Recap: Week 0: 2-1; YTD: 2-1
Last week we got our first taste of college football, and it was a profitable one. We were able to see Rich Rod lead his Gamecocks to their 1st ever win as an FBS school, UMass looks to be a highly underrated squad, and Hawaii looks to take a step up in their 2nd year under Timmy Chang and the Run-and-Shoot offense. The play clock not stopping on first downs seems to have a slight change in game tempo, as overs went 3-4 last week. Shifting focus to Week 1, I have 3 games to break down for my fellow union members, so without further ado, let’s HIT THE BOOKS!
Miami (OH) +17.5
Who is the REAL Miami? The boys from Ohio take a trip down to Hard Rock Stadium Friday night to take on the Hurricanes. Junior QB Brett Gabbert is finally back and healthy after missing the 2022 season where the RedHawks were led by Freshman Aveon Smith to an underwhelming 6-7 season. This offense should be more productive, returning seven, led by leading rusher in ’22 Keyon Mozee. Nine starters return on defense (4 in the secondary), so expect them to contain Miami’s erratic but explosive pass attack.
Miami (Florida) expects to right a major wrong coming off a very disappointing ’22 season. The heartbeat of their offense returns in QB Tyler Van Dyke, who flirted with the idea of transferring. Miami FL has a lot coming back with nine players returning on offense and 10 on defense. Van Dyke should improve this season under first year OC Shannon Dawson, who previously was at Houston and plans to revamp the scheme to fit Van Dyke’s skill set.
I feel Miami FL will win this matchup with the better overall talent but this number is far too high. The U hosts Texas A&M next week in a revenge matchup, so this can be a major lookahead. With Gabbert being 100% healthy and the starter, the RedHawk offense should be much more efficient through the air. I see Miami (OH) hanging within this number, with plenty of back door potential to cover at the end.
Colorado State +12
Let’s go down to Fort Collins, CO where the Rams will host Washington State and the fighting Cam Ward’s. Former Nevada Wolfpack HC Jay Norvell is in his 2nd year at CSU, where the expectations have risen this season. He brought with him QB Clay Millen, who backed up Carson Strong two years ago when he led Nevada to 8 wins and 36 TDs. We all saw how explosive Hawaii looked last week in the 2nd year under Chang’s Run-and-Shoot offense. I expect similar results this season for the Rams in the 2nd year under Matt Mumme’s Air Raid. Returning at WR is 1,000-yard receiver Tory Horton, which is HUGE for production and chemistry.
Cam Ward will look to electrify the already loaded QB pool of the PAC-12 again this season under center. The Cougs return 7 on offense but lose their top 4 WR’s in ’22 production so chemistry may be an issue. Former WKU OC Ben Arbuckle replaces Eric Morris who left to take the HC job at North Texas. We expect to see some more downfield, high octane pass attempts by Ward, so it’s possible we can see plenty of points in this matchup.
Normally, I would look to an over here, but I am very high on this Rams squad. With more experience under this offense, and WSU only returning 5 starters on defense, I think CSU is live. With the homefield advantage and added experience, anything above 10 is a play for this bettor. Give me Colorado State to RAM this spread and sprinkle that ML on the home dog!
SOUTH CAROLINA/NORTH CAROLINA O65
Let’s go to Charlotte, NC for the Duke’s Mayo Classic. Junior triggerman Spencer Rattler returns to lead the Gamecocks into the ’23 season to take on the UNC Tarheels. Shane Beamer will need every ounce of arm talent Rattler offers because this RB core is extremely thin. The Cocks return their ’22 leading receiver Antwane Wells but will need to find help behind him to carry the load. OC Dowell Loggains comes in to install a pro-style attack, which I think will help Rattler become a more polished QB and spread the ball around.
The talk of the town in NC is superstar and Heisman hopeful Drake Maye. This kid did it all last season, throwing for 38 TDs while rushing for 7 more and leading this team to 9 wins. Mack Brown has a history of tutoring great QBs (Vince Young), and I believe Maye will fall into that category. This offense returns 9 starters, including 4 lineman and their whole RB core. Wide receiver is a question mark as Downs and Green both depart and the team is still waiting for the NCAA to rule on Kent State transfer Devontez Walkers’ eligibility, but with a high caliber QB like Drake Maye, he makes studs.
This is a very simple handicap to me. Star players at the star positions make star plays. SC has a very inexperienced defense and UNC has a very bad defense with one returning starter in the secondary. I do not think either defense is capable of stopping the other offense. This total has skyrocketed from 60 to 65, so we are not getting the best number, but in this case, I don’t think it matters. This game will hit 70, so give me plenty of points and tune into this one because it will be a treat to watch!