Friday's Tip Sheet
August 29, 2017
There are six lined games set for Friday of Week 1 in college football. Washington begins its quest to get back to the College Football Playoff by heading across the country into New Jersey. Wisconsin is at home looking to avoid an upset bid from Utah State that nearly resulted in a shocking loss at Camp Randall five years ago.
We’ll tackle those two games before touching on the others in Bonus Nuggets.
**Washington at Rutgers**
-- As of Tuesday, most betting shops had Washington installed as a 27.5-point road favorite with a total of 52 for ‘over/under’ wagers. The Huskies opened as 31-point ‘chalk’ at most books in late June, but the number was heavily adjusted Monday morning.
-- When these schools met last season in the opener at Husky Stadium, Washington raced out to a 48-3 third-quarter lead en route to a 48-13 spread-covering victory as a 25-point home ‘chalk.’ The 61 combined points slipped ‘over’ the 56-point total thanks to RU’s 10-yard TD run from Janarion Grant with 5:53 remaining. The Scarlet Knights committed three turnovers and allowed the Huskies to score a pair of touchdowns on special teams. UW’s Jake Browning completed 18-of-27 throws for 287 yards and three TDs with one interception. Dante Pettis had a 68-yard punt return for a score. Grant had nine catches for 56 yards in the losing effort. He combined for 160 all-purpose yards on 18 total touches.
-- Washington went 12-2 straight up and 7-7 against the spread last season. The Huskies made the College Football Playoff for the first time in school history, losing 24-7 to Alabama in the semifinals as 14-point underdogs at the Ga. Dome in Atlanta. They beat four ranked teams, including a 41-10 win as 7.5-point ‘chalk’ over Colorado at the Pac-12 Championship Game. Chris Petersen’s only other defeat came at home to Southern Cal by a 26-13 count. UW had notable scalps vs. Stanford (44-6), at Utah (31-24) and at Washington State (45-17).
-- Washington returns seven starters on offense and six on defense. With the exception of leading receiver John Ross, Petersen’s squad brings back all of its skill players on offense. Browning, a junior who has already started 26 games and garnered fourth-team All-American honors in 2016, completed 62.1 percent of his passes last year for 3,430 yards with a 43/9 touchdown-to-interception ratio. Pettis also returns after hauling in 53 receptions for 822 yards and 15 TDs. Junior RB Myles Gaskin earned first-team All Pac-12 honors by rushing for 1,373 yards and 10 TDs while averaging 5.8 yards per carry. Gaskin also had 19 catches for 137 yards and one TD. Senior RB Lavon Coleman provided excellent depth, rushing for 852 yards and seven TDs with a 7.5 YPC average.
-- Washington’s defense gave up merely 17.7 points per game in 2016. This unit is led by two senior linebackers in Keishawn Bierria and Azeem Victor and a pair of junior defensive tackles, Greg Gaines and Vita Vea. There’s also a true sophomore safety in Taylor Rapp, who was a second-team Freshman All-American after recording 53 tackles and four interceptions. Bierria had 70 tackles, two sacks, three tackles for loss, and two passes broken up, while Victor produced 67 tackles and three TFL’s. Vea had 39 tackles, five sacks, 1.5 TFL’s, two PBU and two QB hurries, and Gaines tallied 35 tackles, 3.5 sacks and 4.5 TFL’s.
-- UW announced Monday a one-game suspension for Victor and a two-game suspension for reserve CB Austin Joyner, who had 10 tackles and one interception in 12 games as a freshman last year. Also, starting sophomore LB D.J. Beavers is out indefinitely with a foot injury. Beavers started four games in ’16, contributing 40 tackles, 0.5 TFL’s, one interception and one PBU.
-- Washington owns a 6-3 spread record in nine games as a road favorite during Petersen’s first three years at the school. The Huskies are just 2-3 versus the number in five games as double-digit road ‘chalk’ under Petersen. This is their biggest road favorite spot since Petersen took over.
-- Rutgers limped to a 2-10 SU record and a 4-8 ATS mark in its first season under head coach Chris Ash, who came to RU after two seasons of serving as co-DC at Ohio State under Urban Meyer. The Scarlet Knights got their only wins of ’16 at home over Howard (52-14) and New Mexico (37-28). They finished the year on a nine-game losing streak, dropping six of those nine (and seven total) by double-digit margins, including losses of 58-0 at Ohio State, 78-0 vs. Michigan, 49-0 at Michigan State and 39-0 vs. Penn State. RU was -2,010 net yards for the season with a minus-five turnover margin.
