The Big 10 rules College football on Friday as four of the eight games feature teams from that conference. Two of those teams are ranked in the AP Top 25.
Michigan State, which is No. 18, and No. 19 Wisconsin are both playing on Friday. MSU hosts Tulsa, and is a 22.5-point favorite. Wisconsin is on the road to South Florida. They are still a 12-point pick.
College Football Friday Games
Team                     Odds                            Over/Under
Rice at Army               Army -22.5                     48.5
Utah State at Wake Forest       WF -3.5                           59.5
Wisconsin at South Florida    Wisconsin -12          59.5
Tulsa at Michigan State       MSU -22.5                       46.5
UMass at Rutgers           Rutgers -15.5           55
Colorado State at Colorado   Colorado -13           56.5
Purdue at Nevada           Purdue -11                       59
Oklahoma St. at Oregon St. Â Â Â Â OK State -14Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â 72
Odds Courtesy of Westgate LV SuperBook
The bigger schools in the conference, Ohio State and Michigan don’t make there season debut until Saturday. Below are some of the Friday games, and things to look for in a few of the contests.
Will Army Repeat Last Year’s Season?
Army finished an incredible 11-1 last year, capped off with a 70-14 pounding of Houston in the Armed Forces Bowl. Will there be a hangover this season? Coach Jeff Monken doesn’t think so.
“We haven’t won a game yet,†Monken said about the season.
He knows his team is heavily favored against Rice (22.5 points), but also knows this could be a trap game since the Black Knights are traveling to Michigan the following week.
“If we let anything distract us from that,†Monken said, “we’re going to find ourselves in second place on Friday.â€
The defense needs to repeat last season’s performance where they were in the top 10 nationally in scoring defense, rushing defense, and total defense.
They will be tested by a Rice offense that relies on the run, and has a trio of running backs.
Who Will Be Tulsa’s Quarterback?
It is 24 hours before Tulsa takes on Michigan State, and Golden Hurricane head coach Philip Montgomery still hasn’t named a starting quarterback. No one knows why he is waiting this long. He told reporters on Monday that he and his staff were still pondering the position.
“It’ll be a thing that myself and my staff will kind of evaluate,†Montgomery said. “I think obviously our team will know about it first, and then we’ll see how we let it play out from there.â€
Whether it is redshirt sophomore Seth Boomer, who played last year, or redshirt junior Zach Smith, who transferred from Baylor, they will have their hands full with Michigan State’s defense. The Spartans are favored by 22.5 points.
Can Colorado State Upset Rival Colorado?
The last time Colorado defeated its rival was 2014, and there is not much to say the Rams will topple Colorado. The Buffaloes have 11 returning starters and a skilled senior quarterback in Steven Montez.
Colorado also has a new coach. Mel Tucker has worked with Nick Saban of Alabama, and Georgia’s Kirby Smart. This is his first head coaching job, and he is eager to prove what he can do.
That should come at the expense of CSU. The Rams had one of the worst defenses in the country last year, and last year lost to the Buffaloes, 45-13.
The line opened at 10, but has since moved up to 13. With all the talent on Colorado, they should be able to not only beat CSU, but beat them by well more than the spread.