Northwestern heads into their Saturday showdown against Purdue 3-0 ATS. Yet I’m not sold on their new look mini transformation. Each victory they had came against offenses that were non-existent primarily in second halves with Nebraska and Iowa. Expect Purdue to make necessary in-game adjustments that give them the upper hand at ending Northwestern’s hot start. 

Notre Dame is coming off a huge upset win over Clemson. Saturday, they’ll take on a Boston College team that also played Clemson close in a 34-28 loss two weeks ago. In years past the Irish have shown vulnerability off of a big game under Coach Brian Kelly. Yet today is the right matchup for the Irish, who should overwhelm the Eagles with their ground attack. Grab Notre Dame.  

Minus starting quarterback Jack Abraham, Southern Miss will look to continue to turn to their ground game. Last week against North Alabama the Golden Eagles rushed for 245 yards. Protecting their new inexperienced starting quarterback Trey Lowe, is feasible against Western Kentucky whom has scored fourteen points or less in five straight games.

The versatile of TCU quarterback Max Duggan has put them back at .500. Off of consecutive wins and ATS covers they’ll face a West Virginia team that’s been a juggernaut at home. Overall they’re 4-0 at home with an average margin of victory of twenty-five points. Grab West Virginia. 

Changing over to a new coach and a true freshman quarterback is always tough to gauge ATS. That’s the case for Washington State under new coach Nick Rolovich. They’ll take on an Oregon State team that impressed finishing 2019 5-1 ATS. In the middle of a season that would be an advantage for the Beavers, but with no film on Washington State’s new offense take the road underdog. Play Washington State.

Tonight, Stanford will travel to Oregon to face a Ducks team that comes in with high expectations and is ranked 12th in the country. Historically they’ve been a competitive team against the Ducks including three straight wins from 2016-2018. With low expectations off a 4-8 season grab the Cardinal as double-digit underdogs. 

Off a bye week the Florida State Seminoles will host Pittsburgh. The last time the Seminoles had a home game they upset fifth ranked North Carolina. Four straight losses by Pittsburgh has reversed a season that started off at 3-0. Yet outside last week’s blowout loss to the Irish their losses have been close and competitive. Grab the points here. 

In consecutive weeks the Cincinnati Bearcats have blown out formidable opponents in SMU and Memphis. As a result they’ve ascended in the polls and are ranked sixth. Yet Saturday’s opponent is their most dangerous yet in Houston. The Cougars are coming off a major letdown against Central Florida and will be aiming to play spoiler. Grab Houston.

Northwestern passed both tests to begin the season against Maryland and Iowa. Now film is out on them and their new look offense led by quarterback Peyton Ramsey. Expect the Cornhuskers to be prepared as the Wildcats play their first game with true pressure on them. Additionally the Cornhusker’s defense allowed just ten points to the Wildcats in 2019. Play Nebraska. 

A solid matchup will take place tonight in the Mountain West as San Jose State travels to San Diego State. Both teams are off to a 2-0 start but much is still unknown with San Diego State. They faced two poor opponents to begin the season in UNLV and Utah State. That has downgraded their number ATS tonight against former SEC quarterback Nick Starkel of the Spartans. Jump on the price as the Aztecs showcase they are a well balanced team.  

One of the biggest wins last week was Wyoming’s 31-7 victory over Hawaii. The Cowboys rushed 59 times for 281 yards and four touchdowns. Tonight, they’ll face a Colorado State team that vastly underachieved in their opening loss to Fresno State. Expect, for the Rams to force Cowboys backup quarterback Levi Williams to win the game versus the potent Cowboys rushing attack. Back the home underdog in the Rams.

Saturday, two schools in close proximity of each other will meet as Charlotte takes on Duke. It’s been a trying season for former Clemson quarterback Chase Brice of the Blue Devils. He’s thrown six touchdowns and eleven interceptions. Expect his turnover woes to continue, and for the 49ers to battle hard for a potential upset.

Two teams that have back pedaled from pre-season expectations meet Saturday in Virginia Tech and Louisville. The Hokies are 0-3 ATS on the road, including producing a season-low sixteen points last Saturday against Wake Forest.  That’s created an opportune buy low spot today against a Louisville team coming off a blowout win over Florida State. Take the Hokies 

In consecutive weeks Memphis has played from behind in wins against Central Florida and Temple. Saturday, they’ll face a Cincinnati Bearcats team coming off a blowout 42-13 victory over SMU. A stout defense should benefit the home team as the Bearcats are allowing just 12.5 points per game. Grab the Bearcats.

