Kentucky at Florida and Pittsburgh at Clemson matchups highlight SI Gambling analyst Roy Larking's NCAA football betting card for Saturday.
College Football Week 13 Betting Preview
Two heavy home favorites are part of the NCAA Week 13 Thanksgiving weekend football feast. Kentucky visits No. 6 Florida as +25.5 point underdogs while No 3. Clemson hosts Pittsburgh as -23.5 point favorites. With betting odds from the DraftKings Sportsbook - here is a breakdown and picks for those two matchups that are scheduled for Saturday.
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Kentucky at No. 6 Florida (-25.5) | TOTAL: 61.5
Winners of four straight, No. 6 Florida (6-1) hosts Kentucky (3-5) in an SEC East division showdown. Kickoff is slated for 12:00 p.m. ET at Ben Hill Griffin in Gainesville, Florida. The Gators have outscored their last four opponents by a 186-97 margin. That includes an impressive 44-28 win over the Georgia Bulldogs who were ranked No. 5 at the time. The Wildcats are playing a second straight road game following a 63-3 loss to the Crimson Tide in Alabama last week.
Florida QB Kyle Trask has racked up 2,554 passing yards with 31 touchdowns and just three interceptions over seven starts. Trask is the Heisman Trophy frontrunner with a (-134) moneyline price at DraftKings. After sitting out the last two games, due to a concussion, TE Kyle Pitts is expected to return for the Gators. Pitts leads the potent Florida passing attack with eight touchdown receptions. He is second behind WR Kadarius Toney (503) with 414 receiving yards.
Kentucky QB Terry Wilson has posted just 832 passing yards with six touchdowns and two interceptions. Wilson completed 10-of-19 passes for 120 yards and tossed one INT against the tough Alabama defense last week. Chris Rodriguez Jr. leads the Wildcats rushing attack, with 562 yards and six touchdowns, but is expected to miss a second straight game due to COVID-19 issues. Kentucky is 1-3 over their last four games and scored 16 total points during the three losses.
Struggling on offense, Kentucky will need a big game from their defense to keep this contest close. That seems like a tall order after the Wildcats allowed 509 total yards and nine touchdowns last week. Kentucky is also dealing with multiple injuries and COVID-19 issues. Florida needs to keep winning in order to advance to SEC Championship game against Alabama. The Gators defense has given up a lot of points but the Wildcats won’t keep pace with the Florida offense.
Pick: Florida Gators (-25.5) at DraftKings
Bet on College Football at DraftKings Sportsbook
Pittsburgh at No. 3 Clemson (-23.5) | TOTAL: 55.5
Following a run of 20 days off, No. 3 Clemson (7-1) returns to action when they host Pittsburgh (5-4) in ACC action on Saturday. Kickoff is slated for 3:30 p.m. ET at Memorial Stadium in Clemson, South Carolina. The Tigers game against Florida State was cancelled last week, due to COVID-19 concerns, and they were on a bye the previous week. Prior to that, Clemson was without QB Trevor Lawrence and lost 47-40 in double overtime on the road versus Notre Dame.
Pittsburgh snapped a four-game losing streak with a 41-17 win over Florida State three weeks ago. The Panthers game against Georgia Tech was postponed two weeks ago and they posted a 47-14 win over Virginia Tech at home last week. Clemson won the 2018 ACC Championship game 42-10 the last time these teams met. Panthers QB Kenny Pickett managed just eight total passing yards in that contest. Prior to that, Pittsburgh upset Clemson 43-42 back in 2016.
Sidelined due to COVID-19 issues, since Clemson defeated Syracuse 47-21 on October 24, the Tigers get Lawrence back for this contest. He is projected as the top pick in the 2021 NFL Draft and has posted 1,833 passing yards with 17 touchdowns and two interceptions over six starts. Senior RB Travis Etienne has piled up 1,125 total yards and 12 touchdowns over eight games. The Clemson defense is looking to rebound after allowing 47 points to the Fighting Irish.
After missing two games due to ankle injury, Pitt senior QB Pickett posted 641 passing yards with two touchdowns and one INT during his last two starts. He also scored one rushing TD in both games and leads the Panthers with seven rushing scores this season. Following a 45-3 loss to Notre Dame, the Panthers defense has played well the last two weeks. Clemson is a big step up for Pitt and the Tigers need style points to impress the playoff selection committee.
Pick: Clemson Tigers (-23.5) at DraftKings
2020 NCAA Football Record: 5-3 ATS
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