College Football Week 3 is upon us — which means it’s time to take a look at the college football betting lines and give you our picks. There are some big rivalry games set to unfold this weekend. Tennessee visits Florida in an early-season SEC East showdown. SMU heads west to take on TCU in the annual battle for the Iron Skillet. A week after taking down Auburn, Clemson has another big test, heading to Louisville to take on the Cardinals. The Texas Longhorns play in the L.A. Coliseum against USC in a prime-time affair. But which games should you check the betting odds for Week 3? Check out our suggestions — home teams are in all caps.
College Football Week 3 ATS Betting Picks
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UCLA (-3) over MEMPHIS (12:00pm ET, ABC)
Memphis beat Louisiana-Monroe by eight points at home — and then had their Week Two tilt with Central Florida postponed by Hurricane Irma. UCLA pulled off a miraculous comeback in Week One to knock off then-ranked Texas A&M, 45-44, and then routed Hawaii by 33 a week ago. Why is this a three-point line? Quarterback Josh Rosen has shown he can torch iffy defenses, and the Tigers certainly qualify after giving up 29 points to an FCS opponent. Give me the Bruins here.College Football Week 3 Betting Trends
- California-Los Angeles is 5-11 ATS in its last 16 games
- California-Los Angeles is 3-6 SU in its last 9 games
- The total has gone UNDER in 5 of California-Los Angeles’s last 5 games on the road
- Memphis is 3-8 ATS in its last 11 games
- Memphis is 4-2 SU in its last 6 games
- The total has gone OVER in 4 of Memphis’s last 5 games
DUKE (-14) over Baylor (12:30pm ET, ACC Network)
Baylor has lost two straight to open their season. Their opponents? FCS squad Liberty, and Conference USA foe Texas-San Antonio, as the Roadrunners got the program’s first win ever against an opponent from a Power 5 conference. What about Duke? They thrashed their FCS opponent in their opener, taking North Carolina Central to the woodshed, 60-7, and then demolishing Big Ten foe Northwestern, 41-17, a week ago. Baylor doesn’t have much figured out on either side of the ball, and I see things getting ugly as Duke rolls to another rout.College Football Week 3 Betting Trends
- Baylor is 2-7 ATS in its last 9 games
- Baylor is 1-8 SU in its last 9 games
- The total has gone UNDER in 10 of Baylor’s last 15 games
- Duke is 7-2 ATS in its last 9 games
- Duke is 4-1 SU in its last 5 games at home
- The total has gone OVER in 4 of Duke’s last 5 games
SMU (+18) over TCU (3:30pm ET, ESPNU)
Both SMU and TCU bring 2-0 records to the game. The Frogs routed Jackson State, 63-0, in their opener, and then went to Arkansas and delivered a 28-7 thrashing to the Razorbacks. The Mustangs whipped Stephen F. Austin in their opener, 58-14, and then smacked North Texas, 54-32, in their second game — with those last two Mean Green touchdowns coming in garbage time. That 21-point win for the Frogs up in Fayetteville was a major statement, but the Razorbacks focus heavily on the running game in their offense. SMU has a more balanced attack, bringing the passing game on the arm of Ben Hicks and the receiving talent of senior Courtland Sutton. I don’t think SMU can go to Fort Worth and come away with a win, but this rivalry always promises close games. Give me the Mustangs to cover.
College Football Week 3 Betting Trends
- SMU is 4-1 ATS in its last 5 games
- SMU is 8-16 SU in its last 24 games
- The total has gone OVER in 4 of SMU’s last 5 games
- TCU is 5-10 ATS in its last 15 games
- TCU is 18-6 SU in its last 24 games at home
Tennessee (+5.5) over FLORIDA (3:30pm ET, CBS)
The Volunteers came out of their home opener lucky to survive the triple option of the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets, eking out a 42-41 overtime victory. Then they took cupcake Indiana State to the woodshed in Week Two, winning 42-7. Florida took a 33-17 beating from the Michigan Wolverines at home in their opener, as it didn’t matter who played quarterback for the Gators, because even transfer Malik Zaire could not find time in the pocket. Tennessee has a storied history of choking on the road in big matchups, but they have the talent to get this win — and Florida will be rusty after having the disruption of Hurricane Irma interrupt practices and force cancellation of their game against Northern Colorado. Give me the Vols to cover.College Football Week 3 Betting Trends
- Tennessee is 2-4 ATS in its last 6 games
- Tennessee is 6-1 SU in its last 7 games
- The total has gone OVER in 4 of Tennessee’s last 5 games on the road
- Florida is 4-8 ATS in its last 12 games at home
- Florida is 15-4 SU in its last 19 games at hom
- The total has gone UNDER in 6 of Florida’s last 8 games
Clemson (-3) over LOUISVILLE (8:00pm ET, ABC)
Did you have doubts about that Clemson football team after Deshaun Watson left? All they’ve done since is win, obliterating Kent State in the opener, 56-3, and then using their defense to shut down the Auburn Tigers, 14-6, in Week Two. Louisville, meanwhile, struggled to put away Big Ten doormat Purdue at home, 35-28, and had a barnburner in North Carolina, coming away with a 47-35 win. Lamar Jackson might be even better a year after his Heisman season, but the Cardinals will run into that buzzsaw known as the Clemson defense. Give me the Tigers to win and cover.College Football Week 3 Betting Trends
- Clemson is 5-1 ATS in its last 6 games
- Clemson is 5-0 SU in its last 5 games
- The total has gone OVER in 6 of Clemson’s last 8 games
- Louisville is 0-4-1 ATS in its last 5 games
- Louisville is 17-5 SU in its last 22 games
- The total has gone UNDER in 4 of Louisville’s last 6 games