Thursday, Colorado State will partake in their first game this season at Fresno State. Not much is known on the Rams depth due to last week’s cancellation against New Mexico. Yet, new Coach Steve Addazio was able to bring in transfers from his former stomping grounds at Boston College and Temple. Expect the Rams to get the win on the small number against the Bulldogs. 

UNLV enters the 2020 season under a new coach in Marcus Arroyo. For all the success San Diego State has had in the Mountain West, the Rebels have surprisingly gave them fits the past two seasons. In 2018 the Rebels won as twenty three point underdogs, and in 2019 covered a double-digit spread with a three point loss. Experience and confidence from the Rebels upperclassmen should hold within the number again. Grab UNLV. 

A team that has been decimated with injuries at the quarterback position has been Texas-San Antonio. They’ve started four different quarterbacks, which has resulted in the offense scoring just sixteen points a game the last three weeks. Yet, Louisiana Tech’s offense has also sputtered averaging seventeen points in their last three games. In what may be a sloppy game grab the home underdog.

Last season the Purdue Boilermakers had a carousel of quarterback injuries that resulted in usage of three different quarterbacks. This season they’ll head into 2020 with a lot more concerns at the position. Yet, Iowa is also transitioning at the position after losing Nate Stanley to graduation. Expect the Boilermaker’s to cover as a small home underdog.

Perhaps no quarterback has had as much of a roller coaster start to his collegiate career than Spencer Rattler. The redshirt freshman has struggled at times with his composure that resulted in consecutive losses against Kansas State and Iowa State. Expect Rattler to turn the corner with four games under his belt and coming off a bye week. Grab the Sooners on a cheap number based on the Sooner’s worst September since 2016. 

The UAB Blazers have one of the best home win streaks in college football at 21. Friday, will be a big test as they take on UL Lafayette. The Ragin’ Cajuns are coming off their first loss last week against Coastal Carolina. It was the third straight week that their game was decided by three points or less. Stepping outside their conference look for UL Lafayette to utilize their speed and talent much better. Grab the road favorites here.

Led by quarterback Sam Howell, the North Carolina Tar Heels have vaulted into the top five. Saturday they’ll head on the road as huge favorites against Florida State. With both programs in uncharted territories the line value lies with the Tar Heels. Although the Tar Heels recent victories have not been indicative of a top five team, they’ll blow out an under performing Seminoles squad.

Saturday, North Texas travels on the road for the first time this season against Middle Tennessee. They’ll face a Blue Raiders team that’s covered three straight games including an outright win against Florida International. Yet look for the Mean Green to be able to match the Blue Raiders offensively. Grab the points here in a value underdog spot.

Saturday, an ACC clash will take place between Virginia and Wake Forest. The Demon Deacons are well rested with fifteen days in between their victory over Campbell. That should give Virginia opportunities to take advantage of Wake Forest’s rust. Grab the Cavaliers in quarterback Lindell Stone’s first career start

Last week South Carolina got their first win of the season in a blowout 41-7 victory over Vanderbilt. Now they’ll host an Auburn team that has been unsteady in consecutive weeks. Grab the Gamecocks as small home underdogs to take advantage of a Tigers team that leaves the door open in games. Play South Carolina. 

The Pittsburgh Panthers have lost consecutive games by a point, dropping them out of the top twenty-five. Derailment to the Panthers season has been caused by a plethora of key injuries. They’re starting to regain health which should give them a boost on the field against the Hurricanes. Grab the near two touchdown underdog as the Panthers play a competitive game against the Hurricanes. 

One of the more impressive teams out of the Sun Belt has been Georgia State. They fought hard in an overtime loss to UL Lafayette and blew out East Carolina. An explosive offense averaging forty points a game is the main reason their impressive start. Arkansas State may not have a strong defense but they have a poised junior quarterback in Logan Bonner. Grab the Red Wolves in what should be an electric Thursday game. 

