College football Week 2 best bets: Picks against the spread for every Top 25 game

If you’re looking to make some money betting on college football Week 2 games, here are our expert picks for every Top 25 game against the spread.

We got the kinks out with Week 1 of the college football betting. Most of the first week was trying to decide which huge lines were going to get covered. This week, there’s still a little bit of that, but there are more marquee matchups. Less Southern Alabamas and more USCs. The lesser of the two opponents this week is more often a really decent team.

We hopefully have moved on from mid-major programs, but we are still in the non-conference part of the schedule. There are a few powderpuff matchups, but nothing a little money on the game can’t make exciting.

The Top 25 had a couple of changes, but nothing too drastic. Oregon is the only school with a loss still in the Top 25. They lost a heart-breaking matchup with Auburn, one we got wrong in the picks last week. Justin Herbert let us down, and he let down a lot of people who put money on the Ducks.

The only real change is Florida falling outside the top 10 and Boise State jumping into the top 25 after beating Florida State. There wasn’t a lot of changes, as one could expect with so many low-profile matchups last week. This week, it’s a little bit of the same, but the slate is very, very intriguing. We expect to see some upsets to keep things interesting.

Here are this week’s college football picks against the spread:

No. 25 Nebraska (-3.5) at Colorado

Nebraska looked bad last week. They barely got past South Alabama. The Colorado Buffalos looked decent against Colorado State last week. Colorado’s defense should have played better, but the offense was on another level. Laviska Shenault dominated the Cornhuskers last year to the tune of 177 yards. We will take those points, and we expect to hear those rumblings about Scott Frost get louder. Pick: Colorado (+3.5)

Marshall at No. 24 Boise State (-12)

Boise State gave up 21 points in the first quarter against Florida State, then shut them out in the second half to end up winning the game. Now, they find themselves in the top 25. We’re going to be honest, we don’t expect it to last long. Marshall is coming off a nine-win season, and they return 15 starters. Not only do we see Marshall cover the 12 points, we see them winning the game straight up. How’s that for Friday Night Lights? Marshall (+12)

No. 23 Stanford at USC (-1)

This line might be in jeopardy because Stanford quarterback K.J. Costello is questionable to play. A decision is expected in the next day or two on his status for Saturday. They also lost their extremely talented left tackle Walker Little in last week’s game against Northwestern. But this line doesn’t make sense because USC just lost their starting QB for the season. JT Daniels is done, and the team had to throw together a game plan for Kedon Slovis. You can actually get a better number at some sportsbooks, so shop around. Either way, go Stanford. Pick: Stanford (+1)

Northern Colorado at No. 22 Washington State (-36.5)

This is one of the few throw-away matchups of the weekend. Northern Colorado has little to no chance to make a move this week. You’re really betting the spread here. Mike Leach is going to push this team like they’re playing a Pac 12 school. It’s a huge line, but after last week’s slaughter of New Mexico State, we plan to see another one. Pick: Washington State (-36.5)

No. 21 Syracuse at Maryland (-2)

Another situation where a top 25 team is an underdog against an unranked team. It seems like every season, Maryland is one of the hardest teams to predict. They’re either weirdly competitive or the wheels completely fall off. This season looks like the former. They scored 79 points last week. Syracuse is not Howard. The good Orange defense will try to stop a high-flying Terrapins offense. Like they say, defense wins championships and bets. Pick: Syracuse (+2)

Rutgers at No. 20 Iowa (-19.5)

Remember the Greg Schiano era of Rutgers football when they were ranked in the top ten two years in a row? Yeah, that is so long gone it might never come back. Iowa is a ranked team play an awful Rutgers team that’s celebrating 150 years of existence. They may be the first football team, but this will not be their first butt whooping, and it definitely won’t be their last. Make this bet. Pick: Iowa (-19.5)

No. 18 UCF (-10) at FAU

Lane Kiffin gets another high profile matchup. Florida Atlantic University actually didn’t get demolished by Ohio State last week. They lost 45-21. That’s respectable from a Group of Five team. Meanwhile, UCF stomped Florida A&M. The big issue for the Knights is they can’t look ahead. Next week they take on Stanford, one of their hardest games of the season. If they look ahead, they could get caught on the road, but we expect them to take this game seriously. Pick: UCF (-10)

Central Michigan at No. 17 Wisconsin (-35)

We expect to get a heavy dose of Jonathan Taylor this week from Wisconsin. He will help the Badgers win easily, but when it comes to the running game, it’s usually hard to run up the score. At least to the point where a team wins by more than five touchdowns. Jim McElwain went to Central Michigan to repair his image after a pathetic stint at Florida. Central Michigan is awful at run defense. This is a bad matchup for them. Even with the fact that they will run down the clock, we expect some really big runs. Pick: Wisconsin (-35)

Nevada at No. 16 Oregon (-24)

