College Football Parlay Picks for Week 8: Totals Make Up Bulk of 3-Leg Parlay
Nine undefeated teams remain in college football, and five reside in the ACC and SEC. Read on for our best parlay picks for Week 8's college football action.
Once again, there are five ranked vs. ranked matchups on the Week 8 college football slate, including a game involving the No. 14 Syracuse Orange and No. 5 Clemson Tigers, which is being billed as one of the former's biggest games this century.
Below, we offer our parlay picks for Week 8 in college football (odds via DraftKings Sportsbook).
College Football Parlay Picks for Week 8
College Football Parlay Predictions
Northwestern-Maryland Under 52 (-120)
Maryland suffered a big blow last week when quarterback Taulia Tagovailoa was carted off with a leg injury. Tagovailoa was one of the most accurate quarterbacks in FBS so far this season, completing 74.1% of his passes for 1,731 yards and an 11:5 touchdown-to-interception ratio. Last season, Tagovailoa threw for over 3,800 yards and 26 touchdowns.
In his place, Billy Edwards Jr. threw just three passes (zero completions) and ran for 53 yards, and the Terrapins' offense does not have the same ceiling without Tagovailoa.
On the other side, Northwestern has averaged just 3.1 points on 30 scoring opportunities, ranking 117th in that metric. Expect it to struggle again this week, as Maryland's red-zone defensive efficiency ranks in the top 25 in FBS.
Without Northwestern putting real pressure on Maryland's defense, expect Terrapins head coach Mike Locksley to call a conservative game with Edwards under center, given that the freshman has thrown just 16 career passes.
James Madison -12.5 (-105)
James Madison had a target on its back last week against Georgia Southern, playing its first game as an AP-ranked team in its first season at the FBS level. The Dukes disappointingly lost outright 45-38 as -12.5 point favorites, but that was the first game they did not cover the spread all season. In addition, they averaged more yards per play and had a Success Rate in the 80th percentile, equating to a 75% postgame win expectancy, according to ESPN's Bill Connelly.
Had JMU not turned the ball over four times, the outcome would likely have been much different. Perhaps the Dukes were not ready to handle what comes with being a ranked opponent, but they are still a team averaging more than 43 points per game while owning the Sun Belt's top total defense (288.7 YPG allowed).
Conversely, Marshall's second-ranked total defense is misleading, given that it has not played a top-five Sun Belt offense yet this season. Since the Thundering Herd's big win against Notre Dame, they have lost three of four games and now have a quarterback controversy on their hands after pulling Henry Colombi for Cam Fancher in the second half last week.
Pittsburgh Over 26.5 (-125)
Pittsburgh's Israel Abanikanda rushed for 320 yards and six touchdowns against Virginia Tech, making him just the third player from a current Power Five school to run for at least 300 yards and score at least six touchdowns on the ground in a single game during the last 25 seasons, according to ESPN Stats & Info.
Now, Abanikanda faces a Louisville defense that has struggled to stop the run all season, ranking 112th in explosive rushing plays allowed. The Panthers are not just creating chunk plays on the ground, as they rank 27th in offensive explosiveness overall and face a Louisville defense ranking outside the top 120.
We cannot advise backing the Over in this game given Louisville's injury concerns, with quarterback Malik Cunningham (concussion) and running back Tiyon Evans questionable for Saturday. If neither of them suits up, that plays even more into Pitt's hands from an offensive standpoint, as it will likely have shorter fields and more time of possession as a result of Louisville's compromised offense.
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College football parlay picks made 10/19/2022 at 8:11 a.m. ET.
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