College Football Thursday Betting Preview

A pair of ranked teams get their season started on Thursday night, and a Big Ten matchup also highlights the schedule.

Up first Thursday are the No. 17 Pittsburgh Panthers at home to the West Virginia Mountaineers. At Bovada Sportsbook, the Panthers are 7.5-point favorites.

Pittsburgh was 11-3 straight up and 10-4 against the spread last season. The Panthers finished the year strong by going 5-1 SU and 4-2 ATS in their last six games. In their last five at home, they were 4-1 SU and 3-2 ATS, all as the favorite.

West Virginia was 6-7 SU and ATS last season, which included going 1-4 ATS in its last five. On the road, the Mountaineers are a lackluster 2-8 SU and 3-7 ATS in their last 10. As an underdog, they’ve lost three in a row both SU and ATS.

In this matchup, West Virginia has won three straight with a 2-1 ATS record, while in the last 16 the Mountaineers are 10-6 SU and ATS.

Cowboys have only 1 ATS loss in last 12 games

The other ranked matchup on tap Thursday features the No. 12 Oklahoma State Cowboys as 21.5-point home favorites vs the Central Michigan Chippewas.

Oklahoma State was a solid 12-2 SU and 10-3-1 ATS last season. In their last 12 games, the Cowboys are 10-1-1 ATS. At home they’ve won eight straight at 4-3-1 ATS, and when favored by 20-plus points, they’ve also won eight in a row with a 5-3 ATS record.

Central Michigan was 9-4 SU and 8-5 ATS last season and has won five straight both SU and ATS. The Chippewas are 7-3 ATS in their last 10 road games, and as an underdog they’ve lost six straight with a 5-1 ATS record.

In the last matchup between Oklahoma State and Central Michigan in 2016, the Chippewas upset the Cowboys 30-27 as 17.5-point underdogs.

Boilermakers home underdogs to Nittany Lions

In the Big Ten on Thursday night, the Purdue Boilermakers host the Penn State Nittany Lions as 3.5-point home underdogs.

Purdue was 9-4 SU and 8-5 ATS last season. The Boilermakers have won three in a row SU and ATS, and they’re 5-1 ATS in their last six. As a home underdog, the Boilermakers are 5-4 SU and 6-3 ATS in their last nine games.

Penn State was 7-6 SU and ATS last season, which included going 2-6 SU and 3-5 ATS in its last eight games. On the road, the Nittany Lions are 4-6 SU and 6-4 ATS in their last 10, and they’re not much better as a road favorite at 2-3 SU and ATS in their last five.

The Boilermakers and Nittany Lions last met up in 2019 and Penn State easily won 35-7 as a 28.5-point home favorite. In this matchup, Penn State has won nine straight at 5-3-1 ATS and is 13-2 SU and 10-4-1 ATS in the last 15.