-- Rutgers brings back six starters on offense and eight on defense. The new starting QB is Kyle Bolin, a grad transfer from Louisville who was stuck on the bench behind last year’s Heisman Trophy winner, Lamar Jackson. In three years at U of L that included six starts under center, Bolin completed 58 percent of his passes for 2,104 yards with a 13/10 TD-INT ratio.
-- Grant is RU’s best player who went down with a season-ending injury in the fourth game last year. He is a three-time All-Big Ten selection as a return specialist. Before getting injured in ’16, he had already produced 20 catches for 210 yards. Also, Grant had rushed for 138 yards and three TDs on just 16 attempts for an 8.6 YPC average. He also had two TDs on special teams.
-- When Bolin isn’t targeting Grant, his next-favorite target will be sophomore Jawuan Harris, who had a team-high 39 receptions for 481 yards and three TDs in ’16. RU also returns its leading rusher in senior Robert Martin, who had 625 yards for two TDs with a 5.2 YPC average.
-- After RU’s offense averaged an abysmal 15.7 PPG last season, Ash hired former Minnesota and No. Illinois head coach Jerry Kill as his new offensive coordinator. This is the eighth different OC at RU in eight years.
-- RU’s defense surrendered 37.5 PPG in ’16. This unit brings back its top two tacklers, junior LB Trevor Morris (102, 1 sack) and junior LB Deonte Roberts (95, 1 INT).
-- Fox Sports 1 will provide the telecast at 8:00 p.m. Eastern.
**Utah State at Wisconsin**
-- As of Tuesday, most books had Wisconsin favored by 27.5 points with a total of 52. The Aggies were 35/1 on the money line at 5Dimes.eu (risk $100 to win $3,500).
-- Wisconsin finished ’16 with an 11-3 SU record and a stellar 10-3-1 ATS mark. The Badgers’ losses came against teams that were ranked second, fourth and eighth in the nation at the time. They covered the spread in losses at Michigan (14-7 as 10.5-point underdogs) and vs. Ohio State (30-23 in overtime as 10.5-point ‘dogs), and the other defeat came to Penn State (38-31) at the Big Ten Championship Game. Wisconsin had three victories over top-10 teams at the time they played, winning 30-6 at eighth-ranked Michigan State in Week 4. The Badgers also knocked off fifth-ranked LSU (16-14) in the season opener at Lambeau Field and beat seventh-ranked Nebraska 23-17 in overtime.
-- Wisconsin won a 24-16 decision over previously-undefeated and 12th-ranked Western Michigan at the Cotton Bowl, hooking up its backers as a 7.5-point favorite.
-- Paul Chryst’s team is 21-6 SU and 17-9-1 ATS since he took over for Gary Andersen in 2015. He was Wisconsin’s offensive coordinator from 2005-11 when the school set offensive records galore. Chryst was the head coach at Pitt from 2012-14, taking the Panthers to three bowl games while going 19-19.
-- Wisconsin owns a 5-4-1 spread record with one outright loss in nine games as a double-digit home favorite during Chryst’s tenure.
-- Wisconsin already lost All-American candidate Jack Cichy to a season-ending ACL tear a few weeks ago. In seven games before getting injured last season, Cichy had 60 tackles, 1.5 sacks, 5.5 TFL’s, two PBU and three QB hurries. Now sophomore LB Zack Baun (foot) is out for the season. Baun had 15 tackles and 3.5 TFL’s last year. Reserve RB Taiwan Deal is out indefinitely with an ankle injury. Deal rushed 32 times for 164 yards last year, averaging 5.1 YPC.
-- Wisconsin returns eight starters on offense and six on defense. The defense gave up merely 15.6 PPG and had 34 sacks. This unit was led by rising junior LB T.J. Edwards, who produced 89 tackles, three sacks, 5.5 TFL’s, three interceptions, three QB hurries, two PBU and one forced fumble despite missing the first two games of the year. Senior safety D’Cota Dixon is another standout player, registering 60 tackles, four interceptions, four QB hurries, four PBU, one sack, 1.5 TFL’s, one forced fumble and one fumble recovery in ’16.
