FCS Semifinal action here on Saturday has Delaware taking on South Dakota State. Both these teams were regular season champions from the CAA and MVFC conference. The winner here earns a spot in the FCS Championship game. Delaware opened the season with four straight wins where they scored at least 31 points. However, since then the scoring hs gone down but the defense has held teams to just 15.5 points per game. South Dakota is led by the QB, Mark Gronowski who won the Newcomer of the Year in the conference and Offensive Player of the Year with 20 TD's. Delaware has the best defense in the FCS this year so they will be tested here today against Gronowski. South Dakota State had to come from behind last week against Southern Illinois after trailing at half. Don't look for that again here today. I'm taking SD State with their talented QB. Play South Dakota State.

FCS Football playoffs continue here on Sunday as South Dakota State hosts Southern Illinois. SD State is 6-1 on this shortened season while Southern Illinois comes into this one at 6-3. Both these teams are from the Missouri Valley conference. In fact, four of the remaining eight teams are from the Missouri Valley.  SD State Jackrabbits coming off a nice performance where they held Holy Cross to just three points in a 31-3 win. Southern Illinois had a bit more trouble, beating Weber State 34-31.  SD State already has beaten this team once, back in March when the Jackrabbits went into Southern Illinois and won going away, 44-3.  I like this SD State team as they have a great defense and that makes laying the 15 or 15 1/2 points a bit easier to take. Play South Dakota State.

The Monmouth Hawks head to Texas to take on the No 2 seeded Sam Houston State in the FCS playoffs. Both teams are undefeated, however Monmouth hasn't played in two weeks after having its last game cancelled. Sam Houston didn't encounter any Covid issues and got to a perfect 6-0 record. The Hawks are 5th in the nation ins scoring (41.7 ppg) and 10th in total defense.  Sam Houston coming off a blowout in their last game over Incarnate Word, 42-14. This Sam Houston team has one of the best offenses inthe country as they rank third in scoring (44.8 ppg) and fourth in total defense.  Sam Houston comes into this game with more games under its belt than thei opponent. Monmouth has a promising future, but in this game I'm going with Sam Houston.

Murray State makes the short trek today over the board to take on Tennessee Tech. The Racers have started off to a 2-0 record in the FCS football. They look to return to the FCS playoffs for the first time since 2002. The defense has been outstanding, holding UT Martin to just 10 points in their opening game and beating SE Missouri, 24-21 in game number two. Tennessee Tech has been out to a slow start offensively which has resulted in a 1-1 record. QB Bailey Fisher was highly touted before the season but has been dissapoiting with just 137 total passing yards in two games. Tech has already played two very good defenses and not faired all that well. They do so again here today. Murray State's defense should do well against a struggling Tech offense here today. Play Murray State.

Missouri State lost three games in the fall of 2020 before packing it in. They got beat bad by a top ranked Oklahama team, 0-48 and lost twice to Central Arkansas.  Those games will give the team something to build on here in the FBC football conferences. Missouri State has a decent QB in Jaden Johnson and he has very good running back behind him in Kevon Latulas. The running game will be the big question for Western Illinois. They need more experience on the offensive line to opening up the running game here today. Western Illinois is the team I will be on Saturday, despite laying 5 to 6 points on the road. Should be a good game, but Missouri State will cover this game. Play Missouri State.

The late game on the Bowl schedule for Saturday is the Orange Bowl and it pits Texas A&M against North Carolina. NCU had an excellent season, finishing 8-3 under Mack Brown. A&M finished 8-1 and just missed being in one of the CFB Playoff games. A&M boasts one of the best offensive lines in the country so you can expect a lot of ground and pound here today. The Aggies were 2nd in the SEC in rushing offense with a 202.9 yards per game average. The offense should have little trouble with a Tar Heels defense that allowed 28.4 points per game this year. NCU will also have to contend with one of the best defenses this year in Texas A&M. At full strength this would be a tough game for the Tar Heels. But they also have players opting out of this game, including Chazz Suratt, Michael Carter and Dyami Brown. They lose their leading tackler, leading rusher and leading receiver here on Saturday. Sure, Mack Brown will say this is a chance for others to step up, but against this Texas A&M team that has something to prove by not getting a playoff spot - well it's just too much in my opinion. Take Texas A&M.

Fiesta Bowl has No 25 Oregon taking on No 10 Iowa State here on Saturday in Glendale, AZ for the first meeting ever between these clubs. Oregon was only able to get in six games in the PAC 12 play, going 4-2. Iowa State got a bit more action on the season with a 8-3 record. Iowa State has an excellent defense including a very good defensive line. They have 35 tackles for loss this season and should likely provide lots of problems for Oregon that has struggled at times on offense. The difference for me in this matchup is the aggressive defensive front of Iowa State. Plus the Cyclones have something to prove after losing the Big 12 Championship. Take Iowa State.

NCAA football playoffs here between No 3 Ohio State and No 2 Clemson in the Sugar Bowl. Ohio State had an abbreviated year due to Covid, but still finished 6-0. Clemson was 10-1 with that one loss coming at Notre Dame when QB Trevor Lawrence missed due to Covid. These teams met last year in the Fiesta Bowl playoff and in one of the most exciting games of the year, Clemson rallied from a 0-16 halftime deficit to win 29-23. Clemson is 4-0 against Ohio State in their history. Ohio State QB Justin Fields leads the team. He is a great QB, but was underperforming at times this season. That could have been to cancelled games or the discontinuity of the season. The Clemson offense might be a tad under last year's squad, but they still average 44.9 points per game this year. Lawrence missed two games due to Covid and one was that loss at Notre Dame. Lawrence likely the the No 1 NFL Draft pick this year. The defensive edge goes to Clemson, which always puts up great defenses. Should be a great game with two of the best QB's in college football. Let's hope we get another game like last year. For me, I am taking Lawrence here today and the Tigers. Play Clemson.

College Football playoffs begin here with No 4 Notre Dame taking on No 1 Alabama. Alabama laying a lot of wood in this game, currently around 19-20 points. This is the Rose Bowl, but not your normal Rose Bowl as it's been moved to Arlington, Texas from Pasadena due to Covid restrictions in California. Alabama makes it's sixth appearance in the NCAA FB playoffs in its seven year history. Alabama is an offensive juggernaut with Mac Jones at QB, Najee Harris at RB and WR DeVonta Smith that give this team a three-headed monster for defenses. The Tide have scored at least 52 points in four of their last five games and only one decided by less than 15 points. The only chance for Notre Dame here is to win the battle in the trenches and keep the ball out of Alabama's hands. If Notre Dame can't get a running game going, this will be a long day for the Irish. After what Clemson did to Notre Dame last time out I don't see how Alabama will be kept in check here today. I look for an Alabama blowout win.

Two top 10 teams matchup here on New Year's Day in the Peach Bowl as Georgia takes on undefeated 9-0 Cincinnati. Cincy will be looking to send a statement here today that they deserved to be in one of the playoff games. Yet, the oddsmaker isn't giving them any love, despite being undefeated they are a TD dog here today. This will be the Bearcats biggest challenger all season though. Georgia is good and better since JT Daniels took over at QB. I expect a high scoring game here today and with that maybe the last team to have the ball will cover. I will take the Touchdown though with a undefeated Cincinnati team.

Armed Forces Bowl from Fort Worth Texas here on New Year's eve has Tulsa taking on Mississippi State. This will be the first ever meeting between these teams. Mississippi State Bulldogs opened the season very nice with a big win over LSU, 44-34. However, they then proceeded to drop their next four games and while they had a losing season, they did finish with a win over Missouri, scoring 51 in that season finale. Tulsa had quite a few come from behind wins this year coupled with Covid cancellations. Their two losses were by a combined 12 points. The offense has struggled at times and has not scored more than 30 points in any of their last four games. Miss State has a top 25 rushing defense. Tulsa also commits a lot of penalties, 2nd most per game in the FBS. Both teams have their issues in this contest, but I'll take the SEC team here. Play Mississippi State.

College Cotton Bowl action here tonight has Florida taking on Oklahoma. Bowls are a different animal these days. Not only is Covid effecting who's playing, but you have players opting out so they don't get hurt if they are going into the NFL draft. That's what has happened here tonight as the top 4 wide receivers of Florida are all OUT here tonight. That's big since QB Trask likely hasn't many reps with receivers this low down on the list. Yes, the line has now moved from Oklahoma -4.5 to around a touchdown. But I'll take the Sooners here as I'm not sure Florida can keep up offensively with so many receivers not playing. Take Oklahoma.

