Iowa (-4) vs. Michigan State – The Hawks opened as 4 point favorites, but most books have already bumped that up to 6 ½ points. Iowa is coming off a crushing home loss to Wisconsin by a point. Special teams have been the Hawkeye’s Achilles’ heel. They won’t be able to win the Big 10 or go to a BCS bowl, but they can still spoil the Spartans’ season. Michigan State will likely finish the season undefeated if they can get by Iowa. Easier said than done, however. Iowa still has a solid football team.
Auburn (-8 ½) at Ole Miss – The BCS #1 team – the Auburn Tigers – started as an 8 ½ point road favorite at Mississippi, but the line has come down to 7 points at most sites. The Tigers have earned the top spot in the BCS, much more than Oklahoma did. Auburn has beaten several quality opponents, and Cam Newton has been Heisman worthy. But they’ve had trouble on the road, narrowly beating Mississippi State and Kentucky. Ole Miss is coming off tough road losses at Alabama and Arkansas, so Auburn’s talent and size won’t intimidate the Rebels. The top team has had trouble staying atop the standings in recent weeks …
Oklahoma State (-6) at Kansas State – The Cowboys opened as 6 point road favorites against Kansas State, and a few books have dropped that to 5 ½ points. Okie State lost its first game of the season at home to Nebraska last week, but they still managed to put up 41 points. The problem, of course, was that they gave up 51. In other words, the offense can play and the defense has issues. Kansas State lost a shootout to Baylor in Waco, but they’re always tougher in Manhattan. Daniel Thomas is a workhorse.
Nebraska (-6) vs. Missouri – The Huskers started as 6 point home favorites, but the line has jumped to 7 ½. The Big Red took down formerly undefeated Oklahoma State, and now they have a chance to do the same to Missouri. If they’re going to win, they need to remember how to tackle. The Tigers pulled off a surprising win against #1 Oklahoma. Now they have to avoid a letdown game on the road against what might be a better football team. That’s a lot to ask of any team.
Utah (-7) at Air Force – The Utes opened as 7 point road favorites, and the line has been rock solid so far. Utah has thrashed opponents this season, but they’ve played a number of patsies. They have a tough road game this week against a Falcons’ team looking to rebound from a butt kicking at TCU last week. If the triple option gets rolling, the Utes had better look out. Utah has won the past two match-ups in the series, but Air Force has covered the spread each time.
Oregon (-6) at USC – The Ducks started as 6 point road favorites, but the line has gone up to 7 points. Oregon has spanked almost every team they’ve played. They get an awful USC defense to play against, but the USC offense is reason for Oregon to worry. Also, the Trojans are coming off their bye, which means they’ve had an extra week to prepare for Oregon’s offense. It’s hard to imagine USC knocking off the mighty Ducks, but the way this season has gone, you just never know.
What a crazy season. Can anyone remember a more unpredictable college OR professional football season? And we’re getting both in the same year. Just another reason to join the winning team at Maddux Sports. The wiseguys at Maddux have been killing the spreads on Saturday and Sunday. Don’t forget to sign up for their guaranteed, premium college football sports picks.
