College Football Week 1 Odds, Picks & Prediction: Cincinnati vs. Arkansas (9/3)
Let’s take a look at the College Football Week 1 odds, picks, and predictions for this week’s game: Cincinnati vs. Arkansas.
Check out our other Week 1 game previews:
- New Mexico State vs. Minnesota
- Georgia State vs. South Carolina
- Nevada vs. Texas State
- Western Kentucky vs. Hawaii
- North Carolina State vs. East Carolina
- Clemson vs. Georgia Tech
- Boise State vs. Oregon State
- Arizona vs. San Diego State
- Utah State vs. Alabama
- Middle Tennessee vs. James Madison
- Florida State vs. LSU
- Utah vs. Florida
- Colorado State vs. Michigan
- Rice vs. USC
- Oregon vs. Georgia
- Louisiana-Monroe vs. Texas
- Notre Dame vs. Ohio State
College Football Week 1 Early Odds, Picks & Prediction: Cincinnati vs. Arkansas
Cincinnati (+6.5) at Arkansas
The market spent the summer focusing on Cincinnati’s losses, notably QB Desmond Ridder (R3), RB Jerome Ford (R5) and WR Alec Pierce (R2) on offense, and CB Sauce Gardner (No. 4 overall), CB Coby Bryant (R4), S Bryan Cook (R2) and EDGE Myjai Sanders (R3) on defense.
Perhaps not enough was made on the amount of talent HC Luke Fickell brought in and the ready-made replacements already on hand due to Fickell’s development system. Fickell added a top-25 recruiting class and multiple impact transfers to plug holes. Former Cincy signee QB Ben Bryant was re-imported from EMU to compete with four-star Evan Prater. RB Corey Kiner, a local kid who originally signed with LSU, could be this year’s bellcow.
The market doesn’t seem to be making as much of Arkansas’ losses. WR Treylon Burks is gone, and only four starters return on defense. It’s possible that the offense and defense could both be in for slight steps backward.
My system feels that this is too many points, projecting this game as closer to a pick ‘em.
Bet: Cincinnati (+6.5)
What is Betting Against the Spread?
Betting “against the spread†refers to the act of choosing the winning team based on a numeric handicap placed on the team that oddsmakers believe is superior, rather than picking the outright winner. For example, if the Rams face the Bengals, and oddsmakers set the spread at Rams -3.5, you would need Los Angeles to win by 4 or more points in order to cash your Rams bet.
What is an Over/Under Bet?
Over/Under is a wager based on how many points you think will be scored in a specific game. Oddsmakers set the total, and bettors decide whether the final score will be higher or lower than that number. If an Over/Under is set at 44.5 points and you bet Over, you will need the combined score of both teams to be 45 points or higher to win your bet.
What is a Moneyline Bet?
A moneyline bet involves choosing which team you believe will win a specific matchup. The moneyline favorite carries a minus designation, like -130. This means that you need to wager $130 to earn a $100 profit. Conversely, the underdog carries a plus designation, like +110. This means that you win $110 in profit on a $100 bet.
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