Northern Illinois plays its first game on Saturday as a ranked team after shocking No. 5 Notre Dame, 16-14, in South Bend on September 7. No. 23 Northern Illinois, ranked for the first time since 2013, begins its MAC schedule at home against Buffalo as 13.5-point favorites in the latest Week 4 college football odds according to the SportsLine consensus. It will be two weeks since the Huskies last played when they go up against Buffalo on Saturday at 3:30 p.m. ET. Can you expect the same focus the team showed against a nationally-known program like Notre Dame when it plays Buffalo in MAC action on the Week 4 college football schedule?
The expanded 12-team playoff includes at least one guaranteed spot for a Group of 5 team. Now with the chance at making the College Football Playoff a more realistic possibility, should that make Northern Illinois more attractive for Week 4 college football bets? Before locking in any Week 4 college football picks on those games or others, be sure to see the college football betting guide from legendary Vegas handicapper Bruce Marshall.
For years Vegas-based Marshall was synonymous with The Gold Sheet, the famed sports betting newsletter. With a background in play-by-play work and sports information while in college, Marshall joined TGS in 1981 when hired by the legendary Mort Olshan and served as executive editor for many years.
An in-demand guest on numerous sports talk radio and TV shows across the country, Bruce’s vast array of editorial work has been featured in the Las Vegas Review-Journal, the New York Post and many other outlets. He has won various handicapping titles and also is working on several book projects.
Now, using his Tech Corner technique that evaluates all the trends and the latest college football odds, Marshall has turned his attention to college football betting for Week 4 and revealed picks for each matchup. Head here to see every pick.
Top college football predictions for Week 4
One of the top college football picks Marshall is recommending for Week 4: He’s backing No. 15 Oklahoma (+7) against the spread as the Sooners take on the Vols in Norman at 7:30 p.m. ET on Saturday.
The Sooners are going up against the No. 1 scoring offense in the country, but a matchup against Oklahoma is a substantially tougher challenge than Tennessee has faced this season. The Vols (3-0) are averaging 61 points per game and most recently defeated Kent State, 71-0, last week.
However, Oklahoma also enters 3-0 and is averaging 33.7 points per game this season. This will be the Sooners’ first SEC conference game since joining the league and the Sooners will want to prove they belong. Oklahoma has won 10 straight home games and hasn’t lost a home game by more than seven points since 2016. The Sooners played five home games against ranked opponents over that span.
Marshall is also backing the Over (57.5) in a matchup of two high-powered offenses. Tennessee has scored more than 50 points in all three games this season and Oklahoma has averaged at least 40 points per game in seven of its last nine seasons, including ranking fourth in college football at 41.7 points per game last season. See which other picks to make here.
How to make college football picks for Week 4
Marshall has evaluated every other matchup and he’s found an alarming 11-0 betting trend you need to know this week. Get betting analysis for each matchup at SportsLine.
So what college football picks can you make with confidence, and what alarming trend do you need to know about in one of the week’s biggest games? Check out the latest college football odds below, then visit SportsLine to see which teams to back, all from the legendary Vegas expert who has won multiple handicapping titles, and find out.
Week 4 college football odds
See full Week 4 college football picks, odds, predictions here
Thursday, Sept. 19
South Alabama at Appalachian State (-7.5, 62.5)
Friday, Sept. 20
Stanford at Syracuse (-8.5, 57.5)
Illinois at Nebraska (-7.5, 42.5)
San Jose State at Washington State (-12, 56)
Saturday, Sept. 21
North Carolina State at Clemson (-19, 44.5)
Florida at Mississippi State (+6, 58.5)
Marshall at Ohio State (-40, 52.5)
Utah at Oklahoma State (-2.5, 52.5)
Tennessee at Oklahoma (+7, 57.5)
Louisiana-Monroe at Texas (-44.5, 52.5)
Kansas State at BYU (+6.5, 48.5)
