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Week 11 of the College Football season is packed with stellar matchups to spot in the betting, including four games between ranked teams. In this column, we delve into those Top 25 matchups and serve up some predictions for your consideration. So, without too much fuss, let’s get cracking.
No.4 Oklahoma Sooners are coming off a bye, and they take on the No.18 Baylor Bears who are coming off a loss to TCU. As per multiple betting platforms, the Sooners are 5.5-point favorites for College football picks against the spread in this Big 12 tilt, and the public is all over the Sooners with almost 80 percent of the betting going towards the visitors.
The Sooners are undefeated on the season with a stellar 9-0 record and a 6-0 record in conference action. Most recently, the Sooners beat Texas Tech 52-21 to come through as the 19-point home chalk. The Bears, in the meanwhile, suffered a narrow 30-28 loss to TCU on Saturday, failing to come through as the 7.5-point road favorites for their backers.
The Sooners have big ambitions on the season, and that puts a premium on this victory. The Bears shot themselves in the foot with the disappointing loss to a subpar TCU. It snapped a three-game winning streak which included wins over West Virginia, BYU and Texas. More importantly, it jeopardises Baylor’s bid for conference contention.
All told, this should be a competitive game as the Bears attempt to atone for last week’s misstep. However, the Sooners might have enough to both clinch the and cover the point spread.
Pick: Sooners -5.5
The Wolverines bounced back with a 29-7 win over Indiana at the weekend, returning into the win column to improve to an 8-1 record overall and a 5-1 record in Big Ten action. As things currently stand, Michigan is second in the standings behind Ohio State Buckeyes and tied with Michigan State Spartans on a 5-1 conference record.
Penn State is 6-3 overall and 3-3 in Big Ten action, sitting pretty in eighth place. Most recently, the Nittany Lions snapped a three-game losing streak, which included losses to Iowa, Illinois and Ohio State. Penn State beat Maryland 31-14 on the road, coming through as the 10-point road favorites quite comfortably.
The Wolverines enter this contest as the slight 1-point road underdogs. Clearly, with the odds this close, this game is a bit off a tossup. The Nittany Lions could potentially throw a spanner in the works here. That said, the Wolverines are in better form and with the season coming down to the wire, this is a must-win game if they hope to deliver on their season’s big aspirations.
Pick: Michigan +1
This is going to be one of the marquee matchups of the weekend when No.11 Texas A&M descends on No.12 Ole Miss in an SEC West showdown that could turn into a veritable shootout. The Aggies and Rebels didn’t play last season, so this will be the first clash between Jimbo Fisher and Lane Kiffin.
Texas A&M (7-2, 4-2 SEC) and Ole Miss (7-2, 3-2 SEC) have long been in the shadow of Alabama in the SEC, and while the outcome of this game won’t change that, it could go some way towards determining which is the so-called second-best team in the conference. As things currently stand, the Aggies are second behind Alabama (8-1, 5-1 SEC) while Ole Miss is down to fourth.
The Aggies are coming off a solid 20-3 win over Auburn on Saturday, covering as the 4.5-point favorites for their backers. Ole Miss took care of Liberty in a 27-14 win to cover as the 7,5-point favorites.
As the betting on this game shows, the public is divided between these two sides almost 50-50. It’s a right tossup for NCAA picks, but if push comes to shove, the Aggies should come through with the win. The line on this game has dropped from Texas A&M -3 to -2.5, opening a value spot for bettors to capitalise on the Aggies.
Pick: Texas A&M -2.5
No.21 NC State and No.13 Wake Forest collide in an ACC Atlantic showdown that is delicately poised on 2-point line across multiple sports betting platforms. The Demon Deacons are coming off their first loss of the season, losing a veritable shootout against North Carolina 58-55 on the road. Although the loss didn’t cost the Demon Deacons top spot in the ACC – they remain in first place with an 8-1 mark overall and a 5-1 record in conference action going into Week 11 – it likely put them out of the CFP.
That said, first-place is on the line when they collide with No. 21 NC State on Saturday. The winner of this clash will likely ascend to the top of the ACC standings. The Wolfpack are riding a two-game winning streak at the expense of Louisville and Florida State, improving to a 7-2 record overall and a 4-1 record in the ACC.
The Wolfpack have the best defense in the ACC conceding 16 points per game. However, it will be tested by Wake Forest’s hot offense, which is churning out 44.7 points per game on average. In many ways, this is a championship game for both teams, and the premium on the win will be great. Wake Forest’s home advantage gives it the slight edge over their rivals to win and a cover.
Pick: Wake Forest -2