An under the radar matchup lies in Conference USA as Charlotte travels to face North Texas. The 49ers are 0-2 but have represented well in both losses. Against Appalachian State they were down 21-20 with a minute left in the third quarter. Last week against Florida Atlantic they blew a 10-0 halftime lead. Saturday, look for the 49ers to have emphasis on competition for two halves. Grab the 49ers.

The Marshall Thundering Herd have been a well-rested team. Their last game was three weeks ago when they upset formerly ranked Appalachian State. Since they’ve had postponements but will now take on Western Kentucky Saturday. Western Kentucky has failed ATS in all three of their matchups including last week’s slim victory over a poor team in Middle Tennessee State. Yet, look for Western Kentucky to put it together and take advantage of Marshall’s layoff. Grab Western Kentucky. 

Saturday, two teams hoping to get back in the win column will meet in East Carolina and South Florida. The transition for new South Florida Bulls coach Jeff Scott has been slow for his offense. Sophomore quarterback Jordan McCloud has thrown for just 269 yards through three games. A step down from top twenty five competition in should aide in McCloud’s performance. Grab the Bulls to pull away from East Carolina.

Off a big upset win over Mississippi State, Arkansas finds themselves as steep double-digit underdogs against Auburn. While Auburn may get things into gear offensively, look for Arkansas to be able to compete. Senior quarterback Feleipe Franks should be settled in after a year off from on field action. Grab Arkansas

Georgia Tech’s freshman quarterback Jeff Sims has struggled to begin the season with three touchdowns and eight interceptions. The Yellow Jackets are also averaging just nineteen points a game. Yet, Louisville is having major struggles of their own. Junior quarterback Malik Cunningham has thrown five interceptions, which equals what he threw the entire 2019 season. Grab the Yellow Jackets as the pressure is on Louisville to get their first ACC win. 

The Oklahoma Sooners find themselves in a similar spot from 2019. Once again after a loss against Kansas State the Sooners take on Iowa State the following week. Offensively expect a much better performance and rhythm from quarterback Spencer Rattler. It’s the defense that’s concerning. Last year the Sooners surrendered a regular season high 41 points against Iowa State. Grab the Cyclones plus the points.

For the Mississippi State Bulldogs the benefit of an early season schedule has paved the way for defying expectations. After upsetting LSU, the Bulldogs will face an Arkansas team that’s a work in progress. Graduate transfer and former SEC starting quarterback in Feleipe Franks has never been comfortable in fast paced high-scoring games. Look for the Bulldogs to take advantage as Mike Leach continues to light up the scoreboard. 

Perhaps no team has performed as poorly ATS as Southern Miss. The Golden Eagles as favorites have lost twice outright and were embarrassed 66-24 by Tulane last Saturday. They’ll now face a North Texas team that’s had an extra week to prepare as a result of last week’s cancellation. This is a buy low spot on the Golden Eagles as their season finally has a bright spot.

Saturday, the LSU Tigers will look to redeem themselves after a tough loss against Mississippi State. The defending National Champions were out of sync on both sides of the football against the Bulldogs. They’ll certainly have their chances to avenge that performance against an under manned Vanderbilt team. Yet, starting a true freshman in Ken Seals look for the Commodores to hang within the number as they did against Texas A&M. Grab Vanderbilt. 

Missed opportunities made the final score of Kentucky’s week one loss to Auburn worse than the outcome. Saturday, they’ll face an Ole Miss team coming off one of the worst defensive efforts last week against Florida. The Gators compiled 51 points and were forced to punt just once. Yet, Lane Kiffin will have his team better prepared as the Wildcats come out the gate 0-2 ATS. 

A team that should be able to break out of an 0-2 start is UL Monroe. Quarterback Colby Suits showed some strides last week against Texas State throwing for 377 yards and two touchdowns. Expect the Warhawks defense to be able to negate UTEP enough to cover the near double digit spread. 

Last week one of the biggest outright underdogs was Liberty. The near two touchdown underdog never had a problem against Western Kentucky in a 30-24 win. Now film is out on dual threat quarterback Malik Willis. Look for FIU in their first game to hang around and stay within the number

Perhaps no team has been as ill-prepared to open the season as Middle Tennessee. They’ve sustained two losses of 42-0 and 47-14. Junior quarterback Asher O’Hara has struggled to find his rhythm with zero touchdown passes and three interceptions. Tonight look for O’Hara to find his stride and rhythm early. Grab the points with Middle Tennessee. 

