NCAAF · 1 hour ago

Ranking My Top 5 Bold Predictions for College Football Week 3

TJ Inman

Host · Writer

5. LSU Comfortably Dispatches Ole Miss
It’s hard to imagine a more hostile atmosphere than what Lane Kiffin and the LSU Tigers walk into on Saturday night in Oxford. Just think about the head coach of your favorite team leading your school to the College Football Playoff while flirting with other schools. The head coach then takes a new job as head coach of one of your main rivals, plays the victim for no longer being able to coach in the College Football Playoff, poaches staff, begins recruiting your school’s players, and makes inflammatory comments after running through the exit door. Yeah, Ole Miss fans and coaches (and probably some players) are frothing at the mouth to get a piece of Lane Kiffin. Here’s the problem: Lane Kiffin relishes the attention and fully understands how to harness it for the good of his team on game day. I think LSU handles “the moment” much better than Ole Miss will on Saturday night. In addition, I think Ole Miss has a lot of issues on defense and was exposed a bit in the opener against Louisville. This won’t be a blowout, but I do think LSU comfortably covers the spread.
1. Malachi Toney Scores Two More TDs as Miami Hammers Wake by 30+
The Miami Hurricanes are off to a flying start after a run to the National Championship Game last season. The Hurricanes hammered Stanford 45-6, then scored 77 points in a romp over Florida A&M. Darian Mensah is now the favorite to win the Heisman Trophy, and he looks incredibly comfortable in the offense. Of course, having Malachi Toney to throw the ball to is a huge help. Toney has 330 yards and four touchdowns in the two blowouts, and now Miami gets to play a Wake Forest defense that just surrendered 36 points to the woeful Purdue Boilermakers and 16 points in the opener to Akron. The spread on this game is only -20.5 in favor of Miami, but I think the Hurricanes win by at least 30 points, easily covering, as Malachi Toney scores another pair of touchdowns.
2. Houston Upsets Texas Tech in Lubbock
The Houston Cougars and Texas Tech Red Raiders already have a common result this season, as both squared off against a game Oregon State squad. The Beavers gave each squad a game, but I think Texas Tech has some reasons to be concerned about this matchup. Conner Weigman is a veteran and no stranger to playing in hostile environments, and the Texas Tech defense does not yet resemble last season's elite unit. For instance, Oregon State threw for 413 yards last week. That sets off alarm bells, and I think the Houston Cougars cover the 7.5-point spread and actually win outright on Friday night in Lubbock.
3. North Carolina Wins at Clemson
The North Carolina Tar Heels stunned the TCU Horned Frogs in Ireland in Week 0 and, after a bye week, returned home to comfortably knock off East Tennessee State. I don’t trust the UNC offense at all, but the defense looks like a legitimately good unit. This week, they travel to Death Valley to play the Clemson Tigers, and it has all the makings of a very ugly, low-scoring contest. Clemson will be starting backup quarterback Tait Reynolds due to an injury to starter Christopher Vizzina, and Reynolds has good physical tools. Still, he’s a freshman, and I give a huge advantage to Bill Belichick when he’s facing a freshman quarterback and offensive coordinator Chad Morris. Clemson’s fan base already feels resigned to a subpar season, so this will not be a hostile atmosphere. I think the wrong team is favored here, and North Carolina wins.
4. SMU at Louisville Put On a Show
The most entertaining game on the Week 3 slate might be an ACC clash between the SMU Mustangs and the Louisville Cardinals. Rhett Lashlee’s crew already has a road win after overcoming four turnovers at Florida State, and both teams have eyes on reaching the ACC Championship Game. There will be a lot of explosive athletes on both offenses and a pair of coaches that love to push the envelope and attack. The over/under is 59.5, but I think both teams reach the 30s and comfortably cash on the over.
5. LSU Comfortably Dispatches Ole Miss
It’s hard to imagine a more hostile atmosphere than what Lane Kiffin and the LSU Tigers walk into on Saturday night in Oxford. Just think about the head coach of your favorite team leading your school to the College Football Playoff while flirting with other schools. The head coach then takes a new job as head coach of one of your main rivals, plays the victim for no longer being able to coach in the College Football Playoff, poaches staff, begins recruiting your school’s players, and makes inflammatory comments after running through the exit door. Yeah, Ole Miss fans and coaches (and probably some players) are frothing at the mouth to get a piece of Lane Kiffin. Here’s the problem: Lane Kiffin relishes the attention and fully understands how to harness it for the good of his team on game day. I think LSU handles “the moment” much better than Ole Miss will on Saturday night. In addition, I think Ole Miss has a lot of issues on defense and was exposed a bit in the opener against Louisville. This won’t be a blowout, but I do think LSU comfortably covers the spread.
1. Malachi Toney Scores Two More TDs as Miami Hammers Wake by 30+
The Miami Hurricanes are off to a flying start after a run to the National Championship Game last season. The Hurricanes hammered Stanford 45-6, then scored 77 points in a romp over Florida A&M. Darian Mensah is now the favorite to win the Heisman Trophy, and he looks incredibly comfortable in the offense. Of course, having Malachi Toney to throw the ball to is a huge help. Toney has 330 yards and four touchdowns in the two blowouts, and now Miami gets to play a Wake Forest defense that just surrendered 36 points to the woeful Purdue Boilermakers and 16 points in the opener to Akron. The spread on this game is only -20.5 in favor of Miami, but I think the Hurricanes win by at least 30 points, easily covering, as Malachi Toney scores another pair of touchdowns.

Ranking My Top 5 Bold Predictions for College Football Week 3

BETTING NEWS

FUTURES

EDITOR'S PICKS

For the Best of SportsGrid, Grab the App

BETTING NEWS

FUTURES