Ricky Dimon
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The second full week of the 2021 college football campaign is here and it is delivering a couple of all-Top 25 showdowns—including Oregon vs Ohio State. Although there are not many conference-rivalry games at this point, Saturday’s slate offers plenty of intriguing and also lots of betting opportunities. Let’s take a look at some of our best bets.
Iowa Hawkeyes +4.5 at Iowa State Cyclones
Iowa State is in the top 10 but it was almost dealt a shocking home loss to Northern Iowa in last week before escaping 16-10. The Cyclones struggled mightily to sustain drives, as they were just 5-for-14 on 3rd downs. Managing just one total touchdown, the offense had a difficult time punching it in the endzone while settling for three field goals. Their running backs couldn’t find much running room, averaging just 3.1 yards per rush. Iowa heads into this one after blowing out a ranked Indiana squad 34-6 last week. The Hawkeyes did exactly what it takes to win football games, especially in the Big Ten: run the football and play defense. They totaled 158 rushing yards while holding Indiana to 233 total yards of total offense and forcing 3 turnovers. They were led by the running back duo of Tyler Goodson and Ivory Kelly-Martin (29 touches, 152 yards from scrimmage, 1 TD). With this being such a spirited rivalry, expect a tight contest this weekend. The Hawkeyes looked much better than their in-state rival last week and they were facing a much more respectable opponent, as well. Additionally, the Hawkeyes have covered the spread in 6 of their last 7 games whereas the Cyclones have now failed to cover in back-to-back games dating back to last year.
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Michigan Wolverines -7 vs Washington Huskies
Washington opened the season with an absolutely awful loss at home to FCS representative Montana via a 13-7 scoreline. The Huskies’ offense was dreadful, amassing less than 300 total yards while averaging just 4 yards per play. Quarterback Dylan Morris threw 3 interceptions in a game in which Washington was favored by 23.5 points. On the flip side, Michigan is coming off a dominant 47-14 performance against Western Michigan.. The Wolverines were dialed in on both sides of the ball, leading the game in almost every major statistic. Running back Blake Corum (133 total yards, 2 TDs) and defensive Aiden Hutchinson (4 tackles, 1 sack, 1 forced fumble) look to continue their strong starts.
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Kentucky Wildcats -5 vs Missouri Tigers
Kentucky opened its season with a 45-10 blowout of Louisiana Monroe. The Wildcats put up 554 yards of total offense and quarterback Will Levis went 18-of-26 with 367 yards and 4 touchdowns. Missouri, on the other hand, struggled against Central Michigan and scraped out a 34-24 win. Mizzou posted 468 yards of total offense but allowed 475 yards on defense. Kentucky is 11-2 against the spread in its last 13 home games and 10-5 against the spread in its last 15 games as a favorite. The Tigers 1-5 against the spread in their last 6 games and 1-7 against the spread in their last 8 on the road.
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At Pickswise we offer free expert College Football Picks and College Football Predictions for all games in the Power Five conferences and the top 25 teams outside of Power five, including our College Football Parlay picks each week.
