American (+120) Fractional (6/5) Decimal (2.20)
Eastern Time Central Time Mountain Time Pacific Time
Help Center
2019 College Football Week 1 Must Bet Games

2019 College Football Week 1 Must Bet Games

Written by on July 9, 2019

NCAAF News and Betting Previews| Xbet.ag
The calendar is a few weeks from turning to August, which means that we are about seven weeks away from the start of the 2019 college football season. Once again, Clemson and Alabama sit atop the list of favorites to win the national championship, and the PAC-12 and the Big Ten are at risk to miss the College Football Playoff once again. Will Notre Dame make the playoff again? Will Washington State finally live up to all that promise? Is Texas ready to return to the list of college football’s elite programs? There are many questions heading into the season — but for now let’s take a look at the opening week of the season. We have a pair of sports betting picks to get your season off to a profitable start for College Football Week 1.

2019 College Football Week 1 Must Bet Games

Friday, August 30

Colorado State vs Colorado (in Denver) (10:00pm ET, ESPN)

Many rivalry games are closely fought and end up grinding down to the last possession, but the yearly matchup between the Rams and the Buffaloes has not been like that. Colorado has won the last three by an average margin of almost 28 points. Last year, the Buffaloes were seven-point favorites and rolled over the Rams, 45-13, as the passing game went 22 for 25 for 338 yards and the team rolled up 596 yards, more than twice as many as Colorado State was able to put up. Last year, both teams finished 5-7 against the spread, as Colorado went 5-7 straight up as well, and Colorado State finished 3-9. One of those wins for the Rams was an impressive comeback win over Arkansas at home, but the Razorbacks turned out to have a dreadful defense last year and even lost to North Texas at home. Given how thoroughly Colorado has outclassed Colorado State even when both teams struggle in the regular season, it is hard to see this season varying from form. So I like Colorado to win and cover.

Saturday, August 31

South Carolina (-7.5) at North Carolina (3:30pm ET, ESPN)

The South Carolina Gamecocks went 7-6 both straight up and against the spread a year ago, while North Carolina bottomed out in the ACC, going 2-9 (5-5-1 ATS). South Carolina has won the last three meetings, covering the spread on two occasions. The Gamecocks have won those meetings by an average of nine points, thanks to seven combined turnovers from the Tar Heels. In their last six games, South Carolina covered the spread four times, although they have lost five of their last six games against ACC opponents (which includes a yearly rivalry against Clemson). North Carolina has not covered in their last six openers, and they have only won once straight up in their last six games against SEC competition. The Tar Heels are in the middle of a bit of a rebuilding project, and it will be interesting to see how they fare in their ACC division this year. I do not see them coming out and winning in the opener, but I see them hanging a little closer than 7 ½ points here. I like South Carolina to win…but North Carolina to cover.

SMU at Arkansas State (7:00pm ET, ESPN+)

Arkansas State went 8-5 a year ago (6-7 ATS), while SMU finished just a game out of bowl contention, with a record of 5-7 (5-7 ATS). SMU won the last time these two teams met, 44-21, in Dallas, but the Red Wolves routed SMU by 17 points the last time they met in Jonesboro, Arkansas. SMU was inconsistent last year, beating a tough Navy team in overtime but coughing up a golden opportunity against Cincinnati, and on the road, they were not strong a year ago. SMU will have a new quarterback on the field, as Ben Hicks transferred to Arkansas. The Mustangs were able to bring in Shane Buechele via transfer from Texas and also have Will Brown on the bench. Going on the road in the opener will make this tough for the Ponies, so I’m going with Arkansas State to win and cover.
Help Center