One of the tenets of NCAA football betting is to never, ever gamble emotionally. Therefore, when it comes to the Stanford Cardinal vs. the USC Trojans, do not be fooled by the latter’s heartstring-tugging antics such as letting blind long snapper Jake Olson snap the football on an extra point. This may have brought tears to Pete Carroll’s eyes and may make USC a sentimental favorite, but the odds are blind to anything but cold, hard numbers.
- Date: Saturday, September 9th
- Time: 8:30 PM
- Venue: L. A. Memorial Coliseum, Los Angeles, California
Sportsbook Online College Football Betting Lines:
Stanford +7 (-115) 56 (-110) +230
USC -7 (-105) 56 (-110) -270
The Trojans’ defense seemed to have eyesight problems of their own as they kept missing tackles left and right against Western Michigan on Saturday. USC still managed to win 49-31, but the Cardinal will not be as forgiving as the Broncos. Stanford averaged just shy of eight yards per carry in its opening game against Rice – good to rank 8th best among all teams’ season openers. And even better considering the Cardinal lost All-American running back Christian McCaffrey to the NFL draft. Head coach Clay Helton favored a less full contact approach during training camp to avoid injury. Perhaps he spoiled his players? According to the LA Times, “some defensive players said the lack of full-tackle practices affected tackling.” The Trojans’ defenders also “vowed to clean up the mistakes.”
The Trojans are undefeated in its last five overall games as well as their last five home games but have lost seven of their last nine against Stanford and have only covered in three of the last 11 versus the Cardinal. The NCAA football betting total has gone under in two thirds of the last six USC-Stanford games.
No Love Lost
Tailback Bryce Love had 180 yards on 13 attempts and scored a TD to lead No.14 Stanford to a 62-7 win over Rice on August 26th in the Sydney College Football Cup. This is the kind of performance that will have fans forgetting all about Christian McCaffrey’s absence. “Bryce is going to be our lead dog,” head coach David Shaw said per NCAA.com. “But it’s nice to know we’ve got some guys who can back him up.” One such guy would be redshirt freshman Cameron Scarlett, who 68 yards on nine carries as well as one 56-yard catch. Meanwhile, starting quarterback Keller Chryst looked no worse for wear after tearing the ACL in his right knee in December. It’s almost like a miracle. Chryst had 14 completions in 24 attempts for 253 yards and two touchdowns. “It was great to see Keller Chryst come and be completely healthy, and be able to run the show from the quarterback position,” Shaw said.
Stanford is 5-1 straight-up and 6-1 against the spread in the last six and seven games, respectively, versus USC. The NCAA football betting total has gone over in 80% of the Cardinal’s last five visits to Southern California.