College football betting early picks October 19:
(3)Clemson(-23.5) at Louisville(2):
This is a lot of points for a road game and the line is all over the place. It’s steadily rising, and you could have problems even getting it at this in the next day. I thought Louisville had a solid defense until Wake tore them up with a backup quarterback. If it goes any higher I might flip, but right now I’m still taking Clemson.
West Virginia at (5)Oklahoma(-33.5)(1):
Wow, that’s a lot of points. Yeah, Oklahoma is probably capable of covering this, but is Oklahoma really going to hand the Mountaineers their worst loss of the season? I would feel a lot better about that happening if Oklahoma transfer Austin Kendall were playing. Once again, West Virginia has good receivers, but the bridge to them is a bit rickety. That said, Jack Allison was good enough in the bowl game last year. I’ll take West Virginia. Say 42-14 or so.
(6)Wisconsin(-30.5) at Illinois(3):
Michigan had this covered, then got complacent. The Badgers wont. If they can beat both Michigan State by this line, the Badgers should have no trouble with Illinois. I’m taking the Badgers until I have a reason not to.
(9)Florida(-5.5) at South Carolina(4):
Lightning isn’t striking twice. Florida re-establishes their East dominance here. They aren’t nearly as bad as LSU made them look. The only question I really have is if LSU crushed Kyle Trask‘s confidence or not. I’m inclined to say no, but that’s the only reason I’m not betting the max on this. South Carolina is going to put up a fight, but they still lose by double digits.
(11)Auburn(-19.5) at Arkansas(2):
This looks a little bit high for a SEC road game and for a team that lost their starting running back. The Piggies are getting closer to Hog status. I’ll take Arkansas. They lose, but their days of getting covered are mostly over.
Purdue at (23)Iowa(-17.5)(1):
I really hate this line. Iowa’s offense has been pathetic over the last two weeks. Sure, it’s mostly a byproduct of facing good defenses, but still. This is not a very good offense. I’ll take Purdue because of the half.
Houston(-22.5) at Connecticut(4):
Houston insists that Redshirtgate is not an issue. If we take them at their word, they win this by 40. UConn is one of the worst teams I’ve seen this year. They aren’t the worst, but they would give Akron a hell of a run. Give me Houston.
Kent State at Ohio(-7.5)(2):
The MAC is getting nuts, and they don’t even have the Tuesday games yet. Ohio is usually tough at home, so I’ll take the Soliches.
Georgia Tech at Miami(FL)(-18.5)(3):
The Hurricanes have looked rather awful at home this year. However, with the way the defense is playing, Miami only really needs a touchdown per quarter to cover this. I’ll take Miami.
North Carolina State(-3.5) at Boston College(3):
Forget the Wolfpack’s offensive struggles for a minute. I’ll guarantee you that they are still better than Boston College without Anthony Brown. BC also got trampled on this field by Kansas when Brown was in the lineup! I have to take NC State.
Iowa State(-7.5) at Texas Tech(3):
I don’t like that half because I think this game isn’t going to be much of a shootout. Both defenses are solid, and both are solid running teams. The Iowa State passing attack and the balance that is now in their offense thanks to Breece Hall will be the difference here. I’ll take the Cyclones.
Toledo at Ball State(-1.5)(2):
This line flipped just as I expected it to. Toledo lost outright to Bowling Green, who is not even arguably the worst team in the MAC. They are the worst team in the MAC. I’ll take the Lettermans.
Central Michigan(-10.5) at Bowling Green(3):
Quinten Dormady wasn’t all that good in his return. New Mexico State is just a really bad team. I actually like BGSU straight up at home. That defense was nasty against a good back in Bryant Koback last week.
Northern Illinois(-2.5) at Miami(OH)(1):
The Huskies lost outright to Ball State. They lost to a Vanderbilt team that is much worse than we thought. They were blown off the field by Nebraska. Then all the sudden Ross Bowers wakes up and beats Ohio outright in Athens. Schizophrenia much? Give me NIU, I guess. They are the better team, but that hasn’t meant a lot so far this year.
TCU(-3.5) at Kansas State(2):
Alex Delton returns to Manhattan just a few months after transferring out. He wont recognize a lot of faces on that team. The only question here is whether TCU will see a stadium full of purple and think their at home. To me, that’s the only way they win. K-State straight up.
Oregon State at California(-10.5)(3):
This is too low. I’m pretty sure Oregon State would give up 35 points to Portland Central Catholic right now. Give me Cal.
New Mexico at Wyoming(-19.5)(2):
I don’t have a lot of faith in the Wyoming offense, but the run defense is strong and the Lobos can’t throw. I’ll take the Cowboys, but just barely. They may have to win 23-3.
Coastal Carolina at Georgia Southern(-6.5)(2):
I like this line less now that it’s up four points, but I’ll still take the Eagles for a touchdown at home.