Tomorrow, the college football season truly kicks off. With so many storylines off the field, the attention will be back on the gridiron to see which teams will surprise or disappoint in 2018. Here are some prop bets to look for in College Football.
As a reminder, all lines are taken from BetDSI, where they will match any deposit, as part of their Welcome Package, up to $2,500 each using the code: FANTOM. Get in the game and take advantage of that amazing offer!
Read more at WatchFantom: https://www.watchfantom.com/prop-bets-we-are-keeping-an-eye-on-this-nfl-season/
Over Iowa State 6.5
Since 2006, the Cyclones have won more than 6 games just twice, in 2009 when they finished 7-6 and last year when they completed an 8-5 season with a Liberty Bowl victory over Memphis. With sixth-year Senior Kyle Kempt back under center and electric running back David Montgomery returning for his Junior season, Iowa State has a good chance to repeat last seasons success. South Dakota State, Kansas and Akron should be sure wins. Home to Baylor, Kansas State and Texas Tech are certainly winnable games, in addition to their game at Iowa. To make matters better for ISU, Oklahoma and West Virginia travel to Ames, with their toughest road games at TCU and Texas. Prediction: Iowa State gets 7 wins.
Texas Tech Under 6
Iowa State’s conference rival Texas Tech, will be on the other end of the spectrum. A week prior to their opener against Ole Miss, coach Kliff Kingsbury has yet to name a starting quarterback. With a boatload of talent gone from their offense, it will be essential for whomever the quarterback is (right now the favorite is Junior McLane Carter), will have to develop an instant rapport with a re-built room of receivers. And last time I checked, the Red Raiders played no defense. While they get Oklahoma, West Virginia and Texas at home, they likely will be underdogs in each of those games. Add a game against Ole Miss, Houston, TCU, the aforementioned Iowa State and at Kansas State and this has all the makings of a 4 or 5 win football team.
Washington State under 6.5
First the Cougars lost record-setting quarterback Luke Falk to graduation and then have had to deal with the shocking and unfortunate suicide of fellow quarterback Tyler Hilinski. For a team to overcome that will surely be challenging. And while they should start the season 3-0 (@Wyoming, home to San Jose State and Eastern Washington), the rest of their schedule is brutal. While they host Washington, Utah and Oregon in conference play, they travel to USC, Stanford, Colorado and Oregon State. All games they likely will be underdogs in. Unfortunately for the Cougars, this appears to be a rebuilding year and one they will struggle to win 5 games, let alone the necessary 7 to win this bet.
Arkansas under 6
Where are the Razorbacks getting 6 wins? Despite a stretch of 5 straight home games (Alabama, Ole Miss, Tulsa, Vanderbilt and LSU), they will be lucky to win two of them. Road games at Mississippi State and Auburn? Two losses. Even North Texas, who you may say is going to be overmatched against an SEC team, is coming off a 9-win season that saw them score 35.5 points per game which was 19th in the entire country. They also return their quarterback Mason Fine and two stud receivers. Without a proven quarterback, the Razorbacks will fail to keep up on the scoreboard and likely finish with 4 wins or fewer.
Florida Atlantic over 9
If you do not know about the FAU Owls, it is time you do. Led by Lane Kiffin, the Owls have one of the most prolific offenses in the country, which last year finished 8th in the nation by averaging 40.6 points per game. They are led by Heisman darkhorse Devin Singletary, who last year rushed for over 1,900 yards and scored 33 overall touchdowns. DeAndre Johnson, of Last Chance U fame, will lead the offense which also has three uber-talented receivers (Willie Wright, Denadre McNeal and Jovon Durante). Outside of their opening week game at Oklahoma and their contest at Central Florida, FAU will be favored in each of their games and likely by double digits. I will take FAU to go over this number and be one of the most fun teams to watch in the nation.
Buffalo over 6.5
Since 1997, the Buffalo football team has won 7 or more games twice. Yes, twice. Last season however, the Bulls took a step forward by finishing 6-6 and return the dynamic duo of quarterback Tyree Jackson and wide receiver Anthony Johnson. In Johnson, they have a playmaker that accounted for 76 catches, over 1,300 yards and 14 touchdowns in 2017. Given another year of chemistry, the Bulls should lead their conference in scoring and find enough wins on the schedule to get to 7. Delaware State, Eastern Michigan, Army, Akron, Kent State, Miami (OH) and Bowling Green appear to be winnable games, not to mention matchups against Rutgers and Central Michigan. Buffalo should go 7-5 this season at a minimum.
Bowling Green under 5.5
Last season, Bowling Green finished 2-10. So magically, with much of the same roster back, they are going to add 4 wins? Doubtful. 9 of the 10 losses were by 8 or more points, including a loss to football powerhouse South Dakota. The MAC conference did not get any easier this season and as a team that has yet to enjoy success, the Falcons will struggle to get to 4 wins, let alone the required 6.
Rodney Anderson +2800 to win the Heisman Trophy
Let me get this straight. A running back, that tallied 1,161 rushing yards on only 181 carries, while scoring 18 total touchdowns in 2017 is the 19th favorite to win the prestigious trophy? And Anderson, who did not receive more than 10 carries in a game until their 7th contest of the season, will now be relied on even more with the departure of Baker Mayfield to the NFL. Given a full season, as the bell-cow back at Oklahoma, Anderson should approach 2,000 yards and 25 overall touchdowns. If the Sooners have another great season as they did in reaching the College Football Playoff in 2017, Anderson will be a key reason why. I love these odds as a flier prop bet.
Michigan State +550 to make the College Football Playoff
Outside of a conference road game at Penn State, the Spartans have a favorable schedule that can land them square in the playoff. Michigan and Ohio State are to marquee games that they get at home. The non-conference schedule of Central Michigan, Arizona State and Utah State is extremely manageable, while they will be favored in their games against Indiana, Northwestern, Purdue, Rutgers, Nebraska and Maryland. And the one team they are missing from their schedule? No Wisconsin in 2018. Sweep the out of conference schedule, handle your business at home and maybe take one road loss at Penn State and the Spartans will have a path to the conference title game and a potential playoff berth. As the team with the 11th best odds, that is a nice number to take advantage of.
