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Chris' Picks
Well, I guess 2-3 is better than 1-4? Maybe I take some solace in the fact Utah was well on their way to a cover before Cameron Rising's injury/early exit. That would have made this at least a palatable week, but we can argue I got a miracle from Pitt too to come back in the fourth quarter. Notre Dame and Oklahoma can pound sand.
We march on. Week 3 isn't the sexiest of cards, and we've got a plethora of big spreads that I'm tempted by, but I will try to stay away from too many, as that's proven fool's gold. The most obvious seems to be Georgia (-24) and rising. Kentucky's offense reverted to the Stone Age last week. They can't pass and are even worse at stopping a pass rush. How on earth do they keep this respectable against Georgia?
Over 69.5 North Texas 
at Texas Tech 
I'm not much of a totals guy, and this is a massive number that has risen a point since early in the week, so it's a tad scary. But these are two awful defenses, ranking 105th and 130th in points allowed. Texas Tech has been particularly brutal, allowing 51 points to Abeliene Chrisitan, who threw for 506 yards against them. They then allowed Washington State to run for 301 yards last week. The Mean Green are anything but mean defensively, but average 43.5 points offensively. With TCU transfer Chandler Morris under center, he'll be poised in this environment. It's reasonable to think both sides get into the 30s, and someone has to win.
Alabama (-16) at Wisconsin
As a known Miami fan, Tyler Van Dyke facing Alabama's defense makes my skin crawl. Yes, Camp Randall is a terrific environment, but doesn't Alabama play in that type of setting weekly in conference? Van Dyke has yet to throw an interception but had an awful fumble in their opener and has only two total touchdowns to his credit. He's averaging 203 yards passing, and it seems unlikely Wisconsin will run successfully for four quarters, so at some point, TVD will be forced to win this game. We saw how quickly Alabama escalated a lead last week, and I expect that again here. Wisconsin keeps it close for longer than they should; Van Dyke makes a mistake (or three), and this snowballs. Caveat: I'm rooting for the guy. I met him outside of Lane Stadium, and he couldn't have been more gracious with my kids. I'd love to be wrong, but he, unfortunately, just doesn't have this in him.
Florida (+4.5) vs. Texas A&M
I feel like I'm going out on a limb here, and it's a play on transitive properties. The Gators' loss to Miami may not be so bad as the Hurricanes look dominant. Texas A&M's loss to Notre Dame is looking worse. Miami was a (-2.5) favorite at Florida, and Texas A&M is -4.5. Who are you taking right now if Miami faced Texas A&M, and by how many points? I know the Aggies have the better defense, but I think the Gators have the better offense. DJ Lagway looked decent against Miami, won't be overmatched here, and the Swamp still counts for something, at least in September where there's still hope and humidity.
Mississippi (-23.5) at Wake Forest
It's a big number to cover on the road, but I have faith in Lane Kiffin's group to run it up, as they routinely do. Wake Forest just allowed 357 yards passing to Virginia, blowing a 14-point fourth-quarter lead. The Deacons have been decent offensively, and Ole Miss' defense hasn't been tested. Wake should get a few shots in, but over four quarters, the Deacons haven't seen this type of offensive talent and speed, and don't have enough talent in their secondary to match.
Vanderbilt (-10.5) at Georgia State
I'm firmly on board the Diego Pavia bandwagon. He's led the Commodores to 89 points in their first two games, piloting an unconventional option offense that's averaging 4.9 ypc and 211.5 yards rushing per game, which isn't skewed by last week's matchup with Alcorn State, as they got 181 against Virginia Tech. Perhaps the defensive numbers are skewed a bit by that matchup, but the Commodores look like a surprisingly capable team up front, allowing just 1.98 ypc while registering five sacks and 14 tackles for loss. I don't think they'll have trouble scoring or slowing Georgia State and win by two scores.
Last week: 2-3; season 3-7
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Greg's Picks
Alright, we're back on the winning side of the ledger, well, not for the season, but for one week anyway. The week got off to a rough start with a bad loss on Michigan, which was thoroughly outplayed by Texas. Things turned around, however, when Northern Illinois not only covered with ease but won as a 28-point underdog. I was very fortunate to get a cover with Missouri as it took the Tiger until the final minutes to finally get on top of the number, but admittedly, they dominated that game and should have covered with ease. Next up was Kansas, which had plenty of opportunities to win at Illinois, but couldn't get over the hump in the end. Lastly, we had Ohio State, which did exactly what it was supposed to do, get up early and never look back.
Let's keep this momentum going into Week 3
Kansas (-7) vs. UNLV
I watched most of the Jayhawks game this past week, and while it was a disappointing loss, I didn't come away from that game thinking Kansas was overrated; the Jayhawks just made too many mistakes. This looks like a good bounceback spot, as they are getting a team that's 2-0 and probably pretty happy with their situation right now. It's usually a good idea to take the team that's hungry to fix the mistakes from the week prior vs. the team that thinks they've got it figured out. Kansas has too many veterans on that team to let them lose a game like this.
Alabama (-16) at Wisconsin
Another buy-low candidate here as there was much made about Alabama's struggles with USF this past Saturday until the 'Tide finally opened up and got some separation. I'm not sure how good Alabama is right now or if the 'Tide will be a championship contender, but I can with certainty that last week's slow start was nothing more than a team sleepwalking through the first few quarters. Once they flipped the switch, the 'Tide looked dominating. Wisconsin is 2-0 but the Badgers haven't looked all that good. They've beaten two bad teams and struggled to get separation in either one. Tyler Van Dyke was elusive when his college career started in the late-90s, but he's not that guy anymore. He will still turn the ball over, however, and that's what I'm expecting this week.
