Dave’s Dime: Top 10 Best Bets for Week 2 NFL and College Football
Last week, Dave’s Dime went 6-4 overall, going 3-2 on both college football best bets and pro football best bets. This week we’re going out on the road with a heavy dose of road teams on both Saturday and Sunday. Best of luck this weekend! Here we go:
(Picks are listed in order of game times from earliest to latest, and the spreads are up to date at the time of publication.)
Ohio State Buckeyes -17.5, at Indiana Hoosiers
The Indiana Hoosiers have never defeated the Ohio State Buckeyes, but they have enjoyed success against the spread with a 7-1 ATS record in their last eight games against the Buckeyes. But this ATS success has come from being a dog getting an average of 26.6 points per game over that stretch. Ohio State has won each of the last three games in this head-to-head series by at least three touchdowns, and facing this Saturday’s more modest spread, that will be enough.
Alabama Crimson Tide -25.5, at South Carolina Gamecocks
The Alabama Crimson Tide are 15-1 straight up and 11-5 against the spread over their last 16 road games. They are also 11-1 SU and 7-4-1 ATS in their last 12 games as a favorite of four touchdowns or less. It’s a big number to cover against a team with a pulse like South Carolina, but Alabama shouldn’t have a problem with it.
USC Trojans -4, at BYU Cougars
Kedon Slovis looked incredible in tearing my Stanford pick to shreds last week. It’s only a one start sample size, but this kid looks like the real deal. He’ll be put to the test in a brutal upcoming stretch against Utah, Washington, and Notre Dame; but this week, the Air Raid attack should be too much for the Cougars to handle.
UNDER 64 Points, Oklahoma State Cowboys at Tulsa Golden Hurricane
The Tulsa Golden Hurricane know that they can’t shootout with the Oklahoma State Cowboys, so their best bet in this game will be to slow the game down and keep the Cowboys off the field with the running game. If they succeed, this one should easily go under 64 points. And if they don’t succeed, they won’t be scoring much, and the game still might stay under in an OSU blowout.
Hawaii Warriors +21.5, at Washington Huskies
Hawaii’s offense has looked great through the first two games of the season in wins over Arizona and Oregon State. The defense leaves plenty to be desired, but the unit is well-coached as it made some nice second-half adjustments last Saturday to hold the Beavers to zero second-half points. Washington is a clearly superior team, but I see this one landing in the 34-17 range with Hawaii getting the cover.
Indianapolis Colts +3.5, at Tennessee Titans
The Tennessee Titans torched the Cleveland Browns last week 43-13 and will be a popular pick against the Andrew Luck-less Indianapolis Colts. But the Colts looked pretty good in defeat Sunday as Marlon Mack had a monster day and Jacoby Brissett played well. This Colts Titans game feels like a coin flip to me, so I’ll happily take the 3.5 points.
Dallas Cowboys -6, at Washington Redskins
The Washington Redskins gave Philadelphia a scare last week before eventually getting blown away in the second half. The Dallas Cowboys looked like a well-oiled machine in a 35-17 win over the New York Giants last Sunday and are 6-1 SU and 5-1-1 ATS in their last seven games as road favorites; that trend of road success should continue here.
Arizona Cardinals +13, at Baltimore Ravens
Lamar Jackson and Marquise Brown put on a clinic last Sunday in a 59-10 win over the Miami Dolphins. A win like that sets up for a letdown spot in a game like this; it’s human nature for the Ravens to get the sense that this one will be an “easy win”. They’ve also got a road game at Kansas City next week that they might get caught looking ahead to. Kyler Murray and the defense do enough here to earn a cover.
Houston Texans -8.5, vs. Jacksonville Jaguars
While Gardner Minshew looked sharp in his NFL debut last week, a Texans defense on the road that has had a week to prepare for him will be a very different experience than a Chiefs defense at home caught off guard by him was. The Jaguars allowed points on each of the first seven drives of the game last Sunday, and while Houston’s offense isn’t as high-powered as Kansas City’s, it’s not too shabby either. Look for Houston to bounce back from its disappointing Monday Night Football loss with a big win.
Chicago Bears -2, at Denver Broncos
Both of these teams looked terrible in Week 1. One of them went 12-4 last season and projects to be a legitimate contender this season. The other is 11-22 over its last 33 games. Sure, Mitchell Trubisky vs. Denver’s defense isn’t the best scenario in the world, but the Bears are too good to pass up at only -2 in this spot.
