College football underdog picks are going to be more of an anomaly as we turn to Week 2. College football betting sites now have a sample size to use on all 133 teams when analyzing games.
Going 3-2 last week, gave me consecutive winning percentages in the season’s first two weeks as my record is sitting at 5-3 overall.
Duke’s (+13.5) win over Clemson punctuated my winning record in Week 1 as the Blue Devils took a 28-7 outright win in dominating the Tigers.
Let’s shift our focus to our picks for the top College Football underdogs for Week 2. Additionally, we have an underdog parlay that you can wager on at the best football betting sites .
WEEK 2 College Football Underdog Bets
The following odds are courtesy of Bovada:
| Team | Odds |
|---|---|
| San Diego State Aztecs +14.5 | -110 |
| Arizona Wildcats +10 | -110 |
| Iowa State Cyclones +4 | -110 |
| East Carolina Pirates +3.5 | -110 |
UCLA Bruins at San Diego State Aztecs (+14.5)
The Bruins did not cover (-15.5) last week in their 27-13 win over the Coastal Carolina Chanticleers. Now, comes a trip to SDSU and the Aztecs’ new Snapdragon Stadium that opened last season.
Sports betting sites had the Aztecs as a heavy favorite (-34.5) in their 36-28 win over Big Sky Conference member Idaho State in Week 1. Both teams posted three turnovers each, which allowed Idaho State to keep it close and put pressure on the Aztecs in the fourth quarter.
SDSU is your typical Brady Hoke squad that is generally only about the defensive end of the field and also operates offensively when it has to.
The Aztecs will work to shorten the 60 minutes as UCLA’s offense was only on the field for around 25 minutes in Saturday’s win over Coastal Carolina.
San Diego State has only one win over the Bruins in the rivalry’s history as SDSU took a 23-14 win at UCLA in 2019.
🎥 An Inside Look at the season-opening victory over Coastal Carolina at the Rose Bowl!
Full Video » https://t.co/1DRt8qwOXL pic.twitter.com/TsFTDrvtRM
— UCLA Football (@UCLAFootball) September 5, 2023
UCLA coach Chip Kelly has worked on a rebuild of Bruins’ fortunes as Dorian Thompson-Robinson was at the hub of UCLA’s 18-8 record over the past two seasons. Ethan Garbers and Dante Moore were behind center in the win over the Chanticleers.
The key for the Bruins will be capturing the big play against San Diego State’s consistency on defense. Wide receiver J. Michael Sturdivant will be a huge matchup on the perimeter for the Aztecs.
SDSU quarterback Jalen Mayden is a threat on the ground where he posted two touchdowns last weekend. San Diego State controlled the game with 302 yards rushing.
UCLA should pick up the win, the Aztecs’ solid defense should allow them to keep this contest interesting.
The Aztecs were 0-4-0 as a home underdog last season, while UCLA posted a 2-1-0 record as a road favorite.
Arizona Wildcats (+10) at Mississippi State Bulldogs
Arizona had some tough first-half moments in their 38-3 win over Big Sky Conference opponent Northern Arizona.
Wildcats quarterback Jayden de Laura passed for 285 yards and now faces a Bulldogs squad that’s also coming off a mismatch in Week 1 with a 48-7 win over Southeastern Louisiana.
De Laura came over from Washington State, where he played the first two seasons of his career. Last year, he led Arizona back into a realm where they could compete. He also had a strong Week 1 performance as he threw three touchdown passes and notched a 53-yard touchdown run.
𝗣𝗹𝗮𝘆 𝗼𝗳 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗚𝗮𝗺𝗲: Arizona vs. NAU 🏈🌟 pic.twitter.com/2je8kObkBo
— Arizona Football (@ArizonaFBall) September 5, 2023
Coach Jedd Fisch has laid the groundwork to push the Wildcats into the thick of what will be a Big 12 race after the team’s last Pac-12 campaign this season.
The Bulldogs have their own big-time QB in Will Rogers, who completed 68 percent of his passes with 35 TD throws and eight interceptions last season.
The Bulldogs’ featured back is Jo’Quavious Marks, who posted 127 yards and two touchdowns on 19 carries on Saturday. He faces an Arizona defense that gave up 209.1 yards on 37.4 carries per game last season.
Marks will be a measurement of how well the Wildcats’ have improved against the run, while defending the depth of Rogers’ ability will be a key in how well Arizona can defend the pass.
Look for the Bulldogs to win at home, but pick up more of a challenge from the Wildcats (+10) than anyone may have expected.
The Wildcats were 3-2 ATS on the road last season while Mississippi State notched a 4-1-1 record against the spread in home games last year.
