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The Oregon State Beavers take on the Colorado Buffaloes. Check out our college football odds series for our Oregon State Colorado prediction and pick. Find how to watch Oregon State Colorado.
The Colorado Buffaloes' season, which began with three wins and a tidal wave of national media attention, has taken a sharp wrong turn. It's not just about the losses which have mounted over the past month. Colorado has won just one game since that 3-0 start and is unlikely to make a bowl game. That's bad enough. What's worse is that Deion Sanders seems to be panicking, or at the very least, losing trust in his fundamental approach with the Buffaloes.
Deion had some very critical words for his offensive line over a week ago. Now, something else has added to the turmoil in Boulder as Colorado has lost its way. Deion has demoted offensive coordinator Sean Lewis. He will still have a role on the offensive staff, but he has had some responsibilities taken away from him, including and especially play calling. Offensive analyst Pat Shurmur will reportedly take over play-calling for this Oregon State game.
National college football experts regarded Deion's hire of Lewis, the former Kent State head coach, as one of his best moves in building a strong staff and establishing national credibility for the Colorado football program. By demoting Lewis, Deion Sanders has very likely created a situation in which Lewis will not be part of the CU program next year. Lewis is very likely to seek another job for 2024. This undercuts Colorado's attempt to build a substantial program. It raises a lot of doubts about Deion Sanders' ability to create a high-level winner in Boulder.
Here are the Oregon State-Colorado College Football odds, courtesy of FanDuel.
College Football Odds: Oregon State-Colorado Odds
Oregon State Beavers: -13.5 (-105)
Colorado Buffaloes: +13.5 (-115)
Over: 61.5 (-105)
Under: 61.5 (-115)
How To Watch Oregon State vs Colorado
Time: 10:00 pm ET / 7:00 pm PT
TV: ESPN
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Stream: fuboTV (click for a free trial)*
Why Oregon State Could Cover the Spread
The turmoil enveloping the Colorado program and Deion Sanders is not going to help Colorado play well. It should be a great benefit for Oregon State, which won 10 games last season and still has a good team this year. Colorado, on the other hand, probably won't make a bowl game. The Buffaloes need to beat Oregon State in order to make a bowl game, but it's unlikely CU will win with Sean Lewis not calling plays. Lewis is a highly-regarded coach in national college football circles. Pat Shurmur, the man taking over play-calling duties according to reports earlier on Friday, is a big downgrade from Lewis.
Oregon State also has bigger, tougher linemen on both sides of the ball. Oregon State should be able to physically dominate Colorado up front and win this game going away.
Why Colorado Could Cover the Spread
The Buffaloes knew that something needed to change. Deion Sanders wanted to shake things up. His move with Sean Lewis and Pat Shurmur is controversial, but remember: Deion's son, Shedeur, is the starting quarterback for this Colorado team. Surely Deion vetted this with Shedeur before making the move. As long as Shedeur Sanders is on board with this — and one would reasonably assume it is — Colorado should expect that it won't have a drop-off in offensive performance and might be able to exploit an Oregon State defense which has allowed at least 38 points in multiple games this season.
Final Oregon State-Colorado Prediction & Pick
Deion Sanders is in retreat. He is desperate and scrambling. Oregon State's big advantage in the trenches should lead to a very comfortable win for the Beavers over the reeling Buffaloes.
Final Oregon State-Colorado Prediction & Pick: Oregon State -13.5
