Last week’s college football results provided quite the shake-up at the top of the playoff rankings. The SEC has more clarity in both of their division races, while Clemson took a crushing loss at Notre Dame.
This week’s slate lacks the top-heavy power games, but there are still plenty of good games, and here are five teams to bet on this week.
Ole Miss +12.5
Not to pile on Alabama, but they were exposed defensively in Baton Rouge on Saturday, and Lane Kiffin had a bye week to take notes.
The Tide have two losses on the road this season and haven’t looked good away from home at all. In fact, they are 1-3 ATS on the road this season. The No. 10 Rebels’ only loss in the SEC was also to LSU, so they can slide into second place for good with a home win on Saturday and then root for an LSU loss down the stretch.
Ole Miss likes to use tempo on offense, similar to what gave the Tide problems against LSU and Tennessee. They will run the ball first and then take their shots deep, just like the Vols did against Bama in October. The Tide corners couldn’t hang with Tennessee that day and may struggle to keep up with the Rebels wideouts on Saturday.
Alabama hasn’t lost two straight regular season games in 15 years. But that’s the beauty of getting all these points. You don’t need Ole Miss to win for your betting pick to pay out, just to keep it close, and Kiffin’s team will do that.
Media by the associated Press. Wake Forest wide receiver Jahmal Banks (80) celebrates after his touchdown catch against Boston College defensive back Elijah Jones (20).
Wake Forest -3.5
The Demon Deacons have been a completely different team on the road than they are at home.
In their last two road games, both losses, they have scored 21 points at NC State and Louisville. But at home, Wake put up 45 against Army, 45 against Clemson, 43 against Boston College, 44 against VMI, and 37 against Liberty. They are 13-2 at home in their last 15 games and 12-3 ATS in those contests.
North Carolina is on course to face Clemson in the ACC Championship Game. However, they couldn’t put away Virginia last week, and all three of their road wins in the conference have come by a field goal.
Last year UNC won at home 58-55 in this matchup despite being outgained 615-546. Wake has played a tougher schedule this season and has a better defense. They are also looking for revenge and can hurt the Tar Heels New Year’s Six chances with a win.
SMU -17
After a 4-26 start, South Florida fired Jeff Scott, and now interim coach Daniel Da Prato takes over. The former special team’s coordinator has his hands full, facing an SMU team that scored 77 points last week against Houston. The Mustangs have put 40 on the board in three of their previous four games, and the Bulls have allowed 40 or more in six of nine games this season.
This will be USF’s fourth home game of the season. In the first three, they lost 50-21 to BYU, 45-31 to Tulane, and 48-28 to East Carolina. Saturday’s game should fall in line with those blowouts, as the Bulls don’t have the ability to stop SMU or to score with them.
Take the points on your online sports betting ticket and watch the scoreboard roll on the visitor’s side.
Fresno State -9.5
The preseason Mountain West favorites are rolling with four straight wins, including a pair of blowouts. They head to UNLV this weekend, coming off a 55-13 dismantling of Hawaii. The last time the Bulldogs went on the road, they trounced New Mexico 41-9.
Quarterback Jake Haener is back on the field after getting hurt in the USC loss on September 17. In the two games back, the MWC preseason player of the Year has 721 yards and seven touchdowns, and he’s completed nearly 80% of his passes.
The Rebels kept it close with San Diego State last week, falling 14-10. But before that game, they dropped three straight games by a combined 91 points. The offense has scored a combined 45 points in the last four games, all losses, since beating New Mexico 31-20 at the end of September.
Look for the first-place Bulldogs to roll in Vegas and take control of the Mountain’s West division.
Illinois -6.5
Last week was a disaster for the Illini, ranked and at home against a struggling and short-handed Michigan State team. They out-gained the Spartans 441 to 254 but got stopped five times on fourth down and turned the ball over on another possession. Three times they were stopped in the red zone, coming away without points in a 23-15 loss.
The good news is that Illinois still controls their destiny in the Big Ten West since this week’s opponent, Purdue, lost to Iowa on Saturday.
The Illini travel to Michigan and host Northwestern in their final two games but will stay in first with a win over the Boilermakers. The Illini haven’t lost to a West team this season, meaning they already hold the tiebreaker over the other teams with three losses, Minnesota, Wisconsin, and Iowa.
Purdue scored just three points last week against Iowa and now faces a stingy defense in the Illini. With two straight losses, the Boilers’ hopes are fading, and even a win on Saturday leaves them needing help in a multi-team tie atop the West.
See more NCAA football picks, including Alabama vs Old Miss, here.