rest as we have College Football Predictions for games as early as Thursday. That’s when the Miami Hurricanes will have their home opener against the Florida A&M Rattlers, and the Hurricanes are a 55-point favorite following their beatdown of Stanford in Week 1.

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Featured ESPN College Football Games This Week

There’s little doubt as to the marquee matchup of the week. ESPN College Gameday will head to the Lone Star State for the monumental showdown between the Texas Longhorns and Ohio State Buckeyes. Both programs are on the short list of national title contenders, so keep reading for our college football game predictions on that humdinger of a game.

We will have plenty of other NCAA football predictions too including the Top 25 tilt between the Oklahoma Sooners and Michigan Wolverines. Oklahoma had little trouble with UTEP in Week 1, but Michigan should have suffered a stunning loss to Western Michigan if you asked most college football fans. The Wolverines received an early Christmas gift in being allowed to attempt a second Hail Mary that led to Michigan staving off what would have been the biggest upset of the week.

Matchups with the Biggest National Attention

The most watched game this week will be the massive clash between Texas and Ohio State. However, there are several other exciting games to keep an eye on, starting on Friday night.

Kansas will host Missouri in an underrated rivalry game, while Rutgers will look to right the ship against old Big East rival Boston College. Oklahoma State will host Oregon in a game that figured to have more luster a few years ago on Saturday at 12 p.m. ET, and East Carolina will welcome Appalachian State to Greenville in a game that will determine the best non-Power Four team in North Carolina.

UCF will travel to the Steel City to face Pittsburgh in an intriguing mid-afternoon game between two potential sleepers in the Power Four, and the night game between Iowa and Iowa State has brought us some very interesting results over the last couple decades.

Games That Could Impact the Rankings

Texas A&M will host Arizona State at noon on Saturday, and the Aggies are only two-touchdown favorites against the Sun Devils. Many observers are down on Mike Elko’s squad, and a loss would probably drop Texas A&M out of the Top 25.

Alabama has an early SEC test against Kentucky, and the oddsmakers aren’t very high on the Crimson Tide this season. The Crimson Tide are only favored by 10.5 points on the road against the Wildcats, so there’s no doubt that Alabama will be on upset alert.

Also, BYU must be feeling a little trepidation coming into their showdown with Arizona. Although the Cougars have won five straight games against the Wildcats, they are only 7.5-point favorites in Provo.

ESPN NCAAF Picks & Predictions

There are plenty of games to sink your teeth into this weekend. Saturday is exceptionally busy with all but six Week 2 games scheduled to take part on September 12, so let’s get into the college football picks.

Predicted Winners

In the marquee game, I like Ohio State to knock off Texas. The Longhorns don’t have as great of a home field advantage as you might think, and the Buckeyes are probably the most talented team in the country. Ohio State completely shut down Arch Manning in last year’s season opener between these two teams, so Manning has to prove himself before I back him in a big game.

East Carolina should be able to beat Appalachian State by double digits too. The Pirates were hammered by Alabama in Week 1, but they didn’t show too much of their playbook in that game. They were one of the top Group of Six teams last season with a 9-4 record, and there is a lot more to like compared to an Appalachian State squad that went 5-8 last year and collapsed over the last half of the year.

Potential Upsets to Watch

Rutgers was one of the teams that suffered a rather ignominious defeat in Week 1. The Scarlet Knights suffered a 37-21 defeat at the hands of lowly Massachusetts, and Rutgers was a 30-point favorite in that game. However, you can say make a strong case that Rutgers buried themselves with four turnovers. Boston College was down 24-0 to Cincinnati in the second half before the Bearcats turned down the pressure, and I think it’s a mistake that the Eagles are favored on Friday night.

Games That Could Be Closer Than Expected

Don’t be surprised if LSU doesn’t cover the spread against in-state opponent Louisiana Tech on Saturday night in Baton Rouge. The Bayou Bengals haven’t lost at home to an in-state opponent in 24 years, so they are in no danger of losing here, but there will be a natural letdown after their thrashing of Clemson in Week 1. LSU completely dominated every aspect of that game, and this feels like a sandwich game with the Tigers facing Ole Miss in Oxford next Saturday evening.

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ESPN NCAAF Odds & Betting Preview

The college football odds highlight some pretty large spreads once again this week as most teams are still playing non-conference opponents. We only saw a handful of upsets in Week 1, but that could change this week.

Friday, September 11

Boston College -3 vs. Rutgers, O/U 54.5 (ESPN2)

Kansas +5.5 vs. Missouri, O/U 50.5 (FOX)

Saturday, September 12

Oklahoma State +22.5 vs. Oregon, O/U 57.5 (ESPN)

Texas A&M -14.5 vs. Arizona State, O/U 51.5 (ABC)

Michigan +5.5 vs. Oklahoma, O/U 43.5 (FOX)

East Carolina -7.5 vs. Appalachian State, O/U 56.5 (ESPNU)

Kentucky +10.5 vs. Alabama, O/U 49.5 (ABC)

BYU -7.5 vs. Arizona, O/U 50.5 (FOX)

Pittsburgh -7 vs. UCF, O/U 57.5 (ESPN2)

Georgia Tech +12.5 vs. Tennessee, O/U 55.5 (ESPN)

Texas -1.5 vs. Ohio State, O/U 48.5 (ABC)

LSU -35.5 vs. Louisiana Tech, O/U 55.5 (SECN)

Iowa -14.5 vs. Iowa State, O/U 41.5 (NBC)

Utah -12.5 vs. Arkansas, O/U 56.5 (ESPN)

How the Betting Markets Compare

There isn’t a lot of differentiation between betting markets this early in the season, but we have seen a lot of lines move quickly based on their opening numbers. East Carolina was a 10-point favorite on Sunday morning, Texas A&M and Oklahoma were larger favorites than they are currently, and LSU was only -32.5.

Factors That Could Move the Odds

A surprise injury announcement is the biggest thing that can move the odds, especially if it is too a starting quarterback. Coaches announcing lineup changes, travel issues, and player morale can also have a sizable affect on the odds over the course of a week.

Final ESPN College Football Predictions

The favorite one of my college football upset picks is Rutgers by the letter of the law, but the best value lies in Iowa State. Anyone who knows this game will tell you that it is usually ugly and very low scoring, so I will jump on the chance to take a double-digit underdog in this situation.

I also like East Carolina to beat Appalachian State by double digits, and I appreciate getting a better number as more money has come in on the Mountaineers. Dowell Loggains was not a great hire, and he was not very impressive in calling plays for South Carolina before taking this job.

Biggest Takeaways Before Game Day

One of the worst things you can do as a gambler is to chase numbers. For instance, if you wanted LSU -32.5, you shouldn’t just blindly bet the Tigers -35.5 in this game. Typically, there will be some pushback after a strong initial line movement, so it’s best to stay the course and hope the line comes down.

Games Worth Following This Week

Most eyes will be on Texas and Ohio State in the late game, but this is a great day to break out the second television or get your Smart TV prepped for split screening. There are several quality games in every timeslot, and there is bound to be some drama that pulls viewers in from other games.

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