I  went 12-13 against the spread last week.

I’ve been struggling the last three weeks with my college football picks. I thought the addition of Big Ten games to the schedule would fix my string of bad luck, but nope! Penn State, Michigan State and Iowa all shit the bed in their debuts.

I was impressed by a few Big Ten players last week. Michigan QB Joe Milton didn’t need to showcase much in their win over Minnesota, but he could do some damage with his size and athleticism. I was having Cam Newton flashbacks last weekend.

We at ‘America’s White Boy’ pick 25 college football games against the spread in Week 9 of the 2020-21 NCAA Football season (October 31st, 2020).

Notre Dame at Georgia Tech (+20) – My pick is Notre Dame Fighting Irish

Notre Dame is coming off a 45-3 win over Pitt. Irish QB Ian Book had his most prolific game of the season by throwing for over 300 yards and throwing three touchdown passes. Their running game wasn’t really working, so Book was needed. He gets a lot of slack for not being a strong passer, but he showed his arm can carry a team when needed. I was down on Georgia Tech going into the season, but they started the season with a win against Florida State, but they’ve regressed into the team I thought they’d be this year. Just two weeks ago, they were trounced 73-7 by Clemson and followed that game with a 48-27 loss at Boston College. Georgia Tech just doesn’t have the right personnel on the team to run a normal offense. They need another year and maybe they can hang with some mid-tier ACC teams, but they are nowhere near the level of Notre Dame, so I’m taking the Irish to cover on Saturday.

LSU at Auburn (+2.5) – My pick is Auburn Tigers

LSU will most likely be without QB Myles Brennan again as he is currently listed as doubtful. They are 2-2 (2-2 ATS) on the year and are coming off a 52-24 win at home against South Carolina. LSU QB TJ Finley did a solid job in the win, but he doesn’t have the same arm talent as Brennan. I’m not quite sure if he can match the same numbers against Auburn’s defense in this game. I was high on Auburn QB Bo Nix coming into the season, but he has not played at the same level as he did last year. He is just two interceptions shy of the total he threw all of last year. If Nix can limit his turnovers against a bad LSU defense, Auburn could win this game. I’m taking the points.

Mississippi State at Alabama (-30.5) – My pick is Mississippi State Bulldogs

Mississippi State opened the season with an upset win over LSU, but they followed up that win with three-straight outright losses (and losses against the spread). I think Vegas has overcorrected their lines a little too much. Alabama will win this game, but their defense isn’t as dominant as in previous years. If Mississippi starts QB KJ Costello and he struggles, backup QB Will Rogers has been splitting reps in practice, so he will be ready. Alabama lost WR Jaylen Waddle to a nasty ankle injury that will end his season. Their offense should take a hit since their receiving corps is in a rebuilding mode after losing wide receivers Henry Ruggs and Jerry Jeudy to the draft. I’m betting on Alabama’s offense maybe being a tad sluggish without Waddle and for a garbage-time score from MSU late in the game, so I’m taking the points.

Ohio State at Penn State (+12) – My pick is Penn State Nittany Lions

Penn State was expected to come into this game with a win under their belt, but they were victims of the trap game. They lost in overtime to Indiana, who went balls out and attempted a two-point conversion after their touchdown in the first overtime and BARELY got in. Penn State didn’t do a horrible job in the game and the Hoosiers did have issues on offense. Indiana were very fortunate that they got great field position when they forced turnovers. Penn State is better than what they showed last week. Ohio State started the year off strong with a 52-17 win over Nebraska. They should have a harder time this week. These teams have historically had close games for as long as I can remember. I think the last time this game wasn’t within a touchdown was five years ago. I know a lot of people are down on Penn State after their loss to Indiana, but if you watched that game, they should have won that game by double-digits. I’m taking the points in Happy Valley.

Missouri at Florida (-12.5) – My pick is Florida Gators

I wasn’t high on Missouri going into the season, but they have improved since their opening losses to Alabama and Tennessee. Last week’s 20-10 win at home against Kentucky was very unexpected. They limited Kentucky to just 47 passing yards. I can’t say that Mizzou RB Larry Rountree III had a dominant game, but he was inching down the field all game. He carried the ball 37 times for 126 yards and two touchdowns. He will need to average more than three yards per carry if they hope to keep the game close at Florida. The Gators have had the last couple weeks off due to a COVID-19 outbreak. I wonder if they’ll look rusty or sluggish at the start of this one. They guys are probably just pumped to be back playing games again. I’m a big fan of Florida QB Kyle Trask and he threw for 282 yards and two touchdowns against the Tigers last year and he should have similar numbers this year. I’m taking Florida to cover at home.

