College Football Week 1 Betting Preview

College football returns with a bang this week with four Top 25 matchups on the Week 1 schedule.

First up is the No. 6 Washington Huskies vs the No. 9 Auburn Tigers. This is a neutral-site game at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta. At Bovada Sportsbook, the Tigers are a slim 2-point favorite. That doesn’t bode well for Washington, which has lost four straight both straight up and against the spread as the underdog. In their last 10 as a favorite, the Tigers are a strong 8-2 SU but only 3-4-3 ATS.

Continuing with the Top 25 matchups, the No. 14 Michigan Wolverines begin their season on the road against the No. 12 Notre Dame Fighting Irish. At Bovada Sportsbook this is a pick’em after Michigan opened as a 1.5-point favorite. Notre Dame has won five straight at home at 3-2 ATS but is 1-4 ATS in its last five vs the Big Ten. Michigan is 4-2 SU and ATS in its last six vs Notre Dame, but the Wolverines struggle against the Irish on the road with a 2-6 record both SU and ATS in their last eight.

Two other matchups everyone will be watching on Saturday are the No. 5 Ohio State Buckeyes at home vs the Oregon State Beavers, and the No. 1 Alabama Crimson Tide vs the Louisville Cardinals.

Ohio State opens without Meyer on sideline

Ohio State will start the season without head coach Urban Meyer but is still a 38.5-point favorite vs Oregon State. The Buckeyes are 13-1 SU in their last 14 at home, but only 6-8 ATS. When favored by 30 points or more, the Buckeyes are 30-0 SU and 12-18 ATS in their last 30. The Beavers have lost 19 straight on the road while going 6-12-1 ATS.

Alabama and Louisville meet up in Orlando at Camping World Stadium with the Crimson Tide listed as a 25.5-point favorite. Alabama is 9-1 ATS in its last 10 Week 1 games, and when favored by 20 points or more the Tide are 30-0 SU and 13-17 ATS in their last 30. Louisville is 6-1 SU in its last seven Week 1 contests.

Two other ranked matchups on tap for Week 1 include the No. 8 Miami Hurricanes vs the No. 25 LSU Tigers and the No. 20 Virginia Tech Hokies at the No. 19 Florida State Seminoles.

The Hurricanes are a 3.5-point favorite but enter this one on Sunday having lost three in a row SU and four straight ATS. LSU is 6-1 ATS in its last seven, but only 2-5 ATS in the last seven as an underdog.

The Seminoles are 7.5-point favorites but have been a bad bet against the ACC lately at 0-7-1 ATS in their last eight. The Hokies are a surprising 6-2 SU in their last eight road games, but it hasn’t translated to success for bettors, as they are 3-5 ATS.