I apologize for getting my college football picks out this late, but my hosting company decided to migrate thousands of sites to larger servers…and didn’t get an email telling me this was going to happen. After it was moved, I had to call the security company that protects my site. The hosting company didn’t tell them the new IP address of the server and they had to add that manually. So, after 30 hours of random back-and-forth calls, it’s now fixed.
There are some huge games this week that could knock off a few conference championship contenders. Iowa vs Michigan and Auburn vs Florida are two must-watch games this week.
We at ‘America’s White Boy’ pick 25 college football games against the spread in Week 6 of the 2019-20 NCAA Football season (October 5th,, 2019). We also pick some smaller conference games.
UCF at Cincinnati (+3.5) – My pick is UCF Knights
UCF could have beaten UConn by about 70, but they pulled their starters in the third quarter. UCF can smoke lower level teams, but games against good teams will be close. Cincinnati is a good team (even though they lost to Ohio State 42-0). This game will be closer than people think, but I still think UCF will squeeze out a cover.
Iowa at Michigan (-3.5) – My pick is Iowa Hawkeyes
I don’t get why Michigan is favored in this game. At the very least, I feel that it should be a pick’em. I know Michigan smoked Rutgers in their last game, but most Big Ten teams will do that this year. Iowa may have the second-best quarterback in the Big Ten with Nate Stanley. I don’t trust Michigan QB Shea Patterson or the rest of their offense against Iowa. I’m taking the points.
Illinois at Minnesota (-14) – My pick is Illinois Fighting Illini
Neither team is expected to do much in the Big Ten. Illinois is better than most people think, but the end result hasn’t been there most weeks. They have a good running game and should cause issues for the Gophers. Minnesota should will outright, but it will be within 14 points.
Baylor at Kansas State (-1.5) – My pick is Baylor Bears
Kansas State’s offense is suspect and I don’t trust them to keep up with Baylor. Baylor QB Charlie Brewer is quietly having a very good season for the Bears. Through four games, he has yet to throw an interception. This will be his first true test against a good defense, but he should do just fine. I’m taking the points.
Auburn at Florida (+2.5) – My pick is Auburn Tigers
Speaking of underrated quarterbacks, Auburn freshman QB Bo Nix should be on that list. He had a bit of a coming out party for his passing arm last week against Mississippi State. He threw for 335 yards and two touchdowns. Nix can do damage with his legs as well. Florida will have trouble on defense, as I don’t think they have the speed to defend the Tigers. I’m taking Auburn to cover in the Swamp.
Northwestern at Nebraska (-7) – My pick is Nebraska Cornhuskers
Nebraska is a very good team at home. They need erase getting a 48-7 beatdown from Ohio State last week. The only thing Nebraska QB Adrian Martinez could do against Ohio State was run for his life (81 rushing yards). He threw three interceptions, which was out of his character. Luckily, Northwestern is coming to town on Saturday. They are struggling on both sides of the ball this season. I’m taking the Cornhuskers to cover at home.
North Carolina at Georgia Tech (+10.5) – My pick is North Carolina Tar Heels
North Carolina is coming off a near-defeat of #1 Clemson last week. They were clicking on offense by getting first downs and their defense held Clemson RB Travis Etienne to just 67 yards. Clemson QB Trevor Lawrence also had his worst game of the year. Georgia Tech might be the worst team in the ACC. They are coming off a 24-2 loss at Temple. UNC should go into Georgia Tech and cover on Saturday.
Arizona at Colorado (-4) – My pick is Arizona Wildcats
Colorado looked great last season…and then the Pac 12 conference schedule started. This year was mostly the same, but this time their defense has mostly failed them all season long. Arizona is dealing with a hamstring injury to QB Khalil Tate, but Grant Gunnell has played very well in his absence. If Tate isn’t ready to go, Arizona’s cover percentage stays the same. I’m taking the points.
Pittsburgh at Duke (-5) – My pick is Duke Blue Devils
Duke has been damn good since getting trounced by Alabama early this season. QB Quentin Harris has been impressive and has been more accurate than expected going into this season. He’s also averaging 5.9 yards per carry. Pittsburgh is getting some love from Vegas due to their one-point loss to UCF two weeks ago…but they have looked bad in just about every other game. This one is easy, I’m taking Duke to cover.
Arkansas State at Georgia State (+6.5) – My pick is Arkansas State Red Wolves
This is where we pick a game between smaller conference teams. The public has been wrong on Georgia State since their upset of Tennessee. They are not very good and Arkansas State QB Layne Hatcher should fare well against GSU’s secondary. He started the season as the backup, but he’s talented enough to get the cover on the road.
QUICK HITS
Maryland at Rutgers (+12) – My pick is Maryland
TCU at Iowa State (-3.5) – My pick is TCU
Eastern Michigan at Central Michigan (+6) – My pick is Central Michigan
Marshall at Middle Tennessee (+4) – My pick is Marshall
Air Force at Navy (+3.5) – My pick is Navy
Ohio at Buffalo (+3.5) – My pick is Buffalo
Memphis at UL-Monroe (+14.5) – My pick is Memphis
Rice at UAB (-9.5) – My pick is UAB
Tulsa at SMU (-13) – My pick is SMU
Liberty at New Mexico State (+4) – My pick is Liberty
BONUS PICKS!
New Mexico at San Jose State (-6.5) – My pick is San Jose State
Texas-San Antonio at UTEP (1.5) – My pick is UTEP
Boise State at UNLV (+22) – My pick is Boise State
Utah State at LSU (-27.5) – My pick is Utah State
Oklahoma at Kansas (+31.5) – My pick is Oklahoma
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: 66-56-4
Follow us on Twitter @Sweetbob & ‘LIKE’ us on Facebook!
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.