The biggest headlines from Week 1 in college football included Georgia asserting its dominance ; Clemson coach Dabo Sweeney perhaps finally understanding he needs the transfer portal ; and Miami conjuring up talk (again) that the U is back .
But how does it all translate into betting lines?
From now until the end of regular season, I’ll take a look at the betting lines for college football games and come up with an early look at my favorite picks for the week.
Let’s call it the fantastic four.
There should be no let up in sight for the Cardinals after their 62-0 win over Austin Peay . There’s no upcoming opponent next week that would cause them to look ahead. After a week off they’ll get Georgia Tech on Sept. 21.
The Gamecocks got rocked in their home opener losing 55-27 to Coastal Carolina as a 3.5-point favorite.
U of L is 5-2 as a home favorite against the spread under coach Jeff Brohm and 6-2 overall.
My pick: Take the Cards.
Both teams feature quarterbacks that made their first career starts on Saturday. The difference is UK’s Brock Vandagriff looked sharp slinging the ball around before lightening caused the game to be called with nearly 10 minutes left in the third quarter.
South Carolina’s LaNorris Sellers looked like coach Shane Beamer doesn’t trust him to throw . Sellers almost had as many rushing attempts (22) as he did passing (23).
Considering Sellers will make his first career road start in the Southeastern Conference, it’s an easy pick here.
My pick: Take the Cats.
The Wolverines aren’t home underdogs very often. But the Big House doesn’t provide much of a home field advantage, in relation to covering spreads, as it would seem. Michigan is just 3-3 against the spread since 2015 as a home underdog.
The Longhorns have reached a comfort level at playing in marquee games under coach Steve Sarkasian . See last year’s win at Alabama as Exhibit A.
The Wolverines had to replace a lot of talent from last season’s national championship team and two games into Sherrone Moore’s tenure as head coach might be too early for a game this big.
Among Power Four conference matchups, road favorites have covered four out of five games. Virginia Tech, a 13.5-point favorite at Vanderbilt, was the only loss.
My pick: Take the Horns.
The Volunteers showed off their offensive explosiveness with quarterback Nico Iamaleava throwing for 314 yards and three touchdowns in their 69-3 win over Chattanooga.
Running back Dylan Sampson was also dynamic rushing for 124 yards and three touchdowns.
But all that firepower will slow down against the Wolfpack.
N.C. State coach Dave Doeren has a knack for coming up with tough defensive game plans. Combine that with the lethargic start for the Wolfpack offense in its opening win over Western Carolina, and I don’t think there will be very many points scored in this one.
My pick: Take the under.
And since this is my inaugural week of picks, I’ll throw in a bonus.
The Buffaloes got off to a rough start against North Dakota State before finding their rhythm and winning the game 31-26. But this week’s a much tougher task against the Cornhuskers, who are feeling a resurgence is on the way under new coach Matt Rhule .
The Huskers totally revamped their passing game after finishing with just 10 passing touchdowns last season. Heralded freshman quarterback Dylan Raiola’s 238 yards passing in their win over UTEP already surpassed last year’s team high of 199 yards against Michigan.
Colorado thrived as an underdog a season ago, posting a 6-2 record against the spread. I don’t expect the Buffaloes to win outright, but coach Deion Sanders will find a way to keep it close.
My pick: Take the Buffaloes.
Reach sports columnist C.L. Brown at clbrown1@gannett.com , follow him on X at @CLBrownHoops and subscribe to his newsletter at profile.courier-journal.com/newsletters/cl-browns-latest to make sure you never miss one of his column s.
This article originally appeared on Louisville Courier Journal: C.L.'s college football Week 2 picks against the spread: Will Louisville, Kentucky cover?
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