I started off strong this year and went 17-7-1 against the spread last week.
There aren’t a ton of marquee games this week. College football athletic directors know that most people are more geared up for the NFL season to begin this weekend. There are a ton of games where FBS teams take on easy wins against a small FCS schools.
There were a few notable upsets last week, but all the major players made it out of their games unscathed. Can Wisconsin and Michigan cover their huge point spreads this weekend?
We at ‘America’s White Boy’ pick 25 college football games against the spread in Week 2 of the 2019-20 NCAA Football season (September 7th,, 2019). We also pick some smaller conference games.
Marshall at Boise State (-12) – My pick is Boise State Broncos
Marshall is coming off a tune-up game drubbing of the VMI Keydets. You can’t glean anything from the game. They used a handful of different running backs and QB Isaiah Green showed he was able to carve up an FCS team. Boise State chose to do the exact opposite of Marshall and they shot for the moon and scheduled a road game against Florida State. QB Hank Bachmeier, a true freshman, completed 30 of 41 passes against the Seminoles and the Broncos pulled off the victory. He had a lot of help from RB Robert Mahone, who rushed for 142 yards with two touchdowns. This could be a ‘letdown game’, but the Broncos have their eyes on a perfect season now that they knocked off their toughest opponent on their schedule. Boise State could have a magical season and this is only the beginning, so I’m taking them to cover.
Vanderbilt at Purdue (-7) – My pick is Purdue Boilermakers
Both teams are coming off losses in their opening games. Vandy were spanked by title contender Georgia and Purdue was upset by Nevada. The Commodores have Ball State-transfer Riley Neal starting at QB. I watched a lot of his games while at BSU and I was surprised to see him struggle so bad. He never faced a defense like Georgia while there, so it was a bit too much to handle for him. Last week, Purdue QB Elijah Sindelar threw a late interception that lost the game for the Boilermakers. He’s a talented quarterback, but he does try to sling passes in small windows. He will need his defense to keep Neal on his toes on Saturday. Purdue’s defense is their weakest skill, so it could be a shootout. Purdue has high hopes this season and are the better team. I think they will cover at home.
Rutgers at Iowa (-20) – My pick is Iowa Hawkeyes
Rutgers had a nice opening win against UMass last week. Unfortunately, the Minutemen are one of the worst teams in the FBS, so every game on their schedule will be much harder. They the worst team in the Big Ten and will have trouble scoring on Iowa’s defense. Iowa QB Nate Stanley should torch the Scarlet Knights on the way to a cover at home.
Army at Michigan (-23) – My pick is Army Black Knights
Last week against Middle Tennessee, Michigan missed a cover by 17 points. Their defense isn’t the same monster it has been the last few seasons. Their offense might be a little better than their defense this season. They usually do well against the run and Army will rely heavily on their ground attack. They should eat up some time of possession in the process. The Wolverines should win at home Saturday, but will come up a few points short of hitting a cover, so I’m taking the points.
Nebraska at Colorado (+4.5) – My pick is Colorado Buffaloes
Colorado started off hot last season, but really ran out of gas in the Pac-12. QB Steven Montez struggled when they played conference opponents. They are a better team this year with an improved defense. Nebraska doesn’t have a ‘light up the scoreboard’ offensive attack, but they are a solid, complete team. This should be a close game and what I consider a ‘coin flip’ game. I like Montez a little too much to bet against him against the Cornhuskers, so I’m taking the points.
Texas A&M at Clemson (-17) – My pick is Clemson Tigers
Texas A&M gave Clemson one of their toughest games of the year in 2018. The Tigers squeaked by with a two-point win in College Station. That game was the beginning of the Trevor Lawrence era for Clemson. He has grown as a quarterback since then and will most certainly rely on RB Travis Etienne a lot this year. A&M QB Kellen Mond had the game of his life against Clemson last season. Even though Clemson lost a ton of defensive talent to the NFL Draft, I doubt he will match last year’s numbers. He hasn’t been a very good quarterback on the road. He’s will be walking into a very loud Clemson Memorial Stadium. I am taking Clemson to cover.
San Diego State at UCLA (-7.5) – My pick is UCLA Bruins
UCLA is a little undervalued after their loss to Cincinnati last week. UCLA QB Dorian Thompson-Robinson will need to limit his turnovers if he hopes to have success this week. The Aztecs do have one of their better defenses in their conference. The offense is a bit of a work in progress right now, which works in UCLA’s favor. They should cover at home and get their first win of the season.
Coastal Carolina at Kansas (-7.5) – My pick is Kansas Jayhawks
Les Miles took a bad college football job to get back into head coaching. If he can turn Kansas into a bowl team, he deserves a much better job. He’s still a long way away from turning the Jayhawks around, but they are better than a lowly Coastal Carolina team, which is one of the worst twenty teams in the FBS. Kansas isn’t getting much love here because it’s so rare that they are ever favored. I’m taking the Jayhawks to cover on Saturday.
BYU at Tennessee (-3.5) – My pick is Tennessee Volunteers
The Vols suffered one of the biggest upsets in recent memory when they lost to Georgia State last week. The Panthers were motivated and took advantage of just about every Tennessee mistake. Vols QB Jarrett Guarantano limited turnovers, but he just wasn’t very accurate with his passes. I’m not sure if the wide receivers weren’t running proper routes, but he was just deflated by the time the fourth quarter began. BYU lost to Utah last week and they looked pretty darn bad. Their offense just looked broken and the defense couldn’t bail them out. Tennessee should have a bounce back win and cover at home.
Wyoming at Texas State (+7) – My pick is Wyoming Cowboys
This is where we pick a game between smaller conference teams. Wyoming knocked off Missouri last week and spoiled Clemson-transfer QB Kelly Bryant’s first game on his new team. The Cowboys were able to just run the ball down the Tiger’s throat and Bryant had to play catch-up in the second-half. Texas State is coming off a 41-7 loss to Texas A&M. The Aggies were able to run at will. The Cowboys may not have the same level of athletes as A&M in the backfield or offensive line, but they should have the same success against Texas State on the ground. The Cowboys should cover on the road.
QUICK HITS
Syracuse at Maryland (-1.5) – My pick is Maryland
UAB at Akron (+9) – My pick is UAB
Illinois at UConn (+21) – My pick is Illinois
Eastern Michigan at Kentucky (-14.5) – My pick is Kentucky
Minnesota at Fresno State (+3) – My pick is Fresno State
California at Washington (14) – My pick is Washington
Stanford at USC (-1) – My pick is Stanford
Oregon State at Hawaii (-6.5) – My pick is Hawaii
West Virginia at Missouri (-14) – My pick is West Virginia
South Florida at Georgia Tech (-6.5) – My pick is Georgia Tech
BONUS PICKS!
Central Michigan at Wisconsin (-35) – My pick is Central Michigan
Southern Miss at Mississippi State (-17) – My pick is Southern Miss
UTSA at Baylor (-25.5) – My pick is Baylor
North Texas at SMU (-3) – My pick is SMU
UCF at FAU (+10.5) – My pick is UCF
Sweetbob’s college football picks against the spread record in previous seasons:
2013: 134-79-8
2014: 148-118-4
2015: 149-118-3
2016: 196-145-6
2017: 183-159-13
2018: 177-157-6
2019: 17-7-1
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About the Author…
Bobby Roberts (otherwise known as Sweetbob) is the creator of ‘America’s White Boy’ and contributor at Project Shanks. His writing has been featured on ESPN’s ‘SportsNation’, Sports Illustrated’s Hot Clicks, Guyspeed, and various other sites. You can follow him on Twitter at @Sweetbob.