Colorado vs. USC odds: 2019 College football picks, optimal predictions from expert who’s 8-4 on Trojans games
Colorado will try to defy history and get a confidence-boosting victory when the Buffaloes host the USC Trojans on Friday night at Folsom Field. The Buffs are struggling with a tough Pac-12 schedule, going 3-4 with losses against two ranked teams and falling 41-10 to a high-powered Washington team that also spent time in the Top 25. Colorado has not beaten the Trojans in 13 meetings, but with a veteran quarterback leading the offense and an opportunistic defense, the Buffaloes are looking to make a statement. USC has been fighting ongoing injury issues but come off a 41-14 rout of Arizona. Kickoff is set for 9 p.m. ET in Boulder. The Trojans are 10.5-point favorites in the latest USC vs. Colorado odds, down two from the opener, while the over-under for total points scored is 64, up sharply from an open of 61.5. Before you make any Colorado vs. USC picks or college football predictions of your own, you need to hear what SportsLine’s resident Trojans expert, Emory Hunt, has to say.
Hunt is the founder and CEO of Football Gameplan, which has been supplying analysis of all levels of football since 2007, and a former running back at Louisiana-Lafayette. He knows the game from a player’s perspective. This season, Hunt is an incredible 62-33 on college football against the spread picks, returning $2,664 to $100 bettors. In addition, he has his finger on USC’s pulse. In fact, he is 8-4 on his last 12 against the spread picks involving the Trojans. Anyone who has followed him is way up.
Now, he has analyzed USC vs. Colorado from every possible angle and locked in another confident against the spread pick. That one is available only at SportsLine.
Hunt knows that USC is catching a Colorado team that is struggling on both sides of the ball right now. Over the last two weeks, the Buffaloes have scored just 13 points combined. The passing game has not been effective, totaling just 272 yards (131 against Oregon and 141 against Washington State) and no touchdowns. In addition, Colorado quarterback Steven Montez has thrown six interceptions in the last two games.
Hunt also has factored in that the Buffaloes’ defense hasn’t provided much resistance all season. Colorado has allowed a combined 86 points over the past two games and ranks 116th (out of 130) in scoring defense (34.9 points a game allowed). In addition, the Buffaloes are the second worst team in the country in passing defense (316.0 passing yards allowed).
But just because the Trojans appear to have the edge on paper does not guarantee they will cover the USC vs. Colorado spread on Friday night.
Some good news for Colorado is that the home team is 5-1-1 against the spread in the last seven meetings between these teams. The Buffaloes also have forced 13 turnovers, and the Trojans have committed 14, so they should have chances to take the ball away. Junior linebacker Nate Landman is eighth in the nation with 74 tackles. Senior safety Mikial Onu has four of the Buffs’ seven interceptions, and linebacker Nu’umotu Falo Jr. has recovered three fumbles.
Senior quarterback Steven Montez has completed 63.8 percent of his passes for 1,723 yards and 10 TDs, and he has three reliable receivers to work with. Speedster K.D. Nixon (21 catches for 340 yards and two TDs) can do it all, and Tony Brown (37-480-4) and Laviska Shenault (25-342-2) are dependable. Sophomore Alex Fontenot gets it done on the ground with 568 yards and four touchdowns.
We can tell you Hunt is leaning over, but his much stronger play is on the spread. He’s found a critical x-factor that makes one side of the spread hit hard on Friday. He’s sharing what it is, and who to back, only at SportsLine.
