UCLA vs. Penn State: College Football Week 6 Picks (2024)
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. Here are our top picks and predictions for the upcoming Week 6 college football game: UCLA vs. Penn State. And check out all of our top College Football Week 6 picks.
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Top College Football Week 6 Odds & Picks: UCLA vs. Penn State
UCLA vs. Penn State
The UCLA Bruins are in the midst of a rebuild, but they deserve some credit for keeping it within the number as 20+ point underdogs against LSU and Oregon in consecutive weeks. The schedule doesn’t let up here, as the Bruins will travel to Happy Valley for the first time since 1967 in just the seventh all-time meeting between these programs. UCLA’s offense is a work in progress, and that’s probably putting it kindly. The Bruins are averaging less than 2.5 yards per rush and under seven yards per pass while averaging 14.8 points per game, good for 127th nationally. I wouldn’t expect much to change against Penn State, which is elite defensively. If there’s one thing UCLA does relatively well, it’s defending the run. However, the Bruins secondary, which ranks 77th in yards allowed per pass attempt, could be vulnerable against Penn State’s Drew Allar and their highly efficient passing attack. I admittedly don’t trust Penn State to cover this number, as they’ve failed to cover as favorites of at least 19.5 points in two out of three games this season, with the lone cover coming against a Kent State team that could be among the worst in the country. I also don’t love this spot for Penn State, who is coming off a primetime victory over ranked Illinois and will be traveling cross-country for a huge game against USC next week. So, instead, I’ll bet on the Penn State defense stymying this awful UCLA offense.
Pick: UCLA Team Total Under 7.5 points
-Matt Barbato
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.