NCAA College Football Picks: Week 9 Against the Spread

We’ve reached a point in the year where there is a chill in the air (at least for us Yankees up north). However, the college football season is beginning to heat up.

While there are no games between top-10 teams this weekend, there are some major conference matchups, as well as a couple of traditional powerhouses looking to salvage a season against ranked squads.

Let's check out the biggest games with lines courtesy of CoopersPick.com:

No. 3 Ole Miss vs. No. 24 LSU

Betting Odds: Ole Miss -3

LSU’s only losses this season have come against Mississippi State and Auburn, and it will have to lean on its eighth-ranked defense to win this game.

Ole Miss has the nation’s top-ranked defense and it already has conference wins over Alabama and Texas A&M this season. 

Pick Against the Spread: Ole Miss is rolling and will continue its streak winning and covering against LSU.

South Carolina vs. No. 5 Auburn

Betting Odds: Auburn -17

South Carolina is under .500 in SEC play and both of its losses came against unranked teams. Needless to say, it has been a big disappointment this season.

Auburn suffered its first loss of the season last time on the field, but it is coming off a bye week and back at home.

Pick Against the Spread: Auburn will run all over the Gamecocks, winning and covering at home.

No. 14 Arizona State vs. Washington

Betting Odds: Pick

Arizona State is coming off a huge win over a ranked Stanford team and quarterback Mike Bercovici leads a passing attack that ranks 11^th in the nation.

Washington lost badly last week against Oregon, but its only two losses have come against top-20 teams.

Pick Against the Spread: ASU will beat Washington this week even up in its house.

No. 20 USC vs. No. 19 Utah

Betting Odds: USC -1.5

USC has won two straight, but is 1-1 facing ranked teams this season. The Trojans' balanced offense and respectable defense will be facing a Utah team that has a solid rushing attack and good defense as well.

In other words, it should be a very competitive matchup.

Pick Against the Spread: Take USC in this one even on the road, as its offense will carry the team to the win.

Michigan vs. No. 8 Michigan State

Betting Odds: Michigan State -16.5

Michigan is under .500, but at least the Wolverines recently snapped a three-game skid. Still, they have really struggled on offense and need to play good defense to score a huge upset over Michigan State.

MSU has not lost since its second game, which was against Oregon. Five straight wins later, it now boasts the nation’s third-highest scoring offense. 

Pick Against the Spread: With the offense Michigan has, it will get crushed in this game, as MSU will easily win and cover at home.

Texas vs. No. 11 Kansas State

Betting Odds: Kansas State -10

Texas is under .500, but is coming off a shootout win. It's been a tough schedule: Three of its four losses have come facing ranked teams.

Kansas State is the only team in the Big 12 that does not have a conference loss and is coming off an impressive win over Oklahoma.

Pick Against the Spread: The Longhorns may not win, but they should cover the 10-point spread.

No. 1 Mississippi State vs. Kentucky

Betting Odds: MSU -14

The Rebels are the top-ranked team in the nation for a reason: They have now beaten three top-10 teams in a row. UK was playing well and had wins over South Carolina and Vanderbilt before getting crushed in its last game.

Pick Against the Spread: The Bulldogs are for real, and last week showed UK is not, getting drubbed at the hands of LSU. Even on the road, Mississippi State will win and cover.