College Football Betting Preview: USC Trojans at Colorado Buffaloes
The Pac-12 helps to kick off the college football weekend a little early with a Friday night game between the USC Trojans and Colorado Buffaloes. Despite being on the road, the Trojans are 13.5-point favorites over Colorado with an over/under of 62.5 points.
Colorado is heading down a disastrous road in Mel Tucker’s first season at the helm. The Buffs started the year 3-1 but are currently in the midst of a three-game losing streak to fall to 3-4.
The last two losses, in particular, have been ugly, as the Buffs have been outscored by Oregon and Washington State a combined 86-13. Colorado now needs to find three wins in its final five games to reach a bowl, making Friday’s game a must-win for them.
USC, on the other hand, is chasing after a spot in the Pac-12 Championship Game. Despite being just 4-3 overall, the Trojans are 3-1 in conference play, putting them in control of their own destiny in the Pac-12 South. USC has a tough schedule ahead of it, including a home date with Oregon next week, so it can’t afford a slip-up against Colorado.
On Your Shoulders
Like the flu being spread throughout a hospital, the USC backfield has been inundated with injuries lately. The three-headed monster of running backs Stephen Carr, Vavae Malepeai, and Markese Stepp could be downgraded to a zero-headed monster with all three questionable at best to play this week due to injury. That will put a lot on the shoulders of freshman quarterback Kedon Slovis and the passing game.
On the one hand, Slovis has played great the past two weeks since returning from an injury. On the other hand, he’s still a young quarterback who’s had some shaky moments on the road this season. Also, the Colorado defense should be able to focus on the pass with all of the injuries to the USC backfield.
Better Than That
The Colorado offense has been uncharacteristically bad during the team’s recent losing streak. Scoring just three points on the road against a strong Oregon defense isn’t exactly cause for concern. But managing just 10 points last week against a Washington State that gives up nearly 30 points per game is a red flag, especially since the Colorado offense was rolling early in the season.
The silver lining is that the Buffs have the talent to wake up at any time. Quarterback Steven Montez is in his third year as a full-time starter and has plenty of experience to draw upon to break out of his funk. Colorado also features an All-Pac-12-caliber wide receiver in Laviska Shenault Jr., who has been slowed by injury this year. Colorado has also had a steady rushing attack this season behind Alex Fontenot. The pieces are there for the Buffaloes to turn the tide on a struggling offense.
Not So Fast
USC is trending in the right direction, while Colorado is circling the drain. But funny things tend to happen on Friday nights in the Pac-12. It’s worth noting the Trojans haven’t won a game on the road this season, so laying down 13.5 points seems risky. Despite their struggles, Colorado’s offense has a high upside, making another lopsided loss at home difficult to foresee. Bet on the Buffaloes to at least beat the 13.5-point spread against USC.
