NCAA Football Week 7 Odds, Overview & Top Picks

NCAA Football Week 7 Odds, Overview & Top Picks

Written by on October 9, 2018


The Oklahoma Sooners were torched Saturday in a loss to Texas in the Red River Showdown, 48-45, and that has cost defensive coordinator Mike Stoops his job. Ruffin McNeill, who had been the Sooners’ assistant head coach and defensive tackles coach, will serve as the defensive coordinator for the rest of the season. The Sooners are off this week but here are two interesting matchups with the latest NCAA Football Week 7 odds.
 

NCAA Football Week 7 Odds, Overview & Top Picks

 

No. 15 Wisconsin at No. 12 Michigan (-7.5)

  • When: Saturday, 7:30 PM ET (ABC)
 
Could be a Big Ten Championship Game preview, more so if Michigan wins this game because Wisconsin plays in the weaker West Division and could still roll through that even with a loss Saturday. Both are unbeaten in Big Ten play but have a non-conference loss so another defeat ends the College Football Playoff hopes of the loser.
 
Wisconsin comes off a 42-24 win over Nebraska in which starting safety Scott Nelson was ejected for targeting, meaning he will have to sit out the first half here. Badgers head coach Paul Chryst announced on Monday that redshirt sophomore Eric Burrell will start at free safety. Because the targeting penalty occurred in the second half of the game, Nelson will not be eligible to play until the third quarter of the Badgers’ matchup against the Wolverines. Cornerbacks Deron Harrell (upper body) and Caesar Williams (left leg), defensive end Isaiah Loudermilk (left leg), and outside linebacker Andrew Van Ginkel (right leg) are all questionable for the game.
 
Wisconsin star Jonathan Taylor is the nation’s leading rusher (169.8 ypg) and has piled up 849 rushing yards so far this season That’s more than 40 FBS teams. Taylor ran for 221 yards and three scores, including a career-best 88-yarder in the fourth quarter, to lead the win over the Huskers. Taylor now has 2,826 career rushing yards, passing Rufus Ferguson for 14th on UW’s all-time rushing chart.
 
The Badgers won their 17th straight regular-season Big Ten game, the nation’s longest active conference win streak. It is also the longest league win streak in UW history. Wisconsin is 31-5 (.861) in Big Ten play over the last 5 seasons (since 2014). Only Ohio State (34-3, .919) has a better league record over that span.
 
Michigan beat Maryland 42-21 on Saturday. Quarterback Shea Patterson threw for 282 yards and three touchdowns. The offense racked up 465 yards, had 24 first downs and went 9-of-13 on third down. Tailback Karan Higdon tallied his fourth consecutive with 100 rushing yards — he had 103 on Saturday — and became the 23rd player in Michigan history to eclipse 2,000 career rushing yards. Tight end Zach Gentry was the leading receiver, hauling in seven passes for 112 yards. Defensively, Michigan limited Maryland to just 42 yards of total offense in the first half and allowed only 11 first downs for the game.
 

No. 7 Washington at No. 17 Oregon (+3.5)

  • When: Saturday, 3:30 PM ET (ABC)
 
A huge one in the Pac-12 North Division – if Washington wins here, you can all but give that division to the Huskies. The Huskies held off UCLA, 31-24, Saturday in Pasadena. Myles Gaskin rushed for 116 yards and two touchdowns, and Jake Browning passed for 265 yards. Browning completed 18 of 26 passes with one TD and one interception. The senior also ran for a score as Washington won in its first trip to the Rose Bowl in five years.
 
Gaskin scored his 54th career touchdown against UCLA, extending his school record. His 50 career rushing TDs (he has four receiving TDs) rank 5th in Pac-12 history. Since the 1947 season, Washington is 214-66-3 (.761) when a Husky player rushes for 100 yards in a game. The Huskies were 8-0 in such games in 2016, were 5-1 in 2017 and are 2-0 this year.
 
Washington has always been one of the Pac-12’s best defenses under head coach Chris Petersen. This year is no different. The Huskies lead the conference in points allowed on defense at 13.7 points per game.
 
Washington leads the all-time series against the Ducks with 60 wins, 45 losses, and five ties. In games played in Eugene has the Ducks enjoy a 17-13 edge all-time (Oregon’s home games vs. the UW were played in Portland for many years), while the Huskies are 32-21-4 against their cross-border rivals in games played in Seattle. The Ducks have had the edge of late, winning 17 of the last 23 against the Dawgs. Last year, UW’s Dante Pettis broke the NCAA record with his ninth career punt return for a TD and the UW held Oregon to just 31 passing yards in a 38-3 UW win.
 
Oregon comes off its bye week, which allowed several injured Oregon Ducks to recover from injuries, including starting defensive end Austin Faoliu, who will return for this week’s game. Oregon coach Mario Cristobal said Faoliu is “good to go” after missing the game at Cal due to a foot injury, starting tight end Jacob Breeland is also expected back this week and running back Darrian Felix “should be back” Tuesday or Wednesday. Faoliu started the first four games of the season and has 15 tackles with .5 sacks. Breeland, who missed the Cal game for precautionary reasons, has seven catches for 131 yards and two touchdowns this season.
 

Expert NCAA Football Week 7 Picks


Washington wins in Eugene and Michigan covers vs. UW.