College football picks against the spread: Bowl season, week 3

Nov 26, 2016; Columbus, OH, USA; Ohio State Buckeyes quarterback J.T. Barrett (16) celebrates his touchdown with teammate Ohio State Buckeyes offensive lineman Billy Price (54) during the first overtime against the Michigan Wolverines at Ohio Stadium. Ohio State won 30-27. Mandatory Credit: Joe Maiorana-USA TODAY Sports /

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Nov 25, 2016; Colorado Springs, CO, USA; Boise State Broncos linebacker Leighton Vander Esch (38) celebrates in front of defensive end Durrant Miles (91) and safety Chanceller James (3) and tight end Jake Roh (88) after an interception in the second quarter against the Air Force Falcons at Falcon Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Isaiah J. Downing-USA TODAY Sports /

Against the spread picks for the third week of college football’s bowl season.

For the first time this bowl season, we do not have to pick every single game on the board. For the handicapping amateur, picking every game is generally a terrible idea because all value goes out the window, and while it worked out during the first Saturday of games, that was obviously unsustainable. This time around, we can be more discerning and, hopefully, that means more wins for everyone.

Now, let’s check on where we are for both the full season and the bowls-only campaign.

Bowls: 6-8-1
Season: 78-74-2

Best of luck to all.

Heart Of Dallas Bowl (Dec. 27, Noon ET) – North Texas (+10.5) over Army

This is one of the weirder lines of the entire bowl season. North Texas beat Army by 17 points earlier in the year, and while I understand the Cadets being favored, the number seems to be off by, at the very least, three points. As a result, I’ll take what should be a highly motivated North Texas team playing near their own backyard. Sign me up.

Cactus Bowl (Dec. 27, 10:15 pm ET) – Boise State (-7.5) over Baylor

Best of luck if you trust Baylor at this point in the season. I don’t love that this is, effectively, a two-score spread but Boise State is just the better team in this spot. Even if we assume that Baylor will actually show up in this game (an assumption I’m not willing to make), the Broncos aren’t playing as the type of massive favorite that they’ve struggled as this season. If you don’t want to lay the number, I’ll understand but it would surprise me greatly if Boise lost this game.

Next: Texas Bowl and Birmingham Bowl

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