Louisville showcased their two-way team skillset in a solid ATS pull away victory over Western Kentucky. In prior years this would of been a typical top twenty-five matchup letdown spot for the Hurricanes. Landing grad transfer D’Eriq King changes that. Grab Miami to win the spotlight game of the day.

One of the first teams to step onto the field this year in college football was Southern Miss. The Golden Eagles suffered several lapses on both ends of the field and lost outright as heavy favorites to South Alabama. With a couple of weeks to correct matters look for the Golden Eagles to have high value ATS wise over typically strong conference rival Louisiana Tech. Grab Southern Miss. 

Early in the college football season the Sun Belt has shined ATS. Yet Texas State and UL Monroe are a combined 0-3 overall. The Bobcats faltered immensely as big favorites in their week two loss to UTSA. Led by third year starter Tyler Vitt look for the Bobcats to shine. Grab Texas State

Saturday features a loaded card in college football. Zack feels he has a great beat on Appalachian State which was his first CFB winner last week. This week he’ll go for them ATS against Marshall. Last week Appalachian State showed their strength as a team which ignited after three quarters against Charlotte. I expect a strong quarter to quarter effort from Appalachian State for Saturday. Grab them minus the points, and stay tuned for additional college plays Saturday 

Appalachian State has been one of the best lower level college football teams over the last several years. They recruit to their system needs and have impact players on both sides of the football. Yet, rust and a big spread are two tricky variables here. After seeing the Sun Belt go 3-0 to open college football, look for their powerhouse to suffer ATS. Grab Charlotte.

Deficiencies offensively from the Auburn Tigers caused a mid-season lag that resulted in three of five losses. Against main competition that resulted in wins the Tigers escaped with an eight point win over Texas A&M, three point win over Alabama, and a six point win over Oregon. Safe to say they’re not use to pulling away from main competition. Today expect that as Minnesota’s offensive system should be affected drastically by the Tigers. Grab Auburn. 

The Miami Hurricanes resume to enter bowl season faltered end of season. They lost to Florida International and then finished out ACC play with a loss to Duke. The Blue Devils had come into the game on a five game losing streak. Yet look for Miami to have an uptick of offense against Louisiana Tech and gain control in the second half. Grab Miami. 

The respect for the top part of the Sun Belt has grown in recent years. Their success in bowl games has stood out amongst the non-power five conferences. Saturday a familiar Sun Belt conference championship matchup will take place between Appalachian State and UL Lafayette. In their lone matchup this season UL Lafayette struggled to move the football and lost at home 17-7. Expect another low scoring matchup but for UL Lafayette to have a bit more success than their October matchup. Grab the points here.

A battle in the Big 12 of teams at 7-4 will take place between Iowa State and Kansas State. Look for the Cyclones to air it out plenty against a Kansas State defense that has been susceptible against the big play. In what should be a close game for four quarters expect a late touchdown by the Cyclones to get past the number. 

Saturday the Pittsburgh Panthers will look to bounce back from a shutout loss against Virginia Tech. Already bowl eligible they’ll look to sharpen their miscues against a hungry Boston College team. Boston College must win Saturday to get into bowl season. Yet look for the Panthers to finally clear their woes of winning games by close margins. Grab Pittsburgh.

A teams free fall that was unexpected in-conference has been Duke. In an ACC conference filled with transitional teams Duke has been unable to capitalize. Last week’s blowout home loss to Syracuse put a new low on Duke’s four game losing streak. Expect a prideful performance against their close in-state rivals of Wake Forest. Grab Duke.

Saturday Texas A&M will get a chance to play spoiler on the road against Georgia. The Bulldogs pulled off an impressive road win a week ago against Auburn but must raise their level of offense. Over the past five games in the SEC they’ve averaged just twenty-two points. Expect the defense to continue to aide the offense as Georgia pushes past the double-digit number. Grab Georgia. 

Both Georgia Southern and Arkansas State became bowl eligible last week. Saturday led by freshman quarterback Layne Hatcher Arkansas State will aim to win their fourth straight game. Even as the road team expect Georgia Southern’s run heavy offense to wear down Arkansas State over four quarters. Grab the small underdog here. 

