Last year I gave my picks vs the spread for all Big Ten conference games and in the regular season went 45-35-1. In the playoffs I went 5-3 exclusively on picks for the 4 Big Ten teams who made the playoffs. For all these games I wrote articles detailing the reasons for my picks including leveraging key information and data.
This year each week I will be picking and analyzing in a writeup 5 key Big Ten games I deem the most compelling or important, including picking 5 non-conference games starting with this “Week 1”. This week I chose the 5 games that had the closest FanDuel point spreads.
Big Jeff’s 2025 Big Ten Season Record Predictions – Big Jeff’s Football
Big Jeff’s Top 10 Storylines for 2025 Big Ten Football – Big Jeff’s Football
College football picks, predictions against the spread for Week 1 matchups | Sporting News
Week 1 Big Ten Football Picks of the Week
Big Ten Non-Conference Big Jeff’s Top 5 Games
(Odds by FanDuel on 8/28/25).
- Nebraska -6.5 Cincinnati (Neutral site at Kansas City Thursday Night) – The Pick: Nebraska
- OHIO STATE -1.5 Texas – The Pick: Texas
- MARYLAND -14.5 Florida Atlantic. The Pick: Maryland
- TULANE -5.5 Northwestern The Pick: Tulane
- Utah -5.5 UCLA – The Pick: Utah
Note: See far below for listing and spreads for all 13 other Big Ten team games in Week 1.
Game 1: Nebraska -6.5 Cincinnati (54.5 O/U) – Thursday in Kansas City
Background: Nebraska went 7-6 last year and went to a bowl game for the first time since 2017, defeating Boston College 20-15 in the Pinstripe Bowl. But the Huskers only went 3-6 in the Big Ten (tied for 12th) and were just 2-5 in one-score games continuing that bad trend from the prior failed Scott Frost coaching era.
This year Nebraska hopes to take a big leap as a team but especially offensively in 5-star quarterback Dylan Raiola’s second year as a starting quarterback and first year with well regarded offensive mind and Coordinator Dana Holgerson calling the plays for the Huskers. Often the most progress a QB makes is from year 1 to year 2.
Last year Nebraska’s offense showed a little improvement from 2023 going from 18.0 points/game (120th in nation) and 313 total offense/game (115th) to 23.5 ppg (103rd) and 359 total offense/game (94th) but those numbers must greatly improve if Nebraska wants to take a big leap this year.
Cincinnati went 5-7 last year and 3-6 in the Big 12 tied for 11th place. Scott Satterfield will be going into year 3 for Cincy with a record of 8-16 and will be on the hot seat if he doesn’t create better results this season. The Bearcats return 7 starters (4 on offense, 3 on defense) and like most teams have many incoming transfers they will rely on.
Why Nebraska Can Cover:
Nebraska is going to put up points against Cincinnati. I am a believer that Dylan Raiola will make a big leap in year 2 and under Dana Holgerson’s offense since he is very talented, competitive and will have better weapons this year helped by Kentucky transfer WR Dane Key. Their passing game went from 126th in the nation in 2023 (136 ypg) to 65th last year (228 ypg). Maybe more important though I expect Raiola to improve his TD/INT ratio from 12/10 last year to 20/8 this year as projected in my. LINK FOR QB ARTICLE?
Cincinnati’s defense only ranked 85th in nation LY giving up 385 yards/game and gave up 31 or more points in 4 of their last 5 games. Unless they are significantly improved, I expect Nebraska to be able to move the ball well and score.
This will fill like close to a Nebraska home game – Cornhusker fans are super fired up for this season and many believe their program will truly turn a corner this year. The game is at a “neutral” site in Kansas City but that is just a 3 hour drive from Lincoln, NE, whereas it’s more like a 9-hour drive (no stops) from Cincinnati. I expect this to be 80% Husker fans and more like a home environment giving them a small advantage.
