College Football Handicapping Articles

NCAA Football Betting Odds: Week 2 Line Movements & Last-Minute News
by Alan Matthews - 9/9/2016

Arguably the worst contract in college football among head coaches entering the 2015 season belonged to Iowa's Kirk Ferentz. He was owed $4 million a season through 2020 and had a massive contract buyout if fired (75 percent of remaining salary). Plus, I think the state had to make him governor or something if Ferentz was canned. It was a Charlie Weis-level (Notre Dame version) ridiculous deal.

NCAA Football Mid-Major Free Betting Picks: Middle Tennessee State Blue Raiders Week 2 Predictions
by Aaron Smith - 9/8/2016

We're back another college football mid-major betting report. Our focus is on the Middle Tennessee State Blue Raiders this year. The Blue Raiders are a Conference USA team that is looking to break out this year. They have been a middle-of-the-pack type of team in this league, and some have predicted bigger things for the Blue Raiders this season.

Weekly Big Ten Betting Report: Expert Predictions and Analysis
by Chris Vasile - 9/8/2016

Week 1 of the College Football season got off to a great start for the teams that call the Big Ten Conference home. Fourteen teams combined to go 12-2. Wisconsin took the "best win" award for defeating National Championship hopeful (LSU) by a 16-14 score. They were able to hold the Tigers in check for the entire game and got some clutch QB play when they needed it the most.

College Football Wagering: Betting Strength of the Conferences After Week 1
by Trevor Whenham - 9/8/2016

The first week of college football action, as is always the case, had more than a few surprises. There were shocking upsets - Wisconsin over LSU at the head of that list - and strangely flat performances - I'm talking about you, Tennessee. We confirmed what we knew about some programs and realized we know nothing about other programs.

NCAA Football Betting: Fading the Top 25 Weekly Free Picks - Week 2
by Aaron Smith - 9/7/2016

How did things go for the Top 25 in Week 1? Not good at all. Seven teams in the Top 25 lost outright in the opening week. Part of that has to do with the fact that so many Top 25 teams played each other, but that wasn't the sole reason. LSU dropped a stunner to Wisconsin. Other highly-touted teams were very fortunate to get out with a win.

Free College Football Picks: Louisville at Syracuse Odds and Betting Predictions
by Trevor Whenham - 9/7/2016

Conference play in the ACC gets off to an oddly early start this year as Louisville and Syracuse clash on Friday night. It's actually the second ACC game following one in Dublin last weekend. Louisville in particular has really flipped their schedule this year - their last two games are out of conference. It's a matchup that would be more compelling right now on a basketball court than the gridiron.

Free College Football Picks: Arkansas at TCU Odds and Betting Predictions
by Trevor Whenham - 9/7/2016

Up until the early 1990s, this matchup was an annual rivalry as both teams were members of the Southwest Conference. It was definitely lopsided towards Arkansas, though in the second last game in 1990 TCU pulled off a bit of a stunner, winning by 28 as two-touchdown road underdogs. They haven't played since 1991 when Arkansas left the SWC for the SEC and set off the conference shuffling that is still underway today.

Free College Football Picks: Tennessee vs. Virginia Tech Odds and Betting Predictions
by Trevor Whenham - 9/7/2016

This game didn't set up as the most thrilling in history before the season started, and the prospects for it have dimmed since both teams got off to underwhelming starts. None of that matters, though. This game is all about one thing - the setting. Bristol Motor Speedway seats 153,000 for NASCAR events, and organizers are hoping about that many will attend this game, which will take place on artificial turf installed in the infield.

College Football Betting Trends for Help with NCAA Wagering
by Victor Ryan - 9/6/2016

Opening week of the 2016 college football season was a four-day extravaganza unlike any before it. The College Football Playoff has given teams incentive to step out of the comfort zones and take on high-profile opponents from the word go. It was one big-time matchup after another during Labor Day weekend, a true bettor's delight.

NCAA Football Predictions: Week 2 Opening Line Report and Picks
by Alan Matthews - 9/5/2016

I'm having trouble determining whether Louisiana Lafayette head coach Mark Hudspeth is my hero or the biggest a**hole alive. Maybe both. It sure takes some major stones to fire your defensive coordinator after one game as Hudspeth did to Melvin Smith following ULL's 45-10 loss to Boise State. The Broncos put up 584 yards offense on the Ragin' Cajuns and scored touchdowns on four of their first five possessions. But come on!

