College Football Week 1: 2 Best Bets for Friday, August 29

Get ready for Week 1 of college football by digesting our game previews for Friday, August 29. Today, we’ll do a deep dive into the Auburn vs. Baylor and Georgia Tech vs. Colorado matchups. Both of these games should be entertaining to watch.

Our CFB expert has 2 best bets on tap to build your bankroll. Best of luck with your action and enjoy the games. Let’s get into it!

Best Bet: Auburn -2.5 over Baylor

Hugh Freeze is likely to begin this season on the hot seat at Auburn. While he did not commit 22 turnovers last season, he did not prepare his team enough to avoid committing them either. So, what was his plan over the offseason?

Bring in proven talent via the transfer portal. And he did just that. Jackson Arnold is from Oklahoma State to be the new QB, and Eric Singleton was snatched from GT to give Arnold a veteran talent on the outside.

Arnold will also have the luxury of playing behind one of the best offensive lines in the conference this season. The defense held opponents under 25ppg, and that was done with short fields on numerous occasions last year.

Baylor was able to reach a bowl game last season after winning 6 straight games to finish the season. Sawyer Robertson developed as the season went along and is back with renewed confidence this season. Josh Cameron is a name that Bears fans will hear a lot when Robertson hits the air, and Bryson Washington should provide a strong run game.

The defense, well, is where things could be dicey this year. The linebacking corps should be solid, but up front, and the secondary will be questionable.

While both offenses look to have potential on paper, it is the defenses that are likely to be the difference in this meaningful opening game for each. We believe Auburn is going to want to send a message with this road opener. Auburn has not been a factor in the SEC in a while, but we believe that it changes this year and starts with a road win at Baylor.

Key Trends Auburn vs. Baylor:

• Auburn is 10-1 SU in its last 11 games played in week 1.
• Auburn is 7-1 SU in its last 8 games played in August.
• Baylor is 2-7 ATS in its last 9 games played in week 1.
• Baylor is 1-6 ATS in its last 7 games played on a Friday.

Best Bet: Colorado +4.5 over Georgia Tech

GT’s fanbase has high hopes for the upcoming season. They return Haynes King, who is arguably one of the best QBs in the conference. After an injury-mired season last year, King is back healthy and looking to get GT to the ACC title game. While he got some receivers through the transfer portal, head coach Brent Key is going to have to hope they can fill the void left by Eric Singleton, who transferred to Auburn over the offseason.

The O-line is going to be a work in progress, but King’s running ability should be able to make up a bit for that early in the year. On defense, there are new faces all over the place, including the coordinator. Blake Gideon will be leading a defense and calling plays for the 1st time in his coaching career.

For Colorado, the offense is full of unknowns. Coach Prime will be coaching without his son Shedeur running things at the QB position for the 1st time since taking over the Colorado position. Liberty transfer Kaidon Salter is likely to be the starter on opening day, but how long he will last will be determined by his play.

On defense, Travis Hunter no longer roams the backend, taking away the opponent’s best pass catcher. However, Prime hit the portal hard and believes that he has enough talent to keep this group competitive in the conference.

We have doubted Coach Prime so much over recent years, but not this year. The spread of -4 seems way too fishy for us to fall for the trap once again. On paper, the GT offense should be able to have its way in this one, but Prime should have his defense prepped as best possible with such a long time to prepare for King and company this offseason. Don’t be surprised if we see an upset here for the Buffs at home.

Key Trends Georgia Tech vs. Colorado:

• GT is 5-17-1 ATS in its last 23 games when playing as the favorite.
• Colorado is 9-2 ATS in its last 11 games.
• Colorado is 7-1 ATS in its last 8 games at home.
• Colorado is 5-1 SU in its last 6 games played in August.