New users can claim a $50 bonus with the Polymarket promo code SPORTSLINE after a $10 deposit, and Saturday's college football slate features three games with wildly different market expectations. Mississippi State visits Minnesota at 3:30 p.m. ET in the first meeting between the programs, No. 1 Ohio State travels to No. 4 Texas at 7:30 p.m. ET, and No. 12 Texas Tech heads to Oregon State in another 7:30 p.m. ET matchup. :
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Below, we examine three Polymarket prediction markets for Saturday's college football schedule, using team and player trends along with information from the SportsLine Projection Model, which simulates every game 10,000 times. The three matchups feature Minnesota vs. Mississippi State, Texas vs. Ohio State, and Oregon State vs. Texas Tech.
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Week 2 college football picks, predictions
Minnesota vs. Mississippi State: Mississippi State to defeat Minnesota ($0.50 per share)
Texas vs. Ohio State: Texas to defeat Ohio State ($0.54 per share)
Oregon State vs. Texas Tech: Texas Tech to defeat Oregon State ($0.95 per share)
Minnesota vs. Mississippi State preview
First impressions couldn't have been much more emphatic. Mississippi State opened Jeff Lebby's third season by blasting ULM 62-13 and generating a school-record 762 yards of offense. Quarterback Kamario Taylor threw for 354 yards, J.J. Hill rushed for 118, and Anthony Evans III supplied another 118 through the air. Minnesota produced its own demolition, beating Eastern Illinois 59-7 behind 495 total yards. Drake Lindsey threw for 264 yards, Darius Taylor led the ground game, and Javon Tracy produced 98 receiving yards as P.J. Fleck's team controlled possession for more than 36 minutes. Saturday, therefore, represents a dramatic competition upgrade for both teams—and the first meeting between the programs.
Most of the attention will naturally gravitate toward Arch Manning and Julian Sayin, but Saturday night's most interesting question may exist on the other side of the ball. Ohio State's defense allowed Ball State just 165 total yards, 45 rushing yards, and three points in Week 1. The Buckeyes surrendered only 13 first downs and held their opponent to 3-of-14 on third down. Texas faced more resistance from Texas State, allowing 349 yards, but the Longhorns still surrendered only seven points and shut out the Bobcats in three of four quarters. That's the real test for Manning after throwing for 305 yards and four touchdowns last week: Ohio State is bringing an entirely different level of speed and resistance to Austin.
Of course, Ohio State has plenty to deal with itself. Texas converted 11 of 15 third downs in its opener, and Ryan Wingo already looks capable of turning routine completions into explosive gains.
Texas Tech's opener wasn't spectacular in every department, but it was remarkably complete. Joey McGuire's team defeated Abilene Christian 33-10, generated 471 total yards, and held ACU to only 194. Will Hammond completed 26 of 34 passes for 298 yards, J'Koby Williams led the rushing attack with 71 yards, and Kenny Johnson paced the receivers with 76. The defensive performance may matter most in Corvallis. Texas Tech surrendered only 75 rushing yards and 2.6 yards per carry, forcing ACU to survive almost exclusively through the air.
Oregon State showed almost the inverse profile in its 33-20 loss at Houston. Braden Atkinson threw for 376 yards, Jesse Legree produced 136 receiving yards, and the Beavers totaled 402 yards. Yet, their rushing offense managed only 26 yards on 25 attempts, and the defense surrendered 533 yards, including 228 on the ground. That's a clear pressure point against a Texas Tech team that has already shown offensive balance.
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