NCAA Football Takeaways Week 3

Lofty spreads can be complex.

When a team is favored by twenty five points or more, it can be tough to decide if they can cover the spread.

Is Team A’s offense so good that they’ll pepper the scoreboard?

Maybe Team B’s defense is not quite up to snuff and will relinquish too many points?

Are there any notable players expected to sit out for Team C?

Some spreads are a field goal difference and bettors can choose which way they believe the coin may flip. With these super spreads, the books are asking bettors on how one-sided a contest will be.

As we’ve seen this past week in College Football, some games will appear to be one-sided until all hell breaks loose.

The Florida State Seminoles were set as -25.5 point favorites against Boston College and won by just two points.

Even more surprising, Boston College recorded 18 penalties and still managed to hang around in this one.

For the Texas Longhorns, they were favored by 31 points against the Wyoming Cowboys; rightfully so after upsetting the Alabama Crimson Tide in Week 2.

Not only did Texas fail to cover the spread against Wyoming, the game was tied at 10 apiece entering the fourth quarter!

Speaking of Alabama, the Crimson Tide were 34-point favorites against the South Florida Bulls and failed to cover as well; Alabama won by a low score of 17-3.

Impossible to cover a 34 point spread when you only post 17 points. Ugh.

While I try to wrap my brain around these spreads, let’s take a look at some other things we learned in Week 3.

Quarterbacks Reign Supreme

USC quarterback Caleb Williams currently has the shortest odds to win the Heisman, with best odds of +380 found at DraftKings.

With Williams on a bye in Week 3, a few quarterbacks showcased their skills this week to Heisman voters.

Michael Penix Jr. of the Washington Huskies continuously destroys opposing defenses. He did so again in Week 3, shredding apart the Michigan State Spartans in East Lansing, Michigan.

Penix completed 27 of 35 passes for 475 yards and four touchdowns in a 41-7 beat down of the Huskies’ future-Big Ten enemy.

Penix now has a season low of 409 passing yards and a 12:1 touchdown to interception ratio.

Continuing to climb the Heisman odds, Penix’s best odds to win the trophy are now +550 at DraftKings.

Oklahoma Sooners’ quarterback Dillon Gabriel completed 28 of 31 passes for 421 yards and five touchdowns in a 66-17 shellacking of the Tulsa Golden Hurricane.

Gabriel’s completion percentage is a laughable 82.5 percent entering Week 4 and he has thrown just one interception and 11 touchdowns.

Oklahoma has a somewhat soft schedule in 2023, possibly only Texas standing in their way.

If the 3-0 Sooners can finish the season undefeated, or even just one loss, that would certainly help Gabriel’s Heisman case.

Gabriel’s best odds to win the Heisman stand at +3000 on BetMGM.

Fun Fact: Gabriel and Penix are both left-handed!

One QB that continues to put up big numbers, but receive little fanfare, is Cameron Ward of the Washington State Cougars.

Ward’s best odds to win the Heisman are a distant +25000 at BetMGM, but we still have a lot of College Football to go.

Ward has some big matchups coming up, No. 14 Oregon State on Sept. 23rd and No. 22 UCLA on October 7th.

Ward has the potential to become a national name come mid-October.

The Washington State quarterback recorded 327 passing yards and five total touchdowns against FCS Northern Colorado this week . . . In the first half!

Ward has already led the Cougars to an upset victory over then-No. 19 Wisconsin and could do more damage in the near future.

Return Of The MAC

Most teams in the Mid-American Conference are wildly overlooked.

In fact, many College Football viewers may confuse MAC teams for those in the lower-level FCS subdivision.

The MAC put on some impressive performances in Week 3.

The Miami (Ohio) RedHawks picked up a statement win this past week, defeating the Cincinnati Bearcats in overtime, 31-24.

Miami’s defense picked off Cincy quarterback Emory Jones in overtime, on a pass Jones attempted from the RedHawks two-yard line.

Subsequently, Miami QB Brett Gabbert whipped an eight-yard touchdown pass to receiver Joe Wilkins for the win.

As 15.5 point favorites, Cincinnati lost straight-up to an expectedly inferior Miami (Ohio) team.

Bettors that believe Miami (Ohio) can win the MAC can find the best odds to win the conference at +800 on Bet365.

The Ohio Bobcats picked up a notable win as well, besting the Iowa Hawkeyes in a narrow 10-7 win.

Ohio controlled possession, holding the ball for nearly 12 more minutes, and winning the turnover margin, 2-0.

It was an old-fashioned, hard-fought victory for the Bobcats.

Bettors looking for Ohio to win the MAC can find the best odds at Bet365, currently sitting at +275.

Also, the Bowling Green Falcons managed to cover their +40.5 point spread against the Michigan Wolverines.

The Falcons’ defense managed to intercept Michigan quarterback J.J. McCarthy three times!

Another lofty spread going down, MAC style!