The Matt Rhule Year 3 Impact: In Matt Rhule’s year 3’s as a head coach he has won an average of four games more than in year 2. He did it with Temple (6-6 to 10-4) and Baylor (7-6 to 11-3). Nebraska has recruited well the past 5 years averaging the 25th national recruiting class in that time and I expect we see the positive impact of that this year as I have Nebraska going 9-3 overall and 6-3 in the Big Ten.
Why Take the Points with Cincinnati:
A strong rushing attack will be key for Cincinnati this year and it should be a strength since they did it well last and have a good running back room. Last year the Bearcats had an impressive 184 yards/game rated 36th in the nation and have talented running backs including former 4 star Ohio State RB Evan Pryor and former Oklahoma and Wisconsin tailback Tawee Walker who had 864 yards last year at 4.5 ypc for the Badgers.
Nebraska was excellent against the run last year giving up only 101 yards/game (8th in nation) but must replace their entire starting defensive line.
Bearcat defensive tackle and Senior Dontay Corleone – like the Mafia, Corleone can ruin your life, or at least ruin game plans. The 6’1” 325 lb. tackle is that good and rated the #7 best NFL prospect in the Big 12 conference by Lindy’s and first team All Big 12. Nebraska’s offensive line has not been a strength, so they need to contain Corleone to have offensive success.
Keep it close and Nebraska may tighten up – While Nebraska did break their bowl-less streak last year, they still have some mental hurdles to get over based on their history and that pesky stat of going 2-5 in one-score games last year. If Cincinnati can keep it close until late in the game, Nebraska has struggled to close out games strong and it could be enough to cover the spread.
Big Jeffs Call: I just like the combo of Dylan Raiola’s expected improvement in Year 2 combined with running Dana Holgersons offense to not allow Cincinnati to keep up in scoring. Nebraska and Matt Rhule must win games like this for the program to turn the corner and I think they will this year starting with this game. I like Nebraska to cover the 6.5. Nebraska 27 Cincinnati 17.
Game 2: #3 OHIO STATE -1.5 vs. #1 Texas (47.5 O/U)
Background:
Unlike the other 4 games I have predicted, this one probably needs less of a writeup given how well known these two teams are from their run culminating in a playoff semi-final matchup in Dallas last year where Ohio State won 28-14.
In the regular season, Ohio State went 10-2 and 7-2 in the Big Ten conference finishing 4th and of course having that painful loss at home to hated rival Michigan. They bounced back tough to go on a 4-game playoff run that was truly un-precedented in the first year of the 12-team playoff.
In that run, they finally looked like the team everyone expected all year, but the key was the Offensive Line finally jelled in their 2-week layoff after the Michigan game after suffering two key injuries during the season. Everyone seems to forget that fact when looking back at their entire season.
Meanwhile Texas went 11-1 in the regular season and was 7-1 and finished first in their first season in the SEC, with their sole loss to Georgia 30-15 and then met them again in the SEC Championship losing 22-19 in overtime. The Longhorns will have their chance for revenge at Georgia on November 15 and in this one of course at Ohio State.
This is easily the non-conference game of the year in college football and the storylines are big and I think this is a true tossup game. Both teams have lost a ton of talent as many have pointed out but why Vegas is so high on both these teams with Texas having the best FanDuel odds to win a National Title at +550 and Ohio State tied for 3rd with Penn State at +700 is because they know how much talent is still left given the elite recruiting both programs have done.
Ohio State the past 5 years has an average national rank of #4 and Texas is #x. This means both programs are very deep and have many extremely talented players who have been waiting in the pipeline chomping at the bit to get their chance.
Why Ohio State Can Cover:
The talent drain from Ohio State was substantial, but they have many players who have been waiting for years for games like this to show what they can do. Ohio State had 14 players taken in the NFL draft so the talent drain is real but somewhat overstated in my view. Given their elite recruiting and strategically bringing in some transfers to fill weak spots like Defensive End Beau Atkinson from North Carolina or adding strength to other positions like bringing in Tight End Max Klare from Purdue, I think Ohio State likely has just as much talent as last year BUT it just doesn’t have the vast experience of last year.
