Free College Football Picks Week 6 Part 1-10/5/2024
Pittsburgh vs. North Carolina College Football Pick Prediction 10/5/2024
Pittsburgh at North Carolina 12PM ET—Pittsburgh improved to 4-0 following their 73-17 home win to Youngstown St. Two weeks ago, it was a 38-34 home win to West Virginia. The Panthers put up 279 yards with 78 rushing for 2.7 yards a carry. On defense they allowed 398 yards to the Mountaineers with 188 rushing for 4.2 yards a carry. Elit Holstein hit 21 of 30 for 301 yards and three touchdowns. North Carolina fell to 3-2 with their 21-20 road defeat at Duke. The Tar Heels blew a 20-0 third quarter lead. They produced 407 yards with 156 rushing for 3.9 yards a carry. Defensively they held the Blue Devils to 394 yards with 185 rushing for 4.5 yards a carry. Jacolby Criswell completed 21 of 39 for 251 yards with two touchdowns and an interception.
The Pick:
The Panthers are getting good offensive production. On defense they allow 7.3 yards per pass attempt. North Carolina is running effectively with 5.3 yards a carry and getting plays downfield in the passing game with 7.5 yards per pass attempt. The Tar Heels hold opponents to 3.5 yards per run and 53.5% completion rate. Pittsburgh is 2-6 to the spread on the road against conference opponents. In their lone road game, the Panthers needed a massive comeback to pull the one-point win at Cincinnati. Play North Carolina +3.
SMU vs. Louisville College Football Pick Prediction 10/5/2024
SMU at Louisville 12PM ET—SMU improved to 4-1 following their 42-16 home win to Florida St. The Mustangs put up 458 yards with 204 rushing for 4 yards a carry. On defense they held the Seminoles to 285 yards with 63 rushing for 2.4 yards a carry. Kevin Jennins hit 16 of 23 for 254 yards and three touchdowns. Louisville fell to 3-1 with their 31-24 road defeat at Notre Dame. The Cardinals put up 395 yards with 131 rushing for 3.7 yards a carry. On defense they held the Fighting Irish to 280 yards with 163 passing on 23 attempts. Tyler Shough hit 24 of 41 for 264 yards with three touchdowns and one interception.
The Pick:
Louisville is getting good offensive production with 6.3 yards per run and 67.5% completions for 9.2 yards per pass attempt. Louisville has been strong in run defense they allow 2.9 yards a carry. SMU is running for 4.7 yards per attempt and efficient with their passing game. They defend the run but allow 6.8 yards per pass attempt. SMU is 1-5 to the spread as a road underdog. Louisville is 13-3 to the spread in their past 16 at home. Play Louisville -7.
Wake Forest vs. NC State College Football Pick Prediction 10/5/2024
Wake Forest at NC State—Wake Forest fell to 1-3 following their 41-38 home defeat to Louisiana. The Demon Deacons gained 462 yards with 218 rushing for 5.9 yards a carry. On defense they allowed 466 yards to the Ragin Cajuns with 257 passing on 29 attempts. Hank Bachmeier hit 29 of 35 for 254 yards with a touchdown and interceptions. He rushed for 65 yards. NC State is 3-2 with their 24-17 home win to Northern Illinois. The Wolfpack put up 171 yards with 63 rushing yards for 2.3 yards a carry. On defense they allowed 283 yards to the Huskies with 159 passing on 29 attempts. Grayson McCall missed the past two games with an injury. CJ Bailey completed 13 of 20 for 108 yards with a touchdown.
The Pick:
Wake Forest is rushing for 4.4 yards a carry and passing for 310 yards per game with 7.9 yards per pass attempt. NC State is struggling with their passing game with the injury to McCall. The Wolfpack rushes for only 4 yards a carry. Wake Forest has struggles defensively. NC State has failed to cover six straight dating to last season. Play Wake Forest +5.
Boston College vs. Virginia College Football Pick Prediction 10/5/2024
Boston College at Virginia 12PM ET—Boston College improved to 4-1 with their 21-20 home victory to Western Kentucky. The Eagles gained 279 yards with 111 rushing for 3.2 yards per carry. On defense they allowed 355 yards to the Hilltoppers with 232 passing on 39 attempts. Thomas Castellanos was injured and missed last week. Grayson James went 19 of 32 for 169 yards with a touchdown and interception. An FIU transfer that saw limited work the past three seasons. Virginia sits at 3-1 with their 43-24 road win at Coastal Carolina. The Cavaliers gained 525 yards with 384 rushing for 6.6 yards a carry. Anthony Colandrea went 13 of 20 for 131 yards with two touchdowns.
The Pick:
Injury to Castellanos the concern here. The Eagles have favored to over two straight. Virginia is getting good offensive performance with 5.1 yards per run and 67.2% completions for 8.1 yards per pass attempt. The Cavs are doing well in run defense by allowing 3.6 yards per carry. BC dropped their lone road game in a 27-21 defeat at Missouri by allowing 268 passing yards for 7.4 yards per pass attempt. Tough spot for QB2 in this road game. Play Virginia -2.5.
Massachusetts vs. Northern Illinois College Football Pick Prediction 10/5/2024
UMASS at Northern Illinois 12PM ET—UMASS fell to 1-4 with their 23-20 road defeat at Miami Ohio. The Minutemen posted 374 yards with 171 rushing for 4.2 yards a carry. On defense they allowed 349 yards to the Red Hawks with 168 rushing for 4.7 yards a carry. Taisun Phommachanh went 9 of 22 for 173 yards and a touchdown. He rushed for 80 yards. Northern Illinois drops to 2-2 after their 24-17 road defeat at NC State. The Huskies posted 283 yards with 124 rushing for 2.8 yards a carry. On defense they held the Wolfpack to 171 yards with208 passing on 20 attempts. Ethan Hampton went 14 of 29 for 159 yards with a touchdown and two interceptions.
