College Football Handicapping Articles

College Football Week 1 Opening Lines: Interesting Odds on the Early Board
by Trevor Whenham - 7/26/2016

We're still more than a month away from the start of the college football season. I don't know about you, but I am really getting excited. It's too early to get really serious about handicapping the first week of games - teams haven't even started practicing yet. BetOnline has odds set for many of the Week 1 games, though, so it doesn't hurt to take a look at what stands out - and what might change once the public jumps on board.

College Football Handicapping and Betting: Hardest Top 25 Teams to Analyze
by Trevor Whenham - 7/26/2016

As July prepares to turn into August, I start to get itchy for the start of the college football season. I don't worry about specific games and matchups yet - that comes later. What I am interested in now is forming the basic opinions of teams that will start to guide my decision making going forward. Often times it's pretty straightforward - Florida State will be really good this year, for example, while Kansas will be awful, and I didn't have to fire up too much brainpower to come to either conclusion.

Christian McCaffrey Odds to win the 2016 Heisman Trophy with Expert Picks
by Dave Schwab - 7/26/2016

A quick look at MyBookie's updated betting odds to win this season's Heisman Trophy as the top college football player in the nation reveals that last season's runner-up Christian McCaffrey has been listed as a close +500 third-favorite behind LSU running back Leonard Fournette (+300) and Clemson quarterback Deshaun Watson (+450). The Stanford junior was second in the voting last year to Alabama running back Derrick Henry with 1,539 points verses Henry's 1,832 points in one of the closest Heisman votes in recent memory. Watson was actually third on that short list with 1,165 points, and Fournette came in sixth with 110 points.

2016 Cincinnati Bearcats Football Predictions and Season Win Total Picks
by Robert Ferringo - 7/26/2016

Tommy Tuberville looks to continue his destruction of one of the most underrated and undervalued football programs in the country. Cincinnati is a team that, prior to Tuberville's hiring in 2013, had gone 65-26 over a seven-year stretch while serving as a springboard for Mark Dantonio, Brian Kelly and Butch Jones.

2016 Connecticut Huskies Football Predictions and Season Win Total Picks
by Robert Ferringo - 7/26/2016

I cannot fathom how a college football team can average less than 18 points per game for an entire season. Not in the way the sport is presently constituted, where teams seemingly fall out of bed and score 35 points and 51-45 shootouts are the rule rather than the exception.

Ole Miss Odds to win the College Football National Championship with Expert Betting Predictions
by Trevor Whenham - 7/26/2016

Perhaps the most interesting thing to speculate about concerning this season for the Ole Miss Rebels is whether the wins will ultimately count in history. There is so much turmoil and scandal surrounding this team that any punishment possible could conceivably come down. There is also the possibility that head coach Hugh Freeze could face a suspension at some point this season - a first for a coach since the rules were changed and coaches can now be suspended for NCAA violations under their watch.

LSU Odds to win the College Football National Championship with Expert Betting Predictions
by Trevor Whenham - 7/25/2016

Les Miles has averaged 10 wins per season in his 11 years at the helm at LSU, though he has failed to reach that level the last two years, with eight wins two years back followed by nine last year. Expectations are very high this year, and if he wants to comfortably be able to coach this team until he decides he is done then he'll be very interested in getting back to that 10-win level - and hopefully beyond it. The team is only four seasons removed from their last national title game appearance, but they have looked a bit like a tiger missing a tooth or two and a couple of claws since then.

Notre Dame Odds to win the College Football National Championship with Expert Betting Predictions
by Trevor Whenham - 7/25/2016

There is an exercise I have to do every year when I am evaluating Notre Dame. I have to ignore the uniforms the players are going to wear and evaluate this team as if they played in Kalamazoo or Wichita or somewhere obscure. Because of the aura surrounding this team you have to do that or else you can get swept up in the inevitable hype and optimism surrounding perhaps the most national program we have.

2016 Central Florida Golden Knights Football Predictions and Season Win Total Picks
by Robert Ferringo - 7/25/2016

Here is, without a doubt, a 100 percent guaranteed prediction for this upcoming college football season: Central Florida is going to have a much better season in 2016 than they did in 2015. That prediction is without question a certainty mainly because things can't possibly go much worse than last year for the Golden Knights. Central Florida, which just two years ago was beating Baylor in the Fiesta Bowl to wrap up a 12-1 season, went 0-12 last year.

Deshaun Watson Odds to win the 2016 Heisman Trophy with Expert Picks
by Dave Schwab - 7/25/2016

Clemson quarterback Deshaun Watson is coming off a season to remember heading into his third year with the Tigers. He helped lead his team to the College Football Playoff Championship Game against Alabama, and in the process he finished third in the final voting for the 2015 Heisman Trophy behind Derrick Henry and Christian McCaffrey.

