Every Thursday during the season, Bill Connelly, Preston Johnson, Doug Kezirian and Phil Steele will provide their top plays across the college football landscape
Here are the best bets for the first full week of the college football season:
Note: Picks from Caesars Sportsbook lines as of Wednesday night.
Saturday's games
South Alabama Jaguars at No. 24 Nebraska Cornhuskers (-36.5)
Noon ET, Saturday (ESPN)
Connelly: Here comes the first test of the Nebraska hype. SP+ and other analytics systems haven't been buying the Huskers hype all that much, and while they're likely to cruise in this one -- barring a miraculous second-year leap, Steve Campbell's Jaguars probably won't be able to offer a ton of resistance -- 36.5 points is an awfully high bar.
ATS pick: South Alabama +36.5
SP+ projection: Nebraska 47, South Alabama 16. NU hasn't beaten a team by more than 36.5 points since 2015 (a 39-point win, also over South Alabama). Hmm. Eh, stick with the Jags anyway.