Oregon lost a heart breaker last week, but they have nobody to blame but themselves. They went up 21-6 in the third quarter, then immediately took their foot off the gas. They then lost on a last-minute touchdown by a true freshman quarterback. Justin Herbert looked good when they were good, but did not deliver when they needed him to. Nevada has some positives, including a linebacker unit that is all seniors, but they aren’t in this league yet. Expect Oregon to roll against a lesser opponent after what happened last week. Pick: Oregon (-24)

Buffalo at No. 15 Penn State (-30)

Penn State scored 79 points last week. Are we to expect they aren’t able to beat the University of Buffalo by more than 30? This team can score in bunches, obviously. The Bulls beat up on Robert Morris last week. This isn’t Robert Morris. Buffalo has a very inexperienced offense that won’t be able to keep up with the Nittany Lions. Pick: Penn State (-30)

California at No. 14 Washington (-14)

This is a large line for a team that still has growth to make. The Washington Huskies should win this easily but by two touchdowns? That’s where things get hairy. The California offense is very blah over the past year. Quarterback Chase Garbers is a good player, but he has to take more chances. Especially with an explosive possibility in Kekoa Crawford. There are major flaws at Cal, but 14 feels like slightly too many points. Even -13 would make sense. Pick: California (+14)

Northern Illinois at No. 13 Utah (-21.5)

Utah is quietly getting College Football Playoff buzz. Zach Moss is insane in the backfield, and he could run all over any defense. The Utes destroyed BYU in the Holy War, winning by 18. They return home to play a Northern Illinois team that is still trying to figure things out. That extra half point on this line makes you pause for a second, but we still have to go with Utah. Pick: Utah (-21.5)

UT Martin at No. 11 Florida (-42.5)

Florida is the only team to fall out of the top 10 this week. They have to be motivated after a lackluster performance against Miami in Week 0. Still, the oddsmakers are asking the Gators to beat UT Martin by more than 42 points. That’s just such a large number. Go with the points just because we need proof that Feleipe Franks has that killer attitude that allows him to put up a ridiculous number. Pick: UT Martin (+42.5)

Tulane at No. 10 Auburn (-18)

Auburn is coming off the biggest win of Week 1. Bo Nix brought the Tigers all the way back against the Oregon Ducks, throwing a go-ahead touchdown with just 16 seconds left. They are riding high going into this matchup with Tulane. This Tulane team is really feisty. This 18-point spread actually feels about right. Auburn understands a trap game when they see one. Coach Gus Malzahn calls Tulane a team on the rise. They will do their best to score early and often to avoid any possibility of an upset. Pick: Auburn (-18)

Army at No. 7 Michigan (-22)

The Michigan Wolverines will take on an interesting Army team. Army technically isn’t ranked, but they are in the top 30 in terms of voting. It’s worrisome they had to survive against Rice last week, but that could have been looking ahead to this game. Army plays the triple-option offense, which keeps things moving at all times. A top Michigan defense should be able to stop them and cause some turnovers, but QB Kelvin Hopkins Jr. rushed and passed for 1,000 yards last season. His dual-threat ability will test the Wolverines, and we find this line way too high. Pick: Army (+22)

Cincinnati at No. 5 Ohio State (-16)

Ohio State did not cover their line last week against FAU in what began a new era. This is a team that’s sitting right outside the top 25, and they could win one of the biggest games in school history this weekend. This is an inter-state rivalry that might get the Bearcats more excited than the Buckeyes. We don’t think Ohio State will overlook Cincy, but we do think Cincinnati will pop them in the mouth before they wake up. That will help them cover the spread. Pick: Cincinnati (+16)

South Dakota at No. 4 Oklahoma (-38)

Another monster spread at the top of the coaches’ poll. The Oklahoma Sooners kept Houston in the game longer than they should have, but Jalen Hurts looked really good nonetheless. The Sooners have a pretty easy schedule from now until their matchup with Texas in mid-October. They don’t have to worry about looking past an opponent because they’re all pretty bad. South Dakota will be the worst of them, and this should be a drubbing. Pick: Oklahoma (-38)

Murray State at No. 3 Georgia (-48.5)

Why even look at this line? This is almost a 50-point line. The Georgia Bulldogs were one of the best scoring offenses in all of football last season, but they scored 49 or more in regulation one time. Take the points because they are ridiculous, no matter what you think of Murray State. Pick: Murray State (+48.5)

New Mexico State at No. 2 Alabama (-55.5)

So, we wanted to just repeat what we said in the previous blurb, but Alabama is just a different breed. Nick Saban does not take the foot off the gas. His Alabama team scored 50 or more points eight times last season. 56 points is a lot, but the Crimson Tide has a Power 5 team as their third-string offense. Once they take out the starters, the points will continue to rain. Pick: Alabama (-55.5)