Welcome to Week 5 of college football, sports betting amigos. There's nothing like a sweet Saturday packed with lots of interesting matchups like we have on this weekend's card. I've found some nice edges on Saturday night's BYU vs. Colorado game, which kicks off at 10:15 PM Eastern Time on ESPN.
I've broken down all aspects of this matchup and came up with an early best bet for your wagering pleasures. Good luck and enjoy the action! This should be a fun one to watch!
Online sportsbooks opened this line at BYU -4.5 on the look-ahead line, mainly because of Colorado's two early-season losses. After last week's outstanding performance by the Cougars against East Carolina, money has poured in on BYU like crazy. We're now sitting at BYU -6.5 at most online sportsbooks as of Thursday morning.
As for the game total, there's been quite an appetite for the Over so far. The line opened at 46.5, and almost every sportsbook in the US is now offering 48.5. Even still, I wouldn't be surprised if we don't see some buyback on the Under before kickoff, especially since both of these defenses are a bit better than most expected.
The Buffs lost both Travis Hunter and Shedeur Sanders from last year's fun squad, and they miss them dearly. Colorado suffered a blowout loss to Houston and a defeat by a touchdown against Georgia Tech earlier this season. That being said, the offense looked much better last week against Wyoming.
Coach Prime switched back to Liberty transfer Kaidon Salter at quarterback, and the veteran signal-caller played lights out. Salter threw for 3 TDs and also ran for a score against the Cowboys in a 37-20 victory.
Salter's favorite target so far has been Sincere Brown, who has racked up 203 receiving yards and 2 TDs. The Buffs will have to find ways to get Brown the ball more often against a pretty stout BYU defense.
BYU comes into this game a perfect 3-0 after blowing out East Carolina to the tune of 34-13 last week. The Cougars averaged over 5 yards per carry on the ground and didn't turn the ball over. Bear Bachmeier has done a great job of leading the offense, as he's thrown for 518 yards and 4 TDs already this year.
The Coogs have leaned on veteran running back LJ Martin early and often to start 2025. The bruising back has amassed 342 yards on the ground and found the end zone once. Colorado may have to add a couple of extra guys in the box to slow down Martin in this one.
BYU's defense has been pretty stout so far this year. They've allowed just 16 points through 3 games. However, the Cougars' first game of the season was against FCS Portland State, so the numbers are a bit skewed.
I was waiting for a +7 and was thrilled to see DraftKings hang it this morning at the decent juice of -112. I get that Colorado has gotten off to a rough start at just 2-2, but I think Coach Prime got Kaidon Salter's attention by benching him a few weeks ago against Houston.
Salter is a true dual-threat QB who should be able to create all kinds of trouble for this BYU defense. On the flip side, I think the Colorado defensive line can do a decent job of putting pressure on Bachmeier.
It also doesn't hurt that Colorado is playing with a bit of revenge after BYU smoked them in the Alamo Bowl last December in a 22-point beatdown. The Cougars haven't played a team with a pulse yet, so I'll call for the outright upset in Boulder. Go Buffs!
Prediction: Colorado 27 - BYU 23