Week 1 is in the books, and the madness is underway in college football. Overall, it was a good start for favorites, unless you’re Virginia Tech … or even worse, Florida State. The Seminoles somehow already have notched two outright losses as double digit favorites, and we just got through Labor Day.
The Week 2 board presents some intriguing matchups, particularly with a lot more closer spreads. I’ll continue adding my plays in this article throughout the week, as I still need some time to break down some of the matchups. There are also some good looking moneyline parlay legs this week, at least in my mind. Texas, Oklahoma State, Nebraska and Maryland all stand out as favorites of roughly a touchdown.
Now that we’ve finally had a chance to see these teams, let’s breakdown the Week 2 board on DraftKings Sportsbook.
Northwestern Moneyline (-140) vs. Duke
1-unit
Friday (9pm ET)
Northwestern didn’t light it up in its opener against Miami (OH), but covered as a short home favorite in the 13-6 victory. Dating back to last season, it’s the third consecutive home win and cover for the Wildcats when the spread has them favored by a single possession. While expectations are down this season, Northwestern still managed an 8-5 season in 2023, going 9-4 ATS.
Duke also had a terrific 2023, but suffered far more substantial losses heading into 2024 — specifically the coach/quarterback combo. The Blue Devils managed a 26-3 victory in Week 1, but barely failed to cover against lowly Elon. Mike Elko had Duke playing great as an underdog, going 8-4 ATS as a dog during his two-year tenure. But the Blue Devils historically are not good in this role, going 6-17 ATS as an underdog in the three seasons prior to Elko.
The spot sets up nicely for the Wildcats, who remain home on the short week to host Duke on a Friday night, which should invite a pretty decent crowd. Northwestern will be playing with revenge on its mind, returning the head coach and 15 starters off a team that lost 38-14 as a 17-point underdog in Week 3 at Duke last season. Look for a bounce-back here.
Syracuse +3 (-105) vs. Georgia Tech
1.5-units
Saturday (12pm ET)
This just feels like the spot where the schedule catches up to Georgia Tech. The Yellow Jackets are now on their third game of the season, upsetting FSU in Ireland in Week 0, and then returning home to beat Georgia State. The Panthers actually took sharp money in that one with the letdown spot for Georgia Tech looming, but GT barely pulled out the cover in a 35-12 game. After what we saw from the Seminoles on Monday against Boston College, GT’s big upset win isn’t looking quite as impressive anymore. With the tough start to the schedule, FSU is on bye this week, but Tech will be traveling yet again, this time up to Syracuse.
The Orange went down early to Ohio in their opener, and while they couldn’t quite cover, they rebounded well and looked sharp on offense — ultimately winning 38-22. Kyle McCord, who transferred over from Ohio State to play QB, looked solid, throwing for over 350 yards and four touchdowns. McCord joins 18 returning starters on the Syracuse roster from a team that went 5-2 in non-road games in 2023.
Look for the Orange to pull the upset as a home underdog against a hyped up Yellow Jackets squad that’s due to run out of gas.
Iowa Moneyline (-135) vs. Iowa State
2.5-units
Saturday (3:30pm ET)
Iowa is a team that I’m high on this season, which put me on a play on the win total. Here’s my article featuring this game, which has my full analysis on the Iowa play.
North Carolina State +8 (-110) vs. Tennessee
1-unit
Saturday (7:30pm ET)
Here’s an featured article on this game, which includes my full analysis on the NC State play.
Appalachian State +17.5 (-110) at Clemson
1.5-units
Saturday (8pm ET)
After getting embarrassed by Georgia and only putting up three points, I understand this sets up a bit of a bounce-back spot for Clemson. But with UGA to start the season, I’m also sure the Tigers didn’t start game planning for the Mountaineers until this week. On the flip side, I’m sure App State has been getting hyped for this game all summer, with a chance to go on the road and prove themselves to a program like Clemson.
This is a very solid App State squad that is favored to win the Sun Belt, and has become notorious for pulling massive upsets — winning at Michigan in 2007 is what put them on the map. The Mountaineers went 3-1-1 ATS as an underdog last season, including 2-0 ATS when priced as a double digit dog. Those games included a six-point loss to UNC at a 19.5-point dog in Week 2 (very similar spot to this one), and an outright win over James Madison as a 10-point dog.
Then there’s Clemson, which went 2-4 ATS as a double-digit favorite last season. The Tigers do have the advantage of a bye on deck following this game, but this is not a spot that they’ve thrived in over the last few seasons. I don’t think this is a Boston College/Florida State situation where App State has much of a shot outright, but keeping this within two scores feels very reasonable. Clemson may want to put its foot on the gas in this one, but Cade Klubnik and this offense very well may not be able to.
Oregon -19 (-110) vs. Boise State
1-unit
Oregon Team Total OVER 40.5 (-115)
2-units
Saturday (10pm ET)
One of the more shocking results from the Week 1 board was Oregon’s lack of domination over Idaho, which is an FCS program. The Ducks had a very pedestrian 24-14 victory in a game which most would expect them to simply name their score. That’s created a perception that it might be a down season for Oregon, and I just think it’s far too early go go there.
Now the Ducks get a nationally televised game against Boise State, and I’d expect them to wake up. I bet on Boise to win the Mountain West this season, so I have some respect for them, at least compared to the rest of the conference. But in a spot that Oregon will be looking to pour it on, I don’t give the Broncos much of a shot to keep up.
This Boise team just gave up nearly 500 yards of offense and 45 points at Georgia Southern in Week 1, and now have to go on the road yet again to play one of the most lethal offenses in the country. Oregon by a bunch — might also be looking at a team total play here later in the week.
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All views expressed are my own. I am an employee of DraftKings and am ineligible to play in public DFS or DKSB contests.
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