Week 7 is destined to be another fantastic week of college football, featuring sic matchups between ranked opponents. This slate will have serious influence on the college football landscape, including how the playoff may shake out in a few months. There are a lot of great spots to target on Saturday and because of that, I locked in three plays rather than the usual two. This slate will have high entertainment value from noon to midnight, with must-see games in every window, including Penn State/Michigan, Alabama/Tennessee, and USC/Utah. That being side, my money resides elsewhere, so let’s dive into the week’s best bets featuring some other interesting matchups.
Kansas @ Oklahoma (-313), Minnesota (-233) @ Illinois
For the noon slate, we’re doing something a little bit different. To start the day, I like two teams on the moneyline and rather than playing them both at crazy juice, I decided this was the perfect spot for our first parlay of the season. Parlaying Oklahoma (-313) with Minnesota (-233) gives us -113 odds over at Circa. I played this parlay for a half unit and like both of these teams to come out victorious on Saturday.
Oklahoma hosts a Kansas team expected to be without starting quarterback Jaylon Daniels. Kansas has been a great story this year, but everything is working against the Jayhawks in this road game travelling to Oklahoma. This spread was probably quite alarming to a lot of people, but in reality this likely means Dillon Gabriel will be back for the Sooners, coupled with Daniels missing out for the Jayhawks. As for Minnesota, I am expecting a low-scoring game in which the Golden Gopher eventually impose their will as the better team in the second half. They have the better roster, a better offense, and are the healthier team at this point of the season. I think we see an old fashioned Big Ten game script here that results in a Gophers win on the road.
Bet: Oklahoma/Minnesota MLP (-113) .5u Circa
Wisconsin @ Michigan St (+7.5, 49.5)
Has Michigan State been one of the most underwhelming teams in the country? Absolutely. Am I still backing Sparty in this spot? Yes. I think this is a good in-conference game for the Spartans at home and getting them over a touchdown made this a no-brainer for me. Wisconsin is a matchup the Spartans will get up for and when you look further down their schedule, they are probably not beating Michigan or Penn State. So… that leaves this Wisconsin game as their lone “big” opportunity to get a win. Jim Leonard and the Badgers were victorious in his first game as head coach but that again, in my opinion, plays right into the Spartans’ hand. I think we could see a little bit of a down spot for the Badgers after their effort last week, potentially overlooking this Michigan St team as 7.5-point favorites.
This is a critical part of the schedule for Mel Tucker and his team, especially if they want any hope of making a bowl appearance. Look for Payton Thorne to have enough success through the air to at the very least keep the Spartans within striking distance, if not win outright. Give me the home dog in this spot for a unit.
Bet: Michigan St +7.5 (-110) 1u BetMGM
Washington St @ Oregon St (-3.5, 51.1)
For the night cap we head to Corvallis, Oregon where the Oregon State Beavers play host to the Washington State Cougars. This game should be a closely contested Pac-12 matchup and on the betting side of things, this total is too low. These offenses are combining for 59.5 points per game this season and in a game that is expected to have ideal weather, we should see some big plays. In fact, I would say both of these offenses have had already had a few down weeks this season and regardless of whether it is Chane Nolan or Ben Guldbranson under center for the Beavers, both offenses have the potential to really break out here.
The total is relatively modest at 51.5, but it does make some sense. Both of these defensive units have been relatively solid this season, but I expect the two offenses to feature more prominently here. With a 3.5-point spread, expect this to be a highly competitive game and if we can get one team into the 30-point range, this one is going over.
Bet: Washington St/Oregon St over 51.5 (-107) 1u PointsBet