Georgia Tech scored a massive upset over No. 10 Florida State in Week 0 but the Seminoles will look to bounce back in another ACC matchup on Monday to wrap up the Week 1 college football schedule. FSU is a 16.5-point favorite in the Week 1 college football odds as Bill O'Brien makes his debut as Boston College head coach. O'Brien has been a head coach in the Big Ten and in the NFL and he also spent two years on Nick Saban's staff at Alabama before calling plays on offense for Bill Belichick in New England last season.
So might Boston College be able to follow Georgia Tech's playbook to hand Florida State another early-season loss, and what other Week 1 college football lines should you be targeting with your Week 1 college football bets? Before locking in any college football picks for Week 1 of the 2024 season, be sure to see the college football betting guide from legendary Vegas handicapper Bruce Marshall.
For years Vegas-based Marshall was synonymous with The Gold Sheet, the famed sports betting newsletter. With a background in play-by-play work and sports information while in college, Marshall joined TGS in 1981 when hired by the legendary Mort Olshan and served as executive editor for many years.
An in-demand guest on numerous sports talk radio and TV shows across the country, Bruce's vast array of editorial work has been featured in the Las Vegas Review-Journal, the New York Post and many other outlets. He has won various handicapping titles and also is working on several book projects.
Now, using his Tech Corner technique that evaluates all the trends, Marshall has turned his attention to the latest college football odds for Week 1 and evaluated each matchup.Head here to see every pick.
Top college football predictions for Week 1
One of the top college football picks Marshall is recommending for Week 1: He's taking Colorado State (+32) to stay within the large spread at No. 4 Texas at 3:30 p.m. ET on Saturday. Jay Norvell's squad improved from three wins in his first season at the helm to five in 2023 and now the Rams are expecting to take another step forward in 2024.
Brayden Fowler-Nicolosi is back at quarterback after throwing for 3,460 yards and 22 touchdowns last season. His top receiver, Tory Horton, has also returned after catching 96 passes for 1,138 yards and eight scores. Texas' pass defense allowed more than 250 yards per game last season and they allowed 300 or more passing yards on six occasions, including allowing 430 yards through the air against Washington in the CFP semifinals.
The Rams are 7-3 against the spread as an underdog in their last 10 games and Texas failed to cover in both of its games where it was favored by 30 or more last season. Ultimately, Marshall is expecting a talented QB-WR duo from Colorado State to move the ball effectively against a suspect Texas passing defense and to keep it closer than expected with the Longhorns likely looking ahead to Michigan in Week 2.See which other picks to make here.
How to make college football picks for Week 1
Marshall has evaluated every other matchup and he's found an alarming 19-2 betting trend in the big LSU vs. USC matchup.Get betting analysis for each matchup at SportsLine.
So what college football picks can you make with confidence, and what alarming trend do you need to know about in one of the week's biggest game? Check out the latest college football odds below, then visit SportsLine to see which teams to back, all from the legendary Vegas expert who has won multiple handicapping titles, and find out.
Week 1 college football odds
See full Week 1 college football picks, odds, predictions here
Friday, Aug. 30
FAU at Michigan State (-13.5, 45)
Temple at Oklahoma (-42.5, 57.5)
Western Michigan at Wisconsin (-23.5, 56)
TCU at Stanford (+8.5, 59.5)
Saturday, Aug. 31
Clemson vs. Georgia (-12.5, 48.5)
Penn State at West Virginia (+8.5, 51.5)
Miami (Fla.) at Florida (+2.5, 54)
Akron at Ohio State (-48.5, 58)
Colorado State at Texas (-32, 60)
Western Kentucky at Alabama (-31.5, 59.5)
Fresno State at Michigan (-21, 45.5)
Notre Dame at (-3, 46)
UCLA at Hawaii (+14, 53)
Sunday, Sept. 1
USC vs. LSU (-4.5, 64.5)
Monday, Sept. 2
Boston College at Florida State (-16.5, 50)
