Outkick's Vegas Top Ten For Week 2 2019
By Todd Fuhrman:
It was an eventful Week 2 in the college ranks with a couple movers and shakers in our Vegas Top 10. Ohio State leapt up to #6 overall after a very impressive and dominating victory over Cincinnati (where professional bettors hammered the dog) while Michigan stumbled back to the #10 position following another lackluster performance that almost resulted in an upset at the hands of the Army Black Knights. This week we head to the Sunshine state for our “overrated” team that has graced this dubious distinction quite a bit the past few seasons. The SEC East is home to our underrated team that now experiences an unfortunate change at QB. For the best bet we’re Texas bound where things are just bigger…including underdog pricing.
Bet the Board Top 10 Week 3:
1.) Clemson
2.) Georgia
3.) Alabama
4.) LSU
5.) Oklahoma
6.) Ohio State
7.) Florida
8.) Auburn
9.) Utah
10.) Michigan
Overrated: UCF Knights
Both the Coaches Poll and AP poll peg UCF as a top 20 squad, ranking #16 and #17, respectively. These rankings come after dominating performances against college football juggernauts Florida A&M and Florida Atlantic. It’s tough to point at any metrics outside of strength of schedule to pick on the Knights but we’re confident that this current ranking ahead of teams like Oregon (the same Ducks squad who nearly beat Auburn and just pounded a much improved Nevada), Michigan State, and Iowa is well above where they should be slotted. UCF has a big test against Stanford this week, though they couldn’t ask for a better spot catching the Cardinals traveling across the country with a depleted offensive line after a night game on the road at USC with a home date against Oregon lurking. Central Florida continues to be a benefactor of scheduling, and the market has reflected that, as they have leaked out to a 7.5-point favorite against Stanford.
Underrated: South Carolina Gamecocks
Obviously the big news coming out of Gamecock country is the injury to senior QB Jake Bentley and the fact it will sideline him for the rest of the season. In steps redshirt freshman Ryan Hilinski, the brother of the late Tyler Hilinski, former Washington State signal-caller. While the health of the offense slowly improves (looks like WR Randrecous Davis and OL Douglas may return this week against Alabama), it may be time to buy this South Carolina unit as a whole for their season outlook moving forward. It’s been well documented that their strength of schedule is the second toughest in the country and they’ll be put to the test this week against Alabama. In the sports betting market, or any market really, it’s imperative to enter at optimal times. While we’re not advocating a wager on the Gamecocks this week, this is a team whose performances you’ll want to monitor regardless of wins and losses as it bears repeating that their schedule is daunting.
Best Bet: Texas State +17.5:
We always have one or two (or seven) of the “plug your nose” type of wagers each season at Bet the Board, and Texas State fits the bill this week. They dropped their opener to Texas A&M by 34 and despite taking some professional money last week, couldn’t get in the backdoor again Wyoming despite building an early 14-3 lead (lost 23-14). Now they play the red-hot SMU Mustangs, fresh off a thrashing of North Texas and an upset over Arkansas State in Week 1. There is some familiarity here, as the head coach of the Bobcats Jake Spavital goes up against his former boss in Sonny Dykes (worked together at California). We like this Texas State defense, who was hyped a bit coming into the season, and held Wyoming last week to 211 total yards on offense. SMU has a BIG game versus TCU next week, one that has been talked about and mentioned throughout the summer. There is no denying this is ugly but let’s hope the Bobcats do enough to get us to the window as a live pup.