Week 9 of the college football season presents several challenging matchups for top-ranked teams. No. 3 Georgia, coming off a loss to Auburn, faces No. 17 Florida at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta as a 12.5-point favorite. Other notable games include Arizona at Texas Tech (-3.5), Auburn at Ole Miss (-12.5), Minnesota at Indiana (-20.5), Miami at UNC (+14), and Ohio State at USC (-6.5) in the first-ever Big Ten meeting between the programs.
Veteran handicapper Thomas Casale, a frequent guest on national radio and television with over 30 years of sports betting experience, has posted a 12-7 record over the past six weeks and swept his best bets in both Week 4 and Week 5. Casale has analyzed the Week 9 odds and released his top selections.
One of Casale's highlighted picks is USC (+6.5) against No. 2 Ohio State in a 7:30 p.m. ET kickoff on Saturday. He notes that Ohio State will be without starting quarterback Julian Sayin, with true freshman Luke Fahey expected to make his first career start. Casale believes the Buckeyes' offense could take a step back on the road with an inexperienced quarterback, and he points to the line moving from Ohio State -7 to -6.5 as significant movement off a key number.
Casale has identified two additional picks he favors, including a heavy favorite in what he describes as an "awful spot" for the opponent. His full set of Week 9 best bets is available through his regular column.
