College football Week 4 action report: Public playing Georgia, Wisconsin in key matchups
Before you make your college football bets this weekend, it's worth knowing which side other bettors are backing - especially on games drawing sharp action.
We talked to Jay Rood, Bet.Works' chief risk officer and theScore Bet's head trader, to see how sharps and public bettors are playing the Week 4 slate.
No. 7 Notre Dame at No. 3 Georgia
Current line: Georgia -14
The Bulldogs opened as 13.5-point favorites in arguably the biggest game of the weekend, and side action has been fairly even a day before the game, with Georgia seeing roughly 60% of the tickets and money thus far.
Rood says he expects that to climb ahead of kickoff.
"It's looking like the public is going to be on Georgia, for sure," he said.
The Bulldogs are one of the more popular teams in parlays, Rood says, though moneyline action is almost exclusively on Notre Dame, which is a 19-4 underdog at theScore Bet in New Jersey. The Fighting Irish are 8-6 against the spread as road dogs under Brian Kelly but just 3-11 straight up.
No. 11 Michigan at No. 13 Wisconsin
Current line: Wisconsin -3.5
While Georgia vs. Notre Dame is the highlight of the weekend, this top-15 Big Ten clash is drawing the most attention from early bettors. The Badgers opened as 3.5-point favorites and haven't moved despite a 3-to-1 edge in tickets and money.
Action on the moneyline is roughly even from a risk perspective, with double the tickets on the road dog. Rood says his book will likely need Michigan in this one, though he's dubious about coach Jim Harbaugh's 0-6 SU / 2-4 ATS record as an underdog.
"I think two or three games into it, you're starting to show your stripes," Rood said of the Wolverines' struggles. "If you're a contrarian, you should be all over Michigan."
Michigan State at Northwestern
Current line: Michigan State -8.5
One of the few teams bucking the trend of chalk play this weekend is Northwestern, which is garnering overwhelming support despite the hefty line.
The Spartans saw a couple of limit plays at -8 and -8.5 to nudge the line up to -9, Rood says. It's been all Wildcats since, with a 16-to-1 edge in tickets and a 32-to-1 advantage in money. They're also among the public favorites in parlays, seeing a 25-to-1 ticket count in parlays relative to Michigan State.
"Oddly enough, Northwestern is getting all the activity," Rood said. "People bet what they last saw, and they last saw Michigan State struggle."
The Spartans are 3-9 ATS under Mark Dantonio when favored by more than a touchdown on the road. Northwestern is riding a three-game streak ATS/SU over Michigan State entering Saturday.
Oklahoma State at No. 12 Texas
Current line: Texas -6
It's a big week for public favorites, especially on parlays, and Texas is among the leaders Saturday. The Longhorns are drawing 10 times the amount of tickets as road dog Oklahoma State with an 8-to-1 edge in money, despite the Cowboys' 8-1 ATS run as underdogs.
Texas opened as a 5-point favorite and is now -6, thanks in part to the action on parlays. Two Pac-12 road favorites - Oregon (-10.5) at Stanford and Utah (-3.5) at USC - are also seeing heavy parlay action this weekend.
"We're going to need a couple of dogs from our side of the counter this weekend," Rood said. "We're going to need a few of these to be a parlay buster."
C Jackson Cowart is a betting writer for theScore. He's an award-winning journalist with stops at The Charlotte Observer, The San Diego Union-Tribune, The Times Herald-Record, and BetChicago. He's also a proud graduate of UNC-Chapel Hill, and his love of sweet tea is rivaled only by that of a juicy prop bet. Find him on Twitter @CJacksonCowart.