College Football Handicapping Articles

2013-14 Arizona State Sun Devils Predictions and College Football Odds
by Trevor Whenham - 7/22/2013

There are a lot of coaches in college football who are tough to like. Todd Graham is right near the top of that list. Being less than thoroughly admirable doesn’t mean you can’t succeed, though — Urban Meyer has a couple of national titles and an undefeated season to his credit, after all. Graham is the ultimate opportunist, with Arizona State being his fourth college job since 2006. Despite his issues, though, in his second year with the Sun Devils he has a squad that will certainly be fun to watch.

2013-14 Clemson Tigers Predictions and College Football Betting Odds
by Trevor Whenham - 7/19/2013

Clemson got a huge gift at the end of last season, and it has shifted expectations for this year from moderate to extreme. Tajh Boyd would have been attractive to NFL teams in the draft, but he somewhat unexpectedly chose to forgo that opportunity for now to return for his senior season. Now he’s a year older and more experienced, and he already led a Top-10 offense last year.

2013-14 UCLA Bruins Predictions and College Football Betting Odds
by Trevor Whenham - 7/19/2013

I have a friend who has long been an obsessive UCLA fan. Over the years I have lost the will to give him a hard time about the continued, painful struggles of his team. It’s kind of like pushing a sick kid to the ground and then kicking him — it’s just not fun. Last year came as more of a relief for me than for him, then.

2013-14 Michigan State Spartans Predictions and College Football Betting Odds
by Trevor Whenham - 7/19/2013

There is opportunity in the Big Ten. Ohio State is very good. The next tier of teams, though — Michigan, Northwestern, Wisconsin, Nebraska — all have talent and potential but are also plagued by questions that make their seasons uncertain. Any team can position themselves to be a contender and to pick up the pieces if things fall apart ahead of them.

2013-14 Ole Miss Rebels Predictions and College Football Betting Odds
by Trevor Whenham - 7/19/2013

It will take years for us to truly know how Hugh Freeze turns out as Ole Miss head coach. He is off to a heck of a start, though. He made — and won — a bowl game in his debut season in Oxford. His real accomplishment, though, was dominating national signing day like few coaches ever have. He pulled off an incredible haul of young talent, and that has amped up expectations to the roof.

NCAA Football Handicapping Advice: Areas to Look at
by George Monroy - 7/17/2013

The college football season is just around the corner. The smell of leather is in the air, and bettors can almost hear Brent Musburger gearing up for another season. While the excitement for NCAA football is almost palpable, the real question on every gambler’s mind is how are they going to make a profit this year?

2013-14 Oregon State Beavers Predictions and College Football Betting Odds
by Trevor Whenham - 7/16/2013

Oregon State’s 2012 season was proof that though Mike Riley has been around forever, he still hasn’t lost his touch. In 2010 and 2011 the Beavers were just not a good team. They were defensively porous and offensively incompetent. Last year the smart bet seemed to be that we would see more of the same. Instead, the team moved significantly on both sides of the ball, won nine games, and was a real contender in the Pac-12.

2013-14 Wisconsin Badgers Predictions and College Football Betting Odds
by Trevor Whenham - 7/15/2013

The last thing the Badgers were probably expecting to deal with was a coaching change this season. That’s just what they have on their hands, though, thanks to Bret Bielema’s surprising decision to move to Arkansas — a lateral move if there ever was one. I’m probably not in the majority, but I actually think the team is better off now than they were before.

2013-14 Nebraska Cornhuskers Predictions and College Football Betting Odds
by Trevor Whenham - 7/15/2013

It was a strange season for Nebraska last year — a very tough one to process. At times they looked brilliant — almost elite. But then they ended their season with one of the worst performances by any team in a major conference all year when they were humiliated by Wisconsin in the Big Ten Championship Game.

2013-14 Northwestern Wildcats Predictions and College Football Betting Odds
by Trevor Whenham - 7/15/2013

Expectations have shifted for the Wildcats. For the last 15 years or so they were expected to make a bowl game, maybe win a big game or two, but not really be a major threat to the Big Ten elite. After a strong 10-3 year last season, though, many people think that this team is poised to make a big step forward. Coach Pat Fitzgerald has stuck around despite being courted by bigger programs, and he is recruiting very well recently.