Plus, key players coming back like DE Jack Sawyer only meant other players got another year to get stronger, more experienced in backup roles and anxious to make an impact. For example, Senior Defensive End Caden Curry is now 22 years old and basically a grown man ready to do damage. Others are younger but still have been in the program several years and waiting in the pipeline like End Kenyatta Jackson Jr. and junior cornerback Jermaine Mathews.
The two best players on the field will be on Ohio State and they are unicorns who can win the game by themselves. Of course, this includes sophomore WR Jeremiah Smith who had 1,315 yards and 15 TDs as a true freshman last year including the game clinching first down reception late in the National Title game vs. Notre Dame. Even if Texas doubles him to contain him like they did last year, this is till having a big impact as OSU’s receiver and Tight End room is loaded so it will free up others to make big plays. You have to gear your defensive game plan around Smith.
On defense, Ohio State has All-American Junior Safety Caleb Downs who most have as the best defensive player in college football and gives DC Matt Patricia great flexibility in using him for unique looks that offenses need to account for. I expect Downs to be put in different spots in this game to try to muck up the Texas game plan.
Uncertainty of Texas planning for Ohio State’s defensive game plan with new DC Matt Patricia – The matchup of great Texas play caller and head coach Steve Sarkisian against new OSU DC Matt Patricia is going to be super compelling. Patricia is known for inventive and dynamic ways to best use his personnel, which infuses a lot of unknowns into this game. Whichever coach and staff best adapt to what the other is trying to do will be a key to this game.
On the offensive side for OSU, this is not nearly as big of a deal as I expect the offense will still be very much a Ryan Day looking offense under new OC Brian Hartline.
Why take the points with Texas:
Texas is like Ohio State and simply reloaded with the #1 recruiting class, key transfers, and has many great players across all levels on offense and defense. Texas had 12 players drafted last year, the most in school history, but elite recruiting and key transfers means they still have high-impact players across all position groups.
Like Ohio State they are young in spots, like at Offensive Line with only one starter back but the new players are very talented. Despite the talent drain they return 8 starters (3 on offense and 5 on defense) and the deepest talent may be in the experienced secondary led by Senior Free Safety Michael Taafe.
Arch Manning will hit the ground running quicker than Ohio State QB Julian Sayin. Both are 5-star quarterbacks and will be first year starters. No matter how talented you are, first year QBs still have their share of inconsistent play. As a redshirt sophomore, Manning has had two years prepping under Sarkisian whereas Sayin has only had one under Day – I think that is a pretty big deal.
Manning has lived within a fish bowl since he can remember and I just think he will perform better than Sayin early in the season, but both later in the season are going to be top performers. Plus, Manning’s better running ability could be a difference.
The Coordinator turnover impact for Ohio State could be the small difference in this game. Ohio State has a first time Offensive Coordinator in Brian Hartline and new Defensive Coordinator Matt Patricia who has not coached in college since 2003 for Syracuse as a Grad Assistant, but he is very familiar with big game planning having helped win 3 Super Bowls with the Patriots.
I am not concerned about these new coaches for the entirety of the season, especially for Hartline since I believe in the biggest games Ryan Day will still be heavily involved in game planning and influencing play calling. But it does take time for coaches and players to get in sync. It was that way when Jim Knowles was hired as Ohio State DC and even last year for Offensive Coordinator Chip Kelly. I think that could be a real negative impact in this game for Ohio State.
Texas meanwhile has their same coaching staff together from last year.
Big Jeff’s Call:
Again, this is a toss-up game between two teams I think have the best raw talent in college football. Turnovers will be vital so whichever QB doesn’t make mistakes will be huge. I see both defenses dominating the first half but as you see in so many games as the defense tires some the scoring opens up in the second half also because there is too much damn offensive talent not to.
