Written By Vegas Matty
The biggest college football game of the season to date takes place this Saturday in Columbus when Ohio State hosts Penn State in a battle of Big Ten East contenders who are more importantly looking to earn themselves a spot in the College Football Playoff. The Buckeyes opening line was -7 before ticking down off the key number to -5.5 point favorites against the Nittany Lions at BetOnline.AG; they will be looking to avenge a 24-21 loss from a year ago.
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Ohio State is still viewed by oddsmakers as the superior team despite losing to Oklahoma 31-16 at home in its second game of the season. The sixth-ranked Buckeyes had won the previous four meetings before falling at Penn State last year on a blocked field goal for a touchdown with 4:27 left.
The second-ranked Nittany Lions passed their first real test this past Saturday in a 42-13 rout of Michigan, scoring 28 unanswered points after the Wolverines pulled within 14-13 late in the second quarter. They know they will likely need to pull off the upset here to get into the CFP for the first time in school history.
Another Big Ten East school unbeaten in conference play is Michigan State, which begins a very difficult three-week stretch starting this Saturday at Northwestern. The 16th-ranked Spartans opened as 1-point road faves at BetOnline.AG and then swung to 1-point underdogs before moving back to Pick’em. After visiting the Wildcats, Michigan State hosts Penn State before facing Ohio State on the road.
Other Week 9 college football games of note:
- 3 Georgia meets Florida in Jacksonville as a 14.5-point favorite after opening at -11.5 Both schools are coming off their traditional bye weeks leading into the Cocktail Party with the Gators dropping their past two games by a combined three points whereas the Bulldogs won their last two by 56. Georgia has lost the previous three meetings both straight up and against the spread but can make a big statement with Alabama on a bye.
- 4 TCU visits Iowa State as 5.5 point road chalk and hopes to remain unbeaten with tough Big 12 matchups against Texas and Oklahoma on deck. The Cyclones already own a massive upset of the Sooners and can hurt the conference’s chances of earning a CFP invite with another win here. The Horned Frogs have won the past four meetings by an average of more than 25 points.
- 9 Notre Dame hosts No. 14 North Carolina State as a 7.5 point home fave (Irish opened -8). The Wolfpack host No. 7 Clemson two weeks from setting up a huge ACC showdown if they can pull off the upset in South Bend. Meanwhile the Fighting Irish have won five in a row following a 49-14 drubbing of USC on Saturday.
While there are several important conference games in college football, only three divisional matchups are on tap in Week 8 of the NFL slate. Leading the way is an AFC West rivalry game between the Denver Broncos and Kansas City Chiefs on Monday Night Football. The Chiefs have lost two straight since an impressive 5-0 start and opened as 7-point favorites against the Broncos at BetOnline.AG.
Denver has lost the past three meetings with Kansas City both SU and ATS after owning the series between 2012 and 2015 with seven consecutive wins. Two of the Chiefs last three wins were decided by more than two touchdowns.
Here are the other two Week 8 NFL divisional games:
- Early next Sunday in the NFC South, the Carolina Panthers will attempt to break a two-game skid as they visit the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, who are riding a three-game losing streak. The Panthers were swept by the Bucs last season, losing two games by a combined four points and see themselves listed as 2.5 point underdogs in this meeting.
- Later in the NFC East, the Washington Redskins host the Dallas Cowboys off a short week after visiting the Philadelphia Eagles on Monday Night Football. Washington is listed as a modest 1.5 point favorite despite the Cowboys having won four of the previous five meetings against the Redskins with three of the last four were decided by five or less.
Listen to the Monday Night Football podcast tomorrow where we break down ALL the opening lines
CFB:
Toledo -26 @ Ball St
South Alabama -2 @ Georgia St
N. Illinois -7.5 vs E. Michigan
Stanford -21.5 @ Oregon St
Florida St -3 @ Boston College
Memphis -10.5 vs Tulane
SMU -10 vs Tulsa
Purdue -5.5 vs Nebraska
Kentucky -4.5 vs Tennessee
South Carolina -7 vs Vanderbilt
Louisville -3 @ Wake Forest
Miami FL -20.5 @ North Carolina
Michigan -23.5 vs Rutgers
Marshall -17.5 vs FIU
Appalachian St -3.5 @ Umass
Pittsburgh -3 vs Virginia
Clemson (NL – Bryant) vs Georgia Tech
Missouri -11.5 @ Connecticut
Oklahoma St -7.5 @ West Virginia
Indiana -5 @ Maryland
Virginia Tech -17 vs Duke
Coastal Carolina -10 vs Texas St
Wisconsin -26 @ Illinois
Kansas St -23 @ Kansas
Iowa -8 vs Minnesota
Wyoming -3 vs New Mexico
Arkansas St -5.5 @ New Mexico St
BYU -13.5 vs San Jose st
UT San Antonio -16 @ UTEP
Idaho -2.5 vs UL Monroe
Colorado St -11.5 vs Air Force
Southern Miss -14 vs UAB
Colorado -3.5 vs California
USC -3.5 @ Arizona St
Louisiana Tech -13 @ Rice
Utah -3.5 @ Oregon
Notre Dame -7.5 vs NC State
Washington -17.5 vs UCLA
Troy -25.5 vs Georgia Southern
Michigan St PK @ Northwestern
North Texas -10.5 vs Old Dominion
Texas -10.5 @ Baylor
TCU -5.5 @ Iowa St
Georgia -14.5 vs Florida
Florida Atlantic -6.5 @ Western Kentucky
Washington St -2.5 @ Arizona
Oklahoma -18 vs Texas Tech
Arkansas (NL) @ Ole Miss
Ohio St -5.5 vs Penn St
Miss St -1.5 @ Texas A&M
Boise St -8 @ Utah St
Fresno St -18 vs UNLV
San Diego St -9 @ Hawaii
South Florida -10.5 vs Houston
NFL
Ravens -3.5 vs Dolphins (37.5)
Vikings -9 vs Browns (37.5) *London
Saints -7.5 vs Bears (48)
Falcons -7 @ Jets (No total)
Eagles (NL) vs 49ers
Bills -3 vs Raiders (46)
Bengals -9.5 vs Colts (41)
Patriots -5.5 vs Chargers (No Total)
Seahawks -5.5 vs Texans (42)
Redskins -1.5 vs Cowboys (No Total)
Steelers -3 @ Lions (45)
Chiefs -7 vs Broncos (No Total)
