College Football Handicapping Articles

College Football National Championship Game Expert Betting Advice: Keys for Alabama
by Trevor Whenham - 1/7/2018

It seems bizarre to say, but even though Alabama has won four national titles under Nick Saban they probably should have won more. They have let a couple of opportunities slip away - none more than last year against Clemson. They almost didn't get another chance this year, but now that they have one they seem determined to make the most of it. But to win a title against a very good opponent they are going to have to be on top of their game. Here are four big keys to success for Alabama as they seek to make the most of being 3.5-point favorites and win their fifth national title of this era.

College Football National Championship Game Expert Wagering Advice: Keys for Georgia
by Trevor Whenham - 1/7/2018

There was no one who would have argued that the Georgia Bulldogs made anything other than a great hire two years back when they moved on from Mark Richt and hired Kirby Smart to guide their program. Even the most optimistic of fans, though, would have to admit deep down that the team is well ahead of schedule as they prepare to play in a National Championship Game just down the road from home.

College Football National Championship Game Expert Picks: Alabama vs. Georgia
by Trevor Whenham - 1/5/2018

So, we go through the whole College Football Playoff process - the rankings, the debates, the drama, and the semifinals - and what are we left with? A regular-season SEC game. Georgia and Alabama didn't play in the regular season, and they didn't play in the SEC Championship Game, but they could have. Fans of the SEC will tell you that this just shows you which conference tops them all. For everyone else, that thought makes you feel sick. While it may not be the most exotic or inspiring matchup, there is no shortage of storylines. So, which team is going to be the fourth champion of the CFP?

College Football National Championship Game Betting Trends
by Trevor Whenham - 1/5/2018

This is the fourth year of the College Football Playoff. I was skeptical about the concept before it started, and some of my issues still exist - mostly that it is moronic to have a four-team playoff when you have five champions of major conferences. But there is no denying that the playoff has led to some great games, and you can never complain about seeing another game each year between the top teams in the country.

2018 Rose Bowl Expert Picks & Predictions Georgia vs. Oklahoma
by Trevor Whenham - 12/22/2017

It's a crime that the Rose Bowl isn't the Big Ten vs. Pac-12 showdown that it is supposed to be, but at least this is a great matchup. In fact, It's the best matchup of this year's bowl calendar, and I don't think that it's particularly close. It's got everything you could want. A ridiculously potent offense from Oklahoma headed by a Heisman winner vs. a Georgia defense that is every bit as elite. A very one-dimensional Georgia offense that is great on the ground, against an Oklahoma defense that often views stopping their opponent as optional.

2018 Citrus Bowl Expert Picks & Predictions: Notre Dame vs. LSU
by Trevor Whenham - 12/22/2017

The Citrus Bowl really should be called the Deja Vu Bowl this year. This is the second year in a row that we have seen LSU in this game. It's also the second time in four years, and the third time in 12 years, that these squads have met in a bowl game. LSU crushed Notre Dame in the Sugar Bowl in 2006, and the Irish won by a field goal in the Music City Bowl in 2014, so this is a bit of a rubber match of sorts.

2018 Peach Bowl Expert Picks & Predictions: Central Florida vs. Auburn
by Trevor Whenham - 12/22/2017

There is precisely one unbeaten team in college football, and they would like nothing more than to stay that way. Central Florida has played a schedule that doesn't get a lot of national respect in the AAC, but they could earn real credibility here. Auburn was one win in the SEC Championship Game away from being a playoff team, and they beat two playoff teams in the regular season - Alabama in the finale, and Georgia the first time they met. So, a team that has never lost against one that has lost one too many games. It sets up a very compelling bowl game.

2018 Outback Bowl Expert Picks & Predictions Michigan vs. South Carolina
by Trevor Whenham - 12/22/2017

This is a rematch of the 2012 Outback Bowl. In that game Jadeveon Clowney laid out Michigan running back Vincent Smith with a hit so stunningly vicious and totally perfect that I am certain you have seen it at least a dozen times, and I'm even more certain that you'll see it dozens more before the game starts. South Carolina won that game 33-28, but absolutely everything has changed for both programs since, so that result just isn't relevant here. It was one heck of a hit, though.

2017 Orange Bowl Expert Picks & Predictions: Wisconsin vs. Miami
by Trevor Whenham - 12/22/2017

This is a bowl game all about what could have been. Both of these teams faltered when it mattered most, and they both could have been playoff teams if they had been just a little tougher. Miami was unbeaten through 11 games, but they must have been looking ahead to the ACC Championship Game they had already clinched a spot in because they didn't show up in the regular-season finale against Pitt and suffered a crushing loss.

2017 Fiesta Bowl Expert Picks & Predictions Washington vs. Penn State
by Trevor Whenham - 12/22/2017

This year's Fiesta Bowl is like a traditional Rose Bowl showdown a year late. It features last year's Big Ten and Pac-12 champs in a showdown that never happened last year because of the playoff. Neither team made it back to the championship game this year, but with 10 wins each they have nothing to be ashamed of, and the winner here will wind up comfortably inside the Top 10 in the final rankings. It's a high-stakes game, and it should be a very entertaining one as well.

