Last week, I went 16-9 against the spread during Week 7 of the college football season.
There are a handful of big games this week, but I doubt anything will top last week’s Tennessee/Alabama contest. I hope one of the games this week is half as fun to watch.
UCLA at Oregon should be one of the better games this week. I will be interested to see how Chip Kelly’s offense stacks up against the Ducks.
Can Alabama rebound with a cover against Mississippi State?
We at ‘America’s White Boy’ pick 25 college football games against the spread in Week 8 of the 2022-23 NCAA Football season (October 22nd, 2022).
Iowa at Ohio State (-30) – My pick is Iowa Hawkeyes
The Iowa Hawkeyes are 3-3 outright and have the same record against the spread this season. They are coming off a bye, and in their previous game, lost at Illinois 9-6. We all know how piss-poor Iowa’s offense has been this season, but their defense is right up there near Michigan as being the Big Ten’s best. The Hawkeyes defense will keep them in most games. The Ohio State Buckeyes are 6-0 outright and 3-2-1 against the spread. They are coming off their bye week, and in their previous game, they won at Michigan State 49-20. The Buckeyes backfield are making QB C.J. Stroud’s job much easier the last few games. Ohio State’s defense isn’t the best, but their offense can keep toe-to-toe with any team in the country. The Buckeyes will win this game, but this point spread is a tad too large. Iowa’s defense should keep it within a few scores, so I’m taking the points.
Kansas at Baylor (-7.5) – My pick is Kansas Jayhawks
The Kansas Jayhawks are 5-2 outright and 6-0-1 against the spread this season. They are coming off a 52-42 road loss against Oklahoma State. Their offense hasn’t missed a beat since the injury to QB Jalon Daniels. Backup QB Jason Bean has stepped in and has done a fantastic job, but it looks like Daniels ‘may’ return this week. The Baylor Bears are 3-3 outright and have the same record against the spread. They are coming off a 43-40 road loss to West Virginia. Baylor suffered their own quarterback injury as QB Blake Shapen suffered a concussion in the loss. His health status is still up in the air and could miss this game. There are so many unknowns headed into this game. I hope more information on both quarterbacks playing statuses are known long before kick-off. As of right now, I think Kansas will hang with Baylor, so I’m taking the points.
Syracuse at Clemson (-13.5) – My pick is Syracuse Orange
The Syracuse Orange are 6-0 outright and 5-1 against the spread. They are coming off a 24-9 home win against NC State. Syracuse QB Garrett Shrader has improved so much since last season. I like his decision-making and he sneaky fast on his feet. I’ve also liked how well their defense has stepped up in close games. The Clemson Tigers are 7-0 outright and 4-3 against the spread this season. They are coming off a 34-28 road win against Florida State. Clemson had full control of the game, but allowed Florida State to sneak back into it with 14 unanswered points in the fourth quarter. It’s not the first time this has happened. Clemson lays off the gas far too often. Syracuse is a solid team and I don’t see Clemson covering this spread (and keeping a large lead in the fourth), so I’m taking the points.
Texas at Oklahoma State (+6.5) – My pick is Texas Longhorns
The Texas Longhorns are 5-2 outright and have the same record against the spread. They are coming off a 24-21 home win over Iowa State. It wasn’t as pretty as their 49-0 shutout against Oklahoma the previous week, but it was a typical ‘letdown’ game. Texas RB Bijan Robinson carried the team on his back at times, which you love to see from him. The Oklahoma State Cowboys are 5-1 outright and 4-2 against the spread this season. They are coming off a 43-40 overtime road loss to TCU. OSU’s defense has been a problem this season and they could struggle against Texas. The Longhorns have played very well in big games this season. I have to take Texas to cover on Saturday.
Mississippi at LSU (-2) – My pick is Ole Miss Rebels
The Ole Miss Rebels are 7-0 outright and 3-4 against the spread. They are coming off a 48-34 home win over Auburn. They got out to a double-digit lead early, and were able to keep it. They racked up 448 rushing yards in the win, which is the most they’ve had (by far) in a game this season. Their offense is able to adapt and has the ability to throw the ball if the running game isn’t there. The LSU Tigers are 5-2 outright and 4-3 against the spread this season. They are coming off a 45-35 road win over Florida. It was a nice rebound after getting blown-out by Tennessee at home. LSU QB Jayden Daniels had a rough stretch of games in late-September, but he shined against the Gators. This game could be very close, but I love versatility of Ole Miss’s offense. I have to take the points in this one.
