College Football Parlay Picks: Friday, September 4
The first full week of action in the 2026 college football season continues on Friday with eight more FBS games. This is a smaller slate than Thursday's card, and it features Miami vs Stanford live on ESPN, while other power-conference teams like Oklahoma, USC, Kansas and Michigan State will also take the field. To celebrate more weekday college football action, I've pieced together a three-leg NCAAF parlay for Friday at +595 odds. I went 2-0 with my CFB best bets on Thursday with two easy winners, so let's ride that momentum and nail some more bets tonight! Let's break down my CFB parlay picks, and for more picks and analysis on every FBS matchup this season, make sure to check out our college football predictions.
Oklahoma -40.5 (-110)
Miami -23.5 (-112)
USC -21.5 (-110)
Friday Week 1 CFB Parlay Odds: +595
Odds courtesy of DraftKings Sportsbook at the time of publishing.
CFB Parlay Pick: Oklahoma Sooners -40.5 over UTEP Miners (-110)
Oklahoma is a team that I'm very high on this season, and the Sooners 2026 campaign should start with a dominant victory on Friday against an extremely overmatched UTEP team in Norman. Much of the dialogue around the Sooners heading into the season has revolved around quarterback John Mateer's injury a season ago and a sense of skepticism about the Oklahoma passing attack as a result. However, I'm fully confident in Mateer, in addition to what should be a revamped offensive line and dynamic wide receiver room that should thrive in the second year of Ben Arbuckle's system. This is an ideal spot for Oklahoma to absolutely bury one of the lesser teams in the Group of Six, and it wouldn't shock me if the Miners are unable to muster more than three points against one of the best defenses in the nation. Even with Michigan on deck, I'll lay the number with the Sooners.
Read our full UTEP vs Oklahoma prediction for tonight's CFB matchup
CFB Parlay Pick: Miami Hurricanes -23.5 over Stanford Cardinal (-112)
While Miami is facing a much better opponent than Oklahoma, the result shouldn't be all that different. Stanford was one of my favorite bets in Week 0, but the Cardinal certainly showed some serious flaws in their win over Hawaii a week ago. The Hurricanes are more than equipped to exploit those flaws given the talent, depth and experience on this roster. Darian Mensah steps in at quarterback, and he should be an upgrade over Carson Beck in the passing game. It helps that Mensah won't need to do all that much in his first start thanks to this stout Miami offensive line and an elite skill-position group that features Malachi Toney, Cooper Barkate and Mark Fletcher Jr. On the other side of the ball, the Hurricanes defense brings back a ton of experience from last season's group, and the few transfers they did add were high-level contributors on Power Four teams. Now that this number has dipped below 24, I'll lay it with Miami.
See the full analysis for our Miami vs Stanford pick today
College Football Parlay Pick: USC Trojans -21.5 over Fresno State Bulldogs (-110)
To close out our parlay of heavy favorites, I'll bank on USC to bounce back following a disappointing ending to its Week 0 contest. While the Trojans didn't end up covering the massive spread, the reality is USC was in full control of that game and clearly took its foot off the gas in the second half. Furthermore, this is a much better matchup for Lincoln Riley's group from a stylistic perspective, as Fresno State is not equipped to come back from a massive deficit. The Bulldogs should have an effective offense when it comes to running the ball, but the passing attack should take a massive step back from a season ago as they look to break in new quarterback Jayden Mandal — who has registered just nine collegiate pass attempts in his career. Fresno State's defense is also a source of concern due to the losses it sustained in the secondary, which is the opposite of what you want when going up against a very surgical and efficient USC offense. Lay the number with the Trojans.
Get CFB stats, trends and more for tonight's Fresno State vs USC pick on FOX
College Football Predictions for Friday, September 4
If you're looking for more CFB predictions today, check out the rest of our picks for tonight's games:
