Best Bets for Week 3 of the College Football Season

College Football Future Bets

•Oklahoma State to Win Big 12 (+550)

Potentially the best team in the nation that absolutely nobody is talking about is the Oklahoma State Cowboys.

The Cowboys came up just short of a Big 12 Title in 2021, falling 21-16 to the Baylor Bears in the Conference Championship Game. Rather than tucking their tails between their legs, Mike Gundy and his crew have been downright dominant thus far.

They are averaging 46 points per game on offense and feature arguably the best defense in the conference. The returning starter at quarterback, Spencer Sanders, has already accounted for nine touchdowns in 2022, and even with such a high usage rate, he’s only turned the ball over once.

With the experience that Sanders brings as a starter, as well as the defensive unit returning a number of their key pieces, the Cowboys are being criminally slept on in terms of betting odds.

I’m not here to say that Oklahoma State is a better overall team than the Sooners or Longhorns, but what I am saying is that their odds are the best value by far. It’s not hard to imagine a world where the Cowboys enter the Big 12 Championship Game with zero losses.

The Battle of Bedlam, one of the best rivalries in college football, has serious playoff implications in 2022. Now is the time to get in on the Cowboys if you want to secure value that likely won’t be there in a few weeks.

•USC to Win National Title (+1400)

Let’s get a bit crazy for a minute. To be clear, the Georgia Bulldogs (+180), Alabama Crimson Tide (+200), and Ohio State Buckeyes (+300) are all ranked above USC in college football title odds, and for good reason.

If we are trying to find the best value outside of these three, it’s tough to make an argument against Lincoln Riley and his revamped USC Trojans.

Clemson (+1000) is the only team ahead of USC outside of the aforementioned top three, but I couldn’t disagree more with these odds. Sure, Clemson has a clear path through the ACC and a cakewalk of a schedule, but their offensive line is something that is going to cost them a game or two in the regular season.

The Trojans at +1400 present a steal if they continue blazing a trail in the Pac-12. Their late-season matchup against Notre Dame looks less scary with each passing week, and Anthony Richardson showed that the Utah Utes can be exposed.

Caleb Williams was my preseason pick for the Heisman Trophy, and his play in 2022 hasn’t done anything except make me feel even more confident in this being the end result.

The USC Trojans are going to be a mainstay in the playoff and national title discussions going forward, but wouldn’t it be an appropriate Hollywood story if they were to win a college football championship in year one of the Lincoln Riley Era? It’s worth a shot at these odds.