Florida Atlantic at #7 Oklahoma: Under 72

Florida Atlantic are coming off a great season under new head coach Lane Kiffin, winning more than 10 games for the first time in program history, while the Sooners come in to the college football season after making the College Football Playoff last year before ultimately losing to Georgia in the Rose Bowl. Can FAU have another season similar to last year? And can Oklahoma reach the playoff again without their Heisman winning quarterback?

While FAU has the ability to put up big numbers, it plays in Conference USA, as opposed to the better Big 12 which Oklahoma plays in. The only team Florida Atlantic played from a Power 5 conference last season was Wisconsin, a game in which it only scored 14 points. The Owls don’t have the skill to score so much against the higher level of competition that the Big 12 has. Oklahoma will introduce its new starting quarterback Kyler Murray, who while a good player, isn’t on the same level as Baker Mayfield. The Sooners might struggle to put up high scoring games this year with a lower tier quarterback under center compared to what it had when Mayfield was the starter. Florida Atlantic also had the best defense in Conference USA last year, with 38 sacks and 20 interceptions, so the defense of the Owls is nothing to ignore. It’s also important to note that in the Sooners last nine week one games, the total has gone under seven of those times.

#17 West Virginia vs Tennessee: West Virginia -10

There are high expectations for West Virginia this year, with a top Heisman candidate running the offense and comparisons to the 2012 West Virginia team that went 10-3 and demolished Clemson in the Orange Bowl. Quarterback Will Grier is currently rated as the number one QB in the country according to ESPN college football experts, as well as being named to the college football preseason All-America team, along with his favorite target, wide receiver David Sills V. The Tennessee Volunteers on the other hand are more of a mystery. The Vols have a new head coach in Jeremy Pruitt to start the year, as well as the problem of not yet selecting a starting quarterback. Not to mention the fact they’re coming off a terrible 4-8 season, winning zero games in conference play.

Last season, the Mountaineers were 4-4 against the spread when favored, while the Vols were 2-4 against the spread as an underdog. West Virginia’s high powered offense led by Heisman hopeful Will Grier, plus having one of the top receiving corps in the country is too much for Tennessee’s defense to handle, a defense that let up 40+ points in five games last season. Mix that with a new head coach, which can either go good or bad at any school, and the Vols doubts at the quarterback position, and expect the Mountaineers to hang a lot of points on Tennessee, while also covering the spread.

#23 Texas vs Maryland: Texas -13.5

“Texas is back” has been a popular narrative for the Longhorns for the past few years, since they haven’t been good since 2009 when they had an undefeated season before losing to Alabama in the BCS Championship. This year, Texas might actually be “back.” The Longhorns had the eighth best rushing defense in the country last year, allowing 14 rushing touchdowns on the season, a defense that should be just as good this year. Maryland on the other hand has struggled for the past 14 years, not having a 10 win season since 2003. The Terrapins will enter the 2018 college football season with offensive coordinator, Matt Canada, acting as the interim head coach.

Maryland’s was only able to produce 3,880 yards of total offense last year. The team has not improved much from last season, so with a poor offense, the Terps will have trouble with the Longhorns stellar defense against the run and pass rush. Texas last season went 4-3 against the spread as a favorite and Maryland was 4-5 against the spread as an underdog. However, Maryland did open last season with a 51-41 win over the Longhorns as a 19 point underdog. But this Texas team will be better than last years. Tom Herman is in his second year with Texas, giving him a better chance to put a better team in the field after getting his feet wet as a head coach in the Big 12 last season. Maryland has a tricky coaching situation on their hands, with head coach Dj Durkin away on administrative leave after an unfortunate incident where Jordan McNair, Terrapin offensive lineman, passed away this summer due to heat stroke and exhaustion in practice. With offensive coordinator Matt Canada having to take over the head coaching role on short notice, it will be something Maryland will struggle with. The Longhorns should win big with better coaching, a better quarterback and better defense.