-- As a redshirt freshman last year, Alex Hornibrook started nine games at QB. The southpaw completed 58.6 percent of his passes for 1,262 yards with a 9/7 TD-INT ratio. The Badgers are hoping he can make a big jump in improvement in ’17. Hornibrook will have his two favorite targets back, senior WR Jazz Peavy and senior TE Troy Fumagalli, a second-team All Big-Ten pick last season. Peavy had 43 receptions for 635 yards and five TDs, while Fumagalli hauled in 47 catches for 580 yards and two TDs.
-- Utah State missed out on the postseason last season for the first time since 2010. The Aggies finished a second straight campaign with a losing record after winning 19 games in the first two years of Matt Wells’s tenure. They went 4-8 ATS in ’16, going 1-3 ATS in four outings as road underdogs. Utah State is 5-9 versus the number in 14 games as a road ‘dog on Wells’s watch.
-- Utah State brings back 10 of 22 starters, five on each side of the ball. The Aggies went winless in six road assignments last season, limping to an atrocious 1-5 spread record.
-- Utah State led 14-3 at intermission in its last trip to Camp Randall in 2012. However, when the Aggies missed a short field goal on the game’s final play, Wisconsin won a 16-14 decision despite never threatening to cover as a 14-point home favorite. During that banner campaign, Utah State finished 11-2 with its lone defeats coming at Wisconsin and at BYU by a 6-3 score.
-- Utah State senior QB Kent Myers has started 25 career games. He has a 31/14 TD-INT ratio in those three seasons, but he only had 10 TD passes and eight interceptions during 12 starts in 2016. Myers completed a career-low 58.0 percent of his passes for 2,389 yards. Myers rushed for 449 yards and six TDs last season. Myers has his favorite target back in the mix. Ron’quavion Tarver had 46 catches for 602 yards and three TDs. Tonny Lindsey also returns after rushing for a team-best 763 yards and six TDs with a 5.2 YPC average.
-- Kickoff is scheduled for 9:00 p.m. Eastern on ESPN.
**B.E.’s Bonus Nuggets**
-- The Lane Kiffin Era in Boca Raton will get started Friday night when Florida Atlantic plays host to Navy at 8:00 p.m. Eastern on ESPNU. As of Tuesday, most spots had the Midshipmen listed as a 10.5-point road ‘chalk’ with a total of 68.5 points. The Owls were +300 on the money line (risk $100 to win $300). Ken Niumatalolo’s squad went 9-5 both SU and ATS last year, ending the season on a three-game losing streak, including a 48-45 loss to La. Tech at the Armed Forces Bowl. The Middies took the cash, however, as seven-point underdogs against the Bulldogs. Navy brings back four starters on offense and eight on defense. FAU went 3-9 SU and 3-8-1 ATS in ’16. The Owls return nine starters on offense and eight on defense. WR Kalib Woods “is not on our football team,” according to recent remarks from Kiffin. Woods was arrested for his part in a fight during the summer and charged with two felony battery counts, though his lawyers have made a motion to have the charges dismissed. Woods led FAU with 68 catches for 934 yards and one TD in ’16.
-- Colorado and Colorado State will square off in Denver at 8:00 p.m. Eastern on the Pac-12 Network. According to recent reports, this rivalry will move back to being play on campus rather than in the Mile High City after this encounter. One reason for this is CSU’s new stadium that opened last Saturday with the Rams thumping Oregon State by a 58-27 count as 3.5-point home ‘chalk.’ The 85 combined points soared ‘over’ the 60-point total. Nick Stevens threw for 334 yards and three TDs compared to just one interception. Michael Gallup had 11 receptions for 134 yards, while Tre Thomas had a 44-yard pick-six as one of five turnovers forced by the CSU defense. CSU has lost back-to-back games to Colorado and three of the last four, including a 44-6 beatdown in ’16. Mike MacIntyre’s squad is coming off a breakout campaign, as it won the Pac-12 South and finished with a 10-4 record. The Buffaloes return nine starters on offense and three on defense. As of Tuesday, most spots had the Buffaloes favored by 5.5 points with a total of 66. The Rams were +180 on the money line (risk $100 to win $180).