I am going with Texas in a nail biter because of Arch Manning being a little better than Sayin and the consistency of Texas coordinators. Texas 24 Ohio State 21
Finally, this game will be my biggest example of why not overreact to game one. By the end of the year, I think Ohio State in particular will be significantly better than they were in Game 1, some of that due to the new Coordinators settling in.
Game 3: MARYLAND -14.5 vs Florida Atlantic (59.5 O/U)
Mike Locksley has done a solid overall job at Maryland with a 33-41 record after 7 years. Prior to last year’s disappointing 4-8 overall and 1-8 in the Big Ten (17th) campaign, he had gone 7-6, 8-5, and 8-5 the three prior years including 3 straight bowl wins.
But now that Maryland is no longer in the rugged Big Ten East division, the expectation is Maryland should perform better, not worse making Locksley admitting that he “lost the locker room” last year a major concern and all eyes are on him to see which direction this program is headed.
It won’t be easy since they will be reliant on a first year starting QB after losing Billy Edwards Junior in the portal to Wisconsin. And the Terps return just 3 starters on offense, 1 on defense and just 42% of 2024 production according to ESPN which is tied for lowest in the conference with Purdue.
Florida Atlantic from the American Athletic Conference went 3-9 last year and 1-7 in conference (tied for 13th). Coach Zach Kittley will be in his first year at the school and is also the Offensive Coordinator. The Owls have just 2 returning starters on offense and 1 on defense and Lindy’s has them ranked the 104th best team in the nation and ESPNs SP+ has them 110th.
Why Maryland Can Cover:
Mike Locksley is an A+ coach in non-conference games – did you know Locksley and the Terps have the current nations longest non-conference winning streak at 15 that includes wins over Virginia Tech, West Virginia, NC State, Virginia (twice), and Auburn. Often Maryland sneaks into the Top 25 in late September and the schedule sets up well to start 3-0 this year before a trip to Wisconsin.
Hope that the young 4 star talent on defense will emerge – Mike Locksley has recruited well averaging 30th in the nation over the last 5 years which is also good for 7th overall in the Big Ten. They have several 4 stars on the defensive side and the group is considered very talented despite their youth and new DC Ted Monachino who has strong NFL experience plans to bring a more aggressive defensive style than prior DC Brian Williams more read and react philosophy. That is needed as the defense was just 80th in the nation in total defense (378 yards/game).
Impact of FAU player attrition – likely with the transition to a new coach combined with FAU being a Group of 5 team, the Owls lost a ton of talent to the portal and has just 3 starters back. Losses included leading receiver Omari Hayes to Tulane, leading rushers CJ Campbell to Rutgers and Zuberi Mobley to Tulane. On defense they lost top tackler CJ Heard (80 as a freshman) to Vanderbilt and Phillip Dunman who led the team with 3 interceptions.
Why take the points with Florida Atlantic:
Transfer Junior QB Caden Veltcamp is experienced and can make a big impact – Veltcamp came from Western Kentucky and had 3,100 yards and a 66.3 completion rate in their pass happy offense. He also gets to throw to his second leading receiver from that Western Kentucky team in transfer Easton Messer who had 55 catches for 793 yards. JR Wilson is another WR transfer from Virginia who should help (27 catches/305 yards). Plus, the Owls do have 2 of their returning starters come from their offensive line so hopefully they will give Veltcamp time to throw.
Hope Maryland’s young QBs struggle to get going – I assume talented 4-star freshman Malik Washington who is a local Maryland kid will win the job. Even if he doesn’t Maryland will be starting a QB with little experience and have a new OC in Pep Hamilton a guy with NFL experience and is a longtime Locksley friend.
Usually this is a formula for early struggles for an offense and inconsistency from the QB and it doesn’t help that Maryland lost star WR Tai Felton to the NFL and their offensive line is a huge question mark and last year they couldn’t run the ball well (115th in nation) even with a proven RB in Ryan Hemby who transferred to Indiana.