Iowa Hawkeyes @ Iowa State Cyclones (+4)
This all-Iowa rivalry reconvenes in Ames, Iowa, this weekend as the homesteading Iowa State Cyclones (+4) are the underdogs against the visiting Iowa Hawkeyes.
Overall, Iowa leads the series 46-23. However, Iowa State ended the Hawkeyes’ six-game winning streak with last season’s 10-7 debacle that set football back 50 years.
In addition, the last four Cyclone wins in the series have been by three points each. You have to go back to 2005, to see that the Cyclones have actually left their mark in the series when they posted a 23-3 win.
Both squads opened the season with wins as Iowa fought off a solid Utah State team, 24-14, and the Cyclones took a 30-9 victory over Northern Iowa.
Watch the two quarterbacks in this game in Iowa State’s Rocco Becht and Cade McNamara from Iowa. Becht has taken over for Hunter Deckers, who was one of the Cyclones involved in the gambling issues.
Just getting started @AB3_sama
🌪️🚨🌪️ pic.twitter.com/bynRt4IhPg
— Iowa State Football (@CycloneFB) September 5, 2023
McNamara, a talented passer who started at Michigan, needs to be able to keep the chains moving. He threw two touchdown passes last Saturday in the Hawkeyes win.
Going back two years, McNamara completed 64.2 percent of his passes in 2021, his last season with the Wolverines, where he added 15 touchdown passes against only six interceptions.
On the flip side, Becht will do the same in looking for Cartevious Norton as the Cyclones’ lead rusher. The big difference for both teams will be defenses showing up in a game where the Total is currently listed at 36.5 points.
Both teams are trying to move forward in the Big Ten and Big 12, respectively, so a win here in a rivalry match-up would be a stellar springboard for either team.
Iowa was only an away favorite once last season and won while the Cyclones were 0-1-1 as a home underdog.
Stay home in this one and take the Cyclones to win consecutive games in this series for the first time since 2011-2012.
Marshall Thundering Herd @ East Carolina Pirates (+3.5)
East Carolina Pirates (ECU) are posted as a home underdog after the Marshall Thundering Herd struggled at home with Albany, but eked out a 21-17 win.
Herd QB, Cam Fancher, will face an ECU defense that gave up 280 yards passing to Michigan quarterback J.J. McCarthy as the Wolverines took a 30-3 win over the Pirates.
Fancher is a drop-back passer who could give the Pirates more trouble in the passing game. He became comfortable as the Marshall starter last season when he threw for 1,558 yards and 10 touchdowns with six interceptions.
Herd wide receivers Charles Montgomery and Cade Conley could be keys against the Pirates.
ECU (+3.5) gave up 291 yards through the air per game in 2022, but was still voted sixth in the American Athletic Conference preseason poll as it included the additions of Charlotte, Rice, UAB, North Texas, Florida Atlantic, and UTSA.
Time to get rowdy in Dowdy-Ficklen 🏴☠️#PaintItPurple pic.twitter.com/cKEj4BKB5W
— ECU Football (@ECUPiratesFB) September 3, 2023
Cornerback Shavon Revel has worked on his ability to move forward in the secondary after ECU lost four corners from last season. Playing against McCarthy and Michigan should have given Mike Houston’s squad a solid opportunity to show improvement against the pass in this game.
Offensively, ECU only tallied 235 total yards against Michigan as the Wolverines’ defense would not let any part of the East Carolina offense get on track.
Quarterback Mason Garcia and WR Jaylen Johnson can get on track in this game as Marshall will face more talent than last week on both sides of the ball.
Houston has been a major find for the Pirate faithful as he was the head coach at James Madison before moving to East Carolina. He had a 37-6 record with the Dukes as he won the D-1 national title in 2016, while JMU was the runner-up in 2017.
He has raised the Pirates to consecutive Bowl appearances as the 2021 Military Bowl was canceled due to COVID and East Carolina pasted Coastal Carolina, 53-29, in the Birmingham Bowl last season.
The Pirates were 2-0-0 as a home underdogs last season while Marshall took a 2-2-0 mark as a road favorite.
College Football Parlay For Week 2
Not only is there plenty of opportunities to take an Underdog for victory this weekend, but you can also use all four of these Underdog picks for a College Football parlay card this week.
If you were to bet on this four-leg parlay, you would receive +1288 odds. For every $100 wagered, you would win $1,288 dollars. As always, Bovada is our preferred site for parlays. So, we recommend a small flier on this College Football Underdogs parlay ticket.
Sources
https://bvmsports.com/2023/09/03/ecu-coach-mike-houston-reflects-on-loss-to-michigan-looks-ahead-to-game-against-marshall/