For the second consecutive season Arizona State has had a quick reversal to their season. Shocking wins early on got them ranked inside the top twenty five. Three straight losses have exposed how far back their offense is in the conference. Add a worn down defense and ASU could be in trouble for a fourth straight loss. Yet look for Oregon State’s tempo offensively to fit ASU’s style of play. Grab ASU. 

Young teams in a tough conference are going to tailspin south. That has been the case for South Carolina as their battles in-conference carried over to an out of conference loss last week. Appalachian State out of the Sun Belt defeated the Gamecocks 20-15. Now the Gamecocks must travel on the road to face an Aggies team playing their best football of the season and off a bye. Still grab the Gamecocks on a number just a bit too high. 

A week ago out in the Sun Belt South Alabama nearly upset Texas State. They took advantage of key field position and volume carries for their tailbacks. Saturday UL Lafayette will feature their own high dosage of strong running that will make South Alabama one dimensional. That will put pressure on their inexperienced quarterbacks and give UL Lafayette a chance for fifty plus points. Grab UL Lafayette.

The winless Akron Zips are running out of time to get a win in 2019. Tonight they’ll host an Eastern Michigan team that’s lost four of five but been in games. The Zips on the other hand have been blown out with very little offense. Look for the Zips to finally show some worth ATS in this one. Grab Akron 

The unknown Saturday comes into play with how effective Alabama quarterback Tua Tagavailoa will be. In years past Tua has been able to come back and not skip a beat. Yet Saturday’s challenge is much different. Alabama’s dominance over LSU has featured several blowouts and a win over the Tigers in seven straight years. Look for the Tigers to finally challenge the Crimson Tide and cover. 

Execution of game plans has been one of the main strengths of Virginia Tech. Through numerous issues at the quarterback position they’ve found a way to win or be in winnable situations. Their only bad loss came against Duke. Look for the Hokies to be up for the challenge to limit Demon Deacons quarterback Kaleb Newman. Grab Virginia Tech.

Two teams that have been plagued with poor play in the Sun Belt are South Alabama and Texas State. South Alabama comes in with an edge in terms of having a bye week last Saturday. Having faced the upper echelon of the Sun Belt in consecutive weeks figures to  the advantage of Texas State. Yet quarterback Tyler Vitt has been extremely turnover prone. As inefficient as South Alabama has been offensively look for short fields to spark them ATS. Grab South Alabama.

The Toledo Rockets will one again be without their top two quarterbacks. For the second straight game Eli Peters will get the start. Peters is not lacking of experience with several starts under his belt last season. Kent State should hang around in this one but look for Toledo to make the necessary adjustments and power run game to pull away. 

The Temple Owls main weakness this season has been on the road. Last week’s loss to SMU marked their second road loss by double-digits this season. At home though they’ve been unblemished with a 4-0 record. Yet they’ve faced octane offenses in consecutive weeks against Memphis and SMU that has exposed them. Look for Central Florida to attack often and cover the double-digit number. 

The Tennessee Volunteers will host the 3-4 South Carolina Gamecocks on Saturday. They’ll do so with uncertainty surrounding who starts at quarterback. A bright spot is that the Volunteers defense showed strides in putting up a respectable effort against the Tide. Still look for the Gamecocks to get back to .500 with the in-season experience freshman quarterback Ryan Hilinski has gained. 

The Bulldogs switch to freshman quarterback Garrett Shrader has been a true transition. The freshman showed flashes in a loss to Kansas State and built upon that with a pull away win against Kentucky. Since those brief flashes the offense has struggled in the mighty SEC faltering three straight. Saturday expect the Bulldogs to be competitive on both sides of the football against an Aggies team that’s been poor ATS all season. Grab the Bulldogs. 

The Army Black Knights have fallen in consecutive games to Tulane and Western Kentucky. They’ll head on the road for a second consecutive week and face a Georgia State team with a similar offensive attack. Expect the Black Knights to run over the Panthers smaller sized defense and win the turnover advantage. Grab Army.

The Ohio Bobcats peculiar season has featured a 2-4 start. Under senior quarterback Nathan Rourke they’ve failed to muster proficiency to finish off games. In fact two of their losses have been by three points or less. Saturday look for Kent State to be the latest to get Ohio to play to the level of their competition. Grab the points here. 