North Carolina at Virginia (+7) – My pick is North Carolina Tar Heels

I was a fanboy of UNC QB Sam Howell after his freshman season. I expected him to take a huge leap in his development, but he’s been…fine. He hasn’t been the game-changing quarterback I was hoping to see this year. The Tar Heels have been a much better team when they’ve been able to run the ball. Their backfield has some talented backs with Michael Carter and Javonte Williams both coming up huge in games this year. Virginia has been a disappointment since their opening game win at home against Duke. UVA QB Brennan Armstrong is their only spark on offense. He doesn’t have the talent around him to win games against the top-half of the ACC. He then tries to do too much and that’s when the turnovers occur. North Carolina should cover this game on Saturday.

Michigan State at Michigan (-24.5) – My pick is Michigan Wolverines

Michigan is coming off an impressive 49-24 win at Minnesota. The Gophers aren’t a bad team either. I wasn’t too familiar with Michigan QB Joe Milton going into that game. I knew he was a big guy and I was impressed with his performance. He didn’t need to fill the box score to secure this win. The running game broke big plays and made quick work on offense. Michigan State is probably worse than they were last year. MSU QB Rocky Lombardi might be the best option at quarterback on their roster, but he just doesn’t cut it against good Big Ten teams. His stat line doesn’t look horrible, but that’s because he had to throw a lot against Rutgers after the Scarlet Knights got out to a 21-7 early in that game. The Wolverines walloped the Spartans 44-10 last year and I expect a similar score this year.

Georgia at Kentucky (+17) – My pick is Kentucky Wildcats

Kentucky will be without starting QB Terry Wilson due to a hand injury he suffered last week against Missouri. Their backup is QB Joey Gatewood, who transferred from Auburn this year. He was only recently cleared by the SEC to play. I don’t know a ton about him, but I’ve heard that he has a good arm and is good on his feet. I know Auburn fans were happy when they landed him as a recruit, so he could be a big upgrade over Wilson, as Kentucky’s offense has sputtered at times. The Wildcats have needed to lean on their defense a lot this year. Georgia is coming off a tough loss to Alabama. Georgia QB Stetson Bennett could have trouble against Kentucky’s pass defense, which is underrated. I think Kentucky will keep this within two touchdowns, so I’m taking the points.

Minnesota at Maryland (+19.5) – My pick is Minnesota Golden Gophers

Maryland was destroyed by Northwestern 43-3 in their opener. They only managed 207 yards against the Wildcats. Maryland QB Taulia Tagovailoa threw three interceptions and did not have a good debut. Terrapin fans thought they got a gem when Tagovailoa transferred from Alabama to join the team. It appears that he’s nowhere near the player his brother was in college. Minnesota had a disappointing opener too as they couldn’t stop Michigan’s running game. Their lone bright spot was RB Mohamed Ibrahim who rushed for 140 yards and two scores. I expect a much better game from Minnesota QB Tanner Morgan. He should have one of his better games of the season against a poor Maryland defense. I’m taking Minnesota to cover in Maryland on Friday.

Boston College at Clemson (-31) – My pick is Boston College Eagles

Clemson QB Trevor Lawrence tested positive for COVID-19, so he will miss this game. It looks like QB Taisun Phommachanh will get the start against Boston College on Saturday. Even if Lawrence started this game, a 31-point spread is a lofty goal. Boston College isn’t a bad team. BC QB Phil Jurkovec has been surprising for the Eagles. He’s more athletic than I thought and he might be their best overall quarterback since Matt Ryan. It’s not super high praise since Boston College has had a string of rather pathetic quarterback since Ryan was drafted #1 overall in 2008. I’m taking the points in this one.

QUICK HITS

Coastal Carolina at Georgia State (+3) – My pick is Coastal Carolina

Indiana at Rutgers (-11) – My pick is Rutgers

TCU at Baylor (+2.5) – My pick is Baylor

Northwestern at Iowa (-2.5) – My pick is Iowa

Virginia Tech at Louisville (+3.5) – My pick is Va Tech

Texas at Oklahoma State (-3) – My pick is Oklahoma State

New Mexico at San Jose State (-13.5) – My pick is San Jose State

Navy at SMU (-12.5) – My pick is Southern Methodist

San Diego State at Utah State (+7.5) – My pick is San Diego State

Oklahoma vs Texas Tech (+14.5) – My pick is Oklahoma

BONUS PICKS!

Texas-San Antonio at Florida Atlantic (-5) – My pick is FAU

UL-Lafayette at Texas State (+16.5) – My pick is UL-Lafayette

UAB at Louisiana Tech (+12) – My pick is UAB

Troy at Arkansas State (-2.5) – My pick is Troy

Temple at Tulane (-4) – My pick is Temple

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: 187-141-8
2020: 74-74-1

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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.