Southern Cal Trojans vs. Utah Utes Betting Odds: Analysis and Prediction

USC leads the Pac-12 South at 4-1 and is 5-2 against the spread on the season. Utah sits just a game out of first in the South and is 5-1 ATS. Two of the best bets in college football so far this season meet in a big divisional battle when the Trojans take on the Utes Saturday afternoon in Salt Lake City.

Point spread: Trojans opened as a pick'em at Rice-Eccles Stadium, according to sportsbooks monitored by Odds Shark. (Line updates and matchup report)

College football pick via Odds Shark computer: 36.7-34.7 Trojans

Why the Southern Cal Trojans can cover the spread

The Trojans just took care of business against Colorado, beating the Buffs 56-28 and covering as 20-point favorites. USC quarterback Cody Kessler threw four of his school-record seven touchdown passes in the first quarter, as the Trojans jumped out to a 28-0 lead and cruised from there.

So Southern Cal is 4-1 both straight up and ATS in Pac-12 play, and the only loss came on that blown coverage on the last play of the game against Arizona State a few weeks ago. The Trojans are also 3-0 SU, 2-1 ATS against Utah since the Utes joined the conference three years ago, including a 19-3 victory last year.

Why the Utah Utes can cover the spread

The Utes are one of the more pleasant surprises in college football so far, with road wins at Michigan, at UCLA and at Oregon State. Last week, Utah outrushed the Beavers 253-119 on their way to a 29-23 overtime victory in Corvallis.

In fact, the Utes have outrushed their last three opponents by an average of 118 yards. So a team that was expected to finish in the bottom half of the Pac-12 South has a chance to grab a tie for the lead with a victory this week, going against a defense that gave up 450 yards on the ground against Boston College earlier this season.

Smart Pick

USC is only 1-9 ATS in its last 10 games as a road favorite, while Utah is 10-3 in its last 13 games as a home dog. But sometimes trends should be disregarded, and this is one of those situations. The Trojans are the more talented team, and their defense has improved since that debacle against BC. So the smart pick goes with Southern Cal, at the short spread.

Betting trends

• Southern Cal is 5-11 ATS in its last 16 games on the road
• The total has gone UNDER in five of Utah's last seven games at home

All point spread and lines data courtesy of Odds Shark, all quotes gathered firsthand unless otherwise noted. Check out Twitter for injury and line movement updates and get the free odds tracker app.