It's the Alamo Bowl here today from San Antonio Texas with Colorado taking on Texas. These are old foes, both going back to their days in the Southwest Conference and now the Big 12. Now, Colorado plays in the PAC-12 so these teams haven't met since 2009. The leader of this Texas team is QB Sam Ehlinger, who quietly put up 25 TD's on the season. Ehlinger had preseason Heisman hype, but that never materialized during the season. Ehlinger will be without his favorite receiver in Brennan Eagles, who opted out for the NFL draft prep. The Colorado defense is very good against the pass, intercepting a pass in every game this year but one. They have also only allowed seven TD passes on the season. Texas will also be without tackle Samuel Comsi and Derek Kerstetter. The former opting out and the latter being injured. This will also cause issues for the Texas QB. Too many questions and changes for this Texas team heading into today's contest. Yet here they are laying just over a touchdown to Colorado. I look for Colorado to quite possibly win this game outright. Therefore, I'll take the points with Colorado.

Cheez-It Bowl here on Tuesday has two nationally ranked teams squaring-off as Oklahoma State takes on Miami Florida. Miami is still reeling from that beating they took in their last game against North Carolina, 26-62. Conversely, Oklahoma State is coming off a blowout win over Baylor on Dec 12, 42-3. Miami is just 1-2 this season against ranked teams, with their only win coming against Louisville when they were 18th ranked. Ok State is 1-1 vs ranked teams with their win coming against Iowa State. The Cowboys will be without their star running back, Chuba Hubbard, who opted out to prepare for the NFL draft. They can replace him though with Dezmon Jackson who rushed for 235 yards in a win over Texas Tech this season. Miami will be without a their star defensive ends in Jeaelan Phillips and Quincy Roche, both of whom opted out to prepare for the draft. This one should be quite an offensive show here today. The loss of those defensive ends will hurt Miami more then the loss of Ok State's running back. Should be a good one, but I'll be on Oklahoma State.

Coast Carolina Chanticleeers have been the Cinderella team of 2020. From their starting win to their big win over BYU, this 11-0 team and nationally ranked club might have expected a bit better than today's Cure Bowl against Liberty. This game was scheduled late in the regular season before it had to be cancelled due to Covid related issues. Despite their 11-0 record and big win over BYU, it just wasn't enough in the eyes of the selection committee to put them in a New Year's day playoff bowl. Liberty also had a great season, their lone loss coming at NC State 14-15, a game they could have easily won. Both these teams are very good and this should not only be a great game, but one that I see coming down to the wire. And with that, I'll take the TD with Liberty here on Saturday. Play Liberty.

The only game on the entire sporting slate today is the New Mexico Bowl. Well, sort of, as it's being played in Frisco, TX this year because of Covid issues in New Mexico. Still, should be a good one as Hawaii takes on Houston. Houston was only 3-4 on the season due to numerous cancellations and a very late start to the season. They have played just one time since Nov 14, a loss at Memphis, 27-30. Hawaii was 4-4 overall on the season. The Rainbow Warriors really depend on QB Chevan Cordeiro. He's a duel threat and when he plays well the team wins. Houston is an offensive team, averaging 32 points per game this year. I have to wonder how the long layoffs will effect this Houston team. Rust could be a big factor here today, especially on offense. For me, the layoff is too much to overlook along with the generous points the oddsmaker is giving us. Take Hawaii

New Orleans Bowl pits Georgia Southern vs Louisiana Tech. The Bulldogs of La tech had a strange year, starting 2-0 and then then 2-2 before having 30 days off because of Covid. They finished their season with a tough blowout loss to TCU on Dec 12, 10-52. Ga Southern won three of its first four games. Five of their wins have come by a TD or less. Georgia Southern is a run dominated team with a good defense. They are deep at running back and use them all. Southern has the better team and I look for the win and cover here today. Play Georgia Southern.

A pair of 6-win teams meet here on Tuesday in the Idaho Potato bowl as 6-5 Tulane takes on 6-2 Nevada. Jim his opening bowl game Monday with App State over North Texas. Both of today's teams have played in three straight bowl games. Nevada started the season 5-0 before dropping two of its last three games. Those losses coming to San Diego State and to San Jose State. This should be an offensive game as both teams can score. Nevada rides the arm of sophomore QB Carson Strong. Tulane will put the pressure on Strong here today, as they led the AAC with 36 sacks. This is going to be a close game here as both teams should score. But I will lay the points with a slightly better Tulane squad. Play Tulane.

The Bowl season kicks-off here on Monday with the Myrtle Beach Bowl between App State and North Texas. App State plays in its sixth straight bowl game and brings a perfect 5-0 record into today's contest. App State was 8-3 on the season and finished with a win over Georgia Southern, 34-26. North Texas is just 4-5 overall and is coming off a win over UTEP, 45-43. Mean Green are just 1-3 in bowl games under HC Seth Littrell. App State is led by QB Zac Thomas who has 58 TD's in his career. Thomas will have that extra year to come back because of Covid if he wants or he may try his hand in the NFL Draft. App State is a big favorite here today and rightfully so. We have one of the most successful programs in App State with one of the best QB's in school history going against a North Texas team that has a losing record. I expect a App State blowout here on Monday. Play App State.

SEC Championship game from Atlanta, GA here on Saturday has No 1 Alabama taking on No 7 Florida. Alabama looks to keep its perfect record in tact here on a top seed in the NCAA playoffs on New Year's day. Florida lost a shocker last week to LSU at home. LSU has had a horrible season with multiple injuries and COVID tests, but somehow pulled the biggest upset of the season. The Crimson Tide are almost a perfect team, difficult to find any weakness on this club. With QB Mac Jones, RB Najee Harris and WR DaVonta Smith they have three legitimate Heisman candidates. Alabama has won all year and won BIG! They are sending a statement the the NCAA that they are the team to beat this year and I have to agree with that. Even with Florida's excellent QB in Trask, I look for a Alabama blowout here on Saturday. I don't even know if Florida can recover from that LSU loss, let alone do so against the best team in the country. Play Alabama here on Saturday.

Big 10 Championship here on Saturday has No 10 Oklahoma taking on No 6 Iowa State. Iowa State has already beaten Oklahoma once this year, 37-30, on October 3rd in Ames, Iowa. Here today the Cyclones are the dogs. The Oklahoma offense is impressive with Spencer Rattler at QB and the return of Rhamondre Stevenson at running back. Stevenson has averaged six yards per carry in the games he's played. Iowa State has a very balanced offense and will look to keep the ball out of the OU hands with a deliberate style of play. For me it's tough to pass on the 5.5 points or thereabout with a team that has proven they can beat the Sooners. I see these teams as even and as such I'll take the points. Play Iowa State.

Conference USA Championship game here on Friday has the 5-3 UAB Blazers vs the 7-1 Marshall Thundering Herd. Marshall hasn't won in more than a month as they enter play here tonight. Marshall had their final game against Charlotte cancelled. Their only loss of the season coming at the hands of Rice where they gained just 245 total yards and QB Wells threw five interceptions. Marshall leads the FBS in points allowed, just 11.4 per game. Marshall has the 2nd best rushing defense, allowing just 73.0 yards per game. This Marshall defense will be a huge task for UAB to overcome here today. UAB hasn't won a game this year in which they have allowed more than 16 points, except their opening game against Central Arkansas. I look for Marshall to rebound from that Rice loss and use it's vaunted defense to shut down UAB. Play Marshall.

Rivalry game here as Virginia takes on Virginia Tech. Virginia can finish above .500 with a win here in their final game. The Cavs have won three straight games are 4-4 as they head into the finale. They have also covered three of their last four games and scored at least 43 points in each of their last three games. Virginia Tech has lost four straight games both S/U and ATS. The Hokies have scored just 24 points combined in their last two games. Last year Virginia won this game 39-30 as a 3-point home dog. Tech laying small points at home here today but I see Virginia winning this game straight-up. Take Virginia.

The annual USC vs UCLA rivalry game will lose some luster this week without the usual full Rose Bowl of rabid fans. USC has just four games this year after beating Washington State 38-13 and improving to 4-0 on the season. UCLA is 3-2 on the season after beating Arizona State, 25-18 on December 5. It's hard to figure who is more interested, but that appears to be USC with their perfect 4-0 record and top 20 ranking. Without the fans I have to be on the USC side in this one.

Wisconsin looking forward to this year being over. Between Covid cancelled games and just four games they will welcome the end today. The Badgers opened the season with two wins, scoring over 45 points in both games. Then they went into Northwestern and lost 7-17 and then last week lost at Indiana, 6-14. The defense has been great, but the offense has gone South the last two weeks. They face an Iowa team that is 5-2 and won five straight games after starting the season 0-2. The Hawkeyes have also covered four of their last five games. They finish up here today against Wisconsin and should make a bowl game either way. Their defense has been very good, not allowing more than 21 points in any of their last six games. Should be a low scoring game here today and Iowa at home against a Wisconsin team looking for the season to end is the play for me. Play Iowa.

