The Georgia Bulldogs (No. 5) will be, as college football wagering aficionados should know, the fourth straight ranked school that the Vanderbilt Commodores will face. They previously knocked off Kansas State and lost to No. 1 Alabama and No. 20 Florida. “We know it’s a tough stretch. But when you start excusing [struggles] because of a tough stretch of football, that defeats who you are working to be,” Vandy head coach Derek Mason said during his Tuesday press conference. “We don’t excuse it.”
Tune into the action of College Football Wagering
- Date: October 7
- Time: 12:05 PM
- Venue: Vanderbilt Stadium, Nashville, TN
Sportsbook Odds According to SBG:
Georgia -17½ (-110) 40½ (-110) -900
Vanderbilt +17½ (-110) 40½ (-110) +600
Shurmur of the Heart
The good news for the Commies is that starting QB Kyle Shurmur has emerged as Vandy’s chief offensive weapon. The bad news is that they have now forsaken the running game. Which is, if one thinks about it, sort of ironic. Shurmur was supposed, after Vandy heavily relied on the running game last year, to bring, you know, balance to the force. Instead, like an O. Henry story, the Commodores simply substituted passing for rushing.
Stats to Consider
For example, Vanderbilt had just 46 rushing yards and 264 passing yards in Saturday’s 38-24 loss to Florida, and, one might easily conclude, as a result, Vandy not only lost their second straight game, but failed also to cover the spread for the second consecutive week. “A loss is a loss,” wide receiver C.J. Duncan said, but that’s not quite accurate; there are straight-up wins and then there are against-the-spread wins, and Vanderbilt is 1-10 ATS in their last 11 home games playing a team with a winning road record. The underdog is, on the other hand, 4-0 against the college football wagering spread in the last four meetings between these two programs.
Graduating from the little kid’s table
The Bulldogs have not just returned to the SEC elite; they are the favorites to win their first East division title since 2012. Just how good is UGA? Georgia is 5-0 SU (2-0 in conference play) and 4-1 ATS, heave beaten two AP-ranked opponents, and shut out rivals the Tennessee Vols 41-0 on Saturday.
A scorching offense and a tight defense means that, even though the Bulldogs won those two conference games by a combined score of 72-3, the total still went under on both occasions. The under is, in fact, 21-7 in their last 28 overall games. But that could change.
Had the Vols scored at least a TD, the total would have gone over on Saturday, but Vandy may not even have to do that. Not to take anything away from the Commodes, but let’s just say they’re still confined to the kiddie table. The 41 points UGA scored against Tennessee would be enough for the total to go over this coming weekend. Georgia is 4-0 ATS in their last four SEC games and 5-0 against the college football wagering spread in their last five road games.