Big Jeff’s Call: Maryland typically doesn’t struggle early in the year, evidenced by the current 15 game non-conference win streak. Early in the year the Terps just play better for some reason and given all the turnover of FAU and a first-year coach I am taking the Terps to cover. Maryland 37 FAU 20.
Game 4: TULANE -5.5 vs. Northwestern (46.5 O/U)
Background:
In David Braun’s second season in Evanston, Northwestern was a disappointing 4-8 overall and 2-7 in the Big Ten (16th place) after his surprising first season where they went 8-5 including a Las Vegas bowl appearance. Their two Big Ten wins last year were against teams who combined to go 1-17 in conference play (Maryland and Purdue).
FanDuel has the Cats win over/under at 3.5 and their ESPN SP+ rating is 87th and Lindy’s has them 81st. Braun has his work cut out for him to get Northwestern to a bowl especially with one of the worst offenses in football last year. Northwestern was 130th in Total Offense last year and 128th in scoring. They didn’t run (3.33 ypc/17th in Big Ten) or pass well and that’s two straight years under Braun they have been ranked in the 100’s on offense.
There is hope though in SMU transfer quarterback Preston Stone who has a big arm and has gone 13-3 as a starter, with 4,000+ passing yds and a 35 to 8 TD/INT ratio. The question is, will he have weapons to throw to?
Tulane is coached by Jon Sumrall who is 32-9 in three years and also taken the Green Wave to the American Athletic Conference title game in each of those years. Last year Tulane went 9-5 overall, were 7-1 in conference (2nd place), but lost to Army in the conference championship game and to Florida 33-8 in the Gasparilla Bowl.
This coaching staff and program know how to win and are ranked 45th by Lindy’s and 45th as well by ESPN’s SP+, who has their offense as 28th in the nation.
Why take the points with Northwestern:
Preston Stone gets enough protection and thrives in the offense, turning it from one of the worst in the conference to solidly average. We know he has both talent, experience and good mobility, but he needs help including some weapons to emerge. The hope is South Dakota State transfer Griffin Wilde (1,147 yds, 12 TDs) will become a true #1 receiving threat. After him though, the next returning receiver Frank Covey the IV had just 10 catches.
Also, OC Zack Lujan is in year two and similar to quarterbacks, we often see significant improvement in year 2 under coordinators.
Defense is a relative strength and maybe Northwestern can control the trenches to hold down a good Tulane offense. The defense wasn’t the issue last season as Northwestern was 56th in Total Defense including 37th in rushing defense. Defensive end Anto Saka is expected to have a breakout year and has good NFL potential. The defensive line in general should be the strength of the team with 3 of 4 starters back and good depth.
I am searching for a third strong reason why I should take Northwestern and the points but am struggling to find one which is part of why I have the Cats hitting the under this season and going 3-9.
Why Tulane Can Cover:
Tulane likely has more talent than Northwestern – Despite losing productive players, they replaced them with a strong transfer class and have 5 pre-season First Team All AAC players according to Lindy’s (2 on offense, 3 on defense). More new faces are on the offense, but Senior Offensive Tackle Derrick Graham is the top-rated NFL prospect in the conference (according to Lindy’s). They lost running back Makhi Hughes to Oregon but picked up a couple enticing transfers including Louisville RB Maurice Turner and again SP+ has Tulane with the 28th rated offense.
On defense Tulane may have even more raw talent and be better than last year after ranking 24th in total defense. As an example, Tulane had several transfers on the defensive line who showed out really well in the spring and two are projected as first team All-Conference.
Good options at Quarterback that should keep the offense humming – Starter Darian Mensah transferred to Duke but Tulane brought in 4 transfer QBs and a starter has still not been named but it’s down to BYU transfer Jake Retzlaff or former Iowa and Northwestern QB Brendan Sullivan. Retzlaff has appeared to move ahead in the competition due to an injury to Sullivan a couple weeks ago.
