NCAAF Trends and Indexes - Week 3 (Thursday, September 17 - Saturday, September 19)

[Udog]

NCAAF

Saturday, September 19


Spartans scoring points and cashing Over bets

The Michigan State Spartans have scored 68 points in their first two games and at least 30 in a school-record 10 straight, led by Heisman Trophy candidate quarterback Connor Cook.

The Over has gone 7-3 over the course of those 10 games, including a 1-1 mark this season.

The Spartans host Air Force Saturday afternoon and the total, which opened at 58, is down to 54.

[Udog]

NCAAF

Saturday, September 19


Could see rain and wind at The Horseshoe Saturday

Weather forecasts are predicting a 65 percent chance of rain and thunderstorms in Columbus as the Ohio State Buckeyes host the Northern Illinois Huskies Saturday afternoon.

Additionally, wind is expected to blow across the field at around 13 miles per hour throughout the game.

The Buckeyes opened as 32.5-point home faves, but that has been adjusted to -35. The total has held firm at 66.5.


Baylor kicks TE Armstead off team

Baylor announced Friday that tight end Tre'Von Armstead was no longer a member of the team.

The school explained Armstead's dismissal as a result of the standard reason: unspecified violation of team rules.

In two seasons in Waco, Armstead played in 26 games. He started six games last season.

He caught five passes and was named honorable mention All-Big 12.


Northwestern players confident ahead of Duke game

Northwestern followed up its Week 1 win over Stanford with a 41-0 victory over Eastern Illinois, prompting some confident comments from the players.

“We expect to have a shutout next week (against Duke),” defensive lineman Ifeadi Odenigbo told the Chicago Tribune.

The Wildcats opened as 3-point road dogs before that moved up to +4. Oddsmakers have the total at 49.

[Udog]

Where the action is: Betting the biggest games of college football Week 3

Auburn has gone 3-0 against the spread in the previous three meetings with LSU including a 41-7 win as 7-point home faves last season.

Auburn Tigers at LSU Tigers - Open: -7, Move: -6.5

Has there been a more underwhelming 2-0 program than Auburn to begin the 2015 season? The Tigers were pushed to the brink by FCS Jacksonville State but managed to pull out a 27-20 overtime victory. This after winning by that same margin of points (31-24) against Louisville in Week 1.

Auburn faces its stiffest test to date as Gus Malzahn and company visit LSU this week, but despite a pair of lackluster performances, they are seeing the support of sharp bettors.

"The media is down on Auburn and high on LSU, so unsurprisingly, the smart money came in on the dog," Lester tells Covers. "They like Auburn to keep this competitive but under has been the big play. We've steadily adjusted the total down and then took a lot of action on the under Wednesday. Personally, I don't see what they're loving about the under but I do think the Tigers keep this one close."


Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets at Notre Dame Fighting Irish - Open: +1.5, Move: +2.5

Was the Malik Zaire injury the end of Notre Dame's playoff aspirations? We'll certainly find out a little bit more about the Irish when they host a red-hot Georgia Tech program at South Bend Saturday.

All Tech has done was dismantle Alcorn State and Tulane, covering as 41 and 32.5-point favorites to begin their season. The Yellow Jackets' triple-option attack has produced a whopping 915 yards on the ground with 13 different players rushing the ball at least twice in those games.

"Notre Dame usually carries a fair amount of fan favorite action with them, so far that is not the case," says Sloan. "As a 2.5-point away favorite, Georgia Tech is receiving 3-1 on bets, and 5-1 on the money. We wouldn’t be shocked to see this line move to 3.5, so if you like GT, now is the time to grab them."


Ole Miss Rebels at Alabama Crimson Tide - Open: -6.5, Move: -7

Ole Miss heads into what is the biggest game of the day on fire on the offensive side of the ball. The Rebels have outscored their opponents 149-24 in their opening two games and will look for repeat of their 23-17 win over 'Bama one season ago (Week 6, +5.5).

"Again, sharp money on the dog and under," confirms Lester. "We've taken a higher volume of wagers on the over and 'Bama but as far as handle, we are very even because the wiseguys are on the dog and under."


BYU Cougars at UCLA Bruins - Open: -16.5

Bruins' freshman quarterback Josh Rosen has generated a ton of buzz following a pair of very good performances against Virginia and at UNLV.

That said, so has BYU's own freshman Tanner Mangum who has quarterbacked the Cougars to a pair of wins, including their Week 1 win against Nebraska which came courtesy a memorable Hail Mary.

But it appears as if oddsmakers have set this line at a perfect number as solid two-way action has been coming in on this matchup.

"That big 16.5-point line on UCLA is keeping the action pretty even on this Saturday night matchup," Sloan tells Covers. "We don’t anticipate this line going anywhere as it’s been pretty solid. Though the house will probably need BYU for a bit in the end, we don’t expect the action will be too skewed towards UCLA."

[jcheckers]

Udog,I'm very disappointed with dunkle's new format. No rhyme or reason to it. To put it bluntly: It SUCKS!

[Udog]

Udog,I'm very disappointed with dunkle's new format. No rhyme or reason to it. To put it bluntly: It SUCKS!

I couldn't agree more, checkers! It really does suck!

I emailed Bob Dunkel the other day asking what's going on. He says it's a work in progress and they're going to correct all the rotation number mistakes.

That still leaves a very difficult configuration, though.

I will never understand why people think they have to fix things that aren't broken!