2016 East Carolina Pirates Football Predictions and Season Win Total Picks
by Robert Ferringo - 7/25/2016

Look, I've had a fun time laughing at Riffin McNeill over the last several years as one of the most clueless head coaches in college football. Seriously; most of the time the guy looked like he was asleep in the passenger seat on his way home from Ruby Tuesday's. But even I was surprised that East Carolina pulled the trigger and fired him this offseason. I can't say that I think it was a poor move by ECU brass. But even I, a staunch detractor, has to admit that the Pirates have been a pretty feisty team the last four seasons under McNeill's guidance.

Leonard Fournette Odds to win the 2016 Heisman Trophy with Expert Picks
by Dave Schwab - 7/25/2016

LSU junior running back Leonard Fournette has been touted as a legitimate Heisman Trophy contender since his freshman year, and heading into the 2016 season MyBookie has him at the top of its Heisman futures list to win it this year at +300 betting odds.

Michigan Odds to win the College Football National Championship with Expert Betting Predictions
by Trevor Whenham - 7/25/2016

Now it all matters. We're not playing around anymore. Up until now the Jim Harbaugh era has been all drama and potential. He has never met an opportunity to get attention that he hasn't fully embraced. His first season back with his former team was as good as could have been expected, but now it really matters. If he delivers on his talk, and the massive potential of his team, then he will be cast in gold and will be the king of Michigan forever.

Oklahoma Odds to win the College Football National Championship with Expert Betting Predictions
by Trevor Whenham - 7/25/2016

All in all Oklahoma doesn't have too much to complain about concerning last year. They lost in the Orange Bowl to the team that lost in the National Championship Game, Clemson. That seems about right - they were a very good team but a step or two from the best. Well, as long as they can take care of a thing or two this season, they have the chance to be pretty much exactly the same thing again this year.

Tennessee Odds to win the College Football National Championship with Expert Betting Predictions
by Trevor Whenham - 7/25/2016

Starting from the top of a roughly-predicted preseason Top 25, this is the seventh team preview I have written so far and the first one in which I feel like the expectations are probably a bit too high for the team. Many people seem to be seeing the Tennessee Volunteers as both the strong favorites in the SEC East and serious playoff contenders. While I have no issues with the former, I just don't believe that they are yet ready to contend with the best of the best.

Michigan State Odds to win the College Football National Championship with Expert Betting Predictions
by Trevor Whenham - 7/24/2016

The Spartans have had 11 wins or more five times in the last six seasons, and have been a Top-10 team at the end of each of the last three seasons. For a team that doesn't recruit with the big boys and eternally lives in the shadow of Ohio State and Michigan in their conference, that is a remarkable run of success. That success faces a big threat this year, though. The conference is shaping up to be very tough - or at least very top heavy - and the Spartans face a big job in reloading this year after departures to several key stars.

UCLA Odds to win the College Football National Championship with Expert Betting Predictions
by Trevor Whenham - 7/24/2016

Watching the UCLA Bruins is like being Bill Murray in "Groundhog Day". Every year we ask ourselves if this is finally the season in which the Bruins break out and realize the potential they always seem to have. And every year they find a way to sabotage their success and fall short of where they should be. Injuries, bad plays, questionable coaching - they have had it all. It must be just exhausting being a fan of the Bruins.

Clemson Odds to win the College Football National Championship with Expert Betting Predictions
by Trevor Whenham - 7/23/2016

Only Alabama has less to complain about regarding their season last year than the Clemson Tigers do. They finished 14-1 and suffered that only loss in the National Championship Game. Now they return many of their most important players, the coaching staff stays almost entirely intact - the only changes were the addition of two high school coaches in analyst roles, and they have a schedule that sets up well for them.

Stanford Odds to win the College Football National Championship with Expert Betting Predictions
by Trevor Whenham - 7/23/2016

The Stanford Cardinal are on quite a roll - they won the Pac-12 last year, and have taken three of the last four conference titles. When you think of where this program was not too long ago when Jim Harbaugh took over, that is truly a remarkable accomplishment. Now, though, they are no longer the plucky upstart, but rather the hunted favorites. Add to that a division that isn't getting any easier - Oregon might not be quite as scary as they were at their peak, but Washington is seriously on the rise - and the pressure in Palo Alto is significant.

Ohio State Odds to win the College Football National Championship with Expert Betting Picks
by Trevor Whenham - 7/5/2016

It pains me to say it, but the fact that this Ohio State team is not only viewed as a top 25 team, but as a legitimate playoff contender, is proof of just how incredible what they are doing in Columbus right now is. I mean, this team has just six starters returning - the fewest in major conference football. They lost 12 guys in the draft last year alone. Five of them went in the first round, and the whole dozen were gone by the end of the fourth. That kind of attrition would crush most programs, or at least cause them to need a year to regroup.