Week 2 college football action report
The Week 2 college football slate packs a little less punch compared to opening week's pomp and circumstance, featuring more FBS-FCS crossover games. Nonetheless, there are plenty of betting opportunities for the public on Saturday.
On Friday we caught up with Will Bernanke, the lead analyst at CG Analytics in Las Vegas, who provided some insight on how the action was shaping up prior to the weekend.
Arizona @ Houston
Time: 12 p.m. ET
Open: Houston -4.5/72
Current: Houston -3.5/71
The Kevin Sumlin era at Arizona is already off to a rocky start, as the Wildcats dropped the home opener to BYU 28-23 as double-digit favorites. Heisman hopeful Khalil Tate is already behind the eight ball, finishing 17-for-34 with 197 yards through the air and only 14 yards on eight rushing attempts. He'll look to bounce back at Houston, though he'll be tasked with escaping defensive end and potential 2019 No. 1 pick Ed Oliver, who garnered co-AAC Defensive Player of the Week honors after posting 13 tackles, 3.5 tackles for loss, and a couple quarterback hurries in Houston's 45-27 romp over Rice.
"82 percent of all money on the point spread is on Arizona," said Bernanke, who added that the total had a low volume, with 68 percent of the money through the week coming in on the under.
The two teams are finishing up a home-and-home series, with Houston walking out of Tucson last season with a 19-16 victory.
UCLA @ Oklahoma
Time: 1 p.m. ET
Open: Oklahoma -29/64
Current: Oklahoma -30/63.5
Another Pac-12 coach making his program debut last Saturday was denied his first win, as Chip Kelly and the UCLA Bruins were upset by Cincinnati as 14.5-point favorites. Kelly will likely have to wait yet another week to pocket win No. 1 at UCLA, as the Bruins are catching four-plus touchdowns at Oklahoma, which throttled Florida Atlantic 63-14 in the opener, covering as a 20.5-point favorite with ease. That huge number on the road in Norman has caught the attention of bettors.
"61 percent of all the money on the point spread is on UCLA," said Bernanke.
Clemson at Texas A&M
Time: 7 p.m. ET
Open: Clemson -11.5/54.5
Current: Clemson -12.5/52
Clemson and Texas A&M square off in the marquee matchup on Saturday after both clubs rolled through tuneup opponents in Week 1. Tigers freshman phenom Trevor Lawrence tossed three touchdown passes in a 48-7 win over Furman while splitting reps with Kelly Bryant, who posted a score through the air and another with his legs. The Aggies bagged their first win last Thursday under new head coach Jimbo Fisher, whose offense went off to the tune of 758 yards in a 59-7 rout of Northwestern State.
Bernanke said the handle on the moneyline was "running fairly even," though 91 percent of the point-spread money was coming in on the Tigers.
These two teams haven't met since 2005, when Clemson prevailed in a narrow 25-24 victory.
Michigan State @ Arizona State
Time: 10:45 p.m. ET
Open: Michigan State -7/54
Current: Michigan State -5.5/53
Michigan State was fortunate to walk out of East Lansing with a 38-31 win over a scrappy Utah State team to open the season Friday. The Spartans' offense looked fluid operating under quarterback Brian Lewerke, though the defense was clearly caught off guard by the Aggies' no-huddle, uptempo look on offense. For Arizona State, Herm Edwards started off his tenure with a bang as the Sun Devils rolled through UTSA 49-7, covering the spread as 17-point favorites.
Similar to Clemson-Texas A&M, Bernanke said the moneyline handle was split fairly evenly Friday, though 85 percent of the point-spread dollars came flooding in on the home side.