Tulane fans have to feel good about the situation though since I was surprised to learn in 3 years of college football Sullivan has an impressive 69.4% completion percentage and he has good mobility to account for with a big body at 6’4” 220 lbs. Tulane has good options with experience if the named starter struggles.
This is a confident and well coached team. Sumrall has this program rolling as evidenced by reaching 3 straight conference title games and by all the talented transfers coming in who bought into the culture he has built. Meanwhile Northwestern is looking to build their confidence so I give the mental edge to Tulane.
Big Jeff’s Call: Why is Northwestern playing a road game like this? I suppose when it was scheduled, they didn’t know how good Tulane would be. I would feel different if Northwestern were at home, but they are on the road vs, a confident program and beating a Big Ten team will be a big deal for the Green Wave, so you know they will be fired up for this. I like the Green Wave to cover the 5.5. Tulane 27 Northwestern 20.
Game 5: UTAH (Home) -5.5 vs. UCLA (-51.5 O/U)
Background:
Utah struggled last year after a 4-0 start going 5-7 overall and 2-7 in the Big 12 (T-13th). Since taking over for Urban Meyer in 2005, this is just the 3rd season coach Kyle Whittingham had Utah under .500 for a coach that has averaged 8.4 wins over 20 seasons.
But Utah returns 10 starters (6 on offense, 4 on defense), which in today’s game is a lot, that includes all 5 offensive line starters along with a transfer QB and new OC that offers great hope for a bounce back year. ESPN’s SP+ has Utah rated 26th (including the 15th best defense) and Lindy’s has them 38th.
UCLA meanwhile is coming off DeShaun Foster’s first year as a coach where they had a brutally hard schedule (I rated as hardest in the Big Ten last year playing teams with a 51-30 conference record, and a road game at LSU) and went 5-7 overall and 3-6 in the Big Ten (T-12th). UCLA was good on defense (39th in nation) but weak on offense scoring only 18.4 ppg (126th) and were 118th in total offense (329 ypg).
After starting the year 1-5, the team never stopped playing really hard for Foster, which bodes well for the future, and finished winning 4 of their last 6. This year with new QB Nico Iamaleava and new Offensive Coordinator Tino Sunseri, UCLA hopes to inject new life into the offense.
UCLA has an SP- rank of 50th (with the 36th best defense) and Lindy’s ranks them 57th.
Why take the points with UCLA:
Can new star QB Nico Iamaleava and new OC Tino Sunseri hit the ground running and improve that offense? This is the biggest question in this game and for how UCLA’s season will go. They have a new QB under new Offensive Coordinator Tino Sunseri who had great success last year at Indiana.
How quickly can the two of them get in sync and get UCLA to be a cohesive and successful offense is hard to project and made worse by Nico not playing in the Spring. If it happens quickly then it bodes well to take the points with UCLA here and also means I would like the chances for UCLA to make a bowl game this year.
New OC Sunseri will emphasize getting that run game going taking some pressure off Iamaleava and the pass blocking. Here are some ugly stats. UCLA’s run offense went from 16th in the nation in 2013 (198 ypg) under Chip Kelly to 131st in 2024 (87 ypg) under Eric Beienemy. This MUST change for UCLA in 2025 to achieve Sunseri’s goal of being well balanced and having an effective RPO offense. It also will take pressure off the pass blocking which has been bad for two seasons now and last year UCLA allowed 34 sacks ranking 16th in the Big Ten there. UCLA also has a new line coach so it’s vital this unit is better in 2025.
If UCLA can get better line play, they do have talented running backs players with strong potential. Jalen Burger is an experienced running back and Cal transfer RB Jaivian Thomas averaged 6.3 ypc last year.
If the defense doesn’t drop off UCLA can contain a Utah offense with many new skill position players. UCLA defenses the last 3 years has not been the problem ranking 42nd, 10th and 39th the last 3 years. They returned zero starters from last year but brought in a ton of transfers for second year coordinator Ikaika Malloe. And Bill Connelly’s SP+ model clearly likes the defensive recruiting and talent ranking UCLA 36th in defense. UCLA is capable of containing Utah’s offense and Dampier.
