College Football Picks Against the Spread for Every Top 25 Team in Week 3

Reed Wallach | Sep 10, 2024

Sep 7, 2024; Athens, Georgia, USA; Georgia Bulldogs quarterback Carson Beck (15) passes the ball against the Tennessee Tech Golden Eagles during the second half at Sanford Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Dale Zanine-Imagn Images / Dale Zanine-Imagn Images

Another week of college football is here, and there are plenty of lopsided point spreads in what is the final week of a full non-conference slate.

While several teams hit the road as big favorites, including Oklahoma State, Oregon, and Ole Miss, all eyes will be on the Georgia Bulldogs on Saturday night as the team takes on struggling SEC rival Kentucky in its first league game. The Bulldogs throttled Kentucky last season at home but now head on the road with the team in a tailspin, shut down by South Carolina last week.

How are we betting on Georgia vs. South Carolina? What about every ranked game in Week 3? Find out who we are backing below:

Season Record: 14-15

Arizona vs. Kansas State Prediction and Pick

Pick: Arizona (+7.5)

Kansas State was outgained quite a bit on the road against Tulane, nearly 200 yards, but benefitted from two fourth-quarter turnovers to win on the road. 

Now, the team is laying more than a touchdown at home against an explosive offense in Arizona, as noted in our betting preview. 

Zona has Fifita and McMillan engineering an elite passing game that features little drop-off from last season and will get to feast on a K-State defense that allowed Tulane to average more than 10 yards pre-drop back and put up a 14% explosive play rate. Both numbers rank in the 93rd percentile in both metrics relative to games last season, per GameonPaper.

This should be a high scoring game, I’m willing to take the points with the underdog. 

Alabama vs. Wisconsin Prediction and Pick

Pick: Wisconsin (+15.5)

Oklahoma State vs. Tulsa Prediction and Pick

Pick: Tulsa (+20.5)

Oklahoma State was incredibly lucky to beat Arkansas at home last week, outgained by nearly 300 yards in the come-from-behind win against its SEC foe. 

Now, the team is going on the road to face an explosive offense in Tulsa with a matchup against Big 12 favorite Utah on deck. 

Maybe this is a matchup where Oklahoma State gets right ahead of league play, but are we certain this team can close the door and win by three touchdowns against a Tulsa team that has posted more than seven yards per play to start the year (against far worse competition). 

This is a big number for the Pokes to cover, I’ll grab the points. 

LSU vs. South Carolina Prediction and Pick

Pick: LSU (-7)

Arkansas State vs. Michigan Prediction and Pick

Pick: Michigan (-23.5)

Boston College vs. Missouri Prediction and Pick

Pick: Missouri (-16.5)

Oregon vs. Oregon State Prediction and Pick

Pick: Oregon (-16)

Ball State vs. Miami (Florida) Prediction and Pick

Pick: Miami (Florida) (-36.5)

Tulane vs. Oklahoma Prediction and Pick

Pick: Tulane (+14)

Notre Dame vs. Purdue Prediction and Pick

Pick: Notre Dame (-9.5)

Ole Miss vs. Wake Forest Prediction and Pick

Pick: Ole Miss (-23.5)

Ole Miss has had little issue running it up on lesser opponents so far this season, and while Wake Forest provides a slight step up in competition, I don’t trust the Demon Deacons at home to hold up against this dynamic Rebels offense. 

Jaxson Dart is accumulating a ton of passing numbers to start the season as the Rebels look to jumpstart his Heisman Trophy campaign, and that makes me comfortable laying this amount of points on the road. 

Last week, Wake Forest allowed Virginia to pass for 341 yards in its loss, and now welcome a passing game that ranks No. 1 in yards per play so far this season at over nine yards per play. 

UTSA vs. Texas Prediction and Pick

Pick: UTSA (+35)

Georgia vs. Kentucky Prediction and Pick

Pick: Georgia (-24.5)

Here’s what we wrote on Tuesday morning about Kentucky's outlook heading into the Georgia game.

Vandagriff was supposed to ignite this Kentucky offense that was desperate for a quarterback to utilize a talented pass-catching group, headlined by Barrion Brown, but it appears that this UK offense is simply not equipped to handle the physical defenses in the SEC. In the loss to South Carolina, Kentucky gained a total of 183 yards. 

Now, the team welcomes the best team in college football and the point spread is indicating a blowout is likely in store. 

While there is a week-to-week nature of college football, I don’t believe that the UK offense will be able to get much traction in this one against the Bulldogs' defensive front. 

Georgia won 51-10 last season. I expect similar at Kroger Field.

Northern Iowa vs. Nebraska Prediction and Pick

Pick: Nebraska (-28.5)

Kent State vs. Tennessee Prediction and Pick

Pick: Tennessee (-49)

Kent State is among the worst teams in the FBS ranks this season, and Tennessee has shown little issue running it up on foes. 

Since Josh Heupel took over in Knoxville, his Vols are 7-2 against the spread against Group of Five or FCS teams, winning by an average margin of 42.7. 

Sure, Oklahoma is on deck, but this is a great opportunity for Nico Iamaleava to pad his Heisman Trophy case with some big numbers and for Tennessee to win big. 

manual

---

Game odds refresh periodically and are subject to change.

Track Reed's bets here!

If you or someone you know has a gambling problem and wants help, call 1-800-GAMBLER.