Finally, it’s here! College football season is here at last and it’s time for some more predictions. Last season I went 70% against the spread, so if for some crazy reason you were to actually bet on my picks, you would have made money! I’m looking to top these numbers this year, but it will be hard.
I picked six games last season, including what I thought were the five of the top games of the week. Then I added an upset special which was a game in which I picked an underdog to win (something that was not in the top games, typically a smaller game). This season I will change it up a bit. I’m picking every game that involves an SEC team. So that might be 14 games, or it might be 7. Then I will add the top three games to that from around the country, along with an upset special. That’s either more games to win money on, or more games to go broke on.
So here it is: my week one predictions. For my point spreads, I will be using the spread as of the Wednesday before the game from the MGM Mirage lines. If there is no line, then I will just pick it straight up. If I use another line from another casino, I will note it.
Week One
Straight up inners in bold, points winners in italics
SEC Games
South Carolina (-10.5) Texas A&M
Ole Miss (-10) Boise State
Vanderbilt (-13.5) Temple
Alabama (-27) West Virginia
Auburn (-20) Arkansas
Florida (-36) Idaho
Georgia (-7.5) Clemson
Tennessee (-6) Utah State
Kentucky (N/A) UT Martin
Missouri (N/A) South Dakota State
Mississippi State (-30) Southern Miss
LSU (-4) Wisconsin
Top 3 Non-SEC Games
Northwestern (-10.5) California
Central Florida (-1) Penn State
UCLA (-21) Virginia
Upset Special
Colorado State (2.5) Colorado
This is a game in which Colorado will almost always be favored, but I’m looking for Jim McElwain to win a big game for his team here.