Sometimes, getting out of the gate in college football can be difficult. There is an element of unpredictability surrounding a number of teams in August and it’s easy to get fooled.
I’ve been handicapping since 1984 and I’ve used a variety of tools to help me win early. There are returning starter angles, revenge situations and lucrative non-conference sets that have been very successful. This year, after tearing apart the week one college football card, I decided to look at teams playing in their second game of the season lined up against opponent competing in their first.
Honestly, when I first thought about this situation, I expected the teams that had a game under their belt to perform exceptionally better than those that didn’t. It has been said that the most growth in a football team can come between their first and second game. It would make sense that those game two teams were the better choice. I couldn’t have been more wrong. Take a look at what the Team Stryker Database discovered:
Since 1980, PLAY ON any game one favorite or underdog priced at +3 or less provided they are lined up against an opponent fighting in their second game of the season provided that game two foe takes the field off a straight up loss of seven points or more.
38-Year Record = 50-26 ATS for 65.7 percent
Play ON: MINNESOTA (Thursday) and COLORADO (Friday)
Last week, New Mexico State (+6’) dropped a 29-7 decision at home to Wyoming and Colorado State (-17) got absolutely shocked by Hawaii 43-34 in its own backyard. The knee-jerk reaction easily could be to jump on the Aggies and Rams thinking they would bounce back especially with an extra game under their belt. According to the Team Stryker System of the Week, the exact opposite couldn’t be more true.