At the beginning of Clay Helton’s tenure as USC head coach was skepticism. Helton was a career assistant that lacked NCAA Football betting cache. USC is a powerhouse house blue blood marquee program. At least that’s how the Men of Troy see things. However, since Pete Carroll’s last season in 2009 USC has been decent but nowhere near great. Ironically Helton’s 2016 team finished with the best national ranking at third in that span. Last season was a 5-7 debacle that sparked a crisis of faith among the faithful. Helton is coaching for his job in 2019 with shaky prospects.
2019 USC Trojans Futures Betting
| Date and Time: | Trojans open season August 31, 2019 |
|---|---|
| NCAA Football Betting Odds at SBG: | USC 100/1 to win the National Championship |
2018 USC Trojans Season in Review
USC finished 5-7 straight up, 4-8 against the spread and 6-6 on totals. The NCAA football betting red ink is indicative of the public’s fatigue on Helton. Of great concern were the Trojans national metrics. USC finished 84th for total offense and 92nd for scoring. Further, the once-powerful “Student Body Right” ground game was rendered helpless. Troy finished 107th in the land for ground game. Defensively USC was a mediocre 61st for yards allowed and 64th for points permitted. Correlate those ugly numbers and you get the justifiable concerns.
Helton Blinks with Harrell?
Extending the sports betting worries for USC is the change of offensive philosophy. Long lauded for a power pro attack with strong running backs, Troy will have a radical new look. New offensive coordinator Graham Harrell will spread the field with a Texas Tech type tempo. As a result, are legitimate questions about whether or not Helton has blinked or is adapting to modern times.
JT Daniels Warms up the Firing Pin
In the final game of last season, Helton came to a discovery about freshman quarterback JT Daniels. To illuminate Daniels was turned loose against Notre Dame and he responded with 349 yards with a touchdown. Hence the idea to change to an air raid offense. Daniels is expected to be an NCAA football betting asset with under Harrell. Additional help could come from second-string quarterback Jack Sears. Daniels joins Matt Barkley as the only two true freshman starting quarterbacks in school history. Namely, Amon Ra St. Brown, Michael Pittman Jr, and Tyler Vaughns bring strong capability as receivers.
Defensive Changes
In the same way, defensive coordinator Clancy Pendergast will simplify his schemes. Jay Tufele, Marlon Tuipulotu and Brandon Pili anchor a good defensive line. Palaie Gaoteote IV could earn all-conference honors as middle linebacker. Of great concern is an inexperienced secondary.
2019 USC NCAA Football Betting Trends
USC is:
2-8 ATS as a home chalk
3-5 under the total as a home favorite
2-4 ATS as a home dog
3-7 under the total as a home dog
1-9 ATS as a road dog
6-3 over the total as a road dog
9-4 ATS as an away favorite
2-12 under the total as a road chalk
2019 USC Trojans NCAA Football Betting Outlook
Starting with all of the changes the Trojans are the ultimate wild card. It follows that their greatest strength is playing in the relatively weak Pac 12 South Division. Still, there is too much uncertainty to step out on USC.
2019 USC Trojans NCAA Football Betting Prediction: USC to finish 6-6.
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