RIP Utah. Last week, we were finally burned betting on low-scoring Utah games. That led to a minor setback, going 1-2 on the weekend. That takes us to 11-10 on the year. However, in terms of units, we were still up 0.85 units for the week, thanks in large part to Iowa’s upset win over Wisconsin. We are now up a cool 2.07 units on the year. Trust the process!
We have some big-time top-25 matchups to pick this week. That means we have to make some big-time picks. All lines come via Draft Kings as of Thursday evening. Also, be sure to catch my, and my fellow ATB bettors’, locks and underdogs of the week on Around The Book.
Let’s get started and dive into the best bets for Week 8 of the college football season!
#7 Penn State at #3 Ohio State: Penn State ML (+164)
We are kicking things off with the biggest game of the week. Thanks to greedy TV executives, it will also kick-off college football Saturday at noon ET. That actually could limit Ohio State’s home field advantage since they won’t have the primetime advantage.
That should be the least of their concerns though, as Penn State is a matchup nightmare. We saw the Buckeyes struggle against a tough Notre Dame defense earlier this year. The Nittany Lions could present an even bigger challenge. They might be the one team in the country that can contain Marvin Harrison Jr.
This will likely be a defensive struggle. The team that wins this game will be the one whose young quarterback makes the fewest mistakes. Penn State’s Drew Allar has yet to throw a pick this year, and has generally looked more impressive than his Ohio State counterpart, Kyle McCord.
At worst, this is a toss-up. Take the Nittany Lions, who are getting some solid value.
#16 Duke at #4 Florida State: Duke ML (+470)
The disrespect that Duke is being shown here is unreal. The Blue Devils have just one loss this year, and it was a close one against a good Notre Dame team. The Fighting Irish may be flawed, but they are far better than anyone Florida State has played this year.
These ACC foes do have one common opponent so far this year: Clemson. Duke routed them in the season opener 28-7. Meanwhile, the Tigers took the Seminoles to overtime a few weeks later.
To be clear, none of this means that Florida State is not the better team. However, they are far from infallible. Duke is more than good enough to catch them. At +470, those are odds are way too generous to pass up.
#25 UCLA at Stanford: Under 53.5 (-110)
While the Utah well may have run dry, there is plenty of ‘under’ value to be found elsewhere in the soon-to-be-defunct Pac-12. Both UCLA and Stanford have played a lot of low-scoring games this year.
For the Bruins, the low-scoring can be attributed to a solid defense and a run-heavy offense. Meanwhile, the Cardinal just aren’t very good. They typically don’t score a lot of points, so their opponents only have to pour it on so much.
Expect the Bruins to win this one comfortably without lighting up the scoreboard. The final score will probably be something like 27-13. Hammer the under.
Week 8 College Football Best Bets Recap
- PSU ML (+164)
- Duke ML (+470)
- UCLA @ Stanford UNDER 53.5 (-110)
- Parlay odds: +2772