NCAA Football Betting Odds: Week 1 Line Movements & Last-Minute News
by Alan Matthews - 9/2/2016

So I'm sure you are dying to know my predictions for the 2016 college football season as I kick off my weekly news and line-movement stories on Fridays all season. At Bovada, Alabama is the +600 favorite to repeat as National Champion, but I don't think the Tide make the playoff. My picks for that are SEC champion LSU (+650 to win the national title), Big 12 champion Oklahoma (+1400), ACC champion Florida State (+900) and "at-large" team Clemson (+650).

2017 College Football National Championship Futures Odds and Betting Predictions
by Trevor Whenham - 9/2/2016

The college football season finally got underway on Thursday night, and it is off to a grand start. That means that it is a good time to make some predictions about who is going to be the last team standing when it's all over. And to look at futures odds for potential value. True value - I started writing this article Thursday morning, but hadn't finished it yet. One thing I had written, though, was how little I respected Tennessee and what a joke their +1200 price was.

Football Betting Advice: How the General Public Bets
by Trevor Whenham - 9/1/2016

As we head into another football season, we are going to be talking about the betting public a whole lot. In the simplest of terms, the "betting public" is made up of the casual bettors who are the exact opposite of sharp bettors. Talk of the betting public is always important, but that is especially so in football season because public interest and betting action are so much higher than all other sports. Because we talk so much about the betting public, and we can learn so much from them, it only makes sense that this is a good time to really look at what the betting public is and why we should care:

College Football Betting: Most Important Wagering Storylines for New Season
by Trevor Whenham - 9/1/2016

Well, we're almost there. The college football season technically started last weekend with Hawaii and Cal in Australia, but it gets going in earnest this weekend. I couldn't be happier or more excited. Part of what makes college football so great is that you enter every season with so much uncertainty and so many questions. The handicappers who can accurately answer more of those questions before the season are the ones more likely to show a profit at the end of the season.

Free College Football Picks: USC vs. Alabama Odds Expert Predictions
by Trevor Whenham - 8/31/2016

Something has to give here. The Tide have won their last 14 opening games since losing to UCLA in 2001, and several have been against high-profile opponents. USC lost to Florida State to open their 1997 season, and they haven't taken a misstep since. That's 18 straight season-opening wins. Two impressive streaks on the line, and only one can continue.

Free College Football Picks: Oklahoma vs. Houston Odds Expert Predictions
by Trevor Whenham - 8/31/2016

There is no pressure here for Houston. The game will decide not only their national title chances but also could kill the best chance for a playoff spot the Group of 5 conferences have had. It also will play into how attractive Houston is to the Big 12 - a blowout loss would damage their case - and could have an impact on whether coach Tom Herman sticks around for the longer term, or jumps to by of the dozens of programs that would welcome with open arms and a massive payday next year. In short, this game means pretty much everything for the Cougars.

Free College Football Picks: Ole Miss vs. Florida State Odds and Expert Predictions
by Trevor Whenham - 8/30/2016

Monday Night Football takes on a very different feel than usual when Ole Miss and Florida State kick off a battle of the titans in Orlando in the absence of the NFL. Both are Top-12 squads heading into the season, and both have their eyes on a playoff bid - more realistically in one case than the other, I would argue. Ole Miss has a much tougher schedule this year than Florida State, so while this game is important for them it is just one of several huge games - the face Alabama and Georgia in Weeks 3 and 4, respectively, play at Arkansas and LSU in consecutive weeks, and so on.

NCAA Football Predictions: Week 1 Opening Line Report and Picks
by Alan Matthews - 8/26/2016

Thank you College Football Playoff and ESPN! It used to be that Week 1 of the college football season was cupcake city. But now? Teams know they have to schedule at least one marquee nonconference opponent, and ESPN has ponied up big dollars for power programs to face off Week 1 at neutral sites such as Arlington, Texas, Atlanta, Houston and now Orlando. Thus, this year's opening weekend is the best I can remember in terms of quality matchups.

NCAA Football Betting: Fading the Top 25 Weekly Free Picks - Week 1
by Aaron Smith - 8/26/2016

We're bringing back the Fading the Top 25 Weekly Free Picks article for the third straight season. It's been an interesting article with some findings that we believe can help bettors throughout the course of the college football season.

College Football Wagering Advice: 2016 Outlook for Top ATS Teams from Last Season
by Trevor Whenham - 8/26/2016

This is a good time, right on the eve of the college football season, to look back on last season to see what can be learned that can lead to profits this season. One good activity in that regard is to look back at the best teams against the spread last year. Can they be relied upon to be strong for bettors again this year? Or were the conditions that made them successful circumstantial and unlikely to repeat? Here's a look at the Top 6 ATS teams in college football last season (top five and a tie):