Coastal Carolina could be in for a bit of a letdown here today after coming off that big win over BYU last time out. They had been looking for legitimacy and they got it with that win over the Cougars. Now they have to finish the season at Troy and I'm looking for a Chantileers club to come out a bit flat here. They are laying 2 touchdowns and that might be just too many points against this Troy club. Troy is coming off a win over South Alabama on the road, 29-0. Troy one of those few teams with a full slate of games this year at 5-6 S/U and 4-7 ATS on the season. Some clubs have just 2, 3 or 4 games they have been able to play. Obviously Coastal the better team, but I'm looking for a letdown here today as they are coming off that big win over BYU. Take Troy plus the double digits at home.

Rutgers looks to finish its regular season with a win here today at Maryland. The Scarlet Knights are 2-5 S/U and 4-3 ATS on the season. They have played a tough Big 10 season but can highlight wins over Michigan State and Purdue to build on. Now they face a Maryland team that has been able to play just four games this season and is 2-2 S/U and ATS. Maryland one of those teams effected greatly by Covid this season. They haven't played since Nov 28th as they close out the season here today. Hard to gauge a team with such few games, but for me Rutgers has a lot more experience this year with a full slate of games. Maryland might be looking at just getting out of this season and looking forward to next year. Play Rutgers.

Colorado only has a pair of games under their belts but the offense has been clicking. The opened with a 48-42 win over UCLA at home as a 7-point dog and then beat Stanford on the road, 35-32 as a 7-point dog, covering both games. Arizona has three games played and has lost all three while covering one. They have allowed at least 27 points in each game, not a good sign against this high flying Colorado team. Arizona has the 97th ranked offense and a rezone efficiency of just 66.1%. In their three games they have scored just four redzone TD's. Colorado has the 52nd ranked offense and a redzone efficiency of 91.2%, scoring 11 TD's in 13 redzone trips. Buffaloes laying just a TD here looks like a steal to me. Play Colorado in a blowout.

Monster matchup here between two teams that both feel they should be in the NCAA Playoff final four come New Year's Day. This game will show which team might have a legitimate claim to that fame. No 13 BYU is 9-0 on the season while No 18 Coastal is also 9-0. Coastal was set to face Liberty today, but Covid issues cancelled that game and BYU stepped in willingly. BYU needs to prove they can beat the tough teams on the road. Both teams have great offenses, with BYU ranking No 5 nationally. BYU also ranks in the top 10 defensively (7th), with the Cougars just one of two teams to rank in the top 10 in both categories. Coastal ranks 29th offensively in the nation and 14th in defense. This is a great matchup, but for me I'm taking the Cougars in this one. Play BYU.

Texas A&M plays its last scheduled game of the season here today. The Aggies defense has come alive the last two games, holding both LSU and South Carolina to a combined 10 points while scoring 68 themselves. A&M is now 6-1 S/U and 3-4 ATS on the season. Auburn also on its last scheduled game is coming off a beating at the hands of Alabama, 13-42. That loss broke a three-game win streak for the Tigers. Auburn is 5-3 S/U and 4-4 ATS on the season. A&M has the 47th ranked offense in the nation while Auburn comes in at 66th. A&M has a very good defense, ranked 20th overall with Auburn coming in at 65th. Auburn playing at home here today getting points is really a bargain for me. I believe they win this game outright, but I'll still take the points. Play Auburn.

This is a rematch of the last two Sun Belt Championship games. Louisiana will play for another belt while App State will miss out due to their loss to Coastal Carolina. The App State Mountaineers look to spoil the Top 25 ranking of Louisiana here tonight. Louisiana coming off a big blowout of UL Monroe last week, 70-20. Louisiana is 8-1 this year, their only loss coming to Coastal Carolina who they will meet in the championship game. App State also lost to Coastal Carolina a few weeks ago, 23-34. They also lost to Marshal earlier this year. App State won this game last year, 45-38 in a shootout despite Louisiana having 18 more plays. It was the three Louisiana turnover that made the difference. I look for a different outcome here tonight. I'll take the 2.5 or 3 points with the Ragin Cajuns in this one. Play Louisiana.

Louisiana Tech definitely not as good as previous versions of this team. Tech is coming off a win over UAB, 37-34 as a 12-point dog. The win snapped a 2-game losing streak. They are just 2-4 AST on the season. North Texas is coming off a loss to Texas San Antonio, 17-49 on the road. That snapped a 2-game win streak. North Texas has the nation's fourth ranked overall offense. La Tech has bad a big dropoff this year, now ranked 110th on offense. North Texas has a terrible defense, ranking 126th with La Tech 73rd. North Texas back home and with a very good offense looks to be the side for me. Play North Texas.

Northwestern showed just why they are one of the best teams in the Big 10 as they totally shut down Wisconsin last week, 17-7. The Northwestern defense we knew was good, but they were outstanding last week. They Cats have now covered all five games this year as they head to Michigan State today. The Michigan State Spartans were shut out two weeks ago by Indiana, 24-0. The Spartans have scored seven points combined in their last two games. Not good for now having to play the 15th ranked defense in the country. I look for another Northwestern win and possible shutout here on Saturday. Play Northwestern.

Big 12 matchup as Oklahoma State hosts Texas Tech on Saturday. Texas Tech is coming off a hard fought home win over Baylor two weeks ago, 24-23. They had the week off to prepare for today's contest. The win snapped a two game losing streak by Tech. Ok State lost to their rivals, Oklahoma last week, 13-41. The Cowboys fell behind early and could never recover. They are now 5-2 with three games to play in the regular season. The Cowboys excellent defense allowed 301 passing yards to the Sooners and another 191 rushing yards. The loss dropped the Cowboys defense to 25th in the country. They won't have that vaunted Oklahoma offense to contend with this week. I look for a Ok State rebound this week as they look to take out some frustration on the visiting Texas Tech team. Take Oklahoma State.

Top 25 matchup here on Friday has No 2 Notre Dame taking on No 25 North Carolina. This game looks to be the most difficult thus far for the Irish. Yes they played Clemson, but QB Lawrence missed that game with Covid. The Irish are a perfect 8-0 on the season while North Carolina is 6-2 with losses coming to Florida State and Virginia. The Tar Heels are coming off a shootout two weeks ago against Wake Forest, which they won in a come-from-behind fashion, 59-53. It follows that the Tar Heels would have the 4th ranked offense in the country. Notre Dame comes in at 24th. The Irish have a much better defense though, ranked 9th overall compared to the 68th ranked defense of NCU. These teams have met just once in the last five years and that was in 2017 with the Irish winning at Chapel Hill, 33-10. I like the Irish as it appears they are destined for a New Year's day playoff spot. They can' afford to look past any opponent, especially the Tar Heels here today. Play Notre Dame.

Iowa State looks for its fourth straight win here on Friday at Texas. The Cyclones are coming off a shutout win over Kansas State last week, 45-0. Iowa State has just two losses this year, their opening game to Louisiana and then to Oklahoma State, 21-24. The teams last game will be next week at home against West Virginia. Texas plays its last two games of the regular season with their game today and then next week at Kansas State. The Longhorns are coming off a bye week, so they have had plenty of time to prepare for this game. They have won three straight games and are 5-3 on the season. Iowa State has the 38th ranked offense in the nation with Texas coming in at right behind them at 39th. Texas has the 59th ranked defense and Iowa State is 24th. Texas has covered the last four in this series, though they did lose at Iowas State last year, 21-23. Basically we just need to win this game here with Texas as the line is around -1 on Texas. Take Texas.

 Kansas State has dropped its last two games and now is 4-3 on the season. They lost last week at home to Oklahoma State, 18-20, but covered the 14-point dog line. Now they will have to play at Iowa State as they look to snap that 2-game losing streak. Iowa State has won two straight games after their loss to Oklahoma State, 21-24. They are coming off a home win over Baylor, 38-31 two weeks ago as a 14-point favorite. Kansas State won this game last year at home, 27-17 covering as a home dog. A bit surprised that K State getting double digits as a dog here. I'm not sure they can't actually win this contest today. I'll take the points in this one. Play Kansas State.

Very good Big 10 battle here between two of the best in the league. Wisconsin is 2-0 after demolishing their first two opponents. They opened with a win at home over Illinois, 45-7 and then went into Penn State last week and beat them 49-11. The defense is once again excellent, ranked 1st overall in the nation right now and have only allowed one redzone possession and that resulted in a field goal. Northwester has also flashed defense, ranked 11th overall in the nation. The Wildcats have won and covered their first four games this season after last week's win at Purdue, 27-20. They have yet to allow more than 20 points to any one team. This one really shapes up to be a nice defensive battle. With Northwestern getting 7 or 7 1/2 points that just looks to be too many points to this fine defensive team. Play Northwestern.

