Nebraska vs. UTEP odds, spread, time: 2024 college football picks, Week 1 predictions from proven model

The Nebraska Cornhuskers season opener against the UTEP Miners will be a highly anticipated game across the country, as it marks the debut of Nebraska freshman quarterback Dylan Raiola . He is a heralded recruit who formerly committed to Georgia before deciding to sign with Nebraska. The Cornhuskers need a big year from Raiola after going 5-7 last season. UTEP went 3-9 last season and is in full rebuild mode, hiring new head coach Scotty Walden to replace Dana Dimel.

Kickoff is scheduled for 3:30 p.m. ET on Saturday at Tom Osborne Field at Memorial Stadium. Nebraska is favored by 27.5 points in the latest Nebraska vs. UTEP odds, while the over/under is 48.5 points, per SportsLine consensus. Before entering any UTEP vs. Nebraska picks, you'll want to see the college football predictions from the model at SportsLine.

The model simulates every FBS college football game 10,000 times. Since its inception, it has generated a profit of well over $2,000 for $100 players on its top-rated college football picks against the spread . It is also coming off a profitable 13-9 season on top-rated spread picks. Anyone who has followed it has seen strong returns.

The model has set its sights on UTEP-Nebraska . You can head to SportsLine to see its picks. Here are several college football betting lines for the game:

• Nebraska vs. UTEP spread: Nebraska -27.5
• Nebraska vs. UTEP over/under: 48.5 points
• Nebraska vs. UTEP money line: Nebraska -5000, UTEP +1583
• Nebraska vs. UTEP picks: See picks here

Why Nebraska can cover

Nebraska is trending in the right direction under head coach Matt Rhule, and he has his quarterback of the future. Raiola is the son of former Husker All-American center Dominic Raiola and the nephew of offensive line coach Donovan Raiola. His top targets are senior wide receivers Isaiah Neyor and Jahmal Banks , the latter of which transferred from Wake Forest .

The rushing attack is spearheaded by sophomore running back Emmett Johnson and junior running back Gabe Ervin Jr. , who are both returnees from last year's roster. Nebraska is going to be strong again defensively this season after ranking 11th nationally in total defense. The Cornhuskers are 11-3 in their last 14 games in August, and they have won five straight games against Conference USA opponents. See which team to pick here.

Why UTEP can cover

Nebraska has been an overvalued team for several years, and it covered the spread just twice in its final nine games last season. The Cornhuskers have only covered once in their last six home games, suggesting that bettors will be paying a tax to back them on Saturday. UTEP covered in five of its final six games last year, despite having a season that ended with a coaching change.

The Miners have an energetic young coach in Scotty Walden, who is just 34 years old. He runs a fast-paced, wide-open offense that will test Nebraska's defense and its conditioning. Walden was able to bring in several solid receivers from the transfer portal to go along with a returning starting quarterback from last season. See which team to pick here.

How to make Nebraska vs. UTEP picks

The model has simulated UTEP vs. Nebraska 10,000 times and the results are in. The model is leaning Over, and it's also generated a point-spread pick that is hitting in almost 60% of simulations. You can only see the pick at SportsLine.

So who wins Nebraska vs. UTEP, and which side of the spread hits almost 60% of the time? Visit SportsLine now to see which side of the UTEP vs. Nebraska spread to jump on, all from the advanced computer model that's up well over $2,000 on its top-rated college football spread picks since its inception , and find out.