Two College Football Longshot Bets I Will Make
It’s never too early to place some fun longshot bets in college football.
Bet 1
California is a team that could challenge Oregon in the Pac-12. They really have a chance as long as their new offensive coordinator Bill Musgrave jumpstarts a unit that averaged just 21.2 points per game last season. Of course, it is easier said than done but Musgrave will have tools to work with.
Quarterback Chase Garbers, who threw for 1,772 yards and 14 touchdowns last season and was 7-0 in games in which he started and played all snaps, can have a breakout year if he stays healthy.
Running backs Christopher Brown Jr. and Marcel Dancy are coming back and this is significant to their aspirations. Brown Jr. and Dancy combined for over 1,000 rushing yards last season. Also, five of the top six wide receivers and every starter in the offensive line are returning. This team has a loaded offense.
Defensive coordinator Tim DeRuyter made drastic improvements on that side of the ball since 2017. Whole All-American linebacker Evan Weaver and safety Ashtyn Davis, who led a defense that allowed 21.9 points per game last season, are not back, Cal can find a way to replace them.
Having eight starters return to that unit will help. I wouldn’t be surprised if this team ranks high in their conference. Oregon and Washington have to visit them and those are winnable games. California is at +5000 to make the 2021 College Football Playoff at Real bookies. This is a long shot, don’t bet the farm on it.
Bet 2
Ian Book played well for Notre Dame in 2018 when they reached the College Football Playoff. Book had 19 touchdowns and seven interceptions in 10 games, completing 214 of 314 passes for 2,628 yards.
Book was even better in 2019, completing 240 of 399 passes for 3,034 yards and 34 touchdowns and six interceptions in 13 games. He improved all his numbers last season except for his completion percentage, which fell from 68.2 in 2018 to 60.2.
Book’s main targets from last year Chase Claypool and Cole Kmet will not be back but Notre Dame’s new offensive coordinator Tommy Rees can bring the best out of him. Rees will help Book have a great year while improving his NFL Draft stock.
Book is at +2000 at Scoresandstats to win the Heisman Trophy and I will take a shot on this.