Iowa is going to win. It is true. You might not believe it, but on Saturday, the Iowa Hawkeyes are, without a doubt, going to win…the punting battle. Sure, that might not be much, but we have been watching the worst offense in college football for weeks now, you have to take any small victory you can. Those small victories are important when every time you open Twitter you are hit in the face with a stat like this:
Three @OhioStateFB players have more offensive TDs this season than the entire Iowa offense combined
— FOX College Football (@CFBONFOX) October 20, 2022
Which player will have the most TDs when they face off this weekend? pic.twitter.com/6wAM5geIpe
WE GET IT. THE OFFENSE STINKS. GROW UP, COLLEGE FOOTBALL WORLD. Before we talk more about football, we should mention how great the BYE week was from a mental standpoint. Not having to watch Iowa throw two-yard comeback routes at the four-yard line was wonderful. Did Spread Awareness have a rough week of betting? Yes, we did, but it was a BYE week, so does our 6-7 record even count? I am not so sure.
I want to be positive about the game this week. As you know, Spread Awareness is all about positive vibes. Unfortunately, the vibes are not great at the moment. We need to fix that, and fast. To do so, we are turning this article into a betting advice column randomly mixed with the most inspirational sports videos, songs, and quotes the internet has ever seen. Let’s do it.
Let’s start this off with a little Michael Bolton.
BIG TEN GAMES OF THE WEEK OF THE CENTURY
Iowa +29.5 @ #2 Ohio State (11:00 AM CST, FOX)
OK, 29.5 looks bad and means that no one thinks we can win this game. Well, do you remember the last time these two teams played and no one thought Iowa would win?? Ohio State was a 17-point favorite in that game and then….BOOM!
That game was also at Iowa, and Iowa had sick jerseys on, both of which we will not have this week. I also don’t love that Ryan Day is openly talking about how that game left a scar…
Ryan Day hasn't forgotten about OSU's last meeting with Iowa. Day says the 2017 upset loss is a scar that doesn't go away and the Buckeyes will continue to talk about it. https://t.co/eUDCBWdcau
— Eleven Warriors (@11W) October 19, 2022
Yeah, Ohio State is definitely going to try to win this game 100-0.
The good news for Iowa is that they didn’t have to play last week, so the defense should be extra rested when they have to spend 98% of the game on the field. I think they can hold up, at least enough to cover. 29.5 is a crazy number and unless Phil Parker decided he has had enough of Kirk and Brian and left the team, I think we cover. We may need at least one touchdown from the offense to do that, though, which may be asking too much.
So yes, take Iowa, and, of course, take the UNDER because that is just what we do for Iowa games.
PICK: Iowa +18 1H, Iowa +29.5 GAME, UNDER 49.5
MOTIVATION BREAK
Indiana +3 @ Rutgers (11:00 AM CST, BTN)
Indiana, losers of four in a row, takes on Rutgers, losers of three in a row, in a battle of the two worst teams in the East division. Who will win? No one knows, and honestly, I don’t think anyone really cares. If we weren't contractually obligated to make a pick for every game we would have no idea this is even being played but, here we are, trying to find a winner. I hear Rutgers is getting their QB that started the year back. That seems like a good enough reason to take them in this one.
PICK: Rutgers -3
MOTIVATION BREAK
Northwestern +13.5 @ Maryland (2:30 PM CST, BTN)
Northwestern comes off of a much-needed BYE week and gets to play a banged-up Maryland team. The Iowa offense gets a lot of crap (and rightfully so), but Northwestern is right there with them as the worst of the worst. They play each other next week and I am starting a petition now to get that game to be shown on TV in black & white. It may set the game of football back 600 years.
Taulia Tagovailoa will be a game-time decision for the Terps, which makes this pick a little challenging. Maryland’s backup QB is named Billy which doesn’t inspire a lot of confidence. With that being said, we are confidently taking the UNDER and more reluctantly taking Maryland.
PICK: UNDER 50.5, MARYLAND -13.5
MOTIVATION BREAK
Purdue +2.5 @ Wisconsin (2:30 PM CST, ESPN)
This line doesn’t make sense, which means we are most likely walking right into a trap. Wisconsin is struggling, having lost three out of their last four. Oh and that whole firing their coach thing. Purdue on the other hand has won four in a row and, despite giving up 900 passing yards against Nebraska last week, is probably the favorite to win the division.
With that being said, every time Spread Awareness has stated a team is the favorite to win the West division, they have had an epic collapse. Are we worried that a spectacular letdown is coming here for Purdue? Absolutely. Will we change our pick because of it as we should? Absolutely not.
PICK: PURDUE +2.5
Minnesota +4 @ #16 Penn State (6:30 PM CST, ABC)
Pardon my French, but what the frick, Minnesota? Seriously, what the hell is wrong with your boat? Talk about a team that the Spread Awareness computers have no idea what to do with. After a strong start to the year they have flopped their last two games, losing to Purdue and Illinois and essentially eliminating themselves from Big Ten title contention after being the clear favorite a few weeks ago. Now, 97-year-old QB Tanner Morgan may be out for this game with a head injury so things could be about to get a lot worse for the Gophers.
Penn State was thoroughly dominated by Michigan and the calls from fans to replace their own 97-year-old QB are getting louder. Penn State is a good team, they just aren’t close to the level of Michigan and Ohio State at this point. The Nittany Lions should bounce back in a big way here and win this game by a couple of scores.
PICK: Penn State -4
TOP 25 GAMES OF THE WEEK OF THE CENTURY
#5 Clemson -13.5 vs # 14 Syracuse: If this was a home game for Syracuse, we would be all over them with this pick, unfortunately, it is not. Clemson pulls away late to cover.
#20 Texas -6.5 vs #11 Oklahoma State: As you know, Spread Awareness is the ONLY recurring gambling article in the country that fully supports anything and everything Taylor Swift. Taylor Swift just had a new album come out. It is great. We have listened to it 30 times already. What does this have to do with Texas vs Oklahoma State? Well!!!
Important stat to keep in mind this weekend
— Chan (@CjMumme) October 20, 2022
Texas football is 8-1 following Taylor Swift's album drops dating back to 2006.
The Longhorns are -6.5 point favorites against Oklahoma State on Saturday. #Hookem #MidnightsTaylorSwift
Yep, this pick just got really easy. Longhorns by a million.
#9 UCLA +6 @ #10 Oregon: Chip Kelly returns to Oregon with a UCLA team that is rolling. Dorian Thompson-Robinson is the real deal and will keep UCLA in this game. Oregon has Bo Nix at QB and we have learned to never trust him in a big game. We are going with the QB we trust and also taking OVER 71.5 because life is too short to bet the under (except in Iowa games).
Alabama -21 vs #24 Mississippi State: Alabama has won this game by more than 21 points four years straight. Coming off an embarrassing loss, look for the Tide to take out their frustrations in a big way.
#8 TCU -3.5 vs #17 Kansas State: Adrian Martinez left Nebraska and immediately became 50x better at football. He has not thrown an interception this year but also hasn’t been asked to do a whole lot with his arm. He will need to throw A LOT this weekend to keep up with this TCU offense led by Max Duggan, and I have seen enough Adrian Martinez to know that probably doesn’t bode well for Kansas State.
