No. 21 Maryland (-7) @ Temple
The No. 21 Maryland Terrapins have stormed into the college football season through the first two weeks, going from unranked to No. 21 in the AP poll, and now have their first road test of the season at Temple. Maryland opened at -4 and has climbed to -7 already. This is similar to 2018 when the Terps knocked off No. 23 Texas and followed it up with a road win over Bowling Green before hosting the Owls. Temple earned a decisive 35-14 win in that Week 3 matchup in 2018. Could it grab lightning in a bottle twice?
The Owls opened the season with a 56-12 win over Bucknell with junior QB Anthony Russo throwing for 409 yards and four TDs. Meanwhile, Maryland leads the nation with 71 ppg and is coming off a 63-20 beatdown at home over then No. 21 Syracuse. I expect that when people look at the performances the Terrapins have put on through the first two weeks, more money will pour in and their line will climb at least another point.
No. 1 Clemson @ Syracuse O/U 58.5
A big matchup in the ACC and potentially in the College Football Playoff picture goes when No. 1 Clemson heads to the Carrier Dome to play Syracuse. People might forget Trevor Lawrence’s first game as the official starting QB for the Tigers, but it came in Week 5 against the Orange and he was hurt late in the first half and had to give the ball to Chase Brice. Clemson was trailing 23-20 late in the fourth but Brice mounted a comeback to earn the 27-23 victory. A year prior, Clemson fell at Syracuse 27-24. The total has dropped a half-point in this year’s game, opening at 59 and now at 58.5 points.
This game has lost a bit of its luster after Syracuse was stomped last week at Maryland 63-20 and fell out of the AP rankings. The Tigers defense has looked good through the first two weeks, allowing just 24 combined points to Georgia Tech and Texas A&M. Last year, Clemson and Syracuse played to a combined score of 50 and I think this 58.5 current total will fall and may even drop to 56 or 55.5 points.
No. 5 Oklahoma (-23) @ UCLA
These two teams have come out of the gate trending in opposite directions as No. 5 Oklahoma (2-0) heads west to collide with 0-2 UCLA. The Bruins have mustered just 14 points per game through the first two weeks, falling at Cincinnati and San Diego State. Meanwhile, the Sooners have earned back-to-back home victories over Houston and South Dakota. There has been only a one-point buy on the Sooners so far, opening at -22 and now at -23.
The biggest area of concern for Oklahoma’s defense is the run game, surrendering an average of 160 rushing yards per game to rank 90th, but the UCLA rushing attack ranks 126th with 62 yards per game. The Sooners earned a 28-point victory last year at home over the Bruins so a five-point swing on the road makes sense but UCLA hasn’t shown any offensive threat this season and I expect money to come in on Oklahoma and it should close as a bigger favorite.
Kent State @ No. 8 Auburn O/U 51.5
The Kent State Golden Flashes collide with their second FBS squad of the season as they head to Jordan Hare Stadium to take on the No. 8 Auburn Tigers. Kent State was torched by the Arizona State Sun Devils in Week 1, falling 30-7, but followed it up with a narrow 26-23 victory over FCS side Kennesaw State.
Meanwhile, Auburn is undefeated with wins over then No. 11 Oregon and Tulane, surrendering just 27 points in those games but scoring only 51 of their own. This total has already started to move so if you’re liking the UNDER, get on it ASAP as it opened at 53 and is currently at 51.5.
Both teams are 2-0 on the UNDER and Auburn’s defense is as stout as ever, while its true freshman QB, Bo Nix, continues to get his feet wet at the college level, completing just 47.1 percent of his passes for 384 yards and three touchdowns. I have a hard time seeing the Golden Flashes achieving much success against this Tigers defense and this total should continue to trend downward maybe another point or a point and a half.
