Bets to Place Before the 2023 College Football Season

Bets to Place Before the 2023 College Football Season

Time Stamp: August 14, 2023 9:53 AM
Source Node: 2822567

College football season is approaching. Before the season starts gamblers need to get their futures bets in for the year. Here are bets to place before the 2023 college football season.

2023 College Football Bets

Kansas Jayhawks Over 6 Wins

Kansas showed great progress last season by making a bowl game. Lance Leipold has the program trending in the right direction and winning over six games is the next step in the progression. They have 16 returning starters back, including Jalon Daniels at quarterback.

The schedule provides ample opportunities for wins this season. They have non-conference games against Missouri State, Illinois and Nevada. In conference, they have winnable games against BYU, UCF, Oklahoma State, Oklahoma, Iowa State, Texas Tech and Cincinnati. Hitting the over seems probable for the Jayhawks.

Miami (Ohio) RedHawks Over 6.5 Wins

Chuck Martin has done a tremendous job with the Miami program from when he started until now. They have been bowl eligible in every season since 2018, besides the COVID-shortened 2020 season. The RedHawks have 12 returning starters this season. Starting quarterback Brett Gabbert is back and so too are seven starters on defense to give the RedHawks hope of winning the MAC.

They play the Miami Hurricanes, UMass, Cincinnati and Delaware State in their nonconference schedule. The RedHawks can at least win two of those games, which sets them up for a good MAC season. That means they only need to win five conference games. They do play Toledo and Ohio, but dodge some other projected top teams in the MAC, which could make things easier.

Kentucky Wildcats Over 7 Wins

Last season, Kentucky had a bad offensive line and starting quarterback Will Levis battled injuries and they still won seven games in the regular season. They have just 11 returning starters, but hit the transfer portal hard to get impact players. With offensive coordinator Liam Coen returning to Kentucky, the offense should improve this season and the defense has been solid in the Stoops’ era.

In their nonconference schedule, the Wildcats play Ball State, Eastern Kentucky, Akron and Louisville. That gives them three, possibly four wins. For conference play, Kentucky has winnable games against Vanderbilt, Florida, Missouri, Mississippi State and South Carolina. If Devin Leary returns to form after transferring in from NC State, the Wildcats could surprise people in the SEC.

Oklahoma Sooners Under 9.5 Wins

Oklahoma has 13 returning starters from a team that finished the year 6-7. It was Brent Venables’s first year as head coach, so there should be some improvements expected moving forward. The over/under number of 9.5 wins seems a little too high, even if they improve.

The Sooners play Arkansas State, SMU and Tulane in their nonconference schedule. Tulane could give the Sooners some trouble, as they were the group of five representative in a New Year’s Six Bowl last season. They have tough games in conference against Texas, Kansas, Oklahoma State and TCU. While the schedule is easier than other Big 12 schedules, Oklahoma improving by more than three wins seems like it is too much.

Cincinnati Bearcats Under 5.5 Wins

Cincinnati won nine games last season then Luke Fickell left to take the Wisconsin job. Now the Bearcats have just four returning starters and while they have hit the transfer portal to help, that is still a lot to replace.

The Bearcats play Eastern Kentucky, Pittsburgh and Miami (OH) in their nonconference schedule. They could win two of those games, but they likely won’t be favored against Pittsburgh. In the Big 12, they would have to win four games, which seems unlikely given what they lost this past season.

Arkansas Razorbacks Over 7 Wins

Last season, Arkansas dealt with injuries to quarterback K.J. Jefferson and in their secondary. They still won six games then a bowl game. They have just nine starters returning, but Jefferson is back and healthy. They have supplemented their defense with transfers, so Arkansas could improve despite limited returning starters.

They should sweep the nonconference schedule games of Western Carolina, Kent State, FIU and BYU. The SEC schedule is always tough, but they could get at least three wins to push and up to five wins. The key is Jefferson staying healthy.

UTSA Roadrunners Over 7.5 Wins

UTSA has been one of the best group of five programs over the last few seasons. Jeff Traylor led the team to an 11-3 record last season and now has 15 starters returning, including quarterback Frank Harris. While the loss of star receiver Zakhari Franklin will hurt, the Roadrunners should still be able to average near the 36.8 points per game they did last season.

They play Houston, Texas State, Army and Tennessee in their nonconference slate. At least two wins should come out of the nonconference. The Roadrunners are joining the AAC this season but should be one of the better teams in the conference. They’ll have tough games against UAB and Tulane, but dodge a lot of the other projected top teams in the conference. Over 7.5 wins is more than possible for UTSA.

Penn State Nittany Lions Over 9.5 Wins

Penn State went 11-2 last season and returns 13 starters from last season. They have running back Nicholas Singleton and left tackle Olu Fashanu as stars on the offense. Those two will need to help second-year quarterback Drew Allar step into the starting role, after being a highly-ranked recruit. The defense ranked 10th in the country last season and has talent on every level.

Out of conference, the Nittany Lions play West Virginia, Delaware and UMass, which should all be wins. The tough part comes in the Big Ten, where they play both Michigan and Ohio State. The rest of the schedule isn’t too daunting, so there is a possibility that Penn State loses to both of them and still hit the over. Even so, there is a chance they defeat one of those teams as well.

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