/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/57342427/usa_today_10360344.0.jpg)
HELLOOOOOOOOOOOO, Sooner fans! It’s the time of the week for me to make my gambling picks! Why do I do this? Because I enjoy it. Do I recommend that you take my advice and actually place these bets? Meh...
This week’s schedule is pretty great, honestly. We have Okie State vs. Western Virginia (they get mad when you call them that), The World’s Largest Outdoor Cocktail Party (Florida-Georgia), TCU at Iowa State, NC State (THEY’RE GOOD!) at Notre Dame and Penn State at Ohio State to cap it all off. Here’s how I think stuff will shake out:
Florida State (-4) at Boston College (Friday) - Don’t look now, but Boston College is playing quality football right now. Three of their four losses are against top-15 teams, and they’ve won consecutive games on the road at Louisville and Virginia (who is okay this year). James Blackman is still going through some growing pains at QB for FSU, but they’ve at least been competitive in all of their losses. This team will have to get over the ump in some of the close games in order to even make a bowl game at this point. Gambling pick: The discrepancy in talent is just too great, and Florida State covers on the road. Under 47
Oklahoma State (-7.5) at West Virginia - Oklahoma State’s offense probably won’t go into a shell like it did in Austin. Seriously, how weird was that? Anyway, West Virginia has been a bit lucky in its last two outings against Texas Tech and Baylor, who both outgained the Mountaineers. However, this defense has shown its teeth at times in big games despite allowing 460 yards per contest, so I’m not expecting OSU to just have its way here. Gambling pick: Oklahoma State wins a one-score game as West Virginia beats the spread. Over 73
Texas (-8.5) at Baylor - Baylor announced earlier this week that Zach Smith would get the start over Charlie Brewer, who nearly brought the Bears back from a huge deficit last week. As it currently stands, I don’t think there’s any way Baylor beats Texas unless Brewer comes in at some point and somehow works some magic. There are even some (Berry Tramel) who are comparing him to Baker Mayfield at this point. Gambling pick: Texas wins and covers. Under 57
Georgia (-14) vs. Florida (in Jacksonville) - This rivalry is a difficult one to predict because Georgia teams often play as if they stayed out late and partied with their fans into the wee hours of Saturday morning. I don’t see that happening this time around. That was more of a Mark Richt thing. Gambling pick: Georgia covers the -14, maybe even by a lot. Florida might not score. Under 43.5
TCU (-6.5) at Iowa State - ISU seems to have found its QB in Kyle Kempt, has a great back in David Montgomery and a very good group of receivers led by Allen Lazard. Additionally, the defense has been really solid since losing to Iowa last month. But do I see this Iowa State offense doing all that much against this TCU defense? Honestly... not really. Do I think Iowa State’s defense can slow down TCU’s offense? That actually seems much more likely. Gambling pick: This line isn’t very big, so I think TCU covers. Under 48.5
NC State at Notre Dame (-7.5) - This is going to be a much tougher test for Notre Dame than the one they faced last week against USC. The matchup to watch will be Notre Dame’s ground attack vs. NC State’s front seven, which is only allowing 91.3 rushing yards par game through seven contests. Josh Adams has rushed for 967 yards already this season, so something’s gotta give. Gambling pick: NC State pulls off the upset in South Bend, vaulting themselves into the playoff convo while knocking Notre Dame out of it. Under 58
Penn State at Ohio State (-6.5) - I still have no clue how good Ohio State actually is. I watched Baker Mayfield tear them apart. I watched an OU defense stifle their offense. I’ve watched them dominate a bunch of teams since then, but I haven’t seen them dominate a team that was worth a damn. Meanwhile, Penn State arguably doesn’t have a great win on its resume either — though Saquon Barkley has looked fantastic. How will Barkley do against an Ohio State front seven that we know is good? I’m guessing his Heisman resume isn’t going to look quite as solid after Saturday. Gambling pick: Ohio State covers at home, creating some annoying College Football Playoff madness. Under 57
Texas Tech at Oklahoma (-20) - A huge spread at home against a team that is very much capable of scoring a lot of points? I’m not a huge fan of these games, and OU hasn’t covered since the Tulane game. However, I think OU’s defense will find a way to limit the damage, and I think the crowd will help a bit in that regard. I’m also confident that Baker Mayfield is going to put on a show in this one despite the fact that Tech’s defense is much better than it’s been in years past. Gambling pick: The Oklahoma Sooners cover, but I’m definitely taking the over at 74.