Syracuse’s woes on the offensive side of the football are proven to be uncorrectable in-season. As the offense continues to work on getting better it’s created a burden for the defense. At the mid-season point look for Syracuse’s defense to show more and more cracks against a sound Pittsburgh team. Grab Pittsburgh in the Carrier Dome to get the win and cover the number ATS. 

Off a bye week Arkansas State will have rest and extra preparation over Thursday’s opponent in UL Lafayette. It’ll be interesting to see how UL Lafayette adjusts from another loss last week to the Sun Belt’s premier team in Appalachian State. Road environments have been friendly for the Ragin Cajuns with their offense producing forty-five points against Ohio and thirty-seven against Georgia Southern. Look for their offense to be a catalyst edge over Arkansas State. 

The Big Ten will take center stage for a key top twenty-five matchup Saturday night. Hosting will be the Iowa Hawkeyes as they look to topple undefeated Penn State. The Hawkeyes are coming off a sputtering performance in which the offense scored just three against Michigan. Meanwhile Penn State has defeated Big 10 opponents by a whopping 93-7 advantage. Yet look for the Hawkeyes to be ready to answer off last week’s disappointment and protect their home field. Grab Iowa. 

Georgia State had the biggest upset of the season when they toppled Tennessee in September. Last week against Arkansas State they bounced back to win by two touchdowns. The win ended a two-game losing streak and showcased the high skillset of quarterback Dan Ellington. Yet Saturday look for Coastal Carolina to keep up with the Panthers offensively and cover the small number.

Two teams that are in transition phases will battle each other Thursday. The Syracuse Orangemen travel to face the Wolf Pack of NC State. Both teams are coming off bye weeks and looking to gain their fourth wins of the season. A simple fact of the matter for Syracuse has been the struggles of sophomore quarterback Tommy DeVito. That has created issues for the Syracuse defense over the course of four quarters. Lean on NC State here even with Bailey Hockman getting his second starter at quarterback for the Wolf Pack.

Both Appalachian State and UL Lafayette in action for the Sun Belt Wednesday have had extended rest. Neither team has played since Saturday September 28th. UL Lafayette has been unfaceable ATS going unblemished on the season. Yet I expect that to change Wednesday as Appalachian State’s size defensively will hinder UL Lafayette’s potent run game. Grab Appalachian State for a Wednesday winner. 

The 1-4 UCLA Bruins could easily be 0-5. Their lone win came in a desperation comeback down four touchdowns against Washington State. Last week’s golden opportunity to get a win with Arizona’s quarterback out faltered. Now they’ll face an Oregon State team that nearly comeback to defeat Stanford. They also have a senior quarterback in Jake Luton at their disposal that will test a poor UCLA defense. Still the Beavers always find a way to neutralize themselves on the field. Look for key penalties to derail their chance at a cover. Grab UCLA. 

The Arizona Wildcats will venture on the road for the first time since their loss to Hawaii. Two solid wins in a row have still placed doubt on Arizona’s offense that has not looked like a Kevin Summerlin type. Yet their defense has rose to the challenge and gave Colorado quarterback Steven Montez troubles in last year’s contest. Grab Arizona to win the turnover battle and secure an ATS cover. 

One of the biggest letdowns last week in college football was Nebraska. They faltered as steep home underdogs against the mighty Ohio State Buckeyes. This week they’ll get a chance to avenge that embarrassing loss as they remain at home against Northwestern. The Wildcats have looked sloppy at times but remain well coached. Look for Northwestern to  have the edge and get the cover. 

One of the key early morning games will come between Army and Tulane. Both teams are well-rested with Tulane coming off the memorable thrilling cover against Houston. They’re capabilities offensively will test an Army squad that may still be without quarterback Kelvin Hopkins Jr. Expect a back and forth affair with Army gaining the pace and key stops late to get this cover. 

The Buckeyes inexperience at quarterback has not hurt them one bit. Justin Fields has stepped in and took the reigns with no problem. In a big home spot for the Cornhuskers look for Fields to have the edge over Nebraska’s quarterback in Adrian Martinez. Grab the Buckeyes to continue to cover at a blistering rate.

The Stanford Cardinals free-fall has put them in unchartered territory. At 1-3 they’ve been blown out by double-digits in their last three games. They level of competition will be a couple of steps down for them this Saturday against Oregon State. Yet this is a chance for the Beavers to exact revenge for years of Cardinals beat downs. Grab Oregon State. 

