Best College Football Bets Today for Week 8 (Predictions for LSU-Vanderbilt, USC-Notre Dame, and More)

Iain MacMillan | Oct 18, 2025

Bet on Vanderbilt to cover against LSU in College Football Week 8 action. / Gary Cosby Jr.-USA TODAY Network via Imagn Images

It's time to wake up, put on a pot of coffee, find a spot on the couch, and lock in your college football bets for today's action.

If you don't want to spend the time diving into the numbers to find the best bets to place for Week 8, don't worry, I have you covered. In this article, I'm going to break down three of my favorite bets for today's action. Let's dive into them.

College Football Week 8 Best Bets Today

• Vanderbilt -1.5 (-110) vs. LSU via BetMGM
• Memphis -21.5 (-110) vs. UAB via DraftKings
• USC +290 vs. Notre Dame via FanDuel

LSU vs. Vanderbilt Prediction

Vanderbilt continues to be an underrated team. The Commodores are 18th in the country in adjusted EPA per play with a success rate of +11.3% and a Net Yards per Play of +2.52. The underlying numbers for LSU have not been as impressive, ranking 41st in adjusted EPA with a success rate of +7.3% and a Net Yards per Play of +0.84.

Pick: Vanderbilt -1.5 (-110)

Memphis vs. UAB Prediction

In this week's edition of First to Forde, both Pat Forde and I are backing Memphis to cover the big number against UAB. This is why I like the Tigers:

San Jose State is the only team that throws the ball more than UAB. 64.66% of UAB's plays are passing plays, and now the Blazers take on a Memphis team that allows just 6.4 yards per pass attempt, which ranks 32nd in the country. If the Blazers can't succeed in throwing the ball, they're going to get steamrolled by Memphis. The Tigers are eighth in the country in adjusted EPA per play, while UAB ranks just 106th.

Pick: Memphis -21.5 (-110)

USC vs. Notre Dame Prediction

Each week, I write about three underdogs I like to win outright. USC to take down Notre Dame is one of those picks for Week 8:

The advanced metrics continue to love this USC team. The Trojans rank first in the entire country in adjusted EPA per play, along with ninth in Success Rate. Despite that, they're 9.5-point underdogs against a Notre Dame team that ranks 25th and 46th in those two metrics. I'll jump at the chance to take the Trojans at +275.

Pick: USC +290

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