College Football Week 5 Odds, Picks & Predictions (Friday)
Gear up for another awesome weekend of college football action with BettingPros! We’ll have you covered with all of our top picks for the week along with our projected spreads and totals to help guide your college football bets. Below are our top picks and predictions for Friday’s Week 5 college football games.
- More NCAAF Betting Advice
- Expert Game Picks for College Football
- Top Bettor Picks for College Football
- NCAAF Betting Strategy
Friday College Football Odds & Picks: Week 5
Virginia Tech vs. Miami
Could it be the return to glory for Miami? They are coming in 4-0 and have demolished opponents by an average of 43 points. Big credit goes to Cam Ward, who has 14 passing touchdowns, leading the FBS, and is currently a Heisman Trophy favorite. They begin ACC play against Virginia Tech, who is looking for their first win against a Power Four opponent. The defense has been solid, but they haven’t faced an offense that’s currently in the top 80 in points per game. They also don’t have a passing attack, as Kyron Drones has just four passing touchdowns to three interceptions. The Hurricanes are favored to win the ACC because their competition, including the Hokies, isn’t up to par.
Pick: Miami -17.5
-John Supowitz
Washington vs. Rutgers
How serious should bettors take Rutgers? After solid wins over Howard and Akron to start the season, it was hard to say. But then they took down a solid Virginia Tech team on the road, 26-23. It will certainly not be any easier hosting Washington this week. The Huskies are coming off a 24-5 win over Northwestern that saw the offense play well, but far from great, while the defense held the Wildcats to 112 total yards of offense. Rutgers is a 2.5-point favorite, but this game looks close enough on paper that either team could win by less than a field goal. We like Will Rogers to save the day for the Huskies.
Pick: Washington ML (+115)
-Travis Pulver
Best Ways to Bet College Football for Beginners
Game Total
Bettors new to the hobby can be confused by spreads, but game totals are simple. Every football game has a total posted for the combined final score between the two teams. Bettors have the option to choose the OVER or UNDER, generally at -110 odds (risk: $110; win: $100). So if the total is 42 and you take the OVER, you need 43 points to win the bet. If you put a bet down on the over to win $100 and it goes over, you get back the money you initially risked, plus $100. If it stayed under, you would have lost your $110 and that’s it. If by chance the game ended with 42 total points, it’s called a push; when a game pushes, you get the money you risked back but nothing more.
ie: California vs. Illinois, Over 42 or Under 42
tip: Over bets can be a really fun social event with your buddies. Have everyone throw in a few bucks, then take the over together. Instead of getting pumped when one side scores, everyone is pumped for ANY score, all game.
Moneyline
The moneyline is the easiest way to test your college football knowledge: who will win the game? That’s it. The moneyline doesn’t use favorites or underdogs, it’s totally straight up. That said, the risk-reward can be challenging because they’re weighted. Instead of every game being around -110, like game totals and spreads, moneylines vary depending on the matchup.
For our example, California was favored by seven points over Illinois, meaning oddsmakers think the Golden Bears are a touchdown better than the Fighting Illini. If you took Cal on the moneyline, points don’t matter, they just need to win the game. But because it’s safer to take them straight-up without points, you’ll have to risk more when you make the bet — remember, they’re seven points better than Illinois in the eyes of the oddsmakers. In this case, Cal is -280 on the moneyline, so if you want to win $100, you have to risk $280. On the flip side, moneyline bets can be valuable when taking the underdog because it’s a riskier bet — they’re seven points worse than their opponent. In this case, Illinois is the underdog — +220 on the moneyline. You’d win $220 on a $100 bet if you picked Illinois on the moneyline and they pulled off the upset.
ie: California (ML -280) vs. Illinois (ML +220)
tip: Check their history against one another. Keep an eye on the injury report and the weather.
Player Props
Player props are some of the most exhilarating bets you can place during a college football game, but they’re also easy to understand. For major conferences, you’ll have a wide array of options to choose from. Quarterbacks, running backs, receivers, and sometimes tight ends will have props to choose from. It’s simple, fun and easy to follow, and odds on player props don’t vary as much as moneylines. Generally, prop bets are in the -110 range like generic spread and total bets.
ie: How many passing yards will Brandon Peters have against California? Over 250 or Under 250
tip: Check how players have performed in the situation they’re going to be in. Use split stats on any reliable site to see their numbers at home, on a neutral-site, in December, etc.