-- Eastern Michigan is a 14-point home favorite vs. Charlotte for Friday’s 6:30 p.m. Eastern kick of a non-televised affair. The total is 57 points, while the 49ers are +450 to win outright.
-- As of Tuesday, Boston College was favored by three (with some extra -115 or -120 juice) or 3.5 for its opener at Northern Illinois. The total was in the 51-52 range. These schools met at Alumni Stadium in Chestnut Hill in ’15, with BC capturing a 17-14 victory. However, the Huskies covered the number as five-point road underdogs. BC went 7-6 both SU and ATS last season and returns eight starters on offense and seven on defense. Keep an eye on the Eagles’ senior DE Harold Landry, a fourth-team All-American last year when he had 51 tackles, 16 sacks, 5.5 TFL’s, seven forced fumbles, seven QB hurries, four PBU and one interception. The Eagles are 3-4 ATS as road favorites during Steve Addazio’s tenure. NIU won at least 11 games in five consecutive seasons from 2010-14, but it has gone 8-6 and 5-7 over the last two campaigns. The Huskies, who are 0-2 ATS as home ‘dogs on Rod Carey’s watch, bring back five starters on offense and seven on defense. They lost four one-possession games in ’16. This game will kick at 9:30 p.m. Eastern on the CBS Sports College Network.
-- Baylor starting safeties Davion Hall and Henry Black have been injured since the start of training camp. Now sophomore CB Grayland Arnold is out for 6-8 weeks after undergoing surgery Sunday on his broken arm. In addition, senior DB Travon Blanchard has transferred to Texas A&M-Commerce and will play right away. In fact, he practiced with the FCS Lions this past Friday and will play this week vs. North Alabama. Blanchard was a second-team All Big-12 selection last year when he recorded 73 tackles, 7.5 TFL’s, 1.5 sacks, five PBU, one interception and one QB hurry. And finally, RB Terrence Williams is out indefinitely for undisclosed reasons. Williams rushed for 1,048 yards and 11 TDs in ’16, averaging 5.7 YPC. Fortunately for the Bears, they open with cupcake home games vs. Liberty and UTSA.
August 29, 2017
There are six lined games set for Friday of Week 1 in college football. Washington begins its quest to get back to the College Football Playoff by heading across the country into New Jersey. Wisconsin is at home looking to avoid an upset bid from Utah State that nearly resulted in a shocking loss at Camp Randall five years ago.
We’ll tackle those two games before touching on the others in Bonus Nuggets.
**Washington at Rutgers**
-- As of Tuesday, most betting shops had Washington installed as a 27.5-point road favorite with a total of 52 for ‘over/under’ wagers. The Huskies opened as 31-point ‘chalk’ at most books in late June, but the number was heavily adjusted Monday morning.
-- When these schools met last season in the opener at Husky Stadium, Washington raced out to a 48-3 third-quarter lead en route to a 48-13 spread-covering victory as a 25-point home ‘chalk.’ The 61 combined points slipped ‘over’ the 56-point total thanks to RU’s 10-yard TD run from Janarion Grant with 5:53 remaining. The Scarlet Knights committed three turnovers and allowed the Huskies to score a pair of touchdowns on special teams. UW’s Jake Browning completed 18-of-27 throws for 287 yards and three TDs with one interception. Dante Pettis had a 68-yard punt return for a score. Grant had nine catches for 56 yards in the losing effort. He combined for 160 all-purpose yards on 18 total touches.
-- Washington went 12-2 straight up and 7-7 against the spread last season. The Huskies made the College Football Playoff for the first time in school history, losing 24-7 to Alabama in the semifinals as 14-point underdogs at the Ga. Dome in Atlanta. They beat four ranked teams, including a 41-10 win as 7.5-point ‘chalk’ over Colorado at the Pac-12 Championship Game. Chris Petersen’s only other defeat came at home to Southern Cal by a 26-13 count. UW had notable scalps vs. Stanford (44-6), at Utah (31-24) and at Washington State (45-17).
