College Football Week 10 Winning Predictions

Last week was another banner one for old Bronicel as I went a solid 3-1.

Let’s keep the momentum going and start November off with a bang.

Before we get to the picks, I’m not touching the big game: Tennessee (+8) at Georgia. I love the Vols but that spread just seems weird. Also, will we see the version of the Bulldogs that demolished the Oregon Ducks in the season opener? I’ll let you figure out that one.

The odds are courtesy of PointsBet, which has a sweet offer for new players: Get two risk-free bets up to $2,000.

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My picks are in CAPS.

ARIZONA (+17.5) at Utah and UNDER 68.5 total points

Let’s call this one the “Who Knows?” Game of Week in the always unpredictable Pac-12. Is Utah starting quarterback Cam Rising actually going to start? Can’t say, nor will Utes coach Kyle Whittingham. Rising was a surprise scratch last Saturday against Washington State.

Backup walk-on quarterback Bryson Barnes was a solid game manager in Utah’s 21-17 victory over the Cougars, so he’s obviously capable of leading Utah to another win Saturday.

But a bigger concern than QB for the Utes is the status of tight end Dalton Kincaid, who was injured in the WSU game. Whether he plays or not remains unclear, although it seems unlikely. Running back Tavion Thomas, a star last season, has been a question mark, mentally and physically, all season for Utah and he may also sit Saturday.

For Arizona, the biggest concern is: Can the Wildcats regroup after nearly upsetting USC in Tucson on Homecoming last Saturday? The unfriendly confines of Utah’s Rice-Eccles Stadium won’t help.

What we think we do know is that the weather will be crummy. With a 5:30 MST kickoff, the forecast for Salt Lake City is cold and rainy. That, coupled with Utah’s stingy defense and health issues on offense, should result in a ho-hum, grind it-out-game that both teams might not really be up for and would rather just get it over with. Something like Utah 28, Arizona 17 sounds about right.

CLEMSON (-3.5) at Notre Dame

This is a tough spread to figure out. The Tigers clearly are the better team so why such a low line? Notre Dame always has a ton of money thrown at it each week – also on the university’s football games (wink, wink) –  and maybe the Irish faithful believe Saturday is the day Notre Dame pulls off an upset and ends Clemson’s  College Football Playoff dreams.

This is precisely why I’m taking the No. 4-CFP-ranked Tigers. They’ve already survived a regular-season scare against Syracuse two weeks ago in a 27-22 home win.

If Clemson beats Notre Dame, the Tigers should be home free to waltz into the CFP semifinals with three straight, easily winnable games to close out the season. Clemson will be laser-focused and I don’t think it really matters who plays quarterback for the Tigers, whether it’s DJ Uiagalelei or Cade Klubnik. Both will be fresh and ready with Clemson coming off a bye week. That’s huge.

Notre Dame’s own QB Drew Pyne has struggled lately (he completed just nine of 19 passes in last Saturday’s win over Syracuse) so Notre Dame will try to run, run, run on the Tigers. Clemson’s defense, of course, will benefit from the extra week of rest, too. Should be close, but I’ll say the Tigers win and cover. Call it Clemson 28, Notre Dame 23.

Texas at KANSAS STATE (+2.5)

This is another spread that’s a bit baffling until you consider that No. 22 Texas is coming off a bye week and is still in the hunt to play in the Big 12 championship game.

That said, the Longhorns lost to Oklahoma State 41-34 on Oct. 22. Then, last week, the high-powered Cowboys were clobbered by Kansas State by a jaw-dropping score of 48-0.

Of course, the Wildcats will still be riding high (too high?) off that victory and they’re still not saying who will start at quarterback (both Adrian Gonzalez and backup Will Howard have proved their worth) but I don’t think it matters, not when you have ace running back Deuce Vaughn always up your offensive sleeve as the Wildcats do

Here’s why I worry about the Longhorns: Texas freshman QB Quinn Ewers completed just 19 of 49 passes and had three interceptions (with two TD passes) in the loss to Oklahoma State. So Texas will definitely give its own badass back Bijan Robinson a heavy workload.

He poses a problem but the Wildcats rank sixth nationally in defensive efficiency and have allowed just 15 offensive touchdowns, the fewest in the Big 12.

Finally, Manhattan, Kansas is never an easy place to play. Take the Wildcats as surprise underdogs to topple Texas and prove last week’s dominant win was no fluke.