Stanford Steve and The Bear: Week 4 college football picks, bets and nuggets
"Stanford Steve" Coughlin and Chris "The Bear" Fallica preview Week 4 of the 2022 college football season as only they can, offering their top bets, nuggets and totals worth wagering on.
Odds and lines are from Caesars Sportsbook unless otherwise noted.
Records:
The Bear (Last week: 4-3. Season: 11-6-1)
Stanford Steve (Last week: 1-3. Season: 4-9)
The plays
Wisconsin Badgers at Ohio State Buckeyes (-18.5, 57)
The Bear: I have very little faith in Wisconsin's ability to score points here, and while I have a ton of respect for Jim Leonhard and his defensive track record, it will take a massive effort from the Badgers to hang in this one vs. a potent Buckeye offense.
Pick: Ohio State -18.5
Texas Longhorns (-6.5, 60) at Texas Tech Red Raiders
Stanford Steve: Last week, Texas showed its elite talent in the second half and gave me a dose, as I took UTSA plus the points and it wasn't enough. So, I'm just asking for trouble again going against a coach and a coaching staff I think the world of in Steve Sarkisian and his staff in Austin. But, I think the Red Raiders have the goods to hang around in this game in front of what should be a crazy crowd in Lubbock. Tech went to Raleigh last week and outgained the Wolfpack but it turned the ball over four times and whenever you do that you cannot expect to win and even worse not expect to cover. Big spot here for Joey McGuire and his group. I think they keep it close enough, so we'll take the home team plus the points.
Pick: Texas Tech +6.5 (Texas 31, Texas Tech 27)
The Bear: Tech playing in Lubbock is completely different than Texas Tech playing on the road. Give Texas a ton of credit for gutting out a nice win last week against UTSA, but going on the road here vs. a team coming off a loss in the favorite role might spell trouble against a very capable Tech team, whose defense has been playing better than many might expect.
Pick: Texas Tech +6.5
James Madison Dukes at Appalachian State Mountaineers (-7, 58.5)
Stanford Steve: The picks have not been up to standard this year and even worse now I feel bad going against America's team this week in Appalachian State. But, when I look at the other side, I see a team in the Dukes who have the best opportunity to get a big win in their first year in the Sun Belt that they could ask for. They have a very back-loaded schedule, as they face the likes of Louisville and Coastal Carolina when November gets here. So, this is the Dukes first shot at getting some attention and I think they are a very well-coached team by Curt Cignetti, so I expect a big effort from them in their first true road test as a Sun Belt team.
Pick: James Madison +7 (Appalachian State 27, James Madison 24)
Hawai'i Rainbow Warriors at New Mexico State Aggies (-4.5, 53)
The Bear: This one looks ugly on paper but I think it's a good spot to play the Aggies, who have been blown out by Minnesota and Wisconsin and were done in vs. Nevada by turnovers. Hawai'i hasn't been competitive at all vs. FBS teams and you have to wonder if the bouncing around -- two weeks ago at Michigan, last week at home and now back to the mainland. Jerry Kill also has a big coaching edge here.
Pick: New Mexico State -4.5
Northern Illinois Huskies at Kentucky Wildcats (-26.5, 53)
The Bear: The Huskies should have enough offense to hang around in this one against a Kentucky team that might have its mind on next week's trip to Oxford. UK scored 37 on another MAC team -- Miami (Ohio) -- so if you assume NIU can score 14, that may be enough for the cover.
Pick: Northern Illinois +26.5
UConn Huskies at NC State Wolfpack (-38.5, 49.5)
The Bear: This is another hold your nose special as you've got to stomach backing one of the worst teams in the country, one that lost by 34 at home two weeks ago to Syracuse and 59-0 last week at Michigan. But this one is about the spot. NC State has been hearing about Clemson all offseason. That's who the Wolfpack face next week. I'd expect them to simply go through the motions this week and sit a lot of starters late in this one. Maybe they'll still cover, but I'm willing to take a chance that the Huskies can hang within 40.
Pick: Connecticut +38.5
Iowa Hawkeyes (-7.5, 34.5) at Rutgers Scarlet Knights
The Bear: Iowa has received a lot of deserved criticism for its lack of offense, but against a Rutgers team that has failed to score 17 points in nine of its past 13 games vs. FBS opponents and struggled with Temple last week, the Hawkeyes should be able to win another one in comfortable fashion as they did last week vs. Nevada.
Pick: Iowa -7.5
Arkansas Razorbacks at Texas A&M Aggies (-2, 49.5)
Stanford Steve: Arkansas escaped last week in a win vs. Missouri State as Bobby Petrino returned to Fayetteville for the first time since his stint as head coach ended. The Hogs' defense against the pass has been, let's just say, not great this year. It is dead last in the country in passing yards allowed, giving up an average of 352 yards a game. And on the other side, Texas A&M got a much-needed win vs. Miami last week, as they inserted
Max Johnson at quarterback. The offense wasn't great but it was effective enough to get the win. But, that's my point here, even if the Aggies are successful in the pass game, I still think Arkansas has the firepower on offense with
KJ Jefferson to outscore the Aggies if it gets to a high-scoring game. Weird things always happen in this game, but we'll take the Razorbacks plus the points at the neutral site in Dallas.
Pick: Arkansas +2 (Arkansas 27, Texas A&M 20)
Duke Blue Devils at Kansas Jayhawks (-7, 66)
Stanford Steve: No one has come off the radar at the quarterback position and impressed me more this year than
Jalon Daniels from Kansas. He's completing 67% of his passes and thrown 7 TDs to just one interception, plus he's No. 1 in the country in QBR (97.5). The Jayhawks are the best story in the sport in this young season in my opinion and Daniels is the major reason why. Their wins are more impressive to me than their opponent this week and this is why I give them the advantage in this game. They've gone on the road and scored 103 points in two games, at West Virginia and at Houston. We'll take the home team and give the points.
Pick: Kansas -7 (Kansas 31, Duke 20)