UCLA was forced to move their game last week to Sunday because of the virus. They responded well with a 34-10 win over Cal as a 3.5 point dog. They opened the season with a loss at Colorado, 42-48 as a 7-point favorite. Oregon has also played two games, opening with a win at home over Stanford, 35-14 and then winning at Washington State, 43-29. Now they face a possibly shorthanded UCLA squad. UCLA Qb Dorian Thompson-Robinson is questionable in this game with his Covid Quarantine. UCLA is ranked 25th offensively after two games. The defense is 33rd. These teams haven't met since 2018 and in that contest the Ducks drowned the Bruins, 42-21. With or without the UCLA QB, I like Oregon at home in this one. Play Oregon.

Cincinnati Bearcats looking to make one of the New Year's day playoff bowl games and they have made a statement for that thus far. Cincy didn't hold back last week against ECU, beating them 55-17 and even faking a punt up 32-points. The Cats are a perfect 7-0 and have what could be their biggest test thus far at Central Florida. UCF is 5-2 but lost to Memphis by just one point and lost to Tulsa by eight. The Cats won this game last year 27-24 at home after UFC had won the prior three contests. UCF has the nation's top ranked offense with Cincy coming in at 21st. Both teams will have their respective hands full with the opposing offenses. UCF has a poor defense, ranked 94th overall and has a 81.1% defensive redzone efficiency as they have allowed 21 TD's out of 28 redzone tries this year. I believe this is the Bearcats season. I look for them to win here today, cover and keep their playoff hopes alive. Play Cincinnati.

If there is one team that might be the most difficult to understand what happened, that's Penn State. It has been one disaster after another for the Nittany Lions this year. They are 0-4 both S/U and ATS, though they did come back after being down big last week at Nebraska but still lost 23-30. They have allowed at least 30 points in all four games thus far. Iowa has bounced back after starting the season 0-2. The Hawkeyes have since flexed their defensive muscles with a 49-7 win over Michigan State and a 35-7 win at Minnesota last week. Penn State has dominated in recent years, winning the last four against Iowa and covering three of the four. It's not too often we get Penn State at home as a small dog. Futhermore, I believe this team is better then they have showed us thus far. The season likely has no meaning now for the Lions, but they still play for pride. Take Penn State.

Great matchup here on Saturday as 6-1 Appalachian State takes on 7-0 and 15th ranked Coastal Carolina. App State Mountaineers have won three straight division titles, but the Chanticleers look to send that this season. Winner of this game looks to play for the Conference Championship against Louisiana. App State is also 3-0 in this series, so Carolina has something to prove here on Saturday. This is going to be a close game, but for me, this is Coastal's season and I expect them to send a statement here on Saturday. Play Coastal Carolina.

Looks like early week is MAC week as MAC play enters its 3rd week, at least for most teams. Some have had Covid issues and games PPD. Tonight Akron travels to play at Kent State. Kent is one of the better teams in the MAC at 2-0 on Season. They opened with a win over Eastern Michigan, 27-23, but failed to cover 5-point line. Then they went to Bowling Green where they cruised to a 62-24 win and cover. Now they host a poor Akron as they should go 3-0 tonight. Akron is 0-2 after losing to Western Michigan 13-58 and then last week at Ohio, 10-24, covering the 26-point line. Akron out gained Ohio last week 434 to 307 yards. It was the three turnovers that hurt the Zips. Kent State rolled-up 667 yards at Bowling Green last week and had 30 more offensive plays. Kent is now 6th in the country in total yards. Kent held Akron to just 3 points last year in this matchup. I'm going to lay the points with a very good Kent team tonight. Play Kent.

Wisconsin finally back in action after many weeks off due to Covid protocols. Have to wonder how the nationally ranked Badgers will respond here today after the long layoff. The Badgers only game this year was on October 23, a 45-7 win over Illinois. Problem in the Big 10 is they don't have a lot of latitude to reschedule games. Wisconsin only has five more games scheduled and any more cancellations could mean they won't have enough games this year. Michigan might wish they have had games cancelled the way they have played. The Wolverines won their opener against Minnesota, 49-24 and then have lost to Michigan State, 24-27 and last week to Indiana, 21-38. They allowed Indiana 460 yards of offense to just 357 by Michigan. Michigan also turned the ball over twice to no take aways. Last year Wisconsin won this matchup 35-14 in Madison as a 3-point favorite. These teams are ranked right next to each other in offense with Wisconsin at 42 and Michigan 43. I have to look for an improved effort here today at home from Michigan while I just don't know what to expect from this Wisconsin team. We could see rust and this is no place for that to occur. I'll take the rare Michigan home dog here today. Play Michigan.

Huge win last week for Notre Dame as they defeated No 1 Clemson, 47-40 in OT. It looked bleak for the Irish as they fell behind last in the 4th quarter, but rallied for the tying TD to force OT. Sure, Clemson was without QB Trevor Lawrence, but they still got 439 yards from their young backup. In fact, these teams combined for almost 1000 yards of offense last week. But it was the three Clemson turnovers that made the difference in this one. This week the Irish hit the road at a very good Boston College team that almost beat Clemson a few weeks ago. How to wonder if Notre Dame will have a hangover after their big win last week? Boston College is 5-3 on the season with narrow losses to North Carolina and Clemson. They won a close game last week at Syracuse, 16-13. They have also covered four of their last six games. Notre Dame is ranked 31st in total offense with Boston College coming in at 91. Notre Dame is ranked 9th in defense with BC at 42nd. I'm taking the home team here on Saturday as I look for a sluggish Irish team to show up today after a huge win last week. Play Boston College.

No 9 Miami Florida hits the road today for a conference game at Virginia Tech. The Hurricanes are 6-1 on the season and while they likely won't make a CFB Playoff, they are in line for a good bowl game. The Canes lost last year at Virginia Tech, 35-42, but outgained Tech 563-337. It was a five turnover day that did in the Canes. Miami beat North Carolina State last week, 44-141 as a 11-point favorite. The Canes had 620 total yards and no turnovers in the win. Virginia Tech lost at home to a nationally ranked Liberty team, 35-38 as a 16.5 point favorite. Liberty ran 80 plays to just 58 for Tech. Virginia Tech could be without their top RB here today in Khalil Herbert. Herbert is nursing a hamstring injury and is questionable. Herbert has 804 yards on the season with seven TD's. I like Miami here as a small dog. Points likely won't come into play here, so I looking at a Miami straight up win. Play Miami Florida.

No 10 Indiana brings a perfect 3-0 record into today's contest at Michigan State. The Hoosiers looking to send a message to the rest of the Big 10 that they are for real. Indiana beat Penn State in their opener, 36-35 and then beat Rutgers 37-21 and last week did in Michigan, 38-21 at home. They hit the road now for real tests at Michigan State today and then at Ohio State next. You have to go back to 1969 for the last time a Hoosiers football team has been ranked in the top 25. Indiana has the 38th ranked defense this year with Michigan State coming in at 44th. Surprisingly, the Hoosiers have just the 105th ranked offense despite their high scoring games. Another good Big 10 team at home getting quite a few points. I'll take the home team here with the points. Play Michigan State.

 Iowa has three games under its belt in Big 10 play and they are 1-2 after a pair of close losses to open the season. The Hawkeyes opened with a 20-24 loss at Purdue, followed by a 20-21 lost at home to Northwestern. Last week they got their first "W" at home over Michigan State, 49-7. Minnesota has done the same, opening with a pair of losses before getting their first win last week at Illinois, 41-14. Iowa won this matchup last year in Minnesota, 23-19. That win despite being out-gained by the Gophers, 290-431. Iowa has now covered the last four in this series winning all four straight-up too. Minnesota has the nation's 37th ranked offense and a red-zone efficiency rating of 82.5%. Iowa is 77th in offense. Iowa holds the defensive edge, ranked 19th overall in the nation with Minnesota coming in at 112th. Likely to be a close game here as both team's losses have been close games. I'll take the better defense here today and that's IOWA.

Central Michigan won a shootout last week at home over Ohio, 30-27. The Chippewas gained 427 yards to Ohio's 345 yards. In addition, they have 30 more offensive plays then did the Bobcats. Northern Illinois lost at home last week to Buffalo, 30-49. The Huskies had 29 more offensive plays, but just 40 yards more and yet were still outscored by 19 points thanks in part to a -3 turnover ratio. When these teams met last year that game was also in Nothern Illinois as Central won easily, 48-10 as a small dog. Central Michigan has really owned this NIU team, covering the last five years. I expect that again here tonight. I'm taking the road team in this one. Play Central Michigan.

