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College Football Picks Week 11: Top 25 Rankings, Schedule, Odds and Predictions
November 5, 2018
The odds are overwhelmingly in favor of college football's top programs in Week 11.
Only two of the teams in the Top 10 of the AP Top 25 are favored by less than 10 points Saturday in a slate that is much weaker than what we witnessed in Week 10.
Among the heavy favorites are No. 2 Clemson and No. 4 Michigan, who face opponents on the opposite end of the college football spectrum.
The Wolverines are the heaviest favorite of Week 11, but since they're playing Rutgers, they could be the easiest team to bet on Saturday.
Week 11 Standings
AP Top 25
1. Alabama (9-0)
2. Clemson (9-0)
3. Notre Dame (9-0)
4. Michigan (8-1)
5. Georgia (8-1)
6. Oklahoma (8-1)
7. West Virginia (7-1)
8. Ohio State (8-1)
9. LSU (7-2)
10. Washington State (8-1)
11. UCF (8-0)
12. Kentucky (7-2)
13. Syracuse (7-2)
14. Utah State (8-1)
15. Texas (6-3)
16. Fresno State (8-1)
17. Boston College (7-2)
18. Mississippi State (6-3)
19. Florida (6-3)
20. Washington (7-3)
21. Penn State (6-3)
22. NC State (6-2)
23. Iowa State (5-3)
24. Michigan State (6-3)
25. Cincinnati (8-1)
Amway Coaches Poll
1. Alabama (9-0)
2. Clemson (9-0)
3. Notre Dame (9-0)
4. Michigan (8-1)
5. Georgia (8-1)
6. Oklahoma (8-1)
7. Ohio State (8-1)
8. West Virginia (7-1)
9. Washington State (8-1)
10. LSU (7-2)
11. UCF (8-0)
12. Kentucky (7-2)
13. Syracuse (7-2)
14. Boston College (7-2)
15. Mississippi State (6-3)
16. Utah State (8-1)
17. Fresno State (8-1)
18. Washington (7-3)
19. Texas (6-3)
20. Penn State (6-3)
21. Florida (6-3)
22. NC State (6-2)
23. Cincinnati (8-1)
24. Utah (6-3)
25. Iowa State (5-3)
Week 11 Schedule and Odds (via OddsShark)
All Times ET.
Predictions against the spread in bold.
Thursday, November 8
Wake Forest at No. 22 NC State (-15.5) (7:30 p.m., ESPN)
Friday, November 9
Louisville at No. 13 Syracuse (-21.5) (7 p.m., ESPN2)
No. 16 Fresno State (-2) at Boise State (10:15 p.m., ESPN2)
Saturday, November 10
TCU at No. 7 West Virginia (-13.5) (Noon, FS1)
No. 8 Ohio State (-5.5) at No. 24 Michigan State (Noon, Fox)
Navy at No. 11 UCF (-27) (Noon, ESPN2)
South Carolina at No. 19 Florida (-7) (Noon, ESPN)
Wisconsin at No. 21 Penn State (-9) (Noon, ABC)
No. 18 Mississippi State at No. 1 Alabama (-25.5) (3:30 p.m., CBS)
No. 4 Michigan (-36.5) at Rutgers (3:30 p.m., BTN)
Oklahoma State at No. 6 Oklahoma (-18) (3:30 p.m., ABC)
No. 10 Washington State (-4) at Colorado (3:30 p.m., ESPN)
No. 12 Kentucky (-3) at Tennessee (3:30 p.m., SEC Network)
Baylor at No. 23 Iowa State (-14) (3:30 p.m., FS1)
San Jose State at No. 14 Utah State (4 p.m.)
Auburn at No. 5 Georgia (-13.5) (7 p.m., ESPN)
South Florida at No. 25 Cincinnati (-8) (7 p.m., ESPNU)
Florida State at No. 3 Notre Dame (-18) (7:30 p.m., NBC)
No. 9 LSU (-16.5) at Arkansas (7:30 p.m., SEC Network)
No. 15 Texas (-1) at Texas Tech (7:30 p.m., Fox)
No. 2 Clemson (-17.5) at No. 17 Boston College (8 p.m., ABC)
Predictions
Clemson Wins But Fails to Cover
No. 2 Clemson will experience a small bump on its path to the ACC Championship Game Saturday against No. 17 Boston College.
Dabo Swinney's Tigers haven't been tested much by their in-conference opposition, but they will receive the best punch from Steve Addazio's Eagles, who are the only team with a chance to knock the Tigers out of the conference championship.
Boston College will do so by relying on running back AJ Dillon, who will find his way through a few holes in Clemson's defensive line headlined by Christian Wilkins and Clelin Ferrell.
Dillon, who is 103 rushing yards from the 1,000-yard mark, is one of the best players Clemson will face, and he enters Week 11 off a pair of strong outings against Miami and Virginia Tech.
Over the last three games, the Boston College defense conceded 18.3 points per game, and if the Eagles hold Clemson to between 20 and 30 points, there's a small chance an upset can occur.
Boston College will stay in the game because it will be able to fluster Clemson freshman quarterback Trevor Lawrence, who is coming off a game in which he attempted 12 passes against Louisville.
By pressuring Lawrence and forcing him into bad decisions, the Eagles will win the field position battle in the first half and benefit from a few big runs out of Dillon.
However, Clemson is the No. 2 team in the nation for a reason, and it'll show in the second half as the Tigers produce a comeback led by sophomore running back Travis Etienne, who will force the Eagles to commit numbers in the box and allow Lawrence to gain confidence on a few major throws.
Clemson will come out of its Week 11 game with a victory, but since Boston College will be up for the occasion, the Tigers won't cover the 17.5-point spread.
Michigan Covers Largest Spread Of Week 11
Do you really think Rutgers has enough will left in it to prevent No. 4 Michigan from covering the 36.5-point spread?
As you ponder that thought, let us reinforce why Jim Harbaugh's Wolverines will dominate the Scarlet Knights and potentially cover before halftime.
For starters, the Wolverines scored at least 38 points in three of their last four games and rank 27th in scoring offense with 36.7 points per game.
On the other side of the ball, Michigan is in possession of the only defense that's let up fewer than 2,000 total yards.
Just in case you were in doubt about placing a bet on Michigan, Rutgers ranks 82nd in scoring defense and has conceded 415 yards per game.
On offense, Chris Ash's team is 129th out of 130 FBS programs in total offense, and it hasn't scored more than 20 points since its lone win over Texas State in Week 1.
The opening spread of 36.5 points might not be high enough to represent the disparity between the two Big Ten programs, which is why you should bet on it now before the odds go up in Michigan's favor.
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