It’s Week 1 of the college football season. While there aren’t a ton of exciting matchups on the horizon for Week 1, Sunday has a few super-hyped games. The Sunday slate includes Washington-Washington State, Wisconsin-Notre Dame and Louisville-Ole Miss. I’ve got a best bet for a couple of these games. Make sure to check out our top college football picks below.
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Sunday’s Best College Football Picks & Predictions (Week 1)
(Odds courtesy of DraftKings Sportsbook)
Wisconsin Badgers vs. No. 4 Notre Dame Fighting Irish
The Notre Dame Fighting Irish have a lot of hype entering the season.
While many teams added a ton of transfers, Notre Dame kept most of their players from last year and didn’t add a crazy amount of transfers. Notre Dame’s starting lineup should feature just one transfer on offense and one on defense.
The Fighting Irish will roll with CJ Carr at quarterback. The redshirt sophomore threw for 2,741 passing yards and 24 touchdowns with just six interceptions last season. He’s primed for a big season and is a Heisman Trophy candidate. But while the running back room lost two incredibly talented running backs, Aneyas Williams is expected to step in and be just as good.
That said, Notre Dame’s defense could be the best in the nation. They’ve got a ton of NFL talent and will face Colton Joseph of Wisconsin at quarterback. Joseph is coming in from Old Dominion and will have to battle Notre Dame in his first game with the Badgers. That likely won’t be easy.
Additionally, Notre Dame is typically solid against Big Ten opponents, posting a 7-3 record under head coach Marcus Freeman. The three losses came against Ohio State. Wisconsin is a middle-tier Big Ten squad. Let’s roll with Notre Dame -20.5.
Pick: Notre Dame -20.5 (-115)
No. 24 Louisville Cardinals vs. No. 9 Ole Miss Rebels
The Louisville Cardinals are an entirely different team than last season. Running back Isaac Brown returns, but the rest of the Cardinals’ offense is filled with transfers.
The biggest addition is Lincoln Kienholz. He’ll get his first real opportunity at quarterback after leaving Ohio State. A lot of times, transfer quarterbacks out of Ohio State perform well when they leave. So that’s something to look forward to.
That said, with so many new pieces, it could take time for the Cardinals’ offense to gel. Playing a top-10 team right away won’t help.
Obviously, Ole Miss lost a lot of talent and coaches to LSU once Lane Kiffin made the switch. But the team still has Trinidad Chambliss, Kewan Lacy and Deuce Alexander. The offense should still be intact, but let’s not forget that offensive coordinator Charlie Weis Jr. also left for LSU
Up front, the defense brings back some familiar faces. But everywhere else will look new, including at linebacker and in the secondary.
Louisville has been in so many close games since Jeff Brohm took over as head coach. Almost half of Brohm’s games have been decided by one score. That’s why I’ll ride with Louisville +7.
Pick: Louisville +7 (-115)