-- Washington returns seven starters on offense and six on defense. With the exception of leading receiver John Ross, Petersen’s squad brings back all of its skill players on offense. Browning, a junior who has already started 26 games and garnered fourth-team All-American honors in 2016, completed 62.1 percent of his passes last year for 3,430 yards with a 43/9 touchdown-to-interception ratio. Pettis also returns after hauling in 53 receptions for 822 yards and 15 TDs. Junior RB Myles Gaskin earned first-team All Pac-12 honors by rushing for 1,373 yards and 10 TDs while averaging 5.8 yards per carry. Gaskin also had 19 catches for 137 yards and one TD. Senior RB Lavon Coleman provided excellent depth, rushing for 852 yards and seven TDs with a 7.5 YPC average.
-- Washington’s defense gave up merely 17.7 points per game in 2016. This unit is led by two senior linebackers in Keishawn Bierria and Azeem Victor and a pair of junior defensive tackles, Greg Gaines and Vita Vea. There’s also a true sophomore safety in Taylor Rapp, who was a second-team Freshman All-American after recording 53 tackles and four interceptions. Bierria had 70 tackles, two sacks, three tackles for loss, and two passes broken up, while Victor produced 67 tackles and three TFL’s. Vea had 39 tackles, five sacks, 1.5 TFL’s, two PBU and two QB hurries, and Gaines tallied 35 tackles, 3.5 sacks and 4.5 TFL’s.
-- UW announced Monday a one-game suspension for Victor and a two-game suspension for reserve CB Austin Joyner, who had 10 tackles and one interception in 12 games as a freshman last year. Also, starting sophomore LB D.J. Beavers is out indefinitely with a foot injury. Beavers started four games in ’16, contributing 40 tackles, 0.5 TFL’s, one interception and one PBU.
-- Washington owns a 6-3 spread record in nine games as a road favorite during Petersen’s first three years at the school. The Huskies are just 2-3 versus the number in five games as double-digit road ‘chalk’ under Petersen. This is their biggest road favorite spot since Petersen took over.
-- Rutgers limped to a 2-10 SU record and a 4-8 ATS mark in its first season under head coach Chris Ash, who came to RU after two seasons of serving as co-DC at Ohio State under Urban Meyer. The Scarlet Knights got their only wins of ’16 at home over Howard (52-14) and New Mexico (37-28). They finished the year on a nine-game losing streak, dropping six of those nine (and seven total) by double-digit margins, including losses of 58-0 at Ohio State, 78-0 vs. Michigan, 49-0 at Michigan State and 39-0 vs. Penn State. RU was -2,010 net yards for the season with a minus-five turnover margin.
-- Rutgers brings back six starters on offense and eight on defense. The new starting QB is Kyle Bolin, a grad transfer from Louisville who was stuck on the bench behind last year’s Heisman Trophy winner, Lamar Jackson. In three years at U of L that included six starts under center, Bolin completed 58 percent of his passes for 2,104 yards with a 13/10 TD-INT ratio.
-- Grant is RU’s best player who went down with a season-ending injury in the fourth game last year. He is a three-time All-Big Ten selection as a return specialist. Before getting injured in ’16, he had already produced 20 catches for 210 yards. Also, Grant had rushed for 138 yards and three TDs on just 16 attempts for an 8.6 YPC average. He also had two TDs on special teams.
-- When Bolin isn’t targeting Grant, his next-favorite target will be sophomore Jawuan Harris, who had a team-high 39 receptions for 481 yards and three TDs in ’16. RU also returns its leading rusher in senior Robert Martin, who had 625 yards for two TDs with a 5.2 YPC average.
-- After RU’s offense averaged an abysmal 15.7 PPG last season, Ash hired former Minnesota and No. Illinois head coach Jerry Kill as his new offensive coordinator. This is the eighth different OC at RU in eight years.
-- RU’s defense surrendered 37.5 PPG in ’16. This unit brings back its top two tacklers, junior LB Trevor Morris (102, 1 sack) and junior LB Deonte Roberts (95, 1 INT).
-- Fox Sports 1 will provide the telecast at 8:00 p.m. Eastern.
**Utah State at Wisconsin**
-- As of Tuesday, most books had Wisconsin favored by 27.5 points with a total of 52. The Aggies were 35/1 on the money line at 5Dimes.eu (risk $100 to win $3,500).
