Clay Travis' Gambling Picks For College Football Conference Title Game Weekend 2022
I told you to stick with me and we'd get on a hot streak.
And we have.
We went 9-6 last weekend to run our season record to 79-75 on the year, extending our lead above the .500 mark. We also went 4-0 on Thanksgiving and my lock of the week hit for the fifth straight week on Big Noon with Georgia Tech covering against Georgia. (I didn't hit, however, on my Ohio State to cover pick, as many of you, including my Michigan grad wife, have let me know.)
We went 3-3 in the NFL picks and are now sitting at 46-31 on the Outkick NFL six pack on the season too.
So all in all a decent gambling season for football so far.
CLAY TRAVIS OUTKICK PICKS & ARTICLE ARCHIVE
Now, however, we're into the conference title game weekend and, truth be told, I haven't been great on the past few years of conference title game weekend picks.
But this is the year we reverse that curse and come up with five winners for you.
So let's get rolling.
COLLEGE FOOTBALL GAMBLING PICKS, CONFERENCE CHAMPIONSHIP
LSU coach Brian Kelly, USC quarterback Caleb Williams and TCU cornerback Tre'Vius Hodges-Tomlinson. (Getty Images)
USC -2.5 vs. Utah In The Pac-12 Title Game
The only loss so far this year for USC was at Utah back in October. Now the two teams are traveling to Las Vegas for the Pac-12 title game and a playoff berth is on the line, theoretically, for USC.
(As I wrote over the weekend in my Starting 11 column, why should USC lose a spot in the playoff when Ohio State, who would be the next team up, isn't even playing this weekend? That doesn't feel right to me. It's one thing to reward a team for winning a conference title game by boosting them into the top four, but how do you reward a team for not even playing in a conference title game and punish a team for playing in one? That feels backwards.)
Regardless, this bet is on Caleb Williams to play fantastic football for another week and punch the Trojans ticket to the playoff.
I toyed with taking the over in this game as well, but given that it's already up to 66.5, I feel like Utah might take some air out of the game this time as opposed to their October game when the total went soaring over 80.
Ultimately, USC gets its revenge and wins on Friday -- yes this is a Friday night game -- to essentially end all the playoff drama.
Victory -- and a cover -- for the Trojans.
TCU -2.5 vs. Kansas State In The Big 12 Title Game
I feel like the Horned Frogs are in the playoff no matter what happens in this game. Looking at résumés, are you really telling me that a TCU team that loses to Kansas State in the Big 12 title game to finish 12-1 somehow has a worse résumé than Ohio State?
Right now TCU is 2-0 against top 25 opponents. Ohio State is 2-1 against top 25 opponents. So even if TCU loses they'd have the same record against top 25 opponents as Ohio State.
I just don't see the Horned Frogs falling out of the playoff here.
But I don't think that debate is going to happen because TCU is going to beat Kansas State outright by a touchdown or more and cement its spot in the college football playoff.
LSU +18.5 vs. Georgia In The SEC Title Game
I know LSU was a disaster against Texas A&M, but this number is just way too high given what I think are real limitations for the Georgia offense. Yes, the Georgia defense is fantastic, but this Bulldog offense is just okay. And I think LSU will be able to keep it within a couple of scores as a result.
Plus, the last time Brian Kelly's LSU team got smoked they bounced back really well from that loss and played great football at Florida and then against Ole Miss.
It's also worth noting that the only top four in the SEC opponent Georgia played all season was Tennessee and that game was played in Athens. The Bulldogs didn't play Alabama or LSU.
While it will be a home-field environment for Georgia, I think LSU keeps this within two touchdowns.
The Bayou Bengals cover a big number.
UNC +7.5 vs. Clemson In The ACC Title Game
I'm just not sold on Clemson at all.
But I'm also not sold on North Carolina either.
What I am sold on is UNC's ability to play close games. The last four UNC games have been decided by 3, 2, 4, and 3 points. Two of those games were wins, two of those games were losses.
Even with two straight losses, I think UNC keeps this game inside of a touchdown against Clemson.
The Tar Heels are the pick.
Purdue +16.5 vs. Michigan In The Big Ten Title Game
Purdue has won three straight to punch its (undeserved) ticket to the Big Ten title game.
I say undeserved because the Big Ten continues to cling to the absurd unequal division alignment which generally sees the three best teams all in the Big Ten East and then leaves the Big Ten West teams to fight it out to see which team is the sacrificial lamb for the east champ.
But this feels like a classic let down game for Michigan.
I know, I know, it's the Big Ten title game, but the Wolverines just won the Big Ten, at least in their minds, with a win over Ohio State and punched a ticket to the playoff in the process.
Now they have to play against Purdue, a team they don't really care about at all.
While the Wolverines were great against Ohio State, it helped to cover up a weak performance, and near loss, against Illinois the week before.
This feels like an inflated number.
Give me the Boilermakers to cover.
There you have it, boys and girls, a 5-0 week to finish off the college football regular season. I'll be back with playoff picks for you, but the bowl games are likely to be such a mess with transfer portals and opt outs that I won't bet as many of those games as I have in past years.
As always, thanks for riding with the OutKick picks.