College Football Week 10 Picks: Friday Night Lights Best Bets

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Check out what bets we’re targeting with our Week 10 Tuesday night selections!

Where to Watch (25) Memphis Tigers vs Rice Owls

Stadium: Rice Stadium
Location: Houston, TX
Where to Watch: ESPN2
Time: 7:00 p.m. ET
Spread: MEM -13.5 | Total: 48.5
Moneyline: MEM -550 | RICE +380

Note: All odds are subject to change after article publication. Get the most up-to-date odds here.

Fresh off their stunning defeat of formerly-ranked South Florida, the Memphis Tigers look to continue their ascent up the college football rankings. They won’t get much credit for beating the Rice Owls on Friday, but the Tigers also can’t take their Week 10 opponents for granted.

Rice has a respectable 4-4 record on the season, but consistency has held the program back. They put up just 269 yards of offense in their last AAC matchup versus UTSA, following that up with 37 points on 491 yards versus UConn last time out. At their best, this is still a team that could keep things closer than the spread suggests.

Granted, the Tigers mustered a hard-fought win over the Bulls in Week 9, but the boxscore reveals a more concerning tale. Memphis gave up 564 yards to South Florida last week, bringing its two-week total up to 1,034 yards. If Rice is operating at peak efficiency, as we expect it will be at home, Memphis will have a hard time pulling away in this one.

Memphis’ perceived value is running way too high. An upset win over a ranked South Florida Bulls squad has overinflated the betting market, and that balloon is about to pop versus Rice. The Owls may not be able to pull off the outright upset, but they should be able to stay within the spread at Rice Stadium. Give us the points in this spot.

Best Bet: Rice +13.5

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Where to Watch North Carolina Tar Heels vs Syracuse Orange

Stadium: JMA Wireless Dome
Location: Syracuse, NY
Where to Watch: ESPN
Time: 7:30 p.m. ET
Spread: SYR -2.5 | Total: 44.5
Moneyline: SYR -130 | UNC +110

The Syracuse Orange and North Carolina Tar Heels are both trying to keep their bowl game hopes alive. Syracuse got off to a hot start, winning three of its first four games. Then, a four-game losing streak has dropped the Orange to 3-5 on the season, putting their postseason aspirations on ice. North Carolina has only two wins this season, but has put forth more sincere efforts in its latest matchups. Whichever team prevails has the inside track to nab one of the ACC bowl berths.

Syracuse’s defense has been completely outmatched lately. They’ve given up 30 or more points in each one of their losses, with their last four foes averaging 35.0 points per game. At the same time, the Orange’s offense has fallen completely flat and hasn’t been able to offset those defensive shortcomings. Syracuse has been held to 18 points or fewer in each of its last four losses, averaging a laughable 315.0 yards per game over that sample.

We’re not counting on the Orange breaking through North Carolina’s improved defense. The Tar Heels held 16th-ranked Virginia to just 259 yards in Week 9, which is on par with the 294 they gave up to Cal in the game prior. There’s still plenty of room for improvement on offense, but they’ve taken steps with their most recent efforts. UNC is averaging 320.0 yards per game over its last two, a sizeable jump from the 279.9 yards per game the Tar Heels are averaging on the season.

Syracuse doesn’t possess the offensive abilities to break through North Carolina’s stout defense. With another improved offensive performance against a weak Orange defense, the Tar Heels are poised to collect their third win of the season. It’s our preferred play in this ACC clash.

Where to Watch Sam Houston Bearkats vs Louisiana Tech Bulldogs

Stadium: Joe Aillet Stadium
Location: Ruston, LA
Where to Watch: CBSSN
Time: 8:00 p.m. ET
Spread: LT -16.5 | Total: 48.5
Moneyline: LT -900 | SHSU +550

This isn’t the Sam Houston Bearkats’ season. The CUSA bottom-feeders are last place in the conference, falling to 0-4 in conference play and 0-7 overall. While they’ve taken on some mighty non-conference opponents, the Bearkats have struggled to hold their own against weaker Conference USA opponents. That comes to a head again in Week 10, with the Louisiana Tech Bulldogs poised to walk away with their fifth win of the season.

Nothing is going right for Sam Houston. The Bearkats sit 129th in total defense, giving up a mind-numbing 456.3 yards per game. Predictably, that correlates with one of the worst-scoring defenses in the country, with Sam Houston sitting 133rd with 38.9 points allowed per game. Even the 2-6 UTEP Miners had no problem putting up crooked numbers on the road, netting 35 points on 411 yards in the Bearkats’ most recent defeat.

L-Tech was out-muscled by Western Kentucky in its most recent contest. Still, they put together one of their best all-around efforts of the season. The Bulldogs out-gained the Hilltoppers 449-340, with 340 of their own yards coming via the passing attack. That moves them up to 454.0 yards per game over their last three home games, a benchmark that should continue to increase against the lowly Bearkats.

It’s tough to rationalize such a steep spread on a 4-3 Bulldogs team, but it’s an indictment of just how bad Sam Houston has looked this season. Louisiana Tech deserved better last week, and we expect the Bulldogs to take out some of their frustrations against the Bearkats. We’re laying the points with L-Tech in Week 10.

Best Bet: Louisiana Tech -16.5