What ten college football games appear to be the best bets and the best picks against the spread going into Week 9? Here you go. Enjoy.
Week 9 Fearless Predictions, Game Previews
– Week 9 Schedule, Times, Lines, Previews
– CFN Fearless Predictions & Game Previews
– Week 9 Expert Picks & Predictions: College
– Week 8 Expert Picks & Predictions: NFL
Results So Far ATS: 40-33
Click on each game for the game preview and fearless prediction.
10. Mississippi State at Alabama
LINE: Alabama -31
ATS PICK: Mississippi State
– Bet on this, BetMGM latest line
Mississippi State has a defense.
It’s been totally lost in all the issues with an offense that looked so great to start the season but now can’t do anything well but give the ball away – not having RB Kylin Hill doesn’t help – but Mississippi State has the SEC’s No. 1 D.
It’s about to get hammered hard by the Alabama offense, but sort of like last week when in the No. 10 spot the call was Syracuse walking into Clemson up 46.5-0, with two weeks off to get ready, you want to give Mike Leach a 31-point lead? Bama should win comfortably, but those are way too many points, even at home.
– Week 9 Schedule, Times, Lines, Previews
9. Charlotte at Duke
LINE: Duke -9.5
ATS PICK: Duke
– Bet on this, BetMGM latest line
Fair warning – this is Power Five over Group of Five snobbery run amok.
Duke has lost a few key players, the O isn’t scoring like is should in key moments, and then there are the three biggest issues: turnovers, turnovers, turnovers. The Blue Devils have given it up 22 times in six games. However, Charlotte doesn’t have a pass rush.
Now, the 49ers do lead Conference USA in turnover margin, but that’s more because they don’t give the ball away. The two wins are against North Texas and UTEP … take the Power Fiver, even a struggling one.
8. Rice at Southern Miss
LINE: Southern Miss -1
ATS PICK: Southern Miss
– Bet on this, BetMGM latest line
Yeah, Southern Miss has been a big, giant dud so far, and now it’s on its third head coach in the first six games. There have been a whole lot of problems defensively, but the offense has worked just fine.
It was the first game of the season, and there’s a chance Rice is a whole lot better than it looked against Middle Tennessee. However, the Blue Raiders are right there with USM in the struggle category and they pulled off a 40-34 win in Houston. Southern Miss just needs to win at home.
– Week 9 Expert Picks & Predictions: College
7. North Carolina at Virginia
LINE: North Carolina -7
ATS PICK: North Carolina
– Bet on this, BetMGM latest line
Warning … we haven’t been able to get North Carolina quite right all season long. Just when it was time to jump on and enjoy the fun, the Florida State loss happened.
But this should work.
This isn’t your 2019 Virginia team. It’s still plucky, and Bronco Mendenhall isn’t any less of a head coach, but this offense simply isn’t getting it going. Don’t get fooled by the 19-14 loss at Miami – North Carolina has a whole lot more firepower against a team that lost four in a row with three of them by 17 points or more.
– Week 8 Expert Picks & Predictions: NFL
6. Hawaii at Wyoming
LINE: Wyoming -1
ATS PICK: Wyoming
– Bet on this, BetMGM latest line
Coming up next are three Big, Big Assumptions about the Big Ten. But first, here’s a medium assumption about the Mountain West.
Sort of like Fresno State showing that it really was a whole lot better than it looked against Hawaii – rolling with ease by Colorado State on Thursday night – Wyoming’s defense is going to be tougher than it showed against Nevada in the opening weekend loss.
Hawaii was able to rock Fresno State with a great defensive performance and strong day on the ground. However, 1) Wyoming’s D will soon be back to normal, especially at home, and 2) the temperature at kickoff in the greater Laramie, Wyoming metropolitan area is expected to be a robust 24 degrees.
NEXT: Top 5 Picks Against The Spread, Week 9
5. Indiana at Rutgers
LINE: Indiana -10.5
ATS PICK: Indiana
– Bet on this, BetMGM latest line
Big, Big Ten Assumption, Part 1.
Even with a 38-27 win over Michigan State, Rutgers still isn’t all that great at college football.
Please disagree, and it would be wonderful for the long-suffering program to make it a 2-0 start and have some fun under Greg Schiano, but it’s not like the team did much of anything right against Michigan State other than take the ball away.
Okay, so coming up with seven turnovers is sort of a big deal, but the Scarlet Knights couldn’t run the ball a lick, only threw for 170 yards, and they had three turnovers of their own.
The 10.5 is a big number, but part of Big, Big Ten Assumption, Part 1 is that the IU offense will throw as well as MSU did, but the O won’t have the turnover issues.
And now, Part 2 …
NEXT: Ohio State at Penn State
4. Ohio State at Penn State
LINE: Ohio State -12.5
ATS PICK: Penn State
– Bet on this, BetMGM latest line
Big, Big Ten Assumption, Part 2.
Penn State is a whole lot better than the Indiana loss last week.
