College football Week 6 underdog plays: Georgia Tech, Northwestern eye big upsets
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Each week of the college football season, we'll highlight some of the best underdog bets, including ones that could net sizable moneyline profits.
Last week, Baylor and Duke won outright as short 'dogs, though Rutgers couldn't keep it close against a motivated Michigan team. Here are our best bets for Week 6.
Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets (+10) vs. North Carolina Tar Heels
Opening line: North Carolina -8.5
Georgia Tech sure doesn't look like a live 'dog on paper. The Yellow Jackets have lost seven straight against the spread, including an outright loss to FCS foe The Citadel (27-24) and a rough home loss to Temple (24-2) in the last two weeks. So why bet them here?
Because Georgia Tech has owned North Carolina at home, and the Tar Heels are in unfamiliar territory. UNC has lost nine of its last 10 games outright at Georgia Tech and was an underdog in all 10. Now the Tar Heels are giving 10 points on the road, which has only happened five times since 2000 (2-3 ATS) and just once since Mitchell Trubisky left town.
Saturday's game is also a classic letdown spot for UNC, which was a failed two-point conversion away from upsetting then-No. 1 Clemson a week ago. With a new coach and a young QB, an outright loss for the Tar Heels isn't out of the question.
Northwestern Wildcats (+8) at Nebraska Cornhuskers
Opening line: Nebraska -6.5
Nebraska hype dies hard. After losing four of their five games this year against the number, the Huskers are still giving eight points to Northwestern, which is riding a 10-1 ATS run as a road 'dog with seven wins outright.
Nebraska couldn't find its ground game in a 41-point home defeat to Ohio State, and it'll likely struggle again versus Northwestern's front. The Wildcats held Wisconsin's run-heavy attack to just 243 yards and one offensive touchdown, though a futile effort from Northwestern's own offense doomed its upset bid.
The Huskers are 4-7 ATS in the last two years as home favorites and have been porous defensively, allowing at least 34 points to each of their Power 5 opponents. Northwestern should keep it close and could threaten to win outright, too.
Army Black Knights (+3) vs. Tulane Green Wave
Opening line: Tulane -1
The sharps are riding the Green Wave ahead of Saturday's matchup while the public favors Army, which hasn't lost a home game in three years and is undefeated outside of an overtime loss at Michigan. Maybe the public is onto something.
Tulane needed a miracle to survive last week's win against Houston, which marked its sixth straight victory as a favorite. Yet none of those came on the road. The Green Wave is just 3-9 straight up/4-8 ATS in its last 12 games away from Yulman Stadium, while Army is riding a 16-game home winning streak with an average margin of victory of 15.7 points in those games.
Short road favorites (-3 or less) went 3-5 ATS last week with four outright wins for the home 'dog. Expect another at West Point this week.
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.