-- Wisconsin finished ’16 with an 11-3 SU record and a stellar 10-3-1 ATS mark. The Badgers’ losses came against teams that were ranked second, fourth and eighth in the nation at the time. They covered the spread in losses at Michigan (14-7 as 10.5-point underdogs) and vs. Ohio State (30-23 in overtime as 10.5-point ‘dogs), and the other defeat came to Penn State (38-31) at the Big Ten Championship Game. Wisconsin had three victories over top-10 teams at the time they played, winning 30-6 at eighth-ranked Michigan State in Week 4. The Badgers also knocked off fifth-ranked LSU (16-14) in the season opener at Lambeau Field and beat seventh-ranked Nebraska 23-17 in overtime.
-- Wisconsin won a 24-16 decision over previously-undefeated and 12th-ranked Western Michigan at the Cotton Bowl, hooking up its backers as a 7.5-point favorite.
-- Paul Chryst’s team is 21-6 SU and 17-9-1 ATS since he took over for Gary Andersen in 2015. He was Wisconsin’s offensive coordinator from 2005-11 when the school set offensive records galore. Chryst was the head coach at Pitt from 2012-14, taking the Panthers to three bowl games while going 19-19.
-- Wisconsin owns a 5-4-1 spread record with one outright loss in nine games as a double-digit home favorite during Chryst’s tenure.
-- Wisconsin already lost All-American candidate Jack Cichy to a season-ending ACL tear a few weeks ago. In seven games before getting injured last season, Cichy had 60 tackles, 1.5 sacks, 5.5 TFL’s, two PBU and three QB hurries. Now sophomore LB Zack Baun (foot) is out for the season. Baun had 15 tackles and 3.5 TFL’s last year. Reserve RB Taiwan Deal is out indefinitely with an ankle injury. Deal rushed 32 times for 164 yards last year, averaging 5.1 YPC.
-- Wisconsin returns eight starters on offense and six on defense. The defense gave up merely 15.6 PPG and had 34 sacks. This unit was led by rising junior LB T.J. Edwards, who produced 89 tackles, three sacks, 5.5 TFL’s, three interceptions, three QB hurries, two PBU and one forced fumble despite missing the first two games of the year. Senior safety D’Cota Dixon is another standout player, registering 60 tackles, four interceptions, four QB hurries, four PBU, one sack, 1.5 TFL’s, one forced fumble and one fumble recovery in ’16.
-- As a redshirt freshman last year, Alex Hornibrook started nine games at QB. The southpaw completed 58.6 percent of his passes for 1,262 yards with a 9/7 TD-INT ratio. The Badgers are hoping he can make a big jump in improvement in ’17. Hornibrook will have his two favorite targets back, senior WR Jazz Peavy and senior TE Troy Fumagalli, a second-team All Big-Ten pick last season. Peavy had 43 receptions for 635 yards and five TDs, while Fumagalli hauled in 47 catches for 580 yards and two TDs.
-- Utah State missed out on the postseason last season for the first time since 2010. The Aggies finished a second straight campaign with a losing record after winning 19 games in the first two years of Matt Wells’s tenure. They went 4-8 ATS in ’16, going 1-3 ATS in four outings as road underdogs. Utah State is 5-9 versus the number in 14 games as a road ‘dog on Wells’s watch.
-- Utah State brings back 10 of 22 starters, five on each side of the ball. The Aggies went winless in six road assignments last season, limping to an atrocious 1-5 spread record.
-- Utah State led 14-3 at intermission in its last trip to Camp Randall in 2012. However, when the Aggies missed a short field goal on the game’s final play, Wisconsin won a 16-14 decision despite never threatening to cover as a 14-point home favorite. During that banner campaign, Utah State finished 11-2 with its lone defeats coming at Wisconsin and at BYU by a 6-3 score.
-- Utah State senior QB Kent Myers has started 25 career games. He has a 31/14 TD-INT ratio in those three seasons, but he only had 10 TD passes and eight interceptions during 12 starts in 2016. Myers completed a career-low 58.0 percent of his passes for 2,389 yards. Myers rushed for 449 yards and six TDs last season. Myers has his favorite target back in the mix. Ron’quavion Tarver had 46 catches for 602 yards and three TDs. Tonny Lindsey also returns after rushing for a team-best 763 yards and six TDs with a 5.2 YPC average.
-- Kickoff is scheduled for 9:00 p.m. Eastern on ESPN.
