Week 4 has arrived.
The Noon slate is loaded, and our experts have spent the week producing elite betting content about every game, including Syracuse vs. Clemson, Maryland vs. Wisconsin, Texas Tech vs. Utah, and more.
Check out our college football picks and NCAAF best bets for the Noon slate on Saturday, Sept. 20.
College Football Best Bets
The team logos in the table below represent each of the matchups that our college football betting staff is targeting from today's slate of games. Click on the team logos for any of the matchups below to navigate to a specific bet discussed in this article.
| Game | Time (ET) | Pick |
|---|---|---|
  | 12 p.m. | |
  | 12:45 p.m. | |
  | 12 p.m. | |
| 12 p.m. | |
  | 12 p.m. | |
  | 12 p.m. | |
Specific betting recommendations come from the sportsbook offering preferred odds as of writing. Always shop for the best price using our NCAAF Odds page, which automatically surfaces the best lines for every game. | ||
Stuckey's Spots: Noon Best Bet
By Stuckey
I'm assuming Billy Edwards returns at quarterback on Saturday for the narrative revenge game against his former team. That's certainly not a guarantee, but I'm hearing positive progress reports.
I might buy out of some of my Wisconsin positions if Edwards can't go on Saturday. That said, his familiarity with Maryland's defense can help with prep regardless of whether he plays.
The offensive line is also in much better shape after getting left tackle Davis Heinzen out of the lineup in addition to seeing the return of senior center Jake Renfro last week.
I'm not only looking to buy the dip on Wisconsin after it got waxed (as expected) with a backup quarterback in Tuscaloosa, but I'm also itching to fade a Maryland team that hasn't played a soul to date.
The Terps' strength of schedule ranks outside of the top 200 nationally, with three home games against NIU, FAU and Towson, with the two contests against FBS opponents being closer than the final score indicates.
A +6 turnover margin against the Owls certainly helped.
This will also mark the first road start for true freshman quarterback Malik Washington.
He's played well so far against subpar competition, but we've seen countless inexperienced quarterbacks struggle in this spot already this season.
This will serve as a significantly stiffer test and environment, especially considering he won't have any help from a nonexistent rushing attack that ranks 129th nationally in EPA per Rush (just 3.5 yards per carry) despite facing a hilariously easy schedule of opponents.
I expect plenty of third-and-longs against one of the most improved pass rushes in the country.
That spells trouble for an offense that has converted less than a third of its third-down attempts (111th nationally) against a bunch of lower-level competition, especially considering Washington's numbers have dropped precipitously under pressure (6-for-18 passing).
The offensive line will also still be a major deficiency during league play.
I project Wisconsin as a 12-point favorite.
Check out all of Stuckey's Week 4 situational spots here:
Pick: Wisconsin -10 (-110, bet365)
| | | | | |
BBOC: Collin Wilson's Noon Best Bet
Before breaking this game down, I thought to myself about how Tennessee head coach Josh Heupel gets angry and runs the score up the week after a loss to Georgia.
Here’s how the team has performed the week after losing to the Bulldogs over the past four seasons:
- Beat UTEP 56-0
- Scored 48 on Vanderbilt
- Scored 66 on Missouri
- Scored 60 on South Alabama
So, I’m looking to bet Tennessee Team Total Over 55 or better, just for a half-unit.
Heupel goes crazy the week after a loss to Georgia, and UAB’s defense won’t do a thing to stop the Vols.
UAB’s offense is somewhat dynamic, and so I’m not comfortable laying the big spread with Tennessee. But I’m not comfortable backing the Blazers because I expect Coach Heupel to run the score up.
This feels like a good in-between bet.
Listen to the entire Week 4 Big Bets on Campus Podcast here:
Pick: Tennessee Team Total Over 54.5 (-115, DraftKings)
| | | | | |
BBOC G5 Deep Dive: Duck's Noon Best Bet
By Joshua Nunn
When you look at North Texas offensively, quarterback Drew Mestemaker has just been brilliant this season (70% completion percentage, nine touchdowns). He hasn't thrown an interception, as he doesn't make mistakes.
Army ranks 114th nationally in Passing Explosiveness allowed and 95th in Passing EPA.
It played FCS Tarleton State, and Tarleton was in as bad a situation as you're possibly going to get from a schedule perspective — it was on short rest traveling back to Texas from Portland.
I don't think Army can defend the passing attack, just like it couldn't defend Tarleton's punch.
Kansas State wasn't able to really exploit Army's secondary, but North Texas is going to eat the secondary alive.
I took North Texas at +3 on the openers, but I would still bet the current moneyline price.
The Mean Green are going to win this game on the field, and I think this will be a springboard game.
Listen to the entire Week 4 BBOC Group of 5 Deep Dive here:
Pick: North Texas ML (-120, bet365)
| | | | | |
Ziefel's Top Player Prop For Noon
By Doug Ziefel
The Maryland Terrapins have not had many hiccups on offense with freshman Malik Washington leading their aerial attack.
They throw the ball at the 13th-highest rate nationally, so there's plenty of targets to go around.
This week, they face a Wisconsin secondary that has struggled mightily, ranking 100th nationally in yards per pass allowed and 102nd in opponent completion percentage.
A matchup like this opens the door for wide receiver Jalil Farooq to have a big game.
Farooq leads the team in receptions, averaging nearly seven targets per game. He's also racked up around 10 yards per reception.
Back Farooq to clear this total for the fourth consecutive game, as it appears the market hasn't adjusted to his new role.
Pick: Jalil Farooq Over 38.5 Receiving Yards (-115, bet365)
| | | | | |
Syracuse vs. Clemson
This game triggered one of our Action Labs PRO betting systems, powered by Evan Abrams:
Home favorites in conference play who have performed poorly against the spread in recent games are often overvalued.
A string of ATS losses signals that market expectations have consistently outpaced on-field results, yet public perception and home-field bias can still inflate the line.
Conference opponents, familiar with schemes and tendencies, are well-positioned to exploit these weaknesses.
This creates an environment where fading the struggling home favorite offers consistent value.
There might not be a more struggling and overvalued early-season college football team than the Clemson Tigers.
Dabo Swinney’s squad has looked dreadful through three weeks, with losses to LSU and Georgia Tech paired with a way-too-slim 11-point win over Troy.
I don’t love the idea of backing Syracuse, but the Orange did beat UConn two weeks ago, holding the explosive Huskies' passing attack to only 20 points (including overtime).
Syracuse quarterback Steve Angeli might be someone to keep an eye on, as he has amassed over 1,000 yards passing through three games, averaging over eight yards per attempt while completing 64% of his passes. He could pick apart Clemson’s secondary, which ranks 101st nationally in Pass Success Rate allowed.
Pick: Syracuse +17 (-110, bet365)
| | | | | |
Action App Picks For Texas Tech-Utah
This is arguably the most significant Week 4 matchup happening in the early slate. This game could decide who wins the Big 12.
While we don't have any highlighted content for this game, it's always smart to check out the Action Network App to see which of our college football expert handicappers are betting on this game and what angles they are highlighting.
Additionally, if you haven't already, make sure you download the free award-winning Action Network App to track all your bets and tail all of your favorite experts:
| | | | | |