The Fighting Irish did not fall much in the polls after their competitive loss to the Georgia Bulldogs. Defensively they showed they are more than capable of contending with anyone on any given Saturday. Yet look for the challenge of slowing Bryce Perkins to be a different beast. Virginia may be prone to close games but that bodes to their advantage in this tough road environment. Grab Virginia.

The Sooners and Texas Tech will open up Big 12 conference play Saturday morning. Both teams come in having had a full week of rest in between their last games on September 14th. Don’t expect the Sooners to have any display of rust. They’ll keep their octane offense and show enough improvements defensively to cover a nearly four touchdown spread.

Could this be de ja vu for the Arizona State Sun Devils? Similar to last year an upset over Michigan State led to a top twenty five ranking for the Sun Devils. This time around though they are not led by a senior quarterback. Instead they’re led by a freshman who the Sun Devils have kept under wraps in wins over Sacramento State and Michigan State. This week look for the Sun Devils to continue to lean on their defense and get enough from their offense. Grab ASU. 

Comfort in a home schedule for the entire month of September did not bode to the advantage of Mississippi State last week. The game slipped away as Kansas State answered a score with a special teams touchdown. Saturday expect the Bulldogs to learn from that situation regardless of who is quarterback. Kentucky has looked the part with a cover over Toledo and nearly upsetting Florida last week. Expect this to be a reality check matchup with the Bulldogs succeeding. 

Saturday, Texas A&M finds themselves crunched with two top matchups over the next three weeks. Saturday they’ll face Auburn before they host Alabama in two weeks. This matchup is a rematch of one of the worst meltdowns of a team in-conference last season. Texas A&M let a sure win slip away in the final minutes by allowing two touchdowns in the final five minutes. Expect A&M to show pride this time around and get the win over a better Auburn Tigers team.

Saturday an odd matchup will take place between the Sun Belt’s Georgia State and MAC’s Western Michigan. Just two weeks ago the Panthers pulled off the biggest upset of the young season over Tennessee. That was nearly overrode last week in a close victory over Furman 48-42.  Look for Western Michigan to take advantage of a poor Panthers defense and cruise Saturday  

The Bulls find themselves in a similar spot as a season ago when they were six point favorites on the road against Rutgers. This time they’ll face a Liberty team that has not shown the offensive flashes they did a season ago with quarterback Stephen Calvert. The senior has just one touchdown in two games with a QBR rating of 11.7. Although the Bulls are led by a freshmen quarterback look for them to have the edge and ATS cover here. 

A year ago Herm Edwards Sun Devils were able to stun Michigan State on their home field. It was the type of game that the offense did very little until the final window of the fourth quarter. That’s fresh in the minds of a Michigan State team that will have opportunities against a different caliber ASU team. Don’t expect them to let off the gas in this one. Grab Michigan State. 

Saturday morning SEC’s Mississippi State will host the Big 12’s Kansas State. This matchup marks the third straight home game to begin the season for Mississippi State. Penn State quarterback transfer Tommy Stevens has looked efficient. Yet look for Kansas State’s pace of play to be a boost ATS here. Grab the full touchdown of points.

The North Carolina Tar Heels will aim to go 3-0 as they travel in-state to take on Wake Forest. The Demon Deacons have shown a prolific offense scoring 38 points and 41 to begin the season. They’v also played both of their first two games on Friday. Look for a full four quarters of focus to continue to benefit the Tar Heels. Grab North Carolina. 

Justified concerns exist for both Stanford and USC entering Saturday. Injuries to their top quarterbacks have cast doubt on the prospects of their season. Stanford showed in week one that their offense is going to be a work in progress all season, and this hit probably expands those worries. As much as people harp on David Shaw’s coaching style this is the type of game where he can lean on a structured balanced game plan. Grab Stanford.

The Colorado Buffaloes showed strengths and weaknesses in their opening victory over Colorado State. Their offense is dynamic with multiple potent weapons in their backfield and familiar names at wide receiver. A plus for their quarterback Steven Montez is his best collegiate performance came against Nebraska last year in which he threw for 351 yards. Trying to replicate that performance and an up tempo game plan bodes to the advantage of the Cornhuskers. Grab Nebraska to avenge last year’s home loss.