Memphis (+6.5) at Florida State
Most of us expected Florida State to bounce back after a tough opening-week loss to Georgia Tech, but that didn't happen and now sitting at 0-2, it's time to ask the question, are the Seminoles just not very good? Let's be honest: we knew last season that their entire offense revolved around Jordan Travis, and he's been replaced by the well-traveled DJ Uiagalelei, who just hasn't panned out anywhere. This isn't just a case of fading one team however because Memphis is no pushover, even if FSU were to figure it out this week, the Seminoles would still have their hands full with a well-balanced Tiger team.
Missouri (-17) vs. Boston College
If you've followed me over the years, you know I love to zig when others zag, and in this spot, I'm seeing a big road dog that has some momentum after a huge win against FSU that might not be ready for what it's actually up against this week. The Eagles have done everything asked of them over the first couple of weeks of the season, but this might be a bridge too far. For starters, this will be the first real game since their upset win, and that can be a tough spot. After that, they've got to get up for a non-conference game. Lastly, if there was any chance of B.C. sneaking up on the Tigers this week, that left the building after the Eagles' upset win over FSU. Missouri has its sights set on the playoff, and a misstep here could ruin their chances.
Nevada (+22.5) at Iowa
Perhaps we were all a little too excited about this new Iowa offense after it laid 40 points on Illinois State. After all, it was Illinois State. Fast forward one week and the same old Iowa offense was struggling to move the ball against a legitimate Iowa State team. While the Hawkeyes were able to run the ball, they still haven't figured out how to move the ball through the air, and until they do, I'm taking the points. Let's also throw in the hangover from a very tough defeat this past week and the fact that their conference schedule starts next week against regional rival Minnesota and you have all the makings of a look ahead mixed with a hangover. This doesn't appear to be a great Troy team, but the Trojans stayed within three TDs of Memphis this past week, and Memphis has a much better offense than Iowa. Besides, this pick is 99% based on Iowa's mindset.
Last Week: 3-2-0; Season 4-6-0
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Jeff's Picks
Although Iowa fell apart and robbed me of a 4-1 record, I'm pretty happy with how the week turned out. Tennessee, Wisconsin and Clemson all came through, and I jumped to 2-0 in my individual betting articles by taking Texas. I'm confident that we'll continue our winning ways in Week 3.
Georgia -24 @ Kentucky
Kentucky QB Brock Vandagriff has had this game circled on the calendar. He left Georgia after the writing was on the wall, and he'd like nothing more than to exact revenge on his former teammates. Unfortunately, his team lacks the firepower to take on a powerhouse like the Bulldogs. The Wildcats succumbed quickly to a far inferior defense last week, and Georgia's daunting defense has only allowed six total points over the first two games of the season. Although the Wildcats looked great against an inferior Southen Miss team in Week 1, it's a metric that shouldn't factor into the outcome here. The Bulldogs could easily win by 30 or more on the road.
Utah State Total Under 9.5 (+140) vs. Utah
You can head to DraftKings and take your choice on Team Totals for Utah State, but the vig doesn't head into positive territory until we get to under 9.5 points. I originally looked at the game total under, but Utah's offensive potency depends heavily on Cam Rising's (hand) status, which is currently up in the air. If Rising's out, I would take the Under at 45, but the Aggies will be lucky to score a field goal against this stifling defense. They failed to score against a USC defense that is much improved, but definitely a notch below Utah.
LSU -6.5 @ South Carolina
The Gamecocks are a tough team to figure out, but the Tigers easily have an athletic advantage over South Carolina at most positions. The Gamecocks blew out Kentucky last week, but that's more a statement of how bad the Wildcats are. LSU kept it close against one of the most potent offenses in the country last week at USC, and Garrett Nussmeier has cured the Jayden Daniels hangover by putting up some excellent numbers. The Tigers lost a lot of quality talent in the offseason, but they are well-coached and well-recruited. Both teams will try to control the tempo, but the Tigets will simply outscore them. At under a touchdown, this ATS bet is a steal.
Washington -4.5 vs. Washington State
If this game were in Pullman, I would probably stay away. Instead, the Apple Cup will be played in Seattle at the home of the Seahawks, leaving any home-field advantage out of the equation. Although the Cougars have looked great over the first two weeks of the season, they are facing much tougher defense. The Huskies are still adjusting to life without Michael Penix, but Will Rogers was arguably the best QB in the portal behind Cam Ward who the Cougars have replaced with John Mateer. Washington's most potent addition is Jonah Coleman, who is on pace to be one of the nation's top rushers. The Cougars will struggle to stop him, and I believe he'll be the difference maker.
Tulsa +20.5 vs. Oklahoma State
I'm not sure what's up the Cowboys. With a guy like Ollie Gordon in the backfield, the team should be controlling the tempo and running all over opponents. They've also got a talented veteran at quarterback with Alex Bowman, but overall this offense has failed to meet expectations. They're lucky to be 2-0 after squeaking by Arkansas. Oklahoma State's so-so defense is good news for Tulsa, who are led by offensive savant Kevin Wilson, who was the architect of Ohio State's offense before taking the job with the Golden Hurricanes. He's put together a potent group led by Kirk Francis at quarterback and defensive standout Zach Marcheselli, who came over from TCU. I think the spread is too wide for the Cowboys, and they may end up playing from behind in this one.
Last Week: 3-2-0
Season: 4-6-0
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