The Pick:
NIU is playing great defense this season as they hold opponents to 3 yards per run and 5.9 yards per pass attempt. The Huskies rush for 197 yards with 4.6 yards a carry. UMASS struggling with their offense with 3.3 yards per run and 58.9% completion rate for 6.7 yards per run. Play Northern Illinois -17.
Navy vs. Air Force College Football Pick Prediction 10/5/2024
Navy at Air Force 12PM ET—Navy improved to 4-0 following their 41-18 road win at UAB. The Midshipmen put up 452 yards with 227 rushing for 5.4 yards a carry. Defensively they allowed 395 yards to the Blazers with 202 passing on 23 attempts. Blake Horvath hit 9 of 11 for 225 yards and two touchdowns. He rushed for 84 yards and a touchdown. Air Force moves to 1-3 after their 31-19 road loss at Wyoming. The Falcons put up 320 yards with 205 rushing for 4.5 yards a carry. Defensively they allowed 361 yards to the Cowboys with 173 rushing for 4.2 yards a carry. John Busha completed 6 of 13 for 115 yards. He rushed for 30 yards on 19 carries.
The Pick:
Navy is getting good production from their offense. They are running for 288 yards with 6.3 yards per pass attempt. The Midshipmen completed 64% of their passes for 13.5 yards per pass attempt. On defense they are giving up 4.6 yards a carry. Air Force defense is allowing 4 yards a carry with 64.6% completions for 8.8 yards per pass attempt. The Midshipmen 4-1 to the over on the road. Air Force is 8-5 to the over at home. Play Navy and Air Force over 34.5.
Army vs. Tulsa College Football Pick Prediction 10/5/2024
Army at Tulsa 12PM ET—Army improved to 4-0 following their 42-14 road win at Temple. The Black Knights gained 489 yards with 417 rushing for 7.3 yards a carry. On defense they held the Owls to 229 yards with five rushing yards on 22 attempts. Bryson Daily hit 2 of 5 for 54 yards. He rushed for 152 yards and three touchdowns. Tulsa fell to 2-3 with their 52-20 road defeat at North Texas. The Golden Hurricane put up 415 yards with 229 rushing for 4.9 yards a carry. Defensively they surrendered 618 yards to the Mean Green with 439 passing on 34 attempts. Kirk Francis completed 13 of 29 for 101 yards with two interceptions.
The Pick:
Army has won eight straight covering seven of them dating back to last year. Army is running for 6.6 yards a carry with 9.2 yards per pass attempt. They defense has been outstanding by allowing three yards a carry and six yards per pass attempt. The Golden Hurricane is a good running team with 187 yards per game and 5.1 yards a carry. They hold opponents to 3.7 yards per carry on the ground. The Golden Hurricane is 2-11 at home. Play Army -11.
Missouri vs. Texas A&M College Football Pick Prediction 10/5/2024
Missouri at Texas A&M 12PM ET—Missouri improved to 4-0 following their 30-27 home win to Vanderbilt. The Tigers gained 442 yards with 216 rushing for 5.4 yards per carry. Defensively they held the Commodores to 324 yards with 146 rushing for 4.1 yards a carry. Brady Cook hit 23 of 37 for 226 yards with two touchdowns. Texas A&M improved to 4-1 after their 21-17 neutral site win to Arkansas. The Aggies produced 297 yards with 134 rushing for 3.5 yards a carry. On defense they allowed 379 yards to the Razorbacks with 279 passing on 41 attempts. Connor Weigman has missed the past three games with a shoulder injury. Marcel Reed went 11 of 22 for 163 yards with two touchdowns.
The Pick:
First road game for the Tigers and have failed to cover two straight. The Aggies are rushing for 5.5 yards a carry. On defense they hold opponents to 4.1 yards a carry and 6.6 yards per pass attempt. Missouri is defending well holding opponents to 2.9 yards per run and 5.9 yards per pass attempt. The Tigers are getting the better quarterback play with 71% completions and 7 yards per pass attempt. Missouri has won eight straight dating to last year and beat Arkansas on the road last year 48-14. Backup QB could start here for the Aggies. Play Missouri +2.
UCLA vs. Penn St College Football Pick Prediction 10/5/2024
UCLA at Penn St 12PM ET—UCLA fell to 1-2 following their 34-13 home defeat to Oregon. The Bruins put up 172 yards with 47 rushing for two yards a carry. On defense they allowed 431 yards to the Ducks with 278 passing on 42 attempts. Ethan Garbers hit 12 of 20 for 118 yards and two interceptions. Garbers has a leg injury and is questionable walking with a boot. Justyn Martin went 2 of 5 for 12 yards in relief. A redshirt junior who threw no passes last year in two games of mop up work. Penn St improved to 4-0 with their 21-7 home win to Illinois. The Nittany Lions produced 374 yards with 239 rushing for 5.4 yards a carry. Defensively they held the Fighting Illini to 219 yards with 34 rushing on 32 carries. Drew Allar completed 15 of 21 for 135 yards.
The Pick:
Tough spot for an inexperienced quarterback on the road in Happy Valley. UCLA is running for two yards a carry which is troubling in UCLA’s situation. On defense they allow 70.2% completions for 7.2 yards per pass attempt. Penn St is getting outstanding offense performance with 5.9 yards per run with 71% completion rate and 10.9 yards per pass attempt. The Nittany Lions defend well by holding opponents to 2.5 yards per run and 5.8 yards per pass attempt. The Bruins are 0-5 to the spread on the road against good rush defenses that allow 120 yards or fewer per game. Penn St if 9-5 to the spread as a home favorite. Play Penn St -27.5.