Last week was far and away the best week of the college football season. The only loss was Oregon State +13.5 and if I had known about the Jonathan Smith rumors before I had locked in earlier in the week, there wouldn’t have been a loss on the record. Those are the breaks with rivalry weekend.
Going into championship weekend, I’ve got picks for every game.
Week 13 College Football Picks and Predictions
Last Week: 6-1-1 (0.813)
This Season: 49-51-1 (0.490)
Overall Record: 130-134-4 (0.492)
For all current betting odds surrounding the college football season, check out our live betting odds and make your plays today!
All lines are via Draft Kings Sportsbook. You can find the best available odds from sportsbooks all over the country below as well.
Oregon -9 (-110) vs. Washington +9 (-110)
This line is baffling to me on many levels.
First off, Washington played a much tougher schedule and their strength of victory is considerably higher than Oregon’s. They share wins over Oregon State, Washington, and Utah. Outside of that, the Ducks don’t have a win against a team at or over 0.500 whereas the Huskies have three others in Arizona, Boise State (who is playing in the Mountain West Championship Game), and Oregon.
Yes, Washington beat Oregon head-to-head. They were a two-point favorite at kickoff and beat the Ducks by three. Since that game, the Huskies have been a very battle-tested team. They did lay an egg against a bad Arizona State team the following week but the team was dealing with a flu bug, the same with their nine-point win over Stanford.
What they did do was outscore USC before they fell off of a cliff and beat feisty Washington State (rivalry game) and Utah teams at home while gutting out a road win in Corvallis, which is a difficult place to win.
Oregon is a good football team, but they benefitted massively when they faced certain teams. They got Washington State on the downswing when they were dealing with their own issues, got Utah when they were devastated by injuries, and the Trojans when they were pretty much checked out.
MORE: CFB QB Rankings 2023
That doesn’t mean the Ducks aren’t a very talented football team. Bo Nix is going to be a finalist for the Heisman Trophy and Bucky Irving, Tez Johnson, and Troy Franklin are an excellent group of weapons. Unfortunately for them, what Washington has is better. Honestly, Oregon could win this game, but it will be close because Washington is the better football team in my eyes and nine points is too many.
Bet: Washingon +9 (-110)
Oklahoma State +13.5 (-110) vs. Texas -13.5 (-110)
The Cowboys have been a massively overachieving team.
After starting 2-2 including a brutal 33-7 loss to South Alabama, the Cowboys won seven of their final eight games including a 6-2 record ATS. Mike Gundy just won Big 12 Coach of the Year leading a team that was predicted by many to be basement dwellers and a win over Oklahoma in the last Bedlam game.
Texas is in a much different spot. They have won 11 games and are within spitting distance of a playoff spot. They need some help to get there as they are the seventh-ranked team in the playoff rankings.
Quinn Ewers looks healthy and the offense was clicking on all cylinders against Texas Tech, which was great to see after losing Jonathon Brooks to a torn ACL. They are heading into this game firing on all cylinders after dealing with some difficult games in November.
This game opened at 11.5 and is now at 15.5. I would play this up to 16.5. The 13.5 that I grabbed it at earlier this week was a steal.
Bet: Texas -13.5 (-110)
Georgia -5 (-110) vs. Alabama +5 (-110)
The game of the day looks to once again deliver.
This is going to be simple to determine a winner: which quarterback is going to take over and win the game for their team?
MORE: CFB Playoff Rankings
Carson Beck has shown a lot of growth and development for the Bulldogs and most of it came with star tight end Brock Bowers out with tightrope ankle surgery. Beck has been layering throws with touch and zip to all levels of the field and has given this offense an element they haven’t had since Justin Fields’ freshman season where he only played sparingly.
The Crimson Tide looked in disarray after a brutal performance against South Florida where starting quarterback Jalen Milroe was benched and they played Tyler Buchner and Ty Simpson. Since then, Milroe has exploded showing real growth and development as a passer and even creeping up in the Heisman Trophy discussion.
This is going to be a fantastic game but the quarterback play is going to be pivotal, as it always has been in this rivalry. It’s a coin flip who wins the game but 5.5 points is too much for Georgia to cover against a hot Crimson Tide team.
Bet: Alabama +5 (-110)
Louisville +3.5 (-112) vs. Florida State -3.5 (-108)
This game is trending in the wrong direction for the Seminoles. The line opened at -6.5 and is already down to 1.5 due to the issues at the quarterback position.
Tate Rodemaker was the victim of a dirty hit to the head at the end of their game against the Florida Gators and could end up missing the game. That would leave true freshman four-star quarterback Brock Glenn as the starting quarterback. That could be an issue, but they beat the Gators because of their defense.
The front of the Seminoles led by Jared Verse annihilated the Gators’ front and prevented the offense from sustaining anything consistent. That is a situation that could easily hinder a Cardinals team that has been relatively untested with only two wins over top-25 teams in Notre Dame and NC State.
You don’t want to have to rely on your defense and running game to take you to the college football playoff, but that’s what the Seminoles are going to have to do and it’ll work as Louisville can’t be trusted to be consistent.
Bet: Florida State -3.5 (-108)
Iowa +23 (-110) vs. Michigan -23 (-110)
Death, taxes, Iowa winning the Big 10 west.
The Iowa defense and special teams units are incredible and worthy of 10 wins. The offense however is a borderline abomination for even the D-II level.
MORE: CFB TV Schedule Week 14
This game is going to come down to one thing. Can Michigan run up the score on this Iowa defense? With Jim Harbaugh coming back to the sideline and riding high from a win over the Buckeyes, the Wolverines are in a position where a letdown could happen, especially without Zak Zinter out for the rest of the season.
Furthermore, 23 points is a lot, especially with Iowa’s defensive prowess defensively. This game has the potential to be ugly and three-plus touchdowns are simply just too much to take.
Bet: Iowa +23 (-110)
Other Bets
- New Mexico State +11 (-110) @ Liberty
- Tulane -4 (-110) vs. SMU
- Toledo -8 (-110) vs. Miami (OH)
- UNLV +2.5 (-110) vs. Boise State
- Troy -6.5 (-109) vs. Appalachian State