One of the worst performances of week one came from the Akron Zips. They were blown out by an Illinois team that dominated from start to finish 42-3. Returning home for week two they’ll face a UAB team that struggled to beat Alabama State 24-19. Yet look for UAB’s dual threat quarterback Tyler Johnston III to keep pace on UAB’s side. Eventually look for the ground game of the Blazers to over power the Zips. Grab UAB. 

The first game to kick things off Saturday comes between the ACC Pittsburgh Panthers and MAC Ohio Bobcats. This is a familiar spot and number for Ohio who faltered a year ago against Virginia. Senior quarterback Nathan Rourke has never been a light it up type of collegiate quarterback but has the savvy to keep the Bobcats in this one. Expect a close competitive game where the Bobcats hold on for the cover in the fourth. 

For the second straight week the Wake Forest Demon Deacons will play on Friday. Last week they had a thrilling comeback victory and held off Utah State. Now they’ll face a Rice team that had a disastrous 2018 season in which they finished 2-11. Offensively they did not show much in week ones loss to Army scoring just seven points. Yet they gained confidence defensively and should maneuver against a Demon Deacons defense that isn’t as strong as years past. Grab Rice

The Oklahoma Sooners will be in the Sunday prime time spot as they take on the Houston Cougars. Lots of changes have been made for the Houston Cougars as they brought in former West Virginia coach Dana Holgorsen. Holgorsen inherits lethal dual threat senior quarterback D’Eriq King and a talented Cougars team that finished he regular season 8-4. Holgorsen’s familiarity of the Big 12 and Oklahoma could be a catalyst early for the Cougars. Yet expect the Sooners who have steadily improved defensively to push through for the cover. Grab Oklahoma. 

Virginia Tech and Boston College will kick off the first true conference matchup on the new ACC network. The Golden Eagles ended last season on a three game slide after starting the year 7-2. The Hokies will attempt to avenge last years home loss to the Golden Eagles. Similar to last year the point of the season for this scheduled matchup gives the edge to the Golden Eagles style. Grab Boston College 

The Kentucky Wildcats will aim to take another big step forward after 2018s strong season. Minus running back Benny Snell the Wildcats will have a big void to fill. They’ll face a Toledo team that’s been ATS friendly and led by returning junior quarterback Eli Peters. Yet look for the Wildcats to put their imprint on this opener and get the ATS cover.

The Colorado Buffs were one of the more disappointing teams in the Pac-12 last season. Expected momentum off of prior seasons just did not happen. Quarterback Steven Montez’s struggles were well documented but he is a candidate to make one of the better turn arounds this season. In a battle of in-state teams look for the Buffaloes to pour it on and start the 2019 season off with a quality win. 

It’s another college football championship and yet another matchup between Clemson and Alabama. While Alabama has a lot of the same key pieces as prior runs, it’s Clemson that has modified their team. A true freshman quarterback and key upgrades defensively have them primed to stay in this game similar to their run with DeShaun Watson. Line detraction for the Tigers lies with suspensions on the defensive side of the football. Yet look for Dabo and his assistants to have a proper game plan in place. Grab Clemson. 

Conditions in San Diego are expected to involve rain. Throughout the year Northwestern was a darling ATS. Covering a plethora of matchups with late surges and underdog outright victories. Yet Utah is a team that has size on the defensive end to prevent Wildcats sustained drives. There offense is never great but look for key plays to lead to a spread clearance. Grab the Utes. 

Down the stretch we saw the Virginia Cavaliers fade. They lost three of four in a tough ACC conference, and it appeared quarterback Bryce Perkins wore down a bit. The Cavaliers offensive system puts too much of a burden on Perkins which is a heavy factor in the original point spread. Although South Carolina’s schedule doesn’t match Virginia they’re the right side. Grab South Carolina. 

An aggressive line buy down has made tonight’s night matchup even more intriguing. Washington State will be the second bowl representative out of the Pac-12. It’s well known that the Pac-12 has been subpar and mediocre in bowl seasons of the past. Iowa State’s been a team that will fight no matter the scenario of their game. Yet look for Washington State to be able to counter Iowa State’s in-game adjustments to pull off the cover. Grab Washington State.