NCAA Football Week 6 Betting – Oregon State Beavers at Utah Utes
The Oregon State Beavers (2-2 SU & ATS) are coming off one of the biggest college football upsets of recent years. On Thursday night they will try to avoid the big letdown as they square off against the Utes of the University of Utah (5-0 SU, 2-1-1 ATS) in NCAA college football action that is set for a 9 PM ET kickoff at Rice-Eccles Stadium (artificial turf) in Salt Lake City.
Thursday, October 2
BetUS NCAA Football Betting Odds: UTAH -11.5
Here are some of the NCAAF betting trends as they relate to this matchup:
* OSU has won and covered six of its last eight games
* OSU has played six of its last seven road games OVER the total
* UTAH has won its last six games SU
* UTAH has won 13 of its last 14 games SU
* UTAH has covered eight of its last 12 games
* UTAH is 3-2-1 ATS in its last six home games
Oregon State beat a #1-ranked team for the first time in 41 years last Thursday night when they beat USC, getting off to a 21-0 first-half lead, then holding on for a 27-21 victory as they intercepted Mark Sanchez toward the end. Let’s not imply that this was all about luck and turnovers, though; the Trojans, who looked so dominant in their wins over Virginia and Ohio State, had much difficulty stopping the OSU running attack. Freshman Jacquizz Rodgers came up big for the Beavers in that contest, with what was by far his best performance in the four games thus far (186 yards). And the Oregon State defense deserved kudos as well, holding USC to 313 total yards, and looking quite like the #1-ranked rushing “D” from last season. The win wasn’t enough to vault OSU into the top 25, but it was enough to derail USC from immediate thoughts of winning a national title.
Now comes the real challenge, as Oregon State has to come back and play another nationally-ranked opponent, on the road no less. Utah went to Ann Arbor in the season opener, and beat a Michigan team that upset Wisconsin this past Saturday, then the Utes slammed a three-TD defeat on UNLV, which later beat Arizona State. The Utes are coming into this game on short rest, but they had a mere tuneup on Saturday, cruising to a 37-21 win over Division 1-AA Weber State. The Utah offense has shown remarkable consistency; in each of the four games they have gained between 440-450 yards. Matt Asiata (320 yards on 64 carries) and Darrell Mack (65 attempts for 319 yards) have literally split the rushing game down the middle. Brian Johnson, the sixth-year senior, has thrown five interceptions, but has also hit on 69% of his passes.
Oh, and don’t count on Utah losing focus either. Last year’s meeting, held in Week 1, when Oregon State shut Utah down en route to a 24-7 win, should ensure that. Both Johnson and Asiata went down with injuries early in that one, so there is quite a huge payback quotient. With Oregon State undoubtedly still reading their own press clippings, we’re banking on a valley to follow last week’s peak, and a big effort from the Utes, the 11.5-point favorite in the BetUS NCAA college football betting odds.
