CFB Week 2 big games: Do you believe in Colorado?

It was great to have a full slate of college football games back in our lives Saturday, but if we're honest about it, the matchups could've been better. Don't believe me? I present the games that missed our cut in Week 2:

Each week, we look at the biggest games on the docket to see if there's a bet to make early, a price to target, or whether it's just better to pop some corn and enjoy the contest.

Nebraska @ Colorado (-3, 57.5)

This game would've been set up better if Nebraska hadn't Nebraska'd its way to a loss at Minnesota, but there's no team being talked about more than Colorado after its win versus TCU.

However, we may need to pour cold water on Deion Sanders and the Buffaloes.

TCU's pedigree and Colorado's preseason win total of 3.5 suggested a point spread of -26 for last week's game. Since the Buffaloes were +20.5 against TCU, that should've made the Horned Frogs a valuable bet. But there was one issue with that. Colorado, which had the most turnover from last year's starting lineup, replaced a 1-11 roster with highly ranked recruits. TCU, which had the second highest, lost a handful of players to the NFL.

It'd make sense that the Buffaloes would move up toward the mean, while the Horned Frogs would regress. Throw in a defense that gave up 141 points in its final three games last season, and scoring 45 versus TCU doesn't seem as surprising as "Coach Prime knocks off national finalists."

An opening line for Nebraska-Colorado was never going to be easy to make, although market-making Las Vegas sportsbook Circa Sports took a crack at it.

Sharp bettors - the kind that wait for the moment a line gets opened - immediately took Nebraska +5. Buyback on -2 has settled the spread at -3, a line that suggests an increase in Colorado's estimated rating from 34/100 to 54/100.

Maybe the Buffaloes - with newly minted Heisman hopefuls Shedeur Sanders and Travis Hunter - are an above-average team nationally. However, before blindly backing Colorado in Week 2, it's best if bettors are sure whether TCU actually is as well.

No. 11 Texas @ No. 4 Alabama (-7, 56.5)

Leave it to Coach Prime to push Texas-Alabama into the "B" block of sports talk shows this week. However, from a betting standpoint, little has changed from the summer's "Game of the Year" line of Alabama -7. Or has it?

Texas had a slow start in its easy win over Rice, while Alabama jumped on Middle Tennessee early in its scheduled Week 1 blowout. If that's enough to move the line to a point where we can get Texas at +7.5 - where it touched early this week - I'm all for it.

Pick: Texas (+7)

No. 23 Ole Miss @ No. 24 Tulane (+7.5, 63.5)

The "Lane Train" rolls into Tulane. After thinking they might be ready for a step back, quarterback Michael Pratt and the Green Wave's defense showed that they're building on last year's success by dominating South Alabama. Ole Miss will be a tougher test, and Lane Kiffin's rebels have taken money since opening at -6. However, the market is ignoring Tulane's impressive Week 1. That's a mistake now that this line has also crept around the key number of 7.

Pick: Tulane (+7.5)

No. 15 Oregon vs. Texas Tech (+7, 66.5)

Let's make a third play on an underdog with a similar spread. Texas Tech lost in overtime at Wyoming in a game that had trouble written all over it. Going to Laramie before a high-profile non-conference game against your quarterback's former team seemed problematic. As a result, I won't be downgrading the Red Raiders as much as one might think. Meanwhile, Oregon's annihilation of Portland State doesn't do anything for me. I still think Tech is live to win this one.

Pick: Texas Tech (+7)

Matt Russell is the lead betting analyst for theScore. If there's a bad beat to be had, Matt will find it. Find him on social media @mrussauthentic.