2016 Week 1 College Football Top Point Spreads

It has been a long wait but we are now just over a month away from the opening night of the 2016 college football season. In readiness for all that action, we have taken the time to break down and present the top college football spreads for 2016 Week 1 below.

Analyzing The 2016 Week 1 College Football Top Point Spreads

Hawaii Rainbows vs. California Golden Bears (-23) NCAAF Betting

My NCAAF Pick: Rainbows (+23) The Golden Bears were among the hottest offensive teams in the nation last year, thanks to the stellar exploits of 2016 No. 1 overall NFL draft pick QB Jared Goff. With Goff gone and a new offensive coordinator in charge of the team, Cal suddenly looks beatable or at least vulnerable to weaker opposition. That’s something we believe the Hawaii Rainbows, who’ve hanged pretty well with some FBS teams in recent years, should be able to take advantage of, limiting projected starting QB Chase Forrest and the Golden Bears to avoid being beaten by 23-plus points.

South Carolina Gamecocks (-3) vs. Vanderbilt Commodores NCAAF Betting

My NCAAF Pick: Gamecocks (-3) If you are looking to watch a thrilling offensive matchup featuring tons of scores, please do NOT watch this game. Defense comes first for South Carolina and Vandy, at least based on how these teams played last year, so expect a cagey and stifling turnover-riddled affair when these two SEC teams take on each other. Playing at home will be a huge advantage for the Commodores, but I have seen enough of Coach Will Muschamp from his days back with Florida to trust him for the win plus the cheap field-goal spread in this game.

Kansas State Wildcats vs. Stanford Cardinal (-16.5) NCAAF Betting

My NCAAF Pick: Cardinal (-16.5) 2015 Heisman Trophy runner Christian McCaffrey is coming off a monstrous season that helped Stanford to win the Pac-12 Conference title and the hope that he will be up for another big season in 2016 for the Cardinal. It won’t, however, be all smooth for the Cardinal, as they will be facing a tough test out of the gate in the sly Bill Snyder-coached Wildcats. Even so, Stanford is well-aware of the costly loss against Northwestern in their 2015 season-opener, something that should see them play this game with better urgency and awareness, leading to a comfy win for McCaffrey and the Cardinal.

BYU Cougars (-1.5) vs. Arizona Wildcats NCAAF Betting

My NCAAF Pick: Wildcats (+1.5) I love BYU like the next guy and I think new head coach Kalani Sitake will do wonderful things for the Cougars football program. The problem, though, is that I don’t see him starting his career with a win. Arizona has an offense that can dizzy you with scores all day, which should bode well for the team against BYU’s iffy defense. So, although the Cougars’ abled offense is capable of keeping things interesting in this game, and maybe even get the win at the end of the day, I am more inclined to trust the RichRod O for some key plays down the stretch to hand the Arizona Wildcats an upset win in this season-opener.

Missouri Tigers vs. West Virginia Mountaineers (-7) NCAAF Betting

MY NCAAF Pick: Mountaineers (-7) Playing Mizzou’s solid defense will cause all kinds of headaches for the Mountaineers in this game, and the Tigers will get a decent number of points against West Virginia’s porous defense. But with a helluva offense to keep the Mountaineers in this game, I expect Dana Holgorsen to make the necessary adjustments as this game goes on, allowing the West Virginia to eventually run away with the SU and ATS.  

Oklahoma Sooners (-7) vs. Houston Cougars NCAAF Betting

My NCAAF Pick: Cougars (+7) Heisman hot-shot QB Baker Mayfield is coming off an outstanding season and there is no reason to believe he will struggle in 2016, given the Sooners return with one of the most talented units in the country. But even with Oklahoma’s strong pedigree as an elite football team, I wouldn’t be too quick to put anything past Group of Five’s best team, Houston, which proved to be a thorn in the flesh in 2015, not only in its own conference, but in tough non-conference games as well, as was clearly showcased when the Cougars won the Peach Bowl last season. Not to forget, the Cougars have a Heisman contender of their own in QB Greg Ward Jr., who threw for 2.828 yards and 17 touchdowns compared to just six interceptions while leading the Cougars to a stellar 13-1 record overall last season. Add to the crowd support the Cougars will enjoy in this game, I’d expect Ward and Co. to put up a spirited fight all the way to the wire, earning Houston the points, at the very least.