 Second week of MAC play as Miami Ohio plays at Buffalo tonight. Miami Ohio won a shootout last week with Ball State, 38-31. Miami had 422 yards to Ball State's 478 yards. Both teams had balanced attacks with Miami rushing for 134 yards and passing for another 288. Buffalo had a pretty easy time last week at Northern Illinois. Buffalo won 49-30 despite being out-gained by NIU, 357-397. It was FIVE big turnovers by NIU that turned out to the difference in this one. Miami won this game last year in Ohio, 34-20, as Buffalo had four turnovers in that contest. Miami has now covered four of the last five in this series winning three of those straight-up. Buffalo laying over a TD here tonight looks to be a bit much against a good Miami club. I'll take the points in this one. Play Miami Ohio.

The MAC finally got underway last week and Kent State was in a dog fight with Eastern Michigan. Kent pulled out the win and cover, 28-20. Kent had 431 yards of offense to just 302 by Eastern. In addition, they had a very balanced offense with 212 yards on the ground and 219 yards through the air. Bowling Green is one of the worst teams in the nation and it showed last week at Toledo. BG lost 3-38 as a 18-point dog and was almost doubled in yardage, 267-524. In addition, BG turned the ball over three times. Last year's meeting between these teams was not pretty for BG, as they lost at Kent, 20-62 and gave up 750 yards of offense! Kent has covered the last two in this series and that's just wahat I expect here tonight in another Kent rout. Play Kent State.

Huge game here on Saturday as No 1 Clemson takes on No 4 Notre Dame. Clemson had to come from a big deficit last week at home against Boston College to keep their perfect season alive. The problem for the Tigers is that they had to play without arguably the best QB in the country in Trevor Lawrence. Lawrence missed the BC game last week with a Covid positive test and is forced to miss this game also. No doubt that Clemson is the more talented team, but without Lawrence it levels the field and gives the Irish hopes here on Saturday. Look for the Tigers to lean heavily on RB Travis Etienne. These teams last met in 2018 with Clemson taking that game, 30-3 as a 11-point favorite. These are two of the best defensive teams in the nation, with Clemson coming in at 7th and Notre Dame 6th. I don't expect a shootout here today without Lawrence, but I do expect a Clemson win and cover. Play Clemson.

Big SEC contest here on Saturday as No 8 Florida takes on No 5 Georgia. Loser of this game can likely kiss goodbye any playoff hopes. Georgia played a pretty uninspired game last week at Kentucky, winning 14-3. Florida QB Kyle Trask is tied in the SEC in touchdown passes and has at least four in every game. Georgia's excellent defense with be without some key cogs in safety Richard LeCounte, guard Jordan Davis and DE Julian Rochester. Should be an excellent game, but getting point with Trask and the Gators is too much to pass on. I expect a straight up win here today by Florida.

Cincinnati is flexing its muscles in the AAC conference after dismantling Memphis last week, 49-10 as a 6.5 point favorite. The Bearcats had 513 yards to just 321 by Memphis. That included 242 yards rushing. Cincy improved to 5-0 overall and 3-0 in conference play. Houston comes into today's contest at 2-2 overall and 2-1 in the AAC. Houston will have its hands full this week with a 15th ranked Cincinnati defense and top defense in the AAC. Cincinnati hitting on all cylinders right now and that's what I like. They have their sights set on a New Year's day bowl game and I expect another Bearcats blowout here today. Take Cincinnati.

Just a couple of weeks into the Big 10 season and we have already seen some big upsets. One such happened last week as Michigan State overcame a seven-turnover opening game vs Rutgers to upset rival Michigan last week, 27-24 as a 24.5-point dog. Meanwhile, Iowa is 0-2 to start the season. However, they have lost both games by a combined margin of just five points. The Hawkeyes lost last week at home to Northwestern, 20-21 as a 2.5-point favorite. The defense has been very good, ranked 19th after two games. These teams have met just twice in the last five years and both those have been low scoring with a Michigan State win in 2017, 17-10 and also in 2015, 16-13. Not sure which Michigan State team we will see here. But, I do expect they might be celebrating that big upset win last week a bit too much and I look for Iowa to jump up and take their first win of the season here today. Play Iowa.

West Virginia brings one of the top ranked defenses in the country in to today's contest at Texas. The Mountaineers are ranked 4th overall in defense and holding teams under 100 yards rushing. Texas comes into today ranked 60th in defense, allowing 130 yards on the ground. West Virginia had little trouble with visiting Kansas State last week, winning 37-10 as a 4-point favorite. They held the Wildcats to just 41 yards rushing and 184 yards passing to go with three turnovers in the win. Texas won a shootout at Oklahoma State last week, 41-34. This was despite getting outgained in yardage, 287-530. So what was the difference? Four Ok State turnovers to none by Texas. With such a poor offensive showing the final score can be a bit deceiving. Don't expect that same thing to happen here today against this excellent West VA defense. Take the visitor, West Virginia.

The PAC 12 is the last conference to return to action this week as Arizona State takes on USC from Los Angeles. Herm Edwards has done great things down in Tempe with the Sun Devils. In fact since Edwards took over the helm, he's 1-1 vs USC and both games decided by just eight points. Short six game schedule means every game is very important. ASU QB Jayden Daniels is back after a decent freshman season last year. He had 17 TD's and just 2 turnovers last year and is a legitimate dual threat. This game promises lots of offense with plenty of threats on both sides of the ball. Look for USC to throw and ASU to try and establish the run. This one should come right down to the end. I'm taking the points with the visitor. Play Arizona State.

This will be the biggest and hardest test of the entire season for the BYU Cougars. The Cougars have pretty much cruised through their games thus far. BYU coming off a easy win over Western Michigan, 41-10. They have covered six of their seven games this year. They have also scored at least 41 points in all but one game, that being a 27-20 win over UTSA. Zach Wilson has been amazing for the Cougars at QB and is a leading candidate for the Heisman. This will be Wilson's toughest test to date. One thing to consider tonight, BYU has played 7 games and has their timing and all else in sync. Boise State has just one game as their season started last week. They could still be working the kinks out and may be facing this excellent BYU team a bit early in their season. Boise struggled against the Air Force rushing game last week, but then again who doesn't. Right now no one can stop Wilson and the BYU offense. I don't think Boise has the horses to do that either here tonight. I'm taking BYU in this one.

The MAC conference finally gets underway here on Wednesday with all the games in this conference tonight. It took until week 10 and November to get them going, but they are back. All teams will play a shortened 6-game schedule. Ohio Bobcats play at Central Michigan Chippewas tonight as this could be a preview of the Championship game. Ohio went to the Famous Idaho Bowl last year and beat Nevada, 30-21. Central lost its bowl game to San Diego State in the New Mexico Bowl, 11-48. Ohio has to replace their star QB in Nathan Rourke, but hopes the apple doesn't fall far from the tree with little brother Kurtis Rourke. Central Michigan looks to start red-shirt freshman at QB, Daniel Richardson. Great game here on Wednesday between two of the best in the MAC. I have these teams pretty equal, but with CMU at home and getting a point or two, I'll take the host. Play Central Michigan.

MAC is back in action tonight with a shortened 6-week schedule. Ball State Cardinals take on the defending MAC Champions, Miami Ohio. Ball State finished last season at 5-7 despite having the conferences top offense. High hopes this year for Cardinals as they return 17 starters and have their eyes on a MAC Championship. The Cards have plenty of returners on offense, including QB Drew Pitt and RB Caleb Huntley. Miami also returns their QB in Brett Gabbert. Ball State has the talent and returning starters to win the MAC. I expect a close game, but I'm taking the road team. Play Ball State.

Kansas State Wildcats (4-1) travel to Morgantown to take on the 3-2 West Virginia Moutaineers. The Cats had an easy go of it last week vs Kansas, winning handily 55-14. The one area that K State need to improve is on penalties. They had penalty after penalty in last week's contest. That might not have hurt them against an overmatched Kansas team, but today they can ill afford to make those same mistakes. West Virginia leads the conference in total defense and has a very good rush defense. When the Mountaineers have held opponents to under 100 yards rushing they are 3-0. This game should be about the defenses and if West Virginia can put pressure on the K State rushing game, they win here today. Play West Virginia.

Cincinnati comes into Saturday's contest ranked 7th nationally and have their sights set on a New Year's day Six seeding. The Memphis Tigers beat Cincinnati twice last year, so there is revenge on the minds of the Cats here today. Memphis has racked-up 155 points in their four games this season. They will have a tough time here today against a very good Cincinnati defense that held a explosive SMU club to just 13 points last week in a 42-13 win. This rematch of last year's AAC Championship game will have Cincinnati all hyped for some revenge and to keep their New Year's Day date in tact. Take Cincinnati.

