04.11.2022

Two Bets to Consider for Friday Night College Football Action

Week 10 of college football rolls on tonight with three more games to get the weekend started. Two of those games feature bets that could get the betting weekend started on the right note. I’ll break down those games and get into what my plays are for each of them.

Duke @ Boston College Game Preview

A 7:00 ET ACC game to get the night started as the (5-3) Duke Blue Devils head to Chestnut Hill to take on (2-6) Boston College. These two teams have caught people by surprise for two different reasons with the Blue Devils exceeding expectations and Boston College shocking people with their horrid play.

Duke enters this week coming off a bye week and prior to that a 45-21 win over Miami. Both sides of the ball have been playing at a really high level for the Blue Devils as they enter this week 38th in points per game and 34th in points allowed per game. Quarterback Riley Leonard has been efficient with both his legs and arm this season entering this week with 8 rushing touchdowns and 10 passing touchdowns. He should be able to continue his solid play tonight against a lackluster Eagles defense.

Boston College enters this week with zero momentum as they come off a 13-3 loss to UCONN and question marks at quarterback with Phil Jurkovec listed as day-to-day entering tonight. If Jurkovec can’t play redshirt freshman Emmett Morehead will get his first career start for the Eagles. Regardless of who is at quarterback Boston College has not been impressive on offense this season only averaging 14.3 points per game.

The Eagles have shown no ability or threat of a run game all season only averaging 63.4 rush yards a game this season. If they have to start the backup tonight and need to rely on the run game the Blue Devils will be a tough team to do so against as they enter tonight ranked 24th in the country in yards per rush allowed.

Pick for the Game

After opening at (-3) this game quickly jumped and currently, has Duke favored by (-9.5) and that is who I’ll be taking for my first bet of the night. This is one game I would advise you to jump on immediately because this number could quickly get outside of a football number.

The Eagles are 1-7 ATS entering tonight’s match-up and that was with a quarterback who was supposed to be one of the best in the conference. This team has been a disaster all year and if they have to start the backup this game could get out of hand early.

Getting a refreshed Duke team off a bye within a football number is a great way to start the college football betting slate. The Blue Devils are 5-3 ATS this season and I expect a six in that win column by the end of the night.

Oregon State @ Washington Game Preview

The late-night game is a 10:30 ET Pac 12 showdown between two teams tied for fifth in the conference. Oregon State heads into Washington ranked 23rd and with a (6-2) record to take on the (6-2) Huskies. Both teams enter this week fresh off conference wins as well.

These teams have different strengths as Washington enters tonight’s contest ranked 10th in points per game with an average of 38.7. Quarterback Michael Penix Jr. has been playing at an incredibly high level with 22 touchdown passes and only four interceptions. The transfer Penix Jr. has been connecting with receivers Rome Odunze and Jalen McMillan consistently all season so it will be a fun match-up against an Oregon State defense allowing only 22 points per game.

The Beavers have relied primarily on this defense and their rushing attack with them entering tonight running the ball 58.6% of the time which is 18th in the country. Deshaun Fenwick and Damien Martinez have been an effective backfield duo combining for nine rushing touchdowns this season.

Inconsistent quarterback play is a significant reason for the running game reliance as Chance Nolan, who is now injured, has only 7 touchdown passes and 8 interceptions. Backup Ben Gulbranson will start tonight for the Beavers he is 3-0 as a starter and the Beavers seem more comfortable letting him throw the ball which bodes well for tonight. The Huskies are ranked 118th in the country in opponent completion percentage allowing opponents to complete 66.8% of their passes.

Play for the Game

My last play for the night is on the point total as I like the over of 54.5 points. This number opened at 60.5 but was promptly bet down to the current number which I think is right around where it should be.

The Huskies love to play at home and always seem to put up big numbers at home with the over being 7-0 in their last seven home games. An interesting note that stood out for me is the over is 4-0 the last four games the Huskies allowed less than 100 rush yards in their previous game which shows they struggle to build off those performances. An inability to stop the run against the Beavers is a recipe for disaster.

Penix Jr. plays really well at home and rarely turns the ball over so I think he and his talented receivers can challenge this solid Oregon State defense. Despite their stellar defense the over is 5-2 in the Beavers last seven games. I like the night to end with a high-scoring Pac-12 game.