College football betting players have been seeing a changing of the guard in recent years: the teams that were normally considered BCS Busters, like TCU and Boise State, have been rewarded for their fine play with top-10 rankings to open the season. The Horned Frogs of the Mountain West will have a distinct home advantage at a “neutral site” affair on Saturday when they face Oregon State of the Pac-10.
Oregon State TCU Betting – Saturday, September 4, 7:45 PM ET
The No.24 Beavers came up agonizingly short of their first trip to the Rose Bowl since 1965, losing at home to rival Oregon in a classic, and that carried over to the Las Vegas Bowl where they routed 44-20 by BYU. They’re powered by the brother duo of Jacquizz (running back) and James (receiver) Rodgers, both of whom will challenge for the Pac-10 Offensive Player of the Year. The question is, will quarterback Ryan Katz be able to get the ball to them? The offensive line also needs to stay healthy to get Katz used to the speed of the game. Seven starters are back on a defense that was 46th in the country, and if the defense can holds its own, the Beavers have a great shot of winning the Pac-10.
The No.6 Horned Frogs lost to Boise State in the Fiesta Bowl to finish 12-1, and for the fourth time in nine years, TCU had the best defense in the country. NFL betting players should be seeing end Jerry Hughes in the league with Indianapolis now, but the Horned Frogs still have seven starters back on that side of the ball, and coach Gary Patterson is one of the best defensive minds in the college game, so he’ll have a plan to cover for the loss of Hughes and others. The Horned Frogs have nine starters back on offense, including Andy Dalton, who has won the most games of any active college quarterbacks. As long as he keeps the mistakes to a minimum, the Horned Frogs will be a force.
Online football betting odds have the Horned Frogs as a 13.5-point favorite in this contest, and with the game being played at Cowboys Stadium, TCU will have the home-crowd advantage. Their defense is good enough to come up with a plan to shut down the Rodgers brothers, and if you can do that, you have an excellent chance of beating the Beavers, because Katz doesn’t have the experience yet. The Horned Frogs’ offense has been overshadowed by their great defense in recent years, and they’ll want to make a statement in this game.
BSN Sports pick: TCU Horned Frogs
