Chad Hartsock

Consultant

Chad is a teacher and minister by training, and a fantasy sports enthusiast and sports bettor by hobby. Chad lives in the Great Smoky Mountains, and he especially loves NCAAF, NFL, NCAAB, and MLB. Chad has been handicapping for Pickswise since 2022.

Live Picks 2

Live Parlays 0

Weekly News Articles 0

Location

Tennessee

Favorite Sports

Favorite Teams

Greatest Betting Win

I have two favorite betting memories. My favorite bet, and my biggest single win, was the 2022 Super Bowl exact result–Rams over Bengals. I placed the futures bet at the beginning of the playoffs when both teams were the #4 seed, and it carried something like +1500 odds. Those playoffs were fun.

Greatest Achievements

As a proud Baylor alum, it would have to be betting on Baylor basketball to win the 2021 national championship. I do not blindly back my team, but Baylor was an underdog to Gonzaga and I saw that win coming, so I emptied my account on it.

Education

Chad has a bachelor’s degree from Carson-Newman University, a masters of divinity from Baylor University, and an Ph.D. in biblical studies from Baylor University. He taught at the college level for 11 years (thus earning the nickname “the Professor” in some betting circles). Chad has published two books and numerous academic articles, but sports writing came along later, first as a hobby and now as a daily activity.

Experience

Chad has been playing fantasy sports since 2003, and betting for as long as it has been legal in Tennessee. Chad also loves casino sportsbooks and table games, and he frequently turns up at Harrah’s in Cherokee NC or the Hard Rock Casino in Bristol VA. He began his handicapping career with friends on a small website and podcast in 2021 (the now-archived ScoopAndScoreSports.com, a venture that fizzled out because none of them knew how to run a website properly.) He joined the Pickswise team in 2022, and he writes college football, college basketball, and MLB. Chad has been among the team’s best pickers in each of those sports, and he loves nothing more than getting a pick right for the Pickswise community, especially when the public is going the other way.

Favorite betting market / type

Same Game Parlays & Player Props.

Favorite bookmakers

Chad's Picks

Money Line Pick

Penn State Win(-105)

Reasoning

The Penn State Nittany Lions host the Pitt Panthers on Sunday afternoon in a non-conference matchup. Penn State came into the season with low expectations, picked to finish at or near the bottom of the B1G, but they have more than held their own in the first third of the season. They are 8-3, and they gave Michigan State all they wanted earlier this week. Pitt is expected to be in the middle of the pack in the ACC, but at 6-6, they haven’t impressed much so far. Jeff Capel looks to have a tough season ahead of him. Pitt is slightly favored here, but I think Penn State should win this game, especially at home.

Pitt wants to run a three-heavy offense, but they just don’t seem to have the personnel for it. Instead, they are playing at nearly the slowest pace in the nation, and there just aren’t a lot of go-to options for this team. As for Penn State, they are an extremely young team, very freshmen-heavy. Their best player is 4-star freshman Kayden Mingo, and he should be the best player on the floor in this game. What I like most about Penn State is that they take care of the basketball, sporting one of the lowest turnover rates in the country. If they maintain that on Sunday, they should be able to beat Pitt. I’ll take Penn State to win outright.

Pitt vs Penn State Prediction: Penn ML (-105) available at the time of publishing. Playable at that number.

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Chad Hartsock

Point Spread Pick

Louisville -6.5(-110)

Reasoning

Tuesday’s bowl slate takes us to Boca Raton, Florida for the Bush’s Boca Raton Bowl, featuring the Toledo Rockets and the Louisville Cardinals. Toledo finished 4^th in the MAC, but the Rockets closed the regular season on a 4-game winning streak to get themselves to Florida for bowl season. Louisville briefly flirted with the top of the ACC standings before losing its final 3 conference games. They managed to blank in-state rival Kentucky, 41-0, to close on a strong note. Louisville is the more talented team here, so as long as this line stays under a touchdown, I think that is the right play. Give me Louisville -6.5.

In terms of opt-outs and roster changes to be aware of, Louisville is likely to be missing a couple of defenders, and we aren’t sure who will dress for them at running back because of injuries. Quarterback Miller Moss flirted with opting out, but he appears ready to go after all. Louisville is decently stable as far as bowl rosters go. Toledo lost their coach, who took the job at UConn. That hasn’t brought as many transfers and opt-outs as you would expect, but the coaching change alone is significant. The bottom line here is that whenever Toledo has stepped outside the MAC this season (Wash St, Kentucky), they have struggled, and they have especially been unable to run the ball against bigger defenders. Louisville is better (and stronger) than both those opponents. I think the Rockets will struggle to generate offense here. I’ll take the Cardinals, as long as it is under a touchdown.

Toledo vs Louisville prediction: Louisville Cardinals -6.5 (-110) available at the time of publishing. Playable at that number or better.

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Chad Hartsock