2017 Liberty Bowl Expert Picks & Predictions: Iowa State vs. Memphis
by Trevor Whenham - 12/22/2017

The big question here for the Iowa State Cyclones is if this is a big enough game for them to care about. This isn't a great team overall - they had five losses on the season. But they were very good at getting fired up for the biggest of games. Most notably, of course, they beat playoff-bound Oklahoma as massive 31-point underdogs. And they beat TCU as 7.5-point underdogs. They had no real business winning either game.

2017 Taxslayer Bowl Expert Picks & Predictions: Louisville vs. Mississippi State
by Trevor Whenham - 12/22/2017

This game could have been so much more than it is, but changes have robbed it of drama. Last year's Heisman winner, Louisville QB Lamar Jackson, is here, and there was the chance for a great showdown with fellow outstanding and entertaining QB Nick Fitzgerald. Fitzgerald's season ended with an injury in the Egg Bowl, though. And then there was the chance for a really interesting defensive coordinator showdown.

2018 Sugar Bowl Expert Picks & predictions Alabama vs. Clemson
by Trevor Whenham - 12/22/2017

Is it just me, or does it feel like we have seen this one before? These teams have, of course, met in the last two National Championship Games, with Clemson avenging their loss in the first with a win in the second. This won't necessarily end things because both teams are always a threat to make it back to the playoff, but the winner of this game will at least have bragging rights for a year. It's a different game for the teams than the last two.

2017 Cotton Bowl Expert Picks & Predictions: USC vs. Ohio State
by Trevor Whenham - 12/21/2017

It's not supposed to happen that the best bowl game of the year is played on Dec. 29. That's just not right. But it could potentially be the case this year. Big Ten champion Ohio State clashes with Pac-12 champion USC in what should really be the Rose Bowl. It should be a very compelling game - as long as both teams are actually focused on being here. Both teams fancied themselves as playoff team, and while USC was dreaming Ohio State had a very legitimate claim and should have been in instead of Alabama in my view.

2017 Sun Bowl Expert Picks & Predictions: NC State vs. Arizona State
by Trevor Whenham - 12/21/2017

We're going to get to Herm Edwards in a minute. Trust me. It's by far the most interesting storyline around this Arizona State team - or in college football right now, for that matter. But he's not coaching this game, so before we get into that we should look at the matchup we have. Arizona State wound up just 7-5, dragged down by a very underwhelming defense. They were dangerous when least expected, though - they were double-digit underdogs four times this season, and they covered all four games and won three outright.

2017 Alamo Bowl Expert Picks & Predictions: Stanford vs. TCU
by Trevor Whenham - 12/20/2017

The Alamo Bowl this year is really the bowl of coaching stability. Both TCU's Gary Patterson and Stanford's David Shaw could have any job they want in college, and both could find a role in the NFL, too - but they don't even flirt with other possibilities. Patterson has been at TCU since 1998, and if he hasn't left yet then he'll almost certainly retire there. Shaw is only 45, so he'll move elsewhere at some point - likely to the NFL - but he sure doesn't seem to be in any hurry.

2017 Camping World Bowl Expert Picks & Predictions: Virginia Tech vs. Oklahoma State
by Trevor Whenham - 12/20/2017

These two nine-win teams head to Orlando right after Christmas for what is an intriguing, if not ideal, matchup. Oklahoma State just has to be glad that this isn't a home game. The team's three losses all came at home - against TCU, Oklahoma and, incredibly, Kansas State. Stillwater just wasn't the advantage that it should be, I guess.

2017 Holiday Bowl Expert Picks & Predictions: Washington State vs. Michigan State
by Trevor Whenham - 12/19/2017

Michigan State does not want to be in this game. On the hierarchy, this game technically falls behind the Outback Bowl in the stack of Big Ten games, but organizers can choose whichever team they want, so they took Michigan for the Outback instead of the Spartans because they travel better and draw better in person and on TV. Michigan State beat Michigan, so they feel slighted - like they always seem to feel when it comes to the Wolverines. The challenge for the team, then, will be to get over that and focus on what should be a very interesting challenge here. If they aren't mentally ready for it then things could get ugly.

2017 Independence Bowl Expert Picks & Predictions: Southern Miss vs. Florida State
by Trevor Whenham - 12/19/2017

It's clear which team is better on paper here - the Seminoles have a massive advantage in terms of talent. The big question here, though, is whether Florida State will care about this game enough to make that advantage matter. The whole season has just been a debacle. After starting off ranked third in the nation, they were humiliated by Alabama in the opener, they lost their QB, and they never really recovered.

Expert NCAA Football Bowl Game Betting Advice and Handicapping: Game Location is Big
by Trevor Whenham - 12/14/2017

Bowl games are played in all sorts of locations. From the exotic to the ordinary. From the fanciest of stadiums to the dullest of fields. In front of a crowd of 100,000 screaming fans or in front of 5,000 people who mostly didn't pay for their tickets. Because the location of games can vary so widely, it only makes sense that bettors have to pay close attention to where games are being played and what impact that could have on how the games are played - and how, as a result, we should bet on them.