IU was the fashionable underdog pick, and the money line play was popular, but there was a whole lot of luck in getting that right. Yeah, the Hoosiers not only covered the 6.5 and won, but took it outright.
Penn State had the number covered in the final 1:42 of regulation and again in the OT, and blew it – let’s just ignore the final play to give IU the outright win.
Completely lost in the fantastic and fun ending was that the Indiana O did NOTHING against the Penn State defense for about 58:50. Up until the desperation late drive to put it into overtime, IU amassed all of 111 yards of total offense.
Ohio State will win in Happy Valley, but let’s make a Big, Big Ten assumption here yet again.
The Penn State defense will rise up and at least keep Ohio State from making this brutal. None of the last four between the two have been decided by more than 11 points.
But that’s an assumption, and a big one considering Ohio State has the talent to 34-10 this. So let’s go with Big, Big Ten Assumption, Part 3 …
NEXT: Minnesota at Maryland
3. Minnesota at Maryland
LINE: Minnesota 19.5
ATS PICK: Minnesota
– Bet on this, BetMGM latest line
Big, Big Ten Assumption, Part 3 …
Maryland is AWFUL.
What’s the line? When someone shows you who they are, believe them?
It’s easy to see how Indiana can roar back from its rocky performance and roar by a Rutgers team that might have outkicked its coverage a bit. It’s even easy to assume that Penn State might have the talent to keep Ohio State from rolling at will on Saturday night.
This just might be Maryland football.
Maryland has lost its eight games going back to last year, and seven of the last nine defeats were by 24 points or more. But it’s more than that.
This Terp offense hasn’t hit 17 points in six games and hasn’t scored more than 17 in nine of its last 11 dates.
Northwestern is going to be okay in a rebound year, but 43-3 good?
The Terps managed just 207 yards of total offense, was awful on third downs, and couldn’t get anything going with the passing game down the field.
Oh yeah, the Terp defense. If Northwestern could run for 325 yards, and Indiana transfer Peyton Ramsey could take target practice with an easy 212-yard day, then Maryland, welcome to a Rashad Bateman, Mo Ibriahim, and the Minnesota skill guys looking to do a little boat rowing on Friday night after last week’s rough evening against Michigan.
NEXT: Ole Miss at Vanderbilt
2. Ole Miss at Vanderbilt
LINE: Ole Miss -16.5
ATS PICK: Ole Miss
– Bet on this, BetMGM latest line
Everyone gets to party against the Ole Miss defense.
It’s getting ripped up for way over 500 yards per game, it has yet to allow fewer than 33 points, and it’s seemingly incapable of generating a meaningful stop so far in a bad 1-4 start.
But there are two ways to look at this.
Either the Ole Miss defense finally gets a break from its misery against the Vanderbilt offense, of the Vanderbilt offense finally gets to go off.
Take the former.
The Commodores have had a rough run over the last few weeks both on the field and with COVID problems – they haven’t played since October 10th. In the first three games of the season, though, the offense scored a grand total of 26 points.
The Ole Miss offense eats 26 points for breakfast when it’s working right.
The last two games against LSU and South Carolina were 41-7 losses for Vandy, and Ole Miss at least has the O to do the same.
To take this even further, against FBS programs, Vanderbilt hasn’t scored more than 14 points in any of its last seven games or in nine of its last ten.
Over the last 14 games going back to the start of 2019, Vanderbilt has scored a grand total of 186 points against FBS teams. Ole Miss has scored 174 points in the first five games of this season.
Oh, but forget about Rutgers, and Maryland, and Vanderbilt. It’s time to finish hammering on struggling programs in a big way for the grand finale …
NEXT: Iowa State at Kansas
1. Iowa State at Kansas
LINE: Iowa State -28
ATS PICK: Iowa State
– Bet on this, BetMGM latest line
The line has actually gone down after starting out at -29.
You could set the line just about anywhere any you’d probably be fine.
I know, I know, Kansas is ridiculously overdue for one of its patented out-of-nowhere decent performances that completely screws up any preconceived notions.
Last year it lost at home to Coastal Carolina – well before Coastal Carolina was a thing – and then it obliterated Boston College.
It got blasted by Kansas State and Oklahoma State, and then pushed Iowa State. Then, just when it was time to jump on KU, the 61-6 loss to Baylor showed up.
But so far this season the team has been remarkably consistent in is misery.
It’s bad on defense, worse on offense, and now it faces an Iowa State team that needs to rebound fast.
The Cyclones are 3-2 and only have one loss in Big 12 play, but that was against Oklahoma State last week. They already beat Oklahoma, and they still have to deal with Texas on the road, but three of the last four games are at home after this.
Kansas? It’s finally back at home after starting out with three road games in the first four dates, but does that matter? It hasn’t even faced Oklahoma or Texas yet and it lost its first four conference games by a combined score of 187-52, or an average per game of 47-13.
All you’re asking is for the Iowa State offense to break out a wee bit and win by a mere 29.
