Best Bets for NCAA Week 9

Here are my best bets for this week in college football

Texas (-1.5) over TCU

The fact that Texas is only a 1.5 favorite in this game is a bit disrespectful to how much this Texas team has improved this season.  Yes they did have a scare last week against Kansas, but Texas will not be looking ahead again this season.  Texas does not play Iowa State for two weeks so this team should be completely focused on TCU.  The only thing that scares me is Texas could be without two starting defensive backs, but I feel Tom Herman will right the ship this week and win by at least a touchdown.  These are games Herman needs to win in order to keep the faith of the Longhorn faithful.

Western Kentucky (+4.5) over Marshall

This one is a bit more analytical over more of a gut feeling.  Western Kentucky is 5-2 ATS (Against the Spread) this season and their defense is averaging under 10 points per game allowed in their last 4 games. Marshall ranks 4th in total offense in the conference, but they are playing the 2nd ranked defense in the conference. This game could come down to the play of the quarterbacks.  Ty Storey for Western Kentucky has gone 4-0 since taking over the starting job and Isiah Wright has been inconsistent at best with 10 touchdowns and 6 interceptions this season.  Look for this game to be close, but I could see Western Kentucky winning this game outright, so I definitely like them against the spread.

Arkansas (+32) over Alabama

This might sound like the craziest prediction of all time but here me out on this one.  Arkansas averages the 6th most passing yards in the SEC. The defense has the 6th most sacks and the 3rd most fumble recoveries in the SEC, so they are an opportunistic defense to say the least.  Mac Jones was only able to lead them to 14 points in the second half of their previous game against Tennessee.  Alabama also has LSU coming up on November 9th in what could be a preview to the national championship game.  I am in no way saying Arkansas will win this game but keeping it within 4 touchdowns could be possible for a team looking for any kind of positive momentum going into November.

Missouri (-10) over Kentucky

Missouri got embarrassed last weekend against Vanderbilt.  That being said, Kentucky did not spark any hope on offense against a disgruntled Georgia team.  Kentucky is on their 3rd string quarterback, who is also their leading receiver.  Kelly Bryant and the Missouri offense is going to be looking to make up for a terrible performance last week.