College Football Odds Week 14: Picks Against the Spread for Updated Top 25 Games
The second edition of this year's College Football Playoff rankings came out Tuesday, and the top four teams remained in the same spots: No. 1 Alabama, No. 2 Notre Dame, No. 3 Clemson and No. 4 Ohio State.
It wasn't a surprise considering the top three all won this past weekend and the Buckeyes didn't play. And barring a major upset, there are unlikely to be changes next week, either. The quartet are all set to play lesser competition and are favored to win by large margins.
Things could get shaken up later in December, particularly when these teams play in their respective conference championship games. But for now, they just need to keep their momentum and avoid missteps against unranked opponents.
Here's a look at Week 14's Top 25 schedule, along with odds and picks for the matchups.
Top 25 Schedule, Odds, Picks
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Friday, Dec. 4
No. 25 Louisiana-Lafayette at Appalachian State (-2.5), 8:30 p.m. ET, ESPN
Saturday, Dec. 5
No. 4 Ohio State (-24) at Michigan State, noon ET, ABC
No. 5 Texas A&M (-7) at Auburn, noon ET, ESPN
No. 15 Oklahoma State (-2.5) at TCU, noon ET, ESPN2
Western Carolina at No. 17 North Carolina (-49.5), noon ET, ACC Network
Rice at No. 21 Marshall (-23.5), noon ET, ESPN+
Liberty at No. 18 Coastal Carolina (-10.5), 2 p.m. ET, ESPNU
Syracuse at No. 2 Notre Dame (-33.5), 2:30 p.m. ET, NBC
No. 6 Florida (-17.5) at Tennessee, 3:30 p.m. ET, CBS
West Virginia at No. 9 Iowa State (-6.5), 3:30 p.m. ET, ESPN
No. 12 Indiana at No. 16 Wisconsin (-14.5), 3:30 p.m. ET, ABC
No. 19 Iowa (-14) at Illinois, 3:30 p.m. ET, Fox Sports 1
No. 24 Tulsa (-12.5) at Navy, 3:30 p.m. ET, ESPN2
Vanderbilt at No. 8 Georgia (-35.5), 4 p.m. ET, SEC Network
Stanford at No. 22 Washington (-11.5), 4 p.m. ET, Fox
No. 23 Oregon (-9.5) at California, 7 p.m. ET, ESPN
No. 3 Clemson (-22.5) at Virginia Tech, 7:30 p.m. ET, ABC
No. 1 Alabama (-29.5) at LSU, 8 p.m. ET, CBS
No. 10 Miami (-14.5) at Duke, 8 p.m. ET, ACC Network
Baylor at No. 11 Oklahoma (-22.5), 8 p.m. ET, Fox
Sunday, Dec. 6
Washington State at No. 20 USC (-14.5), 7:30 p.m. ET, Fox Sports 1
Picks in bold against the spread. Odds via DraftKings.
Alabama Will Get More Revenge This Week
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In 2019, Alabama went 11-2, missing out on both the SEC Championship Game and College Football Playoff. And its two losses came against a pair of SEC West rivals in LSU and Auburn.
This year, the Crimson Tide are off to an 8-0 start, and they have already gotten revenge against one of those teams. They cruised to a 42-13 home win over Auburn last time out. On Saturday, they have a chance to do the same on the road against LSU.
Although this game was postponed three weeks, that's not going to change the result. Alabama has been dominant all season, winning each of its games by at least 17 points. And over their past three games, the Tide have outscored their opponents 146-16.
LSU may have beat Alabama 46-41 last season, but things aren't going quite as well for the Tigers in 2020. They are 3-4 and have yet to win consecutive games. And although they played a close game against No. 5 Texas A&M in Week 13 (a 20-7 loss), it's going to be much tougher to stay competitive against Alabama.
The Crimson Tide should have no trouble covering the 29.5-point spread, getting one final chance to tune up before playing in the SEC Championship Game on Dec. 19.
Indiana Covers Spread as Underdog at Wisconsin
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How important has redshirt sophomore quarterback Michael Penix Jr. been to Indiana's success this season? Based on what the oddsmakers appear to think, he's a big reason the Hoosiers are 5-1, as they enter Saturday's matchup at Wisconsin as 14.5-point underdogs after he suffered a torn ACL.
Indiana's only loss was a 42-35 road defeat to No. 4 Ohio State on Nov. 21. And while Penix was having a solid season (1,645 yards and 14 touchdowns through the air), the Hoosiers have plenty of talented players on both sides of the ball. It will be redshirt sophomore Jack Tuttle (a transfer from Utah) who will be starting under center and looking to keep Indiana's impressive season going.
Wisconsin could be a bit rusty from the start, as it's only played three games this season, with its most recent being a 17-7 loss at Northwestern on Nov. 21. So it's quite possible the Badgers won't build a big enough lead to win by more than two touchdowns. And there's still a chance that Tuttle plays well and the Hoosiers pull out a victory on the road.
In Week 13, Indiana rushed for 234 yards in its win over Maryland. More rushing success and solid defensive play should be enough for the Hoosiers to at least keep Saturday's game close.
Oregon Bounces Back with Convincing Win
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Even though it's facing a winless team Saturday, Oregon is a 9.5-point underdog for its road matchup at California. That's likely because the Ducks are coming off their first loss of the year, a 41-38 defeat at Oregon State.
It was a disappointing showing for Oregon, which is unlikely to reach the College Football Playoff this season, as it had a 12-point lead through three quarters before giving up three fourth-quarter touchdowns. It was the second week in a row the Ducks played a game that was decided by only three points against an unranked opponent.
But Oregon has a chance to bounce back at 0-3 Cal, which has suffered losses to UCLA, Oregon State and Stanford the past three weeks. The Golden Bears have played some close games, though, so there's a chance they could keep things competitive against the Ducks, which could have contributed to the betting line.
However, betting on Oregon should be one of the safer wagers of Week 14. It's unlikely the Ducks are going to lose back-to-back games, and they should be motivated to get back on track against a lesser opponent. They should easily clear the spread.
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