2018 College Football Week 1 Sure Winners

We’re a little over a week away from the first games of the 2018 college football season, and we see some of the big powers starting with easy wins against cupcakes, but we also see some terrific matchups as some schools are already starting conference play, and others are playing nonconference games against other contenders. For sports betting enthusiasts, this can be a week that brings some real chaos, as the college football schedule does not include pre-season games, so these are the opening tilts for everyone. Take a look at some games where we’ve tabbed some teams that we think can bring you some real money during the College Football Week 1.

2018 College Football Week 1 Sure Winners

“If you look good, you feel good…”

📸 Team Photo Day… ✅#EDGE pic.twitter.com/GQDC2YpTJe — Colorado State Football (@CSUFootball) 18 de agosto de 2018

Colorado (+7) vs Colorado State (9:30pm ET)

An oddity on the sports betting on this game is that the money lines sit right at -110 for each team in this game, but the Rams are favored by seven in a game where they are listed as the home team but is played at a neutral site, closer to the CU campus than to the CSU campus. Colorado has won three in a row in this rivalry, including a 44-7 rout in 2016 and a 17-3 win a year ago, and the Rams last won in 2014, rolling to a 34-17 victory. Rivalry games like this tend to produce quirky results, but Colorado looks improved from their 5-7 finish a year ago, while the Rams are still second fiddle. Give me Colorado to cover.

Oregon State (+37) at Ohio State (12:00 pm ET)

The Buckeye program is in complete disarray right now, as the fate of head coach Urban Meyer, the school’s athletic director and the whole team rest in the fate of the school’s board of trustees, which is scheduled to meet on Wednesday to determine the fate of Meyer. Ohio State is currently ranked #5 in the nation, but playing a season under an interim head coach will be a major distraction, and even returning to having Coach Meyer at the helm as of Wednesday will have caused a disruption in the practice. If Coach Meyer is still on leave or has been fired, I don’t see the Buckeyes rolling to a 37-point win against Oregon State. Even if he returns, the disruption in the program could cause enough of a distraction to keep the units from firing on all cylinders — one can imagine that practices ongoing right now have had a different rhythm. If Meyer is out or still is on leave, give me Oregon State to cover in the 2018 College Football Week 1.

Washington (+2.5) vs Auburn (3:30pm ET)

The Huskies lost at Arizona State in the early going last season, and the disruption kept them from being able to win the Pac-12 North, so they didn’t even make their conference title game, let alone win the conference — which they had been favored to do after making the College Football Playoff the year before. Quarterback Jake Browning returns for his senior season, and the high-powered Washington offense looks to get some redemption. However, they open with a doozy of a matchup as they play what is essentially going to be a home game for Auburn despite the fact that it is taking place at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta. Washington will not play a defense as physically bruising as Auburn’s for the rest of the season, and Auburn quarterback Jarrett Stidham was able to lead his team to a huge win over Alabama last season. Things fizzled out for Auburn in the SEC Championship and then again in the Chick-Fil-A Peach Bowl, where they lost to UCF, but Gus Malzahn will have his team focused and ready, and I don’t think things will go well for Washington on either side of the ball. Washington could recover to win the Pac-12 because this is a nonconference game, but I see Auburn making a big statement here. Give me Auburn to cover in the 2018 College Football Week 1.