Why Utah Can Cover:
The Utes expect to have a nasty defense that could hold UCLA in check – great defense has been Utah’s calling card under Kyle Whittingham and last year they were #25 in scoring defense (20.7 ppg) and 29th in Total Defense at 330 ypg in a conference known for high-flying offenses.
The defense is loaded with experience and gets back 2023 leading tackler LB Levani Damuni, who was injured in 2024 and have pre-season First Team All-Big 12 linebacker Senior Lander Barton, plus great experience in the secondary who are all Juniors and Seniors.
Games are often won in the trenches and Utah returns all 5 Offensive Line starters including 3 Seniors and the two others are rated as pre-season First Team All-Big 12 by Lindy’s, including Junior Tackle Spencer Fano who is rated the best NFL prospect in the Big 12 and projected as a first-round pick.
They go against a UCLA defensive line returning one started and expected to be somewhere in the middle of the Big Ten (rated 10th in Big Ten by Lindy’s) after losing 7th round pack Jay Toia so this matchup favors Utah.
Utah has a multi-dimensional QB who had a strong season under the new Offensive Coordinator providing hope they can inject life into a struggling offense – Offense is the biggest question mark for Utah in this game and for the season. Last year they struggled only ranking 102nd in the nation in points (23.6 ppg) and 115th in Total Offense (330 ypg).
Enter New Mexico transfer dual threat Junior QB Devon Dampier who was first-team All-Mountain West conference last year with 2,768 yards passing and 1,166 yards rushing. He played in OC Jason Beck’s offense and Whittingham brought him in this year to lead Utah’s offense as well. That type of familiarity is really important to help get an offense in sync and keep a quarterback’s confidence high as this is a big step up for Dampier.
The experienced line is great security blanket as well for Dampier but a concern is Utah needs to replace their skill players on offense and are hoping Washington State transfer sophomore RB Wayshawn Parker is the answer at running back after having 758 yards his freshman year.
Big Jeff’s Call: UCLA has a new OC so it may take time to get their offense rolling and on the road at Utah is a tough place to start with a likely typical tough Utes defense. This is a tough call given the uncertainty of how quickly new Utah QB Dampier can adjust to the higher level of play and how efficient UCLA’s offense can be in Game 1.
I like Utah to win for sure because of Utah at home and Whittingham’s experience over Foster and even barely cover the 6.5. Utah 27 UCLA 20
Take heart though UCLA fans. I think UCLA will get better and better as the year goes along and see them potentially upsetting some teams the back half of the year.
Big Ten Non-Conference Other (13) Games
Although I am not providing detailed picks against the spread for all the other games, listed below are the FanDuel spreads. As you can see all these remaining spreads are at least double digits and often very high.
Because it is Week 1 and so many of these teams have yet to play and with so many new player from the impact of the transfer portal, I am not going to pick these vs. the spreads and in fact do not recommend betting these games.
I am going to call for these teams to go 13-0 straight up BUT this is Week 1 so you can count on at least one upset but to predict where it’s going to come from, I feel is almost impossible with all the unknowns from not seeing these teams play yet.
Week 1 FanDuel Spreads (Home team in CAPS)
Thursday Games
RUTGERS (No line) vs Ohio – due to state rules
MINNESOTA -18.5 Buffalo
WISCONSIN -17.5 Miami (OH)
Friday Games
MICHIGAN STATE -21.5 Western Michigan
ILLINOIS 45.5 Western Illinois
Saturday Games
PURDUE -17.5 Ball State
INDIANA -22.5 Old Dominion
PENN STATE -44.5 Nevada
OREGON -27.5 Montana State
IOWA -37.5 Univ of Albany
MICHIGAN -35.5 New Mexico
USC -34.5 Missouri State
WASHINGTON -22.5 Colorado State
