by Sam Panajotovic
gambling analyst
It’s hard to believe we’re seven weeks into the football season.
Our best bets (16-5 to date) are off to a solid start, and I’ll be making four plays over the next few days. This space isn’t a place for a million picks or shows for five teams either. These are the games that I like the most.
Let’s go to work with the possibilities courtesy of FOX Bet.
Chicago Bears in Minnesota Vikings (1 p.m. ET Sunday, FOX and FOX Sports)
Looks like no one wants to bet Chicago in this place.
perfect.
The Bears hit the highway to take on the hard-earned Vikings from London with their end-of-list victory against Andy Dalton. Maybe Minnesota is just an overpriced smidge? Also, Kevin O’Connell scored enough short-term goals to make me think Mike Zimmer is back on the sidelines.
The Chicago defense still plays in physical strength under first-year coach Matt Ebervloss, and that side of the ball really keeps the team in play. Meanwhile, the Vikings have been bad at the favored role lately: They’ve been 7-13 ATS when placing points over the past three seasons.
Plug your nose and take the dog.
picking Bears (+7.5 in FOX Bet) lose less than 7 pips (or win outright)
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Michigan Wolverines in Indiana Hoosiers (12 p.m. ET Saturday, FOX and FOX Sports)
Hoosiers can hardly stop a nosebleed these days.
Indiana allows over 30 points and 400 yards of attack per game, and things aren’t exactly improving. Cincinnati scored 45 points in the IU two weeks ago, and Nebraska dropped 35 points last week. Sheesh.
Good luck against the high-octane Michigan attack full of speed and skill in the NFL all over the field. This is the best offense that Jim Harbaugh easily used in Ann Arbor, and it’s not even close.
The Wolverines streak will dominate the trenches, and the running lanes will get bigger and bigger for Blake Corum in the second half.
This could easily be 49-20 blue.
picking More than 59.5 points scored by both teams combined in FOX Bet
black army knights in Wake Forest Demon Deacons (7:30 p.m. ET Saturday, ESPN3)
I have my doubts about the Deacs getting up again.
Wake Forest should find more juice after falling to Clemson in double overtime two weeks ago and upsetting Florida State at Tallahassee last week. I can’t imagine it would be easy to focus on all the essential little details against the army’s triple option.
The Black Knights uncharacteristically converted the ball three times last Saturday against Georgia State and lost by 17 despite running for 354 yards and winning a battle for possession time of 39 minutes to 21.
The military will enjoy the chance to take on a senior, and I’ll score points against Wake in a very sleepy place.
picking Army (+17 at FOX Bet) to lose by less than 17 points (or win directly)
North Carolina Tar Heels in Miami Hurricanes (4 p.m. ET Saturday, ESPN2)
I hate how much I love Miami (Florida) bye.
The last time we saw the Hurricanes, they let the Tennessee Mosle lift more than 500 yards from the attack and win two touchdowns at Coral Gables. The Miami fan base may still be shocked by this performance, but I expect Mario Cristobal’s club to overcome adversity and be back again on Saturday.
I still can’t get around this defensive performance against MTSU. It makes a lot less sense when you consider that Miami outlasted and owned 11 more first touchdowns than Texas A&M in the previous week.
The Canes had two weeks to build a North Carolina game plan, and I think they’ll get it done at home. And it’s not as if tar heels have a strong defense by any means to the imagination.
Give me U to correct ship. Tough times don’t last, but tough teams do.
picking Miami (-3.5 on FOX Bet) to win by 3+ points
Sam Panayotovich is a sports betting analyst for FOX Sports and NESN. Previously he worked for WGN Radio, NBC Sports and VSiN. It is likely that he will choose against your favorite team. Follow him on Twitter @spshoot.
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Originally published at San Jose News Bulletin
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