Coastal Carolina won its first game as a ranked team last week over Georgia Southern, 28-14. But it was much more difficult than expected, as they were tied at the half 14-14 and struggled at times. Part of this is due to the fact that they played their first game without starting QB Grayson McCall. McCall missed the game with an upper body injury and is doubtful for today's contest. That's a huge loss for this Carolina team and while they got somewhat lucky last week to win, don't expect that here today. Carolina is 5-0 overall and ranked 20th nationally. Fred Payton looks to play his second game at QB here today. He did complete 15-of-28 passes for 252 yards last week. Georgia State upset Troy last week, 36-34 and improved to 2-2 on the season. They are led by Red-shirt freshman QB Cornelious Brown. Brown has been very impressive in his first year, completing 59.1% of his passes with 9 TD's and just 4 INT's. Georgia State has improved with each game this year. I expect Georgia State to give the Chants all they can handle here on Saturday. I'll take the few points at home today. Play Georgia State.

Both teams looking to rebound after respective losses last time out. The Kentucky Wildcats dropped to 2-3 after losing to Missouri last week, 10-20. The Georgia Bulldogs got their fist loss of the year at 3-1 after getting bum rushed by Alabama, 24-31 two weeks ago. The week off should have done wonders for the Dogs to get that loss out of their head and get some rest for today's contest. The Dogs look to make it 11 straight wins over Kentucky here on Saturday. Kentucky will have to do better than what they did at Missouri, as the Wildcats held the ball for just 17 minutes of the entire game. The Cats are last in the SEC in passing offense with just 124 yards per game. Kentucky also has to get off to better starts, as their last three games they have had 65, 75 and 122 yards respectively. The Cats struggled offensively against a mediocre Missouri defense. What will they do here today against an aggressive and rested Georgia defense? I expect not much. Take Georgia.

The Big 10 returns today with football and we get a great matchup here as the Minnesota Fighting Gophers take on the Michigan Wolverines. The Michigan defense will once again be the strong suit of this team. The offense, well that's a work in progress that might take some time to do much. Minnesota returns one of the best receivers if not the best receiver in college in Bateman. QB Morgan will be the one throwing and he's one of the best too. Should be a great game for the Little Brown Jug, but I'm taking the points here with the home team. Play Minnesota.

No 3 ranked Notre Dame travels to Pitt today to take on the Panthers. The Irish are 4-0 on the season and coming off a win at home over Louisville, 12-7. Pittsburgh is 3-3 on the season after losing to Miami Florida last week, 19-31. The Irish will have to contend with the nation's top defense against the rush here today. The Panthers have lost two games this year by one point in each game. This will be the first road game for the Irish so a big test here today after that lackluster offensive performance last week. Now they have to play a very good Pitt run defense. I'll take the points with the home team here. Play Pittsburgh.

Tennessee was manhandled last week on their home turf by Kentucky, 7-34. That was the second loss in a row for the Vols. Meanwhile, Alabama came off a huge win last week over Georgia, 41-24. Even with the loss of QB Tua Tagovailoa and WR Henry Ruggs, the offense has been clicking under QB Mac Jones. Jones ranks first nationally in QB rating and completed 78.3% of his passes with 12 TD's and just two INT's. Tennessee will need better production from its QB's. Jarrett Guarantano has started all four games, but tossed two pick-six INT's last week vs Kentucky. Don't expect a letdown here today by the Tide, Saban always has his teams prepared. Tide will roll here today. Play Alabama.

 No 17 Iowa State Cyclones visit No 6 Oklahoma State here on Saturday with the winner having its sights set on first place. Iowa State lost its opener this season to Louisiana, but since has won all its conference games including a big win over Oklahoma. Iowa State QB Brock Purdy will have his toughest test of the season here against this very good OK State defense. But not all falls to Purdy, as RB Breece Hall has been having an excellent season and looks to be a key here on Saturday. The Ok State Cowboys will have to make a decision at QB. Will Spencer Sanders return today after getting injured in the first game of the season vs Tulsa and missing all play since? I believe that Iowa State is the better team and no matter which QB starts for Ok State, I'll take the visitor in this one. Play Iowa State.

Louisiana Ragin' Cajuns play at UAB tonight. the Cajuns are 3-1 overall and 2-1 in Sun Belt play. They are coming off their first loss of the season, that coming against Coastal Carolina last week, 27-30. That loss also knocked them out of the Top 25 rankings. Meanshile, UAB is 4-1 overall and 2-0 in Conference USA standings. They are coming off a win over Western Kentucky, 37-14. ULL will use its ground attack here tonight. The Cajuns are averaging 186 yards rushing this year. While ULL has struggles since their opening season win, UAB has gotten stronger as the season has progressed. UAB averages 33.3 points per game over their last three games. This should be a close game, but I like UAB to win so I'll take the points with them. Play UAB.

No 11 Texas A&M is 2-1 on the season and has been a scoring machine through the air.  Mike Leach's Mississippi State Bulldogs are just 1-2 and under performed thus far this season. The Aggies had a big come-from-behind last week for one of their biggest victories when they defeated Florida, 41-38. The Aggies trailed 17-28  in the third quarter. The Bulldogs have to curtail their turnovers if they hope to have a chance here today. Costello threw four Interceptions against Kentucky. His backup, Rogers, came in and threw two more. Arkansas showed how to beat MSU and I believe Leach will take a page out of that playbook this week. I like A&M laying less than a TD here on the road today. Play Texas A&M. 

Is this the time that South Carolina can finally beat Auburn?  The Gamecocks have lost eight straight games to the Tigers. This Tigers team is down this year so this is their best chance in recent times. Auburn barely escaped with a win over Arkansas. Meanwhile, S.Carolina finally got a win with a W over Vanderbilt. Auburn's Bo Nix has been a totally different QB at home and on the road. Away from home, just he's 3-4 with 9 TD's and 7 INT's. I'm taking the upset here on Saturday. Play South Carolina.

 My Inner Circle plays have been a staple among my clients for over 30 years. My Inner Cirlce play for this week is in the game between Templa and South Florida. South Florida is just 1-2 in their Three game thus far. For Temple, they finally got to play a game last week and they lost to Navy, 29-31. Their defense got pushed around at time by the unconventional Navy offense. Don't expect that here on Saturday against a much weaker South Florida offense. I look for Temple to get their first win of the season here.

Houston finally got to play a game last week and their offense showed no rust in a 49-31 blowout of Tulane. Meanwhile, the 15th ranked BYU Cougars have improved to 4-0 on the season. QB Zach Wilson has been amazing for the Cougars, completing 81% of his passes and passing for over 300 yards in every game so far. The Cougars had their first close game last week in a win over UTSA, 27-20. It was the first time this season the defense allowed 10 points or more. The Houston offense piled up the points last week, but did have five turnovers. They won't be able to do that against this Cougars team this week. BYU and their secondary get their first real test here on Friday against this Houston offense. still, BYU has too much firepower for Houston to contend with. Take BYU.

No 18 SMU puts its 4-0 record on the line today as they play at Tulane (2-2). SMU coming off a win over Memphis, 30-27. It was the club's third straight cover since their opening game. The Mustangs have 558 yards per game, which ranks them 4th in the nation. Tulane is coming off a loss at Houston last time out, 31-49. Bad news for SMU in their win over Memphis was the loss of star receiver Reggie Roberson and starting RB TJ McDaniel, both of whom are lost for the season. Not sure how SMU will replace those offensive weapons yet, but getting nearly a TD at home with Tulane looks too good to pass on at this point. Take TULANE.

A pair of undefeated college football teams meet here on Wednesday night as Louisiana Ragin Cajuns take on the Coastal Carolina Chanticleers in a Sun Belt conference matchup. Coastal opened the season with a win at Kansas followed by wins over Campbell and then last week against Arkansas State, 52-32. Louisiana was a program best 11-3 in 2019 and have won back-to-back Sun Best West divisions. Coastal has the conference's best offense so far this season, averaging 44.3 ppg and 6.9 yards per play. The Louisiana defense is holding teams to 5.2 yards per play. Louisiana is led by their offensive line and running attack, which Coastal will have to contend with tonight. Elijah Mitchell leads the team with 210 rushing yards and that is even after missing the Georgia Southern game. Big game for both teams as Coastal wants to prove they can play with Louisiana. Meanwhile, Louisiana can likely crack the top 25 with a good showing here tonight. Getting 7.5 points looks good with such a good offensive team as Carolina is tonight. Play Coastal Carolina.

