The birds are chirping and the leaves are changing. It’s Football Season!!! Week One of College Football starts this Thursday with games every day this weekend. Let’s dive into some of the best betting lines for profit this week.
Coastal Carolina is 113rd in the nation in returning production including the loss of 4-year starter Grayson McCall. The Chants have a lot of pieces to replace whereas the Gamecocks of J'Ville State return an experienced team loaded with high D1 transfers. I expect the Gamecocks to win handily.
Best Bet: J’Ville St -2.5
NC State starts off their season with in-state foe Western Carolina in a matchup that screams blowout inbound. The Wolfpack love to run the ball and establish control of the clock so I lean towards a 42-10 type of game.
Best Bet: U60.5
It wouldn't be the opening of college football without blowing up expectations for Coach Prime and his Colorado squad. They've made some interesting transfer portal moves and expect to have a high-scoring offense. North Dakota St is a very good, scrappy FCS team that expects to hang around in this game. With Colorado’s expectation to score lots of points, I expect North Dakota State to hang around leading to the over hitting easily.
Best Bet: O60.5
TCU comes into this season with a similar outlook to Colorado with a high-powered offense but questions with their defense. Stanford returns their elite QB/WR duo from last year and should be a totally different offense than typically expected from a Stanford team. This game could be a barnburner between two good offenses and questionable defenses. Hammer the over.
Best Bet: O59.5
Clemson gets a tough draw to start the season, essentially playing a road game against Georgia at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta. This Georgia team has not fallen off from their dominant run over the past 5 years and this Clemson squad has been hamstrung by Dabo’s insistence to not recruit out of the transfer portal. I lean towards a Georgia blowout but the over could also be a smart play in this game.
Best Bet: Georgia -13.5
I'm continuing the trend from last year until it proves me wrong. Iowa Under’s have hit at a spectacular rate for the past couple of years and until they start looking like a modern College Football offense, I will be fading the Hawkeyes.
Best Bet: U40.5
This game is reminiscent of the Week 0 matchup between New Mexico and Montana State game where the FCS team (MSU) was surprisingly favored against their FBS opponent. I can’t remotely justify this line and with OK State having Heisman candidate Ollie Gordon leading this squad that is simply miles better top to bottom than any FCS squad. OK State may end up underestimating their opponent but at home and with the expectations the Cowboys have for this season, I just can’t see them losing.
Best Bet: OK State -9.5
The battle of the Sunshine State could lead to the first Head Coach firing in the 2024 season. Billy Napier at Florida has the hottest seat in the country after a couple of lackluster seasons at the helm. Opening the season against a talented in-state rival is not ideal for the Gators and I could easily see Napier getting canned if Miami shows up and handles this Gators team that should be better considering their SEC advantages. Miami’s Cam Ward is a sneaky dark-horse Heisman candidate and I expect for him to jumpstart his campaign by putting the nail in the coffin for Napier’s Gators.
Best Bet: Miami -2.5
