College Football Future Bets to Make So You Look Super Smart

Football gambling friends, Romans, – Cardinal? Not Cardinals? Or Trees? OK, fine, Stanford – lend me your ears, countrymen and women.

First, both Stanford and Northwestern are among the best academic schools in the country, so “they” say. Wink.

They also happen to have football teams, some of which have been damn good.

I won’t address what’s transpiring in Evanston, Illinois, at the moment.

Doesn’t sound great.

Let’s focus on football instead of the toxic hazing that has been alleged and led to the firing of head coach Pat Fitzgerald.

Can interim coach David Braun instill the positivity that was lacking last season when the Wildcats went 1-11?

Here’s what Braun said at the Big Ten media day regarding what he wants from his team to change the awful narrative: “Putting our players on full display, they will change that conversation and that narrative. Anyone who has had the opportunity to meet the young men that are part of Northwestern football will know that they are men of character, integrity, toughness, grit, highly intellectual, selfless individuals that are awesome to coach.”

Braun seems like a great guy who responded well in front of the media, but does he have anything to work with?

The Wildcats brought in quarterback Ben Bryant from Cincinnati and he’s had a decent college career (37 TD passes, but also 17 interceptions).

The problem is they lost their top receiver from last season to the portal, Malik Washington, who transferred to Virginia.

Also, they must replace All-American tackle Peter Skoronski who was a first-round draft pick by the Tennessee Titans.

On defense, Braun was hired from North Dakota State to repair a squad that allowed 30 points or more 15 times over the last two years.

None of this bodes well, although there are two games on the schedule that are definitely winnable.

Let’s look at the odds and the schedule.

The odds I’m using are from FanDuel Sportsbook, one of our favorite sports betting sites among many, including DraftKings Sportsbook and BetMGM.

My picks for victories are in bold.

Northwestern Regular Season Wins 2023

Over 2.5 Wins -138

Under 2.5 Wins +112

@ Rutgers        Sept. 3

UTEP                  Sept. 9

@ Duke        Sept. 16

Minnesota        Sept. 23

Penn State        Sept. 30

Howard        Oct. 7

@ Nebraska        Oct. 21

Maryland        Oct. 28

Iowa                  Nov. 4

@ Wisconsin       Nov. 11

Purdue        Nov. 18

@ Illinois        Nov. 25

The first two seem like locks and the coaching change and cleansed culture will get the Wildcats to three wins.

Next up is Stanford, which was 3-9 last season and just 1-8 in Pac-12 play.

In a conference with tons of talent at the crucial quarterback position, the Cardinal still don’t know who the starting QB will be and that will be key.

Or do they?

But some believe that first-year coach Troy Taylor, who arrives after a hugely successful run at Sacramento State (three Big Sky championships in his three seasons), will ultimately go with 2022 backup Ari Patu, a 6-4, 216-pound dual-threat QB that should fit well into Taylor’s creative offense.

You can expect much more passing this season and having the Pac-12’s best tight, Benjamin Yurosek, will definitely help an offense that struggled to score last season.

Stanford fans are hopeful that former four-star recruit E.J Smith (son of NFL Hall-of-Famer Emmitt) has recovered from the injury he suffered in the second game last season against USC. He missed the rest of the season but looked solid in spring practices and could have a breakout year.

So I think Stanford will score much more this season but with all of the high-powered offenses led by NFL-caliber quarterbacks, the year will hinge on how the Cardinal play defense.

And boy, last year, was it dismal.

Stanford allowed allowing 434 yards and 32 points per game and then lost a bunch of starters to the portal.

Stanford Regular Season Wins 2023

Under 2.5 Wins +138

Over 2.5 Wins -172

@ Hawaii                   Sept. 1 

@ USC                       Sept. 9

Sacramento State     Sept. 16

Arizona                        Sept. 23

Oregon                        Sept. 30

@ Colorado                 Oct. 13

UCLA                           Oct. 21

Washington                  Oct. 28

@ Washington State     Nov. 4

@ Oregon State            Nov. 11

Cal                                 Nov. 18  

Notre Dame                   Nov. 25

Taylor says of his players, “There are some really special people here."

We’ll see. Expecting three wins from a first-year coach with an inexperienced squad is a lot to ask, particularly in the loaded Pac-12, and Stanford is going to get scored on – in bunches and likely some major blowouts.

However, I think the offense shines and wins the opener against Hawaii and then Taylor beats his old team on Sept. 16.

That leaves the rivalry game against Cal will be over/under win total clincher. If the Cardinal remain healthy, I believe they win that game.

Book it now and as always, best of luck out there in the wild and crazy world of sports gambling.