SEC action here on Saturday has Kentucky looking for its first win after starting the season 0-2. They will host Mississippi State, which is coming off a loss last week to Arkansas and is now 1-1. The Bulldogs loss to Arkansas, 14-21 despite good passing numbers by K.J Costello and rushing by Jo'quavious Marks. There were high hopes for Kentucky this year so they can ill afford to fall to 0-3 on the season. Miss State is under new HC Mike Leach. They had the upset win as a 10-point dog over LSU, then fell flat against Arkansas last week. Kentucky had 559 total yards in their loss to Ole Miss with 408 of those coming on the ground. Kentucky is too good a team to start 0-3 on the season. They played well in both their losses and should be 1-1 at worse. I look for Kentucky to put it all together here on Saturday. Play Kentucky.

Hard to believe that Temple will finally get on the field for a game here tonight. Due to scheduling and Covid concerns they had to reschedule this game from Sept 26th. Now they get their first game against a Navy squad that is just 1-2 on the season. Navy was sunk by Byu in their opener, 3-55. Navy wasn't ready for the season and it showed. They did bonce back in week two with a come from behind win over Tulane and then got beat bad again last week by Air Force, 7-40. Temple is led by QB Anthony Russo. Russo tossed 21 TD's last year to go with his 2,861 yards. The offensive line returns lots of experience and should really benefit Russo this season. Navy has been a tough team to figure out. They have really been behind big in all three games with the one big comeback vs Tulane. I just don't trust this Navy defense against an experienced QB today. Take Temple

Duke just not feeling 2020 thus far as they are off to a horrible start. The Blue Devils are 0-4 on the season losing to Va Tech, 31-38, then to Virginia 20-38 and then to Boston College 6-26 and week 1 at Notre Dame, 13-27. The offense scored their most points of the season last week (31) in their loss to Va Tech. Syracuse is 1-2 on the season, with their lone win thus far coming against Georgia Tech, 27-30. Duke has been a turnover machine with a -7 turnover ratio in just four games. Now they face an Orange team that is first in the ACC in turnover differential with a +6 mark. Unless Duke can hold onto the ball I don't see any different outcome here today but their fifth loss. And facing the best takeaway team in the ACC is not a good sign. I'm sticking with the home team in this one. Play Syracuse.    

 ESPN game here as Florida takes on Texas A&M. The Florida Gators are 2-0 on the season with A&M Aggies coming in a 1-1. The Aggies lost last week to Alabama, 24-52. Won't get any easier this week as they play an explosive Florida team. The offense is averaging 44.5 ppg so far and 7.8 yards per play. TE Kyle Pitts will pose a huge problem for A&M here. Pitts has has been a TD machine thus far and he's big and fast and it looks like the Aggies don't have an answer to covering him here today. The A&M secondary was destroyed last week by Alabama for 435 yards and four TD's. I don't see that getting any easier today against an equally explosive Florida offense. Take Florida in a blowout.

Both Louisville Cardinals and the George Tech Rambling Wreck started the season with wins. Since then, they are a combined 0-4. Louisville (1-2) has lost to Miami Florida and Pittsburgh with their lone win coming over Western Kentucky. Georgia Tech (1-2) has lost to Central Florida and Syracuse after beating Florida State in its opener. Louisville QB Malik Cunningham has 757 passing yards and 7 TD's with 5 INT's. Geogia Tech starts a true freshman at QB in Jeff Sims. Sims has 695 yards with 3 TD's and 8 INT's. Tech's leading rusher, Jordan Mason, has missed the last two games. Big difference in QB here with Cunningham for Louisville and freshman for Tech. I'll lay the points here on the road. Play Louisville.

The Covid pandemic has caused many a college teams to shuffle their schedules. None more effected then Houston thus far. The Cougars will just now be playing their first game of the season. Compare that to Tulane, which is playing its fourth game after starting the season 2-1. The Cougars have had five game rescheduled or cancelled thus far. They finally get to play tonight. The Cougars have 33 junior college and other conference transfers after finishing a disappointing 4-8 last season. The Cougars will have their hands full playing Tulane. Not only does the Green Wave have had three games to get their team in order, but they are 2-1 and already won twice on the road. Thus far, Tulane is third in the AAC in total defense. Hard to gauge this Houston team since they have so many changes from last year. Add to that the rust that can accompany any first game of the season and I'm a bit surprised they are laying a TD here tonight. I'm going to take the points with a very good Tulane team. Play Tulane.

Late TV game here on the SEC schedule as Georgia host Auburn. Georgia opened the season last week with a win over Arkansas, 37-10. The Bulldogs trailed that game at the half, 5-7. Todd Monken takes over as offensive coordinator and the team showed some growing pains last week. While the offense will take time under new OC, the defense will once again be solid. Bo Nix returns to Auburn after a uneven 2019 season. Nix looked good in their opener, completing 16 of 27 passes for 233 yards and three TD's. Nix will be the key to today's game if the Tigers look for the upset in Georgia. This is going to be a close game with the Auburn offense against the Georgia defense. I'll take the points in this one. Play Auburn.

Florida Atlantic finally looks to get on the grid iron today as their previous games vs Georgia Southern and South Florida were both cancelled due to Covid. They face the Charlotte 49ers today. FAU will be under first year coach Willie Taggart and are the defending Conference USA Champions. Charlotte lost its opener to Appalachian State, 20-35. They are under 2nd year coach Will Healy. Charlotte also saw scheduled games vs North Carolina and Georgia State scrapped due to the Virus. FAU led the conference in scoring and total offense last year. However, many players are gone from that team. QB Chris Robinson left and most of his receivers from last year graduated. FAU might be more rusty then most having waiting this long to get a game under its belt. I believe this one will be closer then most think it might be. FAU needs time under a new coach and with so many offensive players missing. Take Charlotte.

Two teams that will likely contend for the Sun Belt title meet today. Coastal Carolina is 2-0 to start the season. The Chanticleers have a solid QB in McCall. McCall had over 200 yards in their win over Kansas with five Td's. Arkansas State has been rotating QB's with Logan Bonner and Layne Hatcher. Starting RB Marcel Murray returns today after missing both of the first two games. A bit surprised that the Chanticleers getting points at home in this one. For me, I'll take this very good Coastal Carolina plus the points and won't be surprised by a straight up win.

Baylor had to wait a bit to start their season, but they didn't show any rust as they pummeled Kansas 47-14 last week. West Virginia has a pair of games under its belt, beating Eastern Kentucky in week one, 56-10, and then losing last week to Oklahoma State, 13-27. Baylor Bears have a excellent QB in Charlie Brewer. He's thrown for over 3,000 yards two times in his college career. RB Trestan Ebner scored four TD's in their win over Kansas. West Virginia's pass defense has been solid, all0owing just 135 yards average thus far. West Virginia is led by running back Leddie Brown who has posted back-to-back 100 yard efforts. Despite their loss last week, this West Virginia club looks much improved under 2nd year HC Neal Brown. I expect a lot of points in this one, but I'll take the home club. Play West Virginia.

No 22 BYU definitely loaded once again this year and they are eying a perfect season and maybe a playoff berth. The Cougars are led by junior QB Zach Wilson who led the Cougars to a easy win last week over Troy, 48-7. Louisiana Tech is coming off a 10-3 record last year and is unbeaten this year. Luke Anthony is at QB and he also has this offense running smooth. The big difference is in defense where BYU has allowed 10 points over the last two weeks while La Tech has allowed 68. La Tech has covered their last four games and they get 24 1/2 points here today from BYU. Anthony has thrown for 463 yards and eight TD's so far this year. While BYU is the better team, I believe that 24 1/2 points is too many to give a dynamic La Tech offense. Take the points, play Louisiana Tech.

 West Virginia and Oklahoma State both opened with wins. Not surprising for WVU as they usually start out hot, evidenced by their 7-1 spread record in their last eight September games. The Mountaineers had the week off to prepare for this game after an easy win over Eastern Kentucky, 56-10. Oklahoma State struggled in their game against intrastate rival Tulsa, eaking out the win, 16-7 as a 23 point favorite. Problem was, the Pokes lost QB Spencer Sanders early on and never really got it going after that. Sanders is questionable for this game with an ankle injury. West Virginia getting around a TD in this one and I like the Mountaineers to win this game, even if Sanders does make it back. Take West Virginia.

It was a rough week for both of these teams last week. First, Tulane led Navy 24-0 and lost as time expired, 24-27. So Miss led the entire game, only to lose with 14 second remaining on a 4th down pass to Louisiana Tech, 30-31. Tulane continues to build its game around the run game, which had 265 yards against Navy. Freshman Tyjae Spears had 119 yards in the loss. Southern Miss is led by QB Jack Abraham. Abraham was 24-for-32 last week for 264 yards and three TD's. Southern Miss has already lost two at home and they sure don't want to make it three in a row. More motivation on the Golden Eagles side here today. I'm taking Southern Miss.

