College Football Picks for NCAAF Week 0
| Game | Time (ET) | Pick |
|---|---|---|
  | 12 p.m. | |
  | 11:59 p.m. | |
Specific betting recommendations come from the sportsbook offering preferred odds as of writing. Always shop for the best price using our NCAAF Odds page, which automatically surfaces the best lines for every game. | ||
We made it. Week 0 of the 2024-25 college football season is finally upon us with a seven-game slate featuring a plethora of FBS and FCS matchups.
It all kicks off with an ACC matchup between the Florida State Seminoles and Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets at Aviva Stadium in Dublin, Ireland, at 12 p.m. ET. Then, in classic Week 0 style, the Hawaii Rainbow Warriors are in action on the island, hosting the FCS Delaware State Hornets at 11:59 p.m. ET.
Ultimately, it doesn't matter which games are on the docket — the wait is finally over.
I have college football picks for both games, so let's get into my full Week 0 betting card below.
Florida State vs. Georgia Tech College Football Picks, Preview for Week 0
The Aer Lingus College Football Classic between Florida State and Georgia Tech will kick off the season 2024-25 season on Saturday.
This will be the fifth-ever college football game at Aviva Stadium, which has seen an average total of 48.8 since the 2012 inception.
This will be the second trip for the Yellow Jackets as a program after they beat Boston College in Dublin in 2016.
The Seminoles, meanwhile, enter the season with plenty of motivation for returning players after being snubbed by the College Football Playoff selection committee a season ago.
The game is set to kick at 5 p.m. local time, as temperatures are expected to cool into the 50s by kickoff. Aviva Stadium is an open-air venue, which is notable for a forecast that includes potential wind gusts over 20 mph.
There's a slight familiarity with these rosters after the programs met in 2022. Florida State would beat Georgia Tech by 25 in Tallahassee two seasons ago, tightly covering a spread of -23.
So, where does the betting value lie this time around. Let's dive into my Florida State vs. Georgia Tech prediction to open the 2024 college football season.
Florida State Seminoles Betting Preview vs Georgia Tech
The Seminoles will be without their offensive coordinator for this game, as the NCAA slapped Alex Atkins with a three-game suspension for recruiting violations. Head coach Mike Norvell was quick with media inquiries, stating, “we implemented the plan throughout our scrimmage opportunities.”
Although Atkins will not be there to call plays, there's every expectation that Florida State will lean more on the run game after calling a 50% balance with passing attempts last season.
Quarterback DJ Uiagalelei returns to the ACC after a single season with Oregon State. The fifth-year senior was fantastic in Corvallis, increasing career marks in big-time throws and average depth of target.
Uiagalelei flashed his mobility in the Pac-12 in a similar fashion to his time under center with Clemson, bringing a career total of designed rushing yards to 1,133.
Atkins called plenty of counter and outside zone read run concepts a season ago — a perfect combination for Uiagalelei and Alabama transfer running back Roydell Williams.
BACK AND FORTH!!
Roydell Williams answers for an @AlabamaFTBL touchdown to tie it again! pic.twitter.com/8arVGTuSc2
— CBS Sports (@CBSSports) November 5, 2023
Williams will get the starting duties after spending four years on a crowded depth chart in Tuscaloosa. The fifth-year senior averaged 3.4 yards after contact, generating double-digit yards on 15 of his 112 rushing attempts.
The one-two punch of Uiagalelei and Williams will have a cavalry in the trench, as transfers helped boost the offensive line to 190 starts and 90% of snaps returning from 2023.
Although Florida State put up offensive numbers outside the top 100 in Line Yards and Stuff Rate, the continuity in the trench should ease the loss of Atkins.
The strength of the Georgia Tech defense comes in the secondary, a unit that returns just 50% of pass breakups from last season. Florida State will have a number of new faces at receiver, but redshirt freshman Jalen Brown was announced as a surprise starter on the outside.
The handicap on this side of the ball is whether or not the Yellow Jackets can defend the rush.
New defensive coordinator Tyler Santucci is expected to have a new scheme for Georgia Tech, moving to the 4-2-5 with a similar flavor as Texas A&M head coach Mike Elko.
The first-time coordinator lacks depth in the defensive front, using two portal additions at linebacker. The edge rushers have little experience, as Sylvain Yondjouen played 27 snaps last year due to injury and Romello Height was limited to a few hundred snaps in four years of reserve play at Auburn and USC.
With FSU offensive tackle Darius Washington expected to be the best in the ACC, the Seminoles may face no resistance with consistent play in standard downs.
Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets Betting Preview vs Florida State
One of the more potent offenses in the ACC comes from downtown Atlanta with the Yellow Jackets.
Offensive coordinator Buster Faulkner is well on his way to bigger coaching assignments but will first have a full season with quarterback Haynes King under center and running back Jamal Haynes in the backfield.
Georgia Tech leaned 55% to the rush last season, implementing more than 300 plays of zone read option and more than 120 to counter run concepts.
My play of the game from yesterday. Really love what I’m seeing from Jamal Haynes (@Jamalhaynes16), his switch to running back has been seamless.
Really showed off his speed & vision on this play and set the team up to go into the half with some momentum after a SC State score. pic.twitter.com/F11Ouy8PtJ
— Jared Halus (@JaredHalus) September 10, 2023
Faulkner gets starters back on the offensive line at center and right tackle, with the unit returning 120 starts and 67% of snaps from last year.
The ground attack produced a top-25 number in terms of Rushing Success Rate, ranking top-20 in average distance of first contact.
Georgia Tech will need its experience to shine against a Florida State defense that's heavy on experience. FSU brings back its top tacklers in safety Shyheim Brown and linebacker DJ Lundy, while highly-recruited edge Marvin Jones Jr. joins from Georgia.
The best part of the Seminoles defense comes in the secondary, which enters as the best coverage unit nationally in terms of on-target balls allowed. Nickel Kevin Knowles II and cornerback Azareye’h Thomas contributed to coordinator Adam Fuller’s top-five defensive rank in Havoc.
Cornerback Fentrell Cypress II enters his sixth season, accumulating six pass breakups while allowing only half of opposing targets to be caught.
King will have his top targets back in slot Malik Rutherford and wideout Eric Singleton Jr., but the offense fell to 75th in passing downs Success Rate in 2023. As the team's leading target, Singleton must improve a