College Football is (really) Back… Let's Gamble!

Deshaun Watson opens as one of the year as a favorite to win the Heisman, and his Clemson Tigers are expected to again contend for a national title.

By Joe Parello (@HerewegoJoe)


Ed. Note- Obviously, we do not condone illegal gambling. Only place bets at legitimate sports books (I had my sister throw down a little money for me when she was in Vegas for a conference), and only if you're of legal age. And yeah, don't, like, bet your life savings or rob people to make bets. This is for fun people. Oh, and I don't condone betting on high school sports, because placing money on unpaid athletes would be morally reprehensi... Ok, let's just get to the article.

All due respect to Cal and Hawaii's trip to Australia, and yesterday's thrilling games featuring Appalachian State, Florida International and Vanderbilt (who all lost, somehow), but college football really returns Saturday.

Yes, I know a trio of ranked teams will play tonight, and hey, Stanford had the decency to schedule a Power 5 opponent, but Saturday is when you'll really wish you were in Vegas, throwing your money away on a group of unpaid 18-22 year old young men you've never met. After all, betting on people who make millions of dollars is so passé.

Just kidding, we're obviously betting on the NFL too this year, but college starts first, so let's dive right into our first college gambling piece of the year.

Who Wins It All?

Look, if you haven't made your futures bets yet, you're about to lose out on some great odds after Week 1. Inevitably, somebody like Florida State or Notre Dame will beat a (seemingly) good team, and suddenly money will pour in on them to win the national title. Heck, Florida State has already gone from 12/1 to 8/1 in most Vegas sports books.

NCAA Football Week 11 Primer (With Picks)

LSU's Les Miles has his young team playing excellent football right now, but Nick Saban and Alabama come to Baton Rouge this week for what could be a College Football Playoff elimination game.

By Andy Dougherty (@AndyDougherty10) with a cameo by Joe Parello (@HerewegoJoe)

Ed. Note- This week we are adding a "picks against the spread" feature to our college football preview. New correspondent Andy Dougherty will still handle the previews, but will now pick games against editor Joe Parello. We'll see how they do.

The slate of games in Week 11 of the college football season offers a number of savory matchups. Six games contested between top-20 teams will carry significant playoff implications. But before previewing those matchups, here is a snapshot of last week’s most notable events.

Week 10 Recap

Week 10 of the college football season had no shortage of excitement. No. 11 Georgia, No. 12 Arizona, and No. 23 East Carolina all suffered upset losses.

No. 20 West Virginia almost pulled off an upset over No. 7 TCU, but the Mountaineers fell by a point in the end. No. 25 Louisville had No. 2 Florida State on the ropes before the Seminoles stormed back from 21 points down to claim an 11-point victory. No. 17 Utah suffered a heartbreak overtime loss to No. 14 Arizona State.

But the biggest story of the week unfolded in Oxford, Mississippi. Late in the fourth quarter, Ole Miss receiver Laquon Treadwell burst through a hole in the Auburn defense and appeared to score the go-ahead touchdown. Unfortunately, an awkward tackle at the goal line left Treadwell with a broken leg and dislocated ankle, ending his season. Adding insult to injury, officials determined upon review that Treadwell let go of the ball prior to crossing the plane, and Auburn recovered the ball in the end zone for a touchback.

NCAA Football Weekend Primer: The Game of the Century (of the Week)

Just like their classic 1993 clash, Florida State and Notre Dame's game this weekend will have plenty of Heisman and national title implications.

By Joe Parello (@HerewegoJoe)

In the annals of college football, many games have been dubbed "The Game of the Century."

2006's Ohio State-Michigan game in Columbus comes to mind, and the 2011 Alabama-LSU game in Tuscaloosa is another recent example (there are plenty of others from both centuries), but the big one I remember, from when I was too young to fully understand coaches polls and bowl games, was when No. 1 Florida State traveled to South Bend to face No. 2 Notre Dame in 1993.

The Irish were the biggest name in college football, boasting a huge home field advantage, while the Seminoles were the hottest program in the land under Bobby Bowden, but still hadn't won a national title.

The Irish built a 31-17 lead and held on like crazy to defeat eventual Heisman Trophy winner Charlie Ward and the Noles 31-24. Oddly enough, an upset loss to rival BC caused Notre Dame to lose the top spot in the polls just a week later, and it was Florida State that played new No. 2 Nebraska in the Orange Bowl for a national title, beating the Huskers on a last-second field goal.

After losing the game of the century, Florida State captured it's first national championship and became a national brand.

Long and Suite Preview: The Big 12

Kansas State coach Bill Snyder will look to shock the nation again with an offense rebuilt around returning quarterback Jake Waters (15) and three-time All-Big 12 center B.J. Finney (66).

By Joe Parello (@HerewegoJoe) with a cameo from Jeremy Conlin (@jeremy_conlin)

While the Pac 12 challenged the SEC for total conference dominance last season, and Florida State delivered a national title to the ACC, the Big 12  quietly ended the year on a bit of a tear.

Baylor's fun n' gun offense helped it win the conference (though the Bears fell to UCF in the Fiesta Bowl), while Oklahoma earned a spot in the Sugar Bowl, where it blasted Alabama. Texas Tech and new coach Kliff Kingsbury knocked off Pac 12 South champion Arizona State in the Holiday Bowl, and Bill Snyder's Kansas State team rebounded from a rocky start to win six of its final seven, including a whooping of Michigan in the Buffalo Wild Wings Bowl.

Long and Suite Preview: The Big 12

TCU's Devonte Fields made life miserable for Big 12 quarterbacks in 2012.

By Joe Parello  @HerewegoJoe

Offense is king in America's heartland, and the Big 12 features some of college football's most explosive attacks.

Seven of the conference's 10 teams (Baylor, Kansas State, Oklahoma State, Oklahoma, Texas, Texas Tech and West Virginia) ranked in the top-25 nationally for scoring offense, but does anybody play enough defense to win a national championship?

That will certainly be the big question for conference contenders this season, and with quarterback questions at Oklahoma, WVU and Kansas State, several offenses could take steps back as well. The conference may not have a bona-fide national favorite, but only Kansas looks like a lost cause, with nine teams all chasing a bowl game.