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Michigan vs. Nebraska: College Football Week 5 Odds & Picks (2023)

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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 the Week 5 college football game: Michigan vs. Nebraska.

Top College Football Odds & Picks: Michigan vs. Nebraska

#2 Michigan @ Nebraska

Michigan is 0-4 against the spread this season, but they have also controlled the clock and played to the Under in every single game. Nebraska has also played four games, and only one of them has gone over the total as well. 39 is a tough total to go under, but these defenses have both been so good I'm going to risk it, as I feel like Michigan will stomp Nebraska.

Michigan is currently No. 1 in the country in points allowed per game at 5.8, 13th in rushing yards allowed (80 YPG), seventh in passing defense (151 YPG) and third in total YPG Allowed (231 YPG). Nebraska runs the ball a lot. They are top 15 in rush attempts per game and will be running into the brick wall of the Wolverine’s defense. Michigan ranks third in rush defense, according to PFF, and has two top-15 graded run defenders on the defensive in Braiden McGregor and Kris Jenkins.

Nebraska has been strong against the run as well, currently sitting second in the country against the run, allowing less than 50 YPG. While Nebraska hasn't played any overly strong teams yet, Minnesota has put up rushing totals of 296 vs. EMU, 170 vs. UNC and 244 vs. NW after being held to only 55 by Nebraska in Week 1. I don't think Michigan will have a bad game rushing, but maybe it takes a quarter or two to get rolling like it did against ECU and Rutgers.

Nebraska is 103rd in scoring offense, and I feel like they will go to another notch on the belt of Michigan, who hasn't allowed more than seven points to anyone. We've also seen Michigan be content to sit on a lead and bleed the clock late, as they've only scored once in the fourth quarter through their first four games. Michigan will get up in the third and chew clock again as the stadium empties out in the fourth. Michigan might be 0-4 ATS so far, but they've also won every game by at least 24 points. I don't see the script changing against a struggling Nebraska squad. Go Blue!

Bet: Michigan -17 (-110) & UNDER 39.5 (-110)

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.


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