College Football Betting: Week 4 Under the Radar Plays
It is time for the return of SEC football. The ACC and the Big 12 have started playing football, but now the SEC joins the fray in Week 4 of the college football season. The SEC begins a 10-game season limited to conference games only. There aren’t a ton of great SEC games, but there is one especially close matchup that figures to be highly interesting. There is a rivalry game in the Big 12 and an intriguing game outside the Power Five conferences as well. Let’s take a look at Week 4’s big showcase matchups:
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Kentucky Wildcats at Auburn Tigers
Odds: Auburn -7.5 at FanDuel Sportsbook
The Auburn Tigers had a quarterback in the 1990s named Patrick Nix. His son, Bo Nix, quarterbacks the 2020 Auburn team. Bo Nix was a freshman last year, and he played like a newcomer for much of the season. If he can grow into the position this year, Auburn could be really good. Bo Nix has to play well for Auburn to beat Kentucky. The Wildcats regularly have good defenses under head coach Mark Stoops, and this year should be no exception. Auburn is favored by just over a touchdown because Kentucky’s offense might find it hard to score this season. Do-everything hybrid player Lynn Bowden carried UK’s offense in 2019, and he is now in the NFL. Can Kentucky quarterback Terry Wilson evolve as a passer? That is what Kentucky needs to have the best possible chance to win here. Ultimately, Auburn is likely to win but Kentucky is likely to cover the spread.
Pick: Kentucky +7.5
Texas Longhorns at Texas Tech Red Raiders
Odds: Texas -18 at FanDuel Sportsbook
The Longhorns are a huge favorite because of what has happened in these teams’ first games. Texas crushed UTEP by 56 points, while Texas Tech barely beat a small school, Houston Baptist, by only two points. Texas is probably not as good as the 56-point win over UTEP, and Texas Tech is definitely not as bad as it showed against Houston Baptist. Remember that first games for teams this season are going to be messy since they didn’t have spring practice or a normal offseason of preparation. Texas is clearly the better and more talented team, but Texas Tech is scrappy enough to keep this close. Texas Tech is going to play better than it did in its first game. Texas is more of a mystery right now – better than Tech, but likely not by a massive margin.
Pick: Texas Tech +18
Army Black Knights at Cincinnati Bearcats
Odds: Cincinnati -13.5 at FanDuel Sportsbook
The Army Black Knights, due to the pandemic, have had to adjust their schedule. Army plays a lot of inferior opponents, which means that this could potentially be the toughest test of Army’s season. If Army can win this game, it has a great chance of having an undefeated regular season, a special feat for the Black Knights, or any other team. Army faces Cincinnati, a team whose head coach, Luke Fickell, did not go to Michigan State, as some people had thought he might when Mark Dantonio retired. Fickell is a strong defensive coach who has had time to study how to stop Army’s tricky triple-option offense. Cincinnati will probably do enough to win the game, but Army is not an easy opponent to play against and should be able to stay close for the duration.
Pick: Army +13.5
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Dave Golokhov is a featured writer at BettingPros. For more from Dave, check out his archive and follow him @davegolokhov.