College football Week 4 opening line report

Each week we'll break down the opening lines for the biggest college football games on the card to see where the early money is going and how the spread may move leading up to kickoff. Week 4 features a pivotal matchup with playoff implications when No. 7 Notre Dame travels to Athens to face No. 3 Georgia.

Notre Dame at Georgia

Opening Line: Georgia -12.5

It's one of the biggest games of the college football season, but oddsmakers aren't giving Notre Dame much respect. Georgia opened -12.5 at home and quickly moved to -14 before settling at -13.5. The early line says that sharp bettors like the Bulldogs at anything under two touchdowns but are buying back (betting the other side) on Notre Dame once the number gets to 14.

The Fighting Irish have been horrible against the best teams in the country: Across their last six appearances in the BCS, College Football Playoff, and New Year's Six bowl games, they were outscored 232-88. Even so, expect Notre Dame to be a big public underdog this weekend.

Oklahoma State at Texas

Opening Line: Texas -6.5

How good is Oklahoma State? We'll find out Saturday when the Cowboys travel to Texas. The Cowboys jumped out to a 3-0 record, but the competition - Oregon State, McNeese State, and Tulsa - hasn't exactly been fierce. The Longhorns, meanwhile, came up short in their first big test of the year but played well in a 45-38 loss to No. 4 LSU. The line opened Texas -6.5 but moved a half-point to -7.

There should be good two-way action on this game with the public backing Texas. If the Longhorns move off the key number of -7, expect sharp money to come in on the underdog. Texas has dominated this series at home straight up, but Okie State is 5-1 against the spread in its last six trips to Texas.

Michigan at Wisconsin

Opening Line: Wisconsin -3

Wisconsin won its first two games over South Florida and Central Michigan by a combined score of 110-0, but hosting Michigan on Saturday will reveal whether the Badgers are College Football Playoff contenders or pretenders. For their part, the Wolverines are lucky to be coming into the game unbeaten after barely getting by Army in overtime as 22-point favorites.

Wisconsin opened as a 3-point home favorite and the line has yet to move off that number as of Monday morning. This matchup isn't likely to draw much sharp action unless the number moves off three. Public bettors will likely look at Michigan in the underdog role, but this is a game that screams two-way action, so don't expect much line movement throughout the week. The Wolverines haven't been profitable in this series of late, going 2-9-1 ATS in the last 12 meetings.

Tennessee at Florida

Opening Line: Florida -12.5

Florida rallied to beat Kentucky 29-21 on Saturday, but the win came at a cost. The Gators lost starting quarterback Feleipe Franks for the rest of the season with an ankle injury. The good news for Florida is that junior Kyle Trask came in and led the team to 19 unanswered points in the fourth quarter, finishing 9-of-13 for 126 yards.

Sharp bettors are buying Florida with Trask under center. The Gators opened -12.5 but moved to -14. Tennessee finally got on track Saturday after dropping its first games, blowing out FCS team Chattanooga 45-0. Sharps won't take Florida any higher than -14, but also expect the public to back the Gators this weekend. The road team has been money in this series recently, going 8-2-1 ATS in the last 11 meetings.

Auburn at Texas A&M

Opening Line: Texas A&M -2.5

One of Saturday's underrated big games is the SEC battle between Texas A&M and Auburn. The Tigers are still very much in the hunt for a College Football Playoff berth after their comeback win over Oregon. Meanwhile, it's Texas A&M's second big test in September after falling to Clemson 24-10 two weeks ago.

Early bettors are backing the small home favorite. Texas A&M opened -2.5 and then moved to -4 in the first 12 hours of the line being posted. This will be the first true road game for Auburn freshman quarterback Bo Nix, and he'll face a formidable Aggies defense. Texas A&M allowed just 34 points in its first three games and held the high-powered Clemson offense to 24. Auburn should be a popular public dog this weekend, and the road team has covered six of the last seven meetings.

Thomas Casale is theScore's Supervising Editor of Sports Betting. He's been following the sports betting industry for almost 30 years. A devoted fan of the wishbone offense, Thomas bets on all sports but specializes in college football, NFL, and college basketball. Find him on Twitter @TheTomCasale.