UCLA at Oregon (-6.5) – My pick is UCLA Bruins
The UCLA Bruins are 6-0 outright and 4-2 against the spread this season. They are coming off a 42-32 home win over Utah. I haven’t been very high on UCLA all season, but I’m loving the tandem of QB Dorian Thompson-Robinson and RB Zach Charbonnet. I’ve probably take a few shots at DTR over the years, but he’s proving me wrong. The Oregon Ducks are 5-1 outright and 4-2 against the spread. They are coming off a 49-22 road win over Arizona. Speaking of quarterbacks I’ve taken shots at over the years…Bo Nix has been careful with the ball this year and he is managing their offense well. I like that he hasn’t had an implosion game like he used to have a few times a year at Auburn. These teams are pretty evenly-matched and it should be a fun game to watch, so I’ll take the points.
Mississippi State at Alabama (-21) – My pick is Alabama Crimson Tide
The Mississippi State Bulldogs are 5-2 outright and 4-2-1 against the spread. They are coming off a 27-17 road loss to Kentucky. It was a bump in the road after back-to-back SEC wins. Kentucky’s defense is no joke and their Air Raid offense was a bit too one-dimensional. The Alabama Crimson Tide are 6-1 outright and 4-3 against the spread. They are coming off a 52-49 road loss to Tennessee. As a viewer, it was an absolute all-timer. I love Tennessee going into that game and Alabama went score-for-score with them in Knoxville. QB Bryce Young stepped up and was able to move the ball in bunches through the air, but his defense gave up a few too many yards in the final seconds. I don’t think any less of Alabama after last week. The Tide have destroyed Mississippi State since Mike Leach took over. I’m taking Alabama to rebound with a cover at home.
Kansas State at TCU (-3.5) – My pick is TCU Horned Frogs
The Kansas State Wildcats are 5-1 outright and 4-1-1 against the spread this season. They are coming off a bye week, and in their previous game, they beat Iowa State 10-9. It was a ugly game, but Iowa State’s defense is legit, so it was a solid win. KSU QB Adrian Martinez has regained the confidence he has his freshman season at Nebraska. He was always banged up, so being healthy is huge for him. The TCU Horned Frogs are 6-0 outright and 4-1-1 against the spread. They are coming off a 43-40 overtime home win over Oklahoma State. QB Max Duggan made enough throws to keep them in the game, but it was far from his best work. He played his best football late in the game. He could have another shoot-out this week. I like TCU a little more than KSU and I think they will cover at home.
Purdue at Wisconsin (-2.5) – My pick is Purdue Boilermakers
The Purdue Boilermakers are 5-2 outright and 3-4 against the spread this season. They are coming off a 43-37 home win over Nebraska. It was Purdue QB Aidan O’Connell’s most prolific game since his injury last month. He threw for 391 yards and four touchdowns. They are tough team to beat when he’s healthy. The Wisconsin Badgers are 3-4 outright and have the same record against the spread. They are coming off a 34-28 overtime road loss to Michigan State. Wisconsin RB Braelon Allen can only do so much for his offense. They needed more from QB Graham Mertz, but that’s been an ongoing issue for a long time. It was a bad loss for the Badgers. They aren’t playing their best and are clearly just marking time until a new head coach arrives this offseason. I have to take the points in this game.
Toledo at Buffalo (+7.5) – My pick is Buffalo Bulls
This is the section where we pick a smaller conference game. The Toledo Rockers are 5-2 outright and 4-3 against the spread this season. They are coming off a 52-31 home win over Kent State. They ran the ball well, which has been key in all of their wins. They are 3-0 against other MAC teams so far this season. The Buffalo Bulls are 4-3 outright and 5-1-1 against the spread. They are coming off a 34-7 road win over a bad UMass team. It was their fourth outright win in-a-row. They are playing a lot better since their early season upset loss to Holy Cross. I think Buffalo’s advantage in this game comes at quarterback. I like QB Cole Snyder a lot more and they have a solid running game to back him up. I’m taking the points in this game.
QUICK HITS
UAB at Western Kentucky (-1.5) – My pick is UAB
Houston at Navy (+2.5) – My pick is Houston
Boston College at Wake Forest (-20) – My pick is Wake Forest
Northwestern at Maryland (-13.5) – My pick is Maryland
Cincinnati at SMU (+3.5) – My pick is Cincinati
UNLV at Notre Dame (-27) – My pick is UNLV
BYU at Liberty (+6.5) – My pick is BYU
Arizona State at Stanford (-3) – My pick is Arizona State
Minnesota at Penn State (-3.5) – My pick is Penn State
Texas A&M at South Carolina (+3) – My pick is Texas A&M
BONUS PICKS!
Bowling Green at Central Michigan (-6.5) – My pick is Bowling Green
Eastern Michigan at Ball State (-2.5) – My pick is Eastern Michigan
Northern Illinois at Ohio (+3) – My pick is Northern Illinois
Georgia Southern at Old Dominion (-3) – My pick is Georgia Southern
Southern Miss at Texas State (+2.5) – My pick is Southern Miss
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: 170-160-5
2021: 167-151-8
2022: 98-74-3
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.