College Football Betting Recap for Week 12
College Football Betting Recap for Week 12
We’re heading towards the end of the regular season and Rivalry Week is coming up. Let’s take a look at Week 12 and some of the highs and lows.
*The big story in the ACC was not that No. 4Florida State, who started the game down 13-0, beat FSC North Alabama 58-13. It was Heisman Trophy candidate Jordan Travis who injured his left ankle early in the game and was loaded off on a stretcher. Travis will now miss the season, which means that it becomes junior Tate Rodemaker’s team. Rodemaker completed 13 of 23 for 217 yards with two TDs and no picks in that win. This season, he has 376 yards passing with five TDs and no picks in 31 passes, But despite being around for three seasons before this one, he threw just 62 passes, completing 36 passes with 391 yards passing, seven TDs and five INTs.
*James Madison had their unbeaten streak (10-0 start) snapped on Saturday at home against Appalachian State in a 26-23 overtime loss as 9-point favorite. The Dukes had petitioned the NCAA to waive the 2-year transition rule from FCS considering they have dominated the Sun Belt in their second season at FBS. But the Dukes will have to abide by the rule, along with Jacksonville State, and they will miss going to postseason and to play in their first bowl game. App State (5-2 SBC) has now won four straight games. They’ve moved to 7-4, which ties them with Coastal Carolina for second in the Sun Belt East, but with JMU (6-1) being ineligible, both teams will need to win this week. If the Mountaineers beat Georga Southern (3-4), they will need help from JMU, who plays Coastal Carolina this week on the road. That’s because CCU beat App State 27-24 earlier this season.
*Let’s stick with Group of Five teams and head to New Mexico State (6-1 C-USA). The Aggies, under veteran coach Jerry Kill, has now won seven straight games after shocking Auburn 31-10 on the road this season. They did lose to Liberty early on (33-17) and that’s a conference loss that has hampered them since the Flames are 7-1 in Conference-USA. But that Aggies deserve to get to a better bowl than some early December game that nobody cares about. This is a squad that beat an SEC team on the road and held the Tigers to just 213 yards of offense. They were a 25.5-point underdog and beat auburn by three touchdowns. The loss to Liberty is understandable, but they started the season with a defeat at lowly UMass (3-8).
*Did a new coordinators help Penn State’s offense against Rutgers? Well, at least they ran for 234 yards, but Drew Allar was not good, completing 6 of 13 for 79 yards against a good Rutgers defense. He also went down to an unspecified injury early in the third quarter. Beau Pribula came in and rushed for 71 yards on eight carries with just one completion for 9 yards. The Nittany Lions did cover the 19 points, but the game also went well under the 40-point total. Allar, who may have a shoulder injury since a hard hit to that area forced him off the field, is expected to return to practice and should play this week when Penn State plays Michigan State on Friday night at Ford Field in Detroit.
*Chip Kelly survived another game as his UCLA Bruins crushed USC 38-20 as a 5.0-point underdog at the LA Memorial Coliseum. USC QB Caleb Wiliams threw for 384 yards with a TD and a pick, but there was zero running game (3 yards on 22 carries) for the Trojans. The Bruins were able to run for 202 yards, led by 142 from TJ. Harden and a TD. QB Ethan Garbers was an efficient 18-of-31 for 155 yards and three TDs. Kelly might still be on the hot seat, but Lincoln Riley’s seat is getting slightly warmer. Despite having a Heisman Trophy-winning QB, Riley has lost five of his last six games and is 5-7 in his last 12 against Power Five teams.
*The one team nobody talks about is Kansas State (8-3 SU, 6-2 B12), who just upended No. 25 Kansas this week on the road as a 7-point favorite. That line moved around a lot because Kansas QB Jason Bean was out. So freshman third-stringer Cole Ballard got the start and threw for 162 yards with a TD and also had two picks. QB Will Howard accounted for three TDs and helped the Wildcats come back from being down, 27-16 in the third quarter. The Wildcats are tied with Oklahoma State and Oklahoma in the Big 12 with a 6-2 record, which places them one game behind Texas. Kansas State finished with Iowa State at home this week.