2010 CFB Week 3 Prediction – USC To Cover At Minnesota
By Drew Sharper
Needing a good showing, USC has to cover an 11.5-point spread on Saturday when it takes on Minnesota.
USC is an 11.5-point favorite at Minnesota according to oddsmakers from online sports book SBGGLOBAL.com. The over/under has been set at 54.5.
USC is 2-0 on the season but 0-2 against the spread while splitting the over/under. The Trojans are just 3-10 ATS as a road favorite the last three seasons and 1-4 ATS in games on turf since 2008. The Trojans have leaned toward the under, hitting the under in 16-of-24 games when playing on Saturday since 2008 and in 6-of-8 games played in September over the last three years.
Minnesota is 1-1 on the season and 1-1 against the spread while hitting the under in one game and pushing in the other. The Gophers are coming off a loss to South Dakota last week at home. Minnesota is 5-8 ATS in home lined games since 2008 and 1-4 ATS against the Pac-10 since 1992. Minnesota has strongly hit the over the past 18 years as it has gone over in 37-of-55 games at home and in 8-of-9 games where it is a home underdog of 10.5-to-14 points.
USC has been far from impressive this season. Minnesota is a mess but has some athletes on both sides of the ball. In this game we expect some big plays to happen on both sides of the ball. It could be very similar to the USC-Hawaii matchup on opening night. Look for the Trojans to cover the low spread while the over hits in an offensive flurry.
OUR COLLEGE FOOTBALL WEEK 3 PICK: USC -11.5 and OVER 54.5