Expert Picks
Iowa travels to Michigan in this Big 10 clash...
How will Utah handle their first road test of 2026?
Purdue has allowed 90 points the last two weeks...
There are late starts for teams from the Eastern Time zone -- and there is this extreme one. Seriously, 11 p.m. (ET) in the Rose Bowl? The Boilermakers are behind the eight-ball before kickoff. UCLA has awakened late in its outings, pulling away from California and San Diego State after sleepy starts. Bruins QB Nico Iamaleava has been a subpar passer through two games but has atoned with his running to supplement an effective two-headed RB tandem. Purdue has shown hints of improvement but faces a lengthy road ahead from its two wins in 2025, neither against Power Four squads.
Montana is 3-0 and ranked in the top-3 of FCS polls this season. Oregon State is 0-2 with double-digit losses to ranked Big 12 teams. Surely, this spread should be closer to 10 than 17.5, right? The Grizzlies boast FCS preseason All-American running back Eli Gillman, who has rushed for 328 yards and seven scores in three games in 2026. They also have preseason second team All-Americans QB Keali'i Ah Yat and WR Brooks Davis - quite the trio on offense. Montana is also 16-2 since the beginning of 2025 with both losses to rival Montana State last year. Top-5 FCS teams are 3-1 straight up vs. FBS teams this year. Watch out Beavers - this one will be close. Oregon State 34, Montana 27.
Playing North Dakota State on the opener under 24 points. The Bison might be a wagon this year. NDSU dominated Air Force before running out of gas at altitude late. Sacramento State would still be an average FCS team. The Bison traditionally murder these teams and I think that trend continues here. Like them in a 52-13 kind of game.
I hate betting against my own team but a five touchdown blowout isn't necessary for Arizona. And no, this isn't simply a reaction to last week's poor second half at BYU. With a tricky trip at Washington State next week and the Big 12 season kicking in full gear after that, I'd be plenty content for the Wildcats to get up early and take star QB Noah Fifita out after the third quarter. Both of these teams are 0-2 ATS so something has to give. UofA wins easily, but calls off the dogs late. Arizona 41, Northern Illinois 13.
James Madison heads west feeling good about itself after mauling Wagner 87-3. Let's not forget the Dukes slid by Liberty by a TD the week before. JMU has taken the word ”rebuilding” to a new level, with 61 new players — 39 of them transfers. Only one offensive starter repped the Dukes a season ago. San Diego State shut out UCLA (and its slew of transfers from JMU) well into the third quarter last Saturday. Points will be vastly harder to come by for the visitors. The 10 p.m. (ET) kickoff offers an additional edge to the Aztecs, who have covered in six of the last seven at home.
If there is a true sandwich game in September, it's this one. Texas must return from the clouds after a comeback for the ages against Ohio State, and Tennessee looms next week. The Longhorns failed to impress for three quarters against the Buckeyes, so they hardly are coming off a complete game. Visiting QB Owen (son of Josh) McCown will not be cowed by the scene; he has started 28 straight games. UTSA rolled into Austin in 2022 and played the Horns even into the third period before falling. The 'Runners can feast in ATS terms with this sandwick scenario.
Quarterback Sam Leavitt has thrown two touchdown passes for LSU this season while also tossing four interceptions. It's just two games, but it's funny to see Leavitt on the injury report as questionable for Saturday's game against Ole Miss, the team that Lane Kiffin used to coach. Apparently, that's what Lane Kiffin did regularly at Ole Miss, and everyone involved is brushing it off with a "nothing" statement. When Las Vegas heard about the news, they didn't blink, and the point spread stayed the same. Ole Miss to cover.
Everything I post I play in one form or another (usually parlays), and I will this (with the hook at least). I am playing mostly as I somewhat feel obligated, and it will be most of my afternoon. So will throw a half down. I think Lane Kiffin is the biggest clown there is. Red nose, full Bozo. But he's just gaming everyone and I kinda respect what Lane is doing. Do I like it? Not so much but he's making all about us vs. them so I get it -- I like to push the envelope a bit too. Am legit worried half the crowd has muskets (those are like car keys in Mississippi) and just fires on him but should be fun. #HottyToddy
Jim Mora has things cooking already out west after turning around the UConn program. Rams have won their two games 93-37, racking up 1,100 yards of offense. QB Hauss Hejny has 9 TDs and 539 yards as Mora has offense humming. BYU covered against a tough Arizona team, but need a late TD and trailed at the half in a game that Arizona looked like the better team.
I haven't been overly impressed by what I've seen from the Bobcats this year, and they're a little banged up heading into this one. I can't help but believe Ohio might look to punt on this game to focus on getting healthy for MAC play.
Just like last week’s FAU/UNLV pick, we are playing a Group of Six game with travel considerations. Nevada lost at home by two TDs to FCS Montana State, still doesn’t have its starting QB Carter Jones due to injury, and now travels across a couple of time zones to face Middle Tennessee State as a favorite. Neither backup QB played well vs. Montana State, combining for 167 passing yards, completing only 52.8% of their passes. Middle Tennessee State held a fourth-quarter lead last week at Marshall, looking for a 2-0 start. A poor final quarter and a missed two-point conversion in the closing seconds took care of that.
East Carolina lost their home opener as a favorite last week against Appalachian State. Now for the second straight week the Pirates will face a Sun Belt team as they travel on the road to face Old Dominion. That’s where the value lies on the number as East Carolina lost to a bottom level Appalachian State team, and now see the Monarchs who are second on the odds list to win the Sun Belt. Smaller number, but look for Old Dominion to show a bit of rust off their loss to Virginia Tech. Take East Carolina.