**B.E.’s Bonus Nuggets**
-- The Lane Kiffin Era in Boca Raton will get started Friday night when Florida Atlantic plays host to Navy at 8:00 p.m. Eastern on ESPNU. As of Tuesday, most spots had the Midshipmen listed as a 10.5-point road ‘chalk’ with a total of 68.5 points. The Owls were +300 on the money line (risk $100 to win $300). Ken Niumatalolo’s squad went 9-5 both SU and ATS last year, ending the season on a three-game losing streak, including a 48-45 loss to La. Tech at the Armed Forces Bowl. The Middies took the cash, however, as seven-point underdogs against the Bulldogs. Navy brings back four starters on offense and eight on defense. FAU went 3-9 SU and 3-8-1 ATS in ’16. The Owls return nine starters on offense and eight on defense. WR Kalib Woods “is not on our football team,” according to recent remarks from Kiffin. Woods was arrested for his part in a fight during the summer and charged with two felony battery counts, though his lawyers have made a motion to have the charges dismissed. Woods led FAU with 68 catches for 934 yards and one TD in ’16.
-- Colorado and Colorado State will square off in Denver at 8:00 p.m. Eastern on the Pac-12 Network. According to recent reports, this rivalry will move back to being play on campus rather than in the Mile High City after this encounter. One reason for this is CSU’s new stadium that opened last Saturday with the Rams thumping Oregon State by a 58-27 count as 3.5-point home ‘chalk.’ The 85 combined points soared ‘over’ the 60-point total. Nick Stevens threw for 334 yards and three TDs compared to just one interception. Michael Gallup had 11 receptions for 134 yards, while Tre Thomas had a 44-yard pick-six as one of five turnovers forced by the CSU defense. CSU has lost back-to-back games to Colorado and three of the last four, including a 44-6 beatdown in ’16. Mike MacIntyre’s squad is coming off a breakout campaign, as it won the Pac-12 South and finished with a 10-4 record. The Buffaloes return nine starters on offense and three on defense. As of Tuesday, most spots had the Buffaloes favored by 5.5 points with a total of 66. The Rams were +180 on the money line (risk $100 to win $180).
-- Eastern Michigan is a 14-point home favorite vs. Charlotte for Friday’s 6:30 p.m. Eastern kick of a non-televised affair. The total is 57 points, while the 49ers are +450 to win outright.
-- As of Tuesday, Boston College was favored by three (with some extra -115 or -120 juice) or 3.5 for its opener at Northern Illinois. The total was in the 51-52 range. These schools met at Alumni Stadium in Chestnut Hill in ’15, with BC capturing a 17-14 victory. However, the Huskies covered the number as five-point road underdogs. BC went 7-6 both SU and ATS last season and returns eight starters on offense and seven on defense. Keep an eye on the Eagles’ senior DE Harold Landry, a fourth-team All-American last year when he had 51 tackles, 16 sacks, 5.5 TFL’s, seven forced fumbles, seven QB hurries, four PBU and one interception. The Eagles are 3-4 ATS as road favorites during Steve Addazio’s tenure. NIU won at least 11 games in five consecutive seasons from 2010-14, but it has gone 8-6 and 5-7 over the last two campaigns. The Huskies, who are 0-2 ATS as home ‘dogs on Rod Carey’s watch, bring back five starters on offense and seven on defense. They lost four one-possession games in ’16. This game will kick at 9:30 p.m. Eastern on the CBS Sports College Network.
-- Baylor starting safeties Davion Hall and Henry Black have been injured since the start of training camp. Now sophomore CB Grayland Arnold is out for 6-8 weeks after undergoing surgery Sunday on his broken arm. In addition, senior DB Travon Blanchard has transferred to Texas A&M-Commerce and will play right away. In fact, he practiced with the FCS Lions this past Friday and will play this week vs. North Alabama. Blanchard was a second-team All Big-12 selection last year when he recorded 73 tackles, 7.5 TFL’s, 1.5 sacks, five PBU, one interception and one QB hurry. And finally, RB Terrence Williams is out indefinitely for undisclosed reasons. Williams rushed for 1,048 yards and 11 TDs in ’16, averaging 5.7 YPC. Fortunately for the Bears, they open with cupcake home games vs. Liberty and UTSA.