Thursday TV Schedule
Matchup | Time (ET) | TV | Streaming |
---|---|---|---|
Matchup | Time (ET) | TV | Streaming |
Eastern Michigan at Northern Illinois | 7:00 PM | CBSSN | CBSSports.com |
Toledo at Ball State | 7:00 PM | None | WatchESPN.com |
South Alabama at Georgia State | 7:30 PM | ESPNU | WatchESPN.com |
#20 Stanford at Oregon State | 9:00 PM | ESPN | WatchESPN.com |
Friday TV Schedule
Matchup | Time (ET) | TV | Streaming |
---|---|---|---|
Matchup | Time (ET) | TV | Streaming |
Tulane at #24 Memphis | 8:00 PM | CBSSN | CBSSports.com |
Florida State at Boston College | 8:00 PM | ESPN | WatchESPN.com |
Tulsa at SMU | 9:00 PM | ESPN2 | WatchESPN.com |
Saturday TV Schedule
Matchup | Time (ET) | TV | Streaming |
---|---|---|---|
Matchup | Time (ET) | TV | Streaming |
Buffalo at Akron | 11:30 AM | CBSSN | CBSSports.com |
#5 Wisconsin at Illinois | 12:00 PM | ESPN | WatchESPN.com |
#8 Miami at North Carolina | 12:00 PM | ESPN2 | WatchESPN.com |
#11 Oklahoma State at #22 West Virginia | 12:00 PM | ABC | WatchESPN.com |
Rutgers at Michigan | 12:00 PM | BTN | BTN2Go.com |
Arkansas at Ole Miss | 12:00 PM | SEC Network | WatchESPN.com |
Texas at Baylor | 12:00 PM | ESPNU | WatchESPN.com |
Louisville at Wake Forest | 12:20 PM | ACC Network | WatchESPN.com |
Virginia at Pittsburgh | 12:30 PM | ACC Network | WatchESPN.com |
California at Colorado | 2:00 PM | Pac-12 Networks | Pac-12.com |
Florida Intl at Marshall | 2:30 PM | None | Facebook.com |
Kansas State at Kansas | 3:00 PM | FS1 | FoxSportsGo.com |
Air Force at Colorado State | 3:00 PM | CBSSN | CBSSports.com |
San Jose State at BYU | 3:00 PM | None | WatchESPN.com |
#2 Penn State at #6 Ohio State | 3:30 PM | FOX | FoxSportsGo.com |
#3 Georgia at Florida | 3:30 PM | CBS | CBSSports.com |
#4 TCU at #25 Iowa State | 3:30 PM | ABC/ESPN2 | WatchESPN.com |
#14 NC State at #9 Notre Dame | 3:30 PM | NBC | NBCSports.com |
UCLA at #12 Washington | 3:30 PM | ABC/ESPN2 | WatchESPN.com |
#16 Michigan State at Northwestern | 3:30 PM | ESPN | WatchESPN.com |
Georgia Southern at Troy | 3:30 PM | None | WatchESPN.com |
Appalachian State at UMass | 3:30 PM | NESN/Eleven | UMassAthletics.com |
Louisiana Tech at Rice | 3:30 PM | None | FloFootball.com |
Indiana at Maryland | 3:30 PM | BTN | BTN2Go.com |
Houston at #17 South Florida | 3:45 PM | ESPNU | WatchESPN.com |
Vanderbilt at South Carolina | 4:00 PM | SEC Network | WatchESPN.com |
Florida Atlantic at Western Kentucky | 4:30 PM | Stadium | Twitter.com |
Austin Peay at #18 UCF | 5:00 PM | None | WatchESPN.com |
Louisiana Monroe at Idaho | 5:00 PM | None | WatchESPN.com |
Utah at Oregon | 5:45 PM | Pac-12 Networks | Pac-12.com |
Texas State at Coastal Carolina | 6:00 PM | None | WatchESPN.com |
Missouri at Connecticut | 6:30 PM | CBSSN | CBSSports.com |
Old Dominion at North Texas | 6:30 PM | None | WatchESPN.com |
Minnesota at Iowa | 6:30 PM | FS1 | FoxSportsGo.com |
UAB at Southern Mississippi | 7:00 PM | None | CUSA.tv |
Mississippi State at Texas A&M | 7:15 PM | ESPN | WatchESPN.com |
Duke at #13 Virginia Tech | 7:20 PM | ACC Network | WatchESPN.com |
New Mexico at Wyoming | 7:30 PM | ESPNU | WatchESPN.com |
Tennessee at Kentucky | 7:30 PM | SEC Network | WatchESPN.com |
Nebraska at Purdue | 7:30 PM | BTN | BTN2Go.com |
Georgia Tech at #7 Clemson | 8:00 PM | ABC/ESPN2 | WatchESPN.com |
Texas Tech at #10 Oklahoma | 8:00 PM | ABC/ESPN2 | WatchESPN.com |
UT San Antonio at UTEP | 8:00 PM | KMYS | CUSA.tv |
Arkansas State at New Mexico State | 8:00 PM | None | WatchESPN.com |
#15 Washington State at Arizona | 9:30 PM | Pac-12 | Pac-12.com |
UNLV at Fresno State | 10:00 PM | AT&T SportsNet | None |
Boise State at Utah State | 10:00 PM | CBSSN | CBSSports.com |
#21 USC at Arizona State | 10:45 PM | ESPN | WatchESPN.com |
San Diego State at Hawai'i | 11:15 PM | ESPN2 | WatchESPN.com |