If I Were A Betting Man: Week 3 picks

While it may not have been quite as wild as opening weekend, Week 2 of college football offered a third-and-93, a debate on a one-point loss vs. a one-possession loss and a game involving the Hurricanes canceled by a hurricane.

Teams named the Roadrunners, Aztecs and Chippewas beat Power Five teams to move to 2-0 and James Franklin threw about as much shade as he possibly could after his No. 4 ranked Nittany Lions beat unranked Pitt by 19.

This week, Florida State-Miami was pushed to October, leaving a light week even lighter, but there are still games to be watched and bets to be made.

Week 2 was a rough one on the betting front, but this is a marathon, not a sprint. Think UCLA-Texas A&M, people. I’m putting a call out to Josh Rosen to lead my comeback!

The lines listed are from Covers.com.

Week two record: 1-4

Week two net payout: -$330

Season record: 3-6

Season payout: -$365

Everyone knows about Louisville QB Lamar Jackson, who is somehow on a redemption tour despite winning last year’s Heisman Trophy (thank you, Hot Take culture!). Jackson has led his team to 35 points against Purdue and 47 points against North Carolina while piling up more than 1,000 yards total offense and eight touchdowns.

But what about Clemson’s QB, otherwise known as The Man Replacing DeShaun Watson? Kelly Bryant’s numbers aren’t as gaudy as Jackson’s, but he has 417 passing yards, 136 rushing yards and four TDs in two games. Clemson only put up 14 points against Auburn, but Louisville’s defense is much weaker. There will be points-a-plenty in the marquee game of the weekend.

The Bet: $100 on the over

When looking at big Alabama spreads, you have to factor in the Tide’s motivation level. There are certainly times when Nick Saban rolls it back and lets a team like Chattanooga or Western Carolina sort of hang around, relatively speaking. But Saban was unhappy with the Jalen Hurts criticism from last week’s game, and he figures to have ingrained some respect into his team for the Rams, who crushed Oregon State in Week 1. Look for the Tide to put the pedal to the medal here after ‘only’ beating Fresno State by 31 last week.

The Bet: $50 on Alabama to cover

I’m going to tease this one. Illinois has looked decent in its first two games thus far while USF has not lived up to expectations. Couple that with disrupted preparations due to Hurricane Irma and the Bulls may struggle to put away the Illini. Meanwhile, USC put together a monster game against Stanford last week, then tweaked Texas by declaring its loss to Vince Young in the national championship game never happened. Love the shot by the Trojans. Love USC’s offense lighting up Texas’ defense even more.

The Bet: $100 tease on Illinois +24, USC -9

Purdue backed up its strong performance against Louisville by whipping MAC favorite Ohio in Week 2. The Boilers have indeed made pretty big strides under new coach Jeff Brohm from the team that won nine games in four years under Darrell Hazell. Purdue gained 558 yards against Ohio and now faces a team that has given up 37 points per game to Southwest Missouri State and South Carolina. Look for Purdue to keep its early season mojo going with the upset in Columbia.

The Bet: $100 money line on Purdue (+250)

Two teams that have looked good against sub-par competition thus far. Vanderbilt won 28-6 at Middle Tennessee and blanked FCS Alabama A&M 42-0. K-State laid waste to Central Arkansas 55-19 and Charlotte 55-7. The Commodores are 8-2-1 against the spread as home dogs under Derek Mason. Kansas State may eke one out on the road thanks to QB Jesse Ertz, but 4.5 points are too many.

The Bet: $50 on Vanderbilt to cover