Best College Football Picks and Predictions Today for Week 1 (Bet Indiana to Cover Big Spread vs. North Texas)

Strap in, folks. We have a loaded slate of college football games to watch and bet on today.

In this article, I'm going to break down a few over my favorites, including a bet on the defending national champions to cover the spread against an overmatched North Texas team.

Best College Football Bets Today

Odds via Caesars Sportsbook

Indiana -40 (-112) vs. North Texas
Boise State +24.5 (-112) vs. Oregon
LSU -10 (-109) vs. Clemson

North Texas vs. Indiana Prediction

Any time that a mid-major team puts forward a successful season, I hesitate to bet on them the following year, and that's the case with North Texas. The Mean Green had some of the best advanced metrics in the nation last year, but with the way college football works in the current age, that has led to their head coach, Eric Morris, moving on to a power school and the majority of their roster transferring.

Now, with a new head coach and a completely overturned roster, I struggle to see how they can hang with a national championship contender. The Hoosiers have also lost some players from last season, but Curt Cignetti is a master at building a roster, and I have high hopes for their new quarterback, Josh Hoover.

I'll lay the points with the Hoosiers in Week 1.

Pick: Indiana -40 (-112)

Boise State vs. Oregon Prediction

In this week's edition of my spread pick for all games involving top 25 teams, I broke down why I'm taking the points with Boise State:

Boise State's defense is good enough to cover the spread in this game. They ranked 10th in the country in defensive success rate, and they're returning plenty of their production from a season ago. This game is going to be a low-scoring affair, which will go a long way in helping the Broncos cover the spread.

Pick: Boise State +24.5 (-112)

Clemson vs. LSU Prediction

In my Week 1 best bets article, I broke down why LSU to cover the 10-point spread is my favorite bet of the week:

LSU is one of the most unpredictable teams heading into this season with a brand-new head coach and a completely different roster from a year ago. With that being said, I'm prepared to fade this Clemson Tigers squad, which is no longer close to the team that used to dominate the ACC.

Dabo Swinney's refusal to fully dive into the transfer portal has led to this program being left in the dust, especially when you consider that Curt Cignetti used the complete opposite strategy at Indiana and led a program that was one of the worst in the nation to a National Championship.

Until Clemson moves on from Swinney, I can't trust them to hang with any elite team in the country.

I'll lay the points with LSU.

Pick: LSU -10 (-109)

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