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The lowly Colorado Buffaloes will make the trek to take on the USC Trojans in a Friday night Pac-12 after-dark college football matchup. With that said, we are continuing our college football odds series and making our Colorado-USC prediction and pick.
Colorado has suffered through some lean years recently, making one bowl appearance since their ten-win season in 2016. The Buffaloes have gone 1-8 this season, with their closest loss being an eight-point defeat by Arizona State. A five-game losing streak was interrupted by an overtime win over Cal, immediately followed by a current three-game losing streak.
USC made numerous headlines this offseason with their hiring of Lincoln Riley and the recruiting craze that followed. In his first season on the West Coast, Riley’s squad has surged to an 8-1 record, with a one-point loss to Utah being the only blemish. USC has gone undefeated 5-0 in home games. The Trojans are close to restoring the prestige of their glory days.
Here are the Colorado-USC college football odds, courtesy of FanDuel.
College Football Odds: Colorado-USC Odds
Colorado Buffaloes: +34.5 (-112)
USC Trojans: -34.5 (-108)
Over: 66.5 (-108)
Under: 66.5 (-112)
Why Colorado Could Cover The Spread
Please bear with me while I try to explain ways that Colorado can cover the spread in this one, not win the game outright. JT Shrout has been perfectly solid, completing 44.5 percent of his passes for 976 yards with six touchdowns and six interceptions. Deion Smith leads the team with 381 rushing yards and is tied for the lead with two touchdowns. Anthony Hankerson and Owen McCown also have each run for two touchdowns. Hankerson is second on the team with 194 rushing yards. Colorado has totaled 1,024 rushing yards and seven touchdowns. Jordan Tyson leads the team with 22 catches for 470 yards and four touchdowns. Daniel Arias is second with 309 yards, catching one touchdown. Montana Lemonious-Craig is second with two touchdown catches. Colorado has averaged 15.6 points and 303.2 yards of offense per game.
Colorado’s defense has been porous, allowing 40.2 points and 483.2 yards of offense per game. Trevor Woods leads the team with 79 tackles, including two for a loss. Josh Chandler-Semedo leads the team with two and a half sacks, while the Buffaloes have managed just six sacks as a team. Isaiah Lewis, Tyrin Taylor, and Woods all lead the team with one interception.
Why USC Could Cover The Spread
Caleb Williams has been better than advertised, completing 64.6 percent of his passes for 2,742 yards with 28 touchdowns to just one interception. Williams also ranks second with four rushing touchdowns. Travis Dye, another transfer, leads the team with 858 rushing yards and nine touchdowns. USC has totaled 1,640 rushing yards and eighteen touchdowns as a team. Jordan Addison, yet another transfer (notice a trend?), leads the team with 39 catches for 585 yards and seven touchdowns. Mario Williams is second with 493 receiving yards and four touchdowns. Tahj Washington is the third Trojan over 400 receiving yards, with 444 yards and three touchdowns. USC has averaged an impressive 41.0 points and 495.9 yards of offense per game.
USC’s defense has performed when needed, allowing 25.2 points and 409.2 yards of offense per game. Shane Lee leads the team with 54 tackles, including five and a half for a loss and two and a half sacks. Tuli Tuipulotu leads the team with nine sacks, with Nick Figueroa ranking second with four and a half. The Trojans have totaled 29 sacks as a team. Calen Bullock has picked off three passes to lead the team, while USC has totaled 14 interceptions.
Final Colorado-USC Prediction & Pick
This is just an awful mismatch.
Final Colorado-USC Prediction & Pick: USC -34.5 (-108), over 66.5 (-108)