College Football Week 6 Opening Lines, Odds & Best Bets: Hawkeyes Undervalued in Seattle

Believe it or not, we’re already at Week 6 of the college football regular season. Aside from being almost halfway through the year, Week 6 is notable because it marks the return of mid-week football. No, mid-week MACtion isn’t back yet – that’s still a few weeks away – but mid-week CUSA action will return this week, starting with Southern Miss versus Troy on Tuesday night. 

Between college football and the NFL, we’ve reached a point in the calendar where we will be treated to nearly two straight months of football every single day. What more could you ask for? 

It’s time to break down the early lines and odds for the upcoming week. Here is a list of the current market for Week 6, followed by my best bet of the bunch to make now before the lines move. Don’ forget to check our CFB predictions throughout the week for analysis on every FBS game, or our CFB best bets, as our handicappers went 5-0 on their most confident selections in Week 5 after an 8-0 Saturday in Week 4!

2026 College Football Week 6 Opening Lines and Odds

Odds courtesy of bet365 and available at the time of publishing.

Tuesday, October 6

• Troy -10.5 (-105) vs Southern Miss; Total 49.5 (Under -115)

Wednesday, October 7

• Jacksonville State -2.5 (-125) @ Kennesaw State; Total 50.5 (-110)
• FIU -6.5 (-105) @ New Mexico State; Total 46.5 (-110)

Thursday, October 8

• Western Kentucky -2.5 (-115) vs Missouri State; Total 55.5 (-110)
• Liberty -13.5 (-115) vs Sam Houston State; Total 52.5 (-110)
• Arkansas State -1.5 (-105) vs South Alabama; Total 57.5 (-110)
• UTSA -6.5 (-125) vs South Florida; Total 51.5 (Over -115)

Friday, October 9

• Louisville -4.5 (+100) vs Florida State; Total 59.5 (Under -115)
• Washington -3.5 (+100) vs Iowa; Total 41.5 (Under -115)
• Utah State -5.5 (-110) vs Washington State; Total 43.5 (Under -115)
• San Jose State -6.5 (-105) vs Wyoming; Total 43.5 (Under -115)
• BYU -10.5 (-105) vs Iowa State; Total 48.5 (-110)

Saturday, October 10

• Arizona -3.5 (-105) @ West Virginia; Total 60.5 (-110)
• Indiana -7.5 (-105) @ Nebraska; Total 52.5 (-110)
• Pitt -4.5 (-110) vs North Carolina; Total 46.5 (Over -115)
• Florida -13.5 (-110) vs South Carolina; Total 62.5 (-110)
• Missouri -3.5 (-115) vs Texas A&M; Total 48.5 (-110)
• Army -3.5 (-105) vs Tulane; Total 47.5 (Under -115)
• Oklahoma State -9.5 (-120) vs UCF; Total 53.5 (Over -115)
• Wake Forest -3.5 (-105) @ NC State; Total 60.5 (-110)
• Miami (OH) -2.5 (-115) @ UMass; Total 47.5 (Under -115)
• Duke -6.5 (-120) @ Georgia Tech; Total 49.5 (-110)
• Kansas State -2.5 (-115) vs Houston; Total 55.5 (Over -115)
• Illinois -2.5 (-115) @ Michigan State; Total 49.5 (-110)
• Ole Miss -9.5 (-110) @ Vanderbilt; Total 59.5 (Under -115)
• Texas -7.5 (-115) vs Oklahoma; Total 39.5 (-110) Neutral
• Navy -2.5 (-115) vs Tulsa; Total 48.5 (-110)
• Oregon -11.5 (-110) vs UCLA; Total 59 (-110)
• Virginia Tech -9.5 (-110) @ California; Total 53.5 (-110)
• Ohio State -34.5 (-110) vs Maryland; Total 56.5 (-110)
• Tennessee -13.5 (-115) @ Arkansas; Total 50.5 (-110)
• LSU -9.5 (-120) @ Kentucky; Total 54.5 (Under -115)
• Alabama -1.5 (-110) vs Georgia; Total 55.5 (Under -115)
• James Madison -8.5 (-110) @ Georgia Southern; Total 54.5 (-110)
• Virginia -9.5 (-110) vs Syracuse; Total 50.5 (-110)
• Penn State -1.5 (-105) vs USC; Total 54.5 (Over -115)
• Minnesota -2.5 (-110) @ Purdue; Total 50.5 (Over -115)
• Boise State -6.5 (+100) @ Fresno State; Total 48.5 (-110)
• Arizona State -20.5 (-115) vs Hawaii; Total 51.5 (Under -115)

College Football Week 6 Best Bet: Iowa Hawkeyes +3.5 over Washington Huskies (-118)

Odds available at FanDuel Sportsbook at the time of publishing. Playable at this number to (-125) or down to +2 (+100).

After a dramatic outright win over Michigan in Ann Arbor, Iowa wasn’t able to replicate that success at home against Ohio State. I’m not going to hold that against them; the Buckeyes are one of the best teams in the country, and playing such a superior opponent after the high of a walk-off win in the Big House isn’t exactly an easy spot in which to play. In fact, I’m just fine with the result against the Buckeyes, as it seems to have presented some value on Iowa this week when they travel to Seattle to play Washington.

Prior to last week’s cover as a road underdog at USC, Washington had failed to cover in any of their first four games – all in the favorite role. They even lost outright to Minnesota in Week 4 as a -12.5 favorite, and that came on the heels of less-than-ideal performances against Utah State (16-14 win) and Washington State (24-10 win) as more than three-score favorites. Given their struggles this year against the number, as well as an outright loss as a double-digit favorite, I’ve downgraded Washington’s home-field advantage in my power ratings. As such, I am flirting with a “wrong team favored” situation in this game despite being able to catch three and the hook on the Hawkeyes at multiple books.

At 4-1 SU and 3-2 ATS against a top-40 strength of schedule (Sagarin), Iowa is the better football team in this matchup; Washington is 3-2 SU and 1-4 ATS with a strength of schedule that ranks 90th. Moreover, penalties and failed third-down conversions continue to plague the Huskies, which is not something you want to see from a team in the favorite role. 

With a total in the low 40s, this sets up to be a low-scoring affair, which is exactly what the Hawkeyes want. Traveling out west for a road game on short rest is less than ideal, but Kirk Ferentz’s usually runs a very polished organization, so I’m less worried about Iowa in that sense than I would be for other programs. What I am worried about is this being a potentially flat spot for Washington after they led at USC at halftime and then scored only one touchdown in the remaining two quarters against what’s been a bad Trojan defense. Meanwhile, Iowa is top-25 in most key defensive metrics like scoring, total defense, opposing third-down conversion rate, red-zone touchdown rate, and explosive play rate. It’s Iowa or pass for me in this Friday night Big Ten showdown.