2013-14 Louisville Cardinals Predictions and College Football Betting Odds
by Trevor Whenham - 7/15/2013

The Cardinals face a different task from most teams in the country. Their schedule is easy. Really easy. Too easy. Given what they face and the talent they have, the only acceptable outcome is an undefeated regular season. Nothing else would be good enough. That creates some pressure that will be unique and intense for this program and for coach Charlie Strong.

2013-14 Arizona Wildcats Predictions and College Football Betting Odds
by Trevor Whenham - 7/15/2013

As a diehard Michigan fan, I will watch the second year of the Rich Rodriguez era with a mix of curiosity, hope, and a sense of doom. His second year at Michigan dawned with so much promise and ended with indescribable sadness. He’s in a much different situation in Arizona, though, and it’s a far better fit for him.

2013-14 Oregon Ducks Predictions and College Football Betting Odds
by Trevor Whenham - 7/14/2013

It has been a rocky offseason for the Ducks. After seeing their regular season end in a far-from-ideal way, the team saw head coach Chip Kelly flirt with the NFL repeatedly before finally being unable to resist, then they found themselves hit with NCAA violations for shady recruiting practices. That’s a lot of distraction and bad karma an eternal contender needs to overcome here.

2013-14 Michigan Wolverines Predictions and College Football Betting Odds
by Trevor Whenham - 7/14/2013

Brady Hoke has recruited far beyond anyone’s expectation after getting hired. He was the third choice for the Michigan head coaching job when he was hired — at best — yet he is recruiting like a superstar. His 2013 class was outstanding, and his 2014 class is currently tops in the country. Now all Hoke needs to do is start getting on-field results to match the recruiting momentum.

2013-14 Stanford Cardinal Predictions and College Football Betting Odds
by Trevor Whenham - 7/14/2013

There are many signs that Stanford has moved into the established elite of college football. Most striking, though, is at QB. If the team was just a flash in the pan then the loss of all-World QB Andrew Luck would have been crushing. Instead, it only took half a season to identify Kevin Hogan as the QB of the future. Depth used to be a foreign word for the Cardinal, and talent was in short supply. It’s a whole new world.

2013-14 Florida State Seminoles Predictions and College Football Betting Odds
by Trevor Whenham - 7/14/2013

Florida State has been so consistently frustrating recently that you can describe them just by using their name. Florida State: to have ridiculous amounts of talent, but to throw it away by losing a game you have no business losing. They could patent the concept.

2013-14 Boise State Broncos Predictions and College Football Betting Odds
by Trevor Whenham - 7/14/2013

If I am being completely honest, I am getting a little bored of writing Boise State previews. After all, things really don’t change. They are a strong, deep team with exceptional coaching. They are superior to their conference foes by a wide margin, and the success of their season will be defined by how they fare in their biggest nonconference test early in the season. That is true of this year, but has also been true for the last several years. I really should just cut and paste.

College Football Handicapping: Johnny Manziel and the Aggies
by Trevor Whenham - 6/20/2013

Over the last week we have had a good indication of just how crazy things could be with sophomore and defending Heisman winner Johnny Manziel and his Texas A&M Aggies this year. There isn’t a college athlete under any more scrutiny right now — and it’s not even close. In fact, there hasn’t been anyone even in the same stratosphere since Tim Tebow left Gainesville.

This Week in College Football Betting by the Numbers
by Aaron Smith - 12/27/2012

With Christmas in the rearview mirror and New Year’s coming in less than a week, bowl season is now hitting full stride. We’re now hitting the time of the year where multiple bowl games will be scheduled each day. The biggest day of games still comes on New Year’s, but the BCS Championship Game will wait until Jan. 7.

This Week in College Football Betting by the Numbers
by Aaron Smith - 12/20/2012

If you like college football, there’s a good chance you love bowl season. Not all bowls are created equal, but bowl season is now underway. The biggest matchups will come as we near the end of this year and the start of 2013. Still, there are some early games that should be more exciting than many believe. Bettors should keep an eye out for games that aren’t getting attention from the public, because those might be the best betting opportunities of the entire bowl season.