Iowa State was supposed to be playing Oklahoma here today, but rescheduling due to the Covid virus and the Cyclones will have to settle for a road trip to TCU. Iowa state stumbled in its opener, losing to Louisiana Ragin' Cajuns, 14-31. Big plays killed the ISU team as they allowed a 95-yard kickoff return for a TD, a 78-yard pass play and a 83-yard punt return. TCU saw its opener scrubbed against SMU because of the virus. Brock Purdy returns to QB at Iowa State, but he will have to improve on a lackluster performance in week 1. TCU has many questions yet to be answered, but I know Purdy will be looking to have a standout game here on Saturday. Take Iowa State.

Florida International plays its first game of the season here on Saturday. They will face a 1-0 Liberty team. Liberty opened with a win over Western Kentucky, 30-24. Auburn transfer Malik Willis had a great day at QB for Liberty with 168 yards rushing and three touchdowns. Hard to gauge this FIU team that hasn't played yet. I know what we are getting with Liberty and that's a solid offense with a dynamic QB at the helm. Take Liberty.

 Mid Tennessee State (MTS) looks for its first win of the season after a pair of blowout losses. The Blue Raiders were destroyed by Army, 0-42 and then last week by Troy, 14-47. Texas San Antonio (UTSA) won in double OT against Texas State week 1, 51-48, and then beat Stephen Austin last week, 24-10. A win here today by UTSA and they could crack the top 25 poll as they are already receiving votes. The way MTS has been blown out their first two games I don't expect their defense to be able to stop this UTSA club. I'll lay the points in this one. Play UTSA.

Both teams come into Thursday's contest with 1-1 records thus far. UAB Blazers started their season with a Thursday win over Central Arkansas, 45-35. They followed that with a Thursday loss to Miami Florida, 31-14. The Blazers got last week off before now playing their third game on a Thursday. The S.Alabama Jaguars opened with a dog win over Southern Miss, 32-21 in their opening game. Last week the Jags built a big lead over Tulane before losing that one in the final moments, 24-27. UAB will be without their QB, Tyler Johnston, who suffered a non-throwing shoulder injury. That leaves the starting job to redshirt freshman, Bryson Lucero, who will make his first college start. S.Alabama will also have a new starter in Chance Lovertich. Lovertich came into the Tulane contest and completed 18-of-29 passes for 247 yards. I'm sticking with South Alabama here tonight against this first time freshman starter. I think the oddsmakers got this one totally wrong as I believe South Alabama can win this one straight up. Take S.Alabama.

UL Monroe looks to do better this week after Army ran rough shot over them last week to the tune of 7-37. Sure, they were about a 25-point dog, but they were never in that game. Texas State is 0-2 following a loss last week to Texas San Antonio. The Bobcats came from way back to for OT at 41-41 but finally lost in OT 48-51. The Cats were favorites in that game but trailed bit at halftime. Texas State has allowed an average of 521 yards so far this year. Texas State is averaging 445 yards on offense so far. Texas State was without Memphis transfer QB Brady McBride who had to sit out with Covid protocols. Junior Tyler Vitt started in his place and started last year, threw for 346 yards and 4 TD's in the loss. UL Monroe Warhawks return just six starters on offense and eight on defense. The Hawks gained only 200 yards of offense vs Army. Texas State has played two games and both were close while Monroe was blown out. No matter which QB starts for State, they should be able to dominate this Monroe defense. I'll lay the points here with the road team. Play Texas State.

The La Tech Bulldogs had to miss their opening game of the season because of Covid, so today will be their opener. Tech lost their third Conference USA title last year in a tie breaker to UAB. Problem is they had a lot of seniors on that team from last year and this year return few starters. Southern Miss looks to rebound from last week's poor showing against South Alabama, losing by 11 as a big favorite. Can't really fault the Golden Eagles after all the craziness of this year and surreal experience of playing in empty stadiums at home in Hattiesburg. Now with game done, I expect a much better effort this week out of the Golden Eagles. With La Tech playing its first game here this week I look for some rust as Southern Miss had last week. I'm going to lay the points here with the host and expect to see a different Southern Miss club as I toss out last week's effort. Play Southern Miss.

Late Saturday action has Coastal Carolina Chanticleers taking on the Kansas Jayhawks. Jayhawks were shocked by Coastal last year in Lawrence, 7-12. Now they will be looking for redemption as the Chaticleers make the trip once again here in 2020. Coastal went on to a 5-9 season last year and will be looking for its first ever bowl bid. Kansas finished 3-9 last year and ended the season on a four-game losing streak. Both teams are run oriented and will be looking for someone to take over the quarterback position. Kansas will also have a young defense and have its hands full stopping a good Coastal running attack. Coastal Carolina will have plenty of optimism since they know they can beat this Kansas team. Kansas also dealing with a number of active Covid-19 cases, which could further diminish the club's depth. I think this will be another close game. I'm taking the points in this one with the visitors. Play Coastal Carolina.

Rivalry game here as Western Ky takes on intrastate foe, Louisville. The W.Ky Hilltoppers return the Conference USA defensive player of the year in DeAngelo Malone. Malone recorded 11.5 sacks last year and will give this young Louisville offensive line fits all night. The Hilltoppers also had one of the best pass defenses, ranking fourth in the Conference USA with just 211 yards per game allowed through the air. Louisville was 8-5 last year under Scott Sattersfield. That was after the previous year which was a disastrous 2-10. The Cardinals are laying 11- points here in the opener. They typically are slow starters and with this very good W Ky defense, I'll take the points. Play Western Kentucky.

The UL Lafayette Ragin' Cajuns take on the Iowa State Cyclones Saturday to start their 2020 season. This was not a game originally scheduled, but due to the Covid-19 these teams had to shuffle their schedules and as such now play each other. ULL is a team that looks to be improved under 3rd year coach Billy Napier. They had 11 wins last year and Sun Belt West Division title. The Cajuns return 16 starters so this should be another very good ULL team. Iowa State also looks for an improved season in 2020. The program has had three winning seasons in a row under HC Matt Campbell and three consecutive Bowl trips. The Cyclones are led by QB Brock Purdy. This will be the first meeting between these schools and it looks to be one of the best on Saturday. While I believe Iowa State wins this game, I do think that this is too many points to give a very good ULL club. I'll take the points with the dog in this one. Play UL Lafayette.

 Both these teams lost their openers to some big rivals due to the pandemic. The BYU Cougars were set to take on Utah before the Mountain West opted out of this season. The Navy Midshipmen were set to play in Ireland against the Notre Dame Fighting Irish. Now they settle for their openers here tonight against each other. Navy won 11 games last year including a Liberty Bowl victory over Kansas State. BYU had a mediocre year at 7-6, but did get to the Hawaii Bowl where they lost to Hawaii, 34-38. BYU will have to rebuild at Wideout, with their top four receivers from last year all missing. Running back will be by committee this year. Navy has the difficult task of replacing Malcolm Perry. Perry was 2nd in the FBS last year with 2,018 rushing yards and tied for 1st with 21 TD's. Navy is 5-0 in their last five home openers under Ken Niumatalolo. However, those have all come against FCS opponents and now Navy moves up in class to face BYU in their opener. I look for a close game here as the line indicates, but I give the edge to BYU in this one. Play BYU.

These teams were two of the highest scoring teams in the FBS last year with Memphis averaging 39.3 ppg and the Red Wolves coming in at 33.1 ppg. Memphis has a new head coach in Ryan Silverfiled and losses running back Kenneth Gainwell (opted out due to Virus). Brady White at QB is what this team is all about. White Threw for over 4,000 yards last year. Arkansas State has Layne Hatcher at QB after his freshmen year that saw him start nine games. Very high total here at 74, but I'm going to take the 19 points with the dog. Arkansas State should be able to put up points here and I'm not sure if Memphis will score enough to cover this huge line. Take the dog, Arkansas State.

Middle Tennessee State (MTS) Blue Raiders were only 4-8 overall last year and looking for improvement this year. Army Black Knights weren't much better at 5-8 overall. However, Army did finish 3rd overall in the nation in rushing. The Blue Raiders do return both QB's from last year and look for them to use them both. Army has a new QB in Christian Anderson. Sandon McCoy returns at running back where he rushed for 576 yards last year. This game looks to be somewhat close, but I give the edge here to Army now that the line has dropped from five to 3 1/2 points. Take Army and look for them to control the ball on the ground against a suspect MTS defense.