I went 9-4 picking against the spread last week and I’m still fuming over the Notre Dame/USC game. I’m a fan of the Fighting Irish, but they pick the one week that I pick USC to cover to play very well against the Trojans. I have a lot of teams covering the spread this week, but you may find my upset pick of the week pretty interesting. Can we have another good week ATS? I feel pretty confident, but here are my NCAA Football picks against the spread for Week 8.
I’m staying away from a few teams this week. I’m not touching Oklahoma (because of Sam Bradford), Cincinnati (because of Tony Pike), and UConn (because of the murder of a player). Those games are very unpredictable and I would stay away.
Tulsa (-7.5) at UTEP (+7.5) – My pick is Tulsa
Tulsa had a close game against Boise State last week, but fell short by a touchdown. They have an explosive offensive and UTEP won’t be able to keep up. Tulsa will win this game by two touchdowns.
Florida State (+2.5) at North Carolina (-2.5) – My pick is Florida State
The Seminoles have had a pretty bad year so far, but North Carolina has been very unimpressive against BCS schools. This game is a must-win if they have any aspirations on going to a bowl game this year. Florida State will win this game, but I feel it will be close.
Georgia Tech (-5.5) at Virginia (+5.5) – My pick is Georgia Tech
Georgia Tech had an impressive win against Virginia Tech last week. The Hokies couldn’t stop their running game and Virginia won’t be able to do it either. I’ll give the points and take Georgia Tech.
Arkansas (+6) at Mississippi (-6) – My pick is Arkansas
Who knew that Bobby Petrino would get Arkansas playing well this soon? They almost knocked off Florida last week and I’ve seen a few Ole Miss games this year and they are pretenders. Give me the points and I’ll take Arkansas.
Oklahoma State (-9.5) at Baylor (+9.5) – My pick is Oklahoma State
Even without Dez Bryant, Oklahoma State has looked pretty good and Baylor has been very inconsistent. I believe 9.5 points is a pretty big point spread, but the Cowboys will cover it.
Ball State (-2.5) at Eastern Michigan (+2.5) – My pick is Ball State
Neither of these teams have won a game this season, but Ball State’s offense is better than Eastern Michigan’s defense. Give me my old alma mater and the Cardinals will get their first win.
Buffalo (+5) at Western Michigan (-5) – My pick is Western Michigan
Buffalo was a cinderella team last year, but they haven’t looked like a pumpkin this year. Western Michigan hasn’t had as good of a year as last either, but they are a much better team. I’ll take Western Michigan ATS of 5.
Clemson (+5) at Miami (FL) (-5) – My pick is Miami (FL)
This line seems pretty low with Miami with only one loss. They have looked very good since they lost to the Hokies. Clemson are only a .500 team and they have to travel to Miami. I’ll take Miami all day ATS, this should be an easy cover.
Boston College (+8) at Notre Dame (-8) – My pick is Notre Dame
Notre Dame is a team that I haven’t been able to predict. I have been wrong nearly every week with this team and I even refused to make a pick in the Notre Dame game for about three weeks. Their games have been pretty close the last four weeks, but Boston College haven’t looked very good. BC does have a pretty long winning streak against Notre Dame, but this will be the year that the Irish will win and cover the spread.
Penn State (-4.5) at Michigan (+4.5) – My pick is Penn State
Can we finally say that Michigan isn’t very good? I know they looked good at the beginning of the year, but they have looked pretty bad against the Big Ten so far. Penn State was my preseason pick to win the Big Ten and I’m sticking with them. JoePa will win this game and cover the spread.
UCLA (+7.5) at Arizona (-7.5) – My pick is UCLA
This one is my upset pick of the week. UCLA has a three game losing streak, but Arizona is a little bit over-rated. Their wins have come against Central Michigan, Northern Arizona, Oregon State, and a close win against Stanford. I feel that UCLA could go in there and make it a close game. I’m not saying UCLA will win, but it will be within a touchdown.
Iowa (pick’em) at Michigan State (pick’em) – My pick is Iowa
I’ve been perfect this year on picking Iowa games. Michigan State has been playing well, but Iowa has a perfect record since changing their quarterback at mid-season last year. Iowa is the real deal and they will win this game in East Lansing.
Auburn (+7.5) at LSU (-7.5) – My pick is LSU
LSU is coming off of a bye week and Auburn lost to Kentucky. LSU is a very good team and they want to do as much to erase the memory of the Florida loss. They will beat Auburn by two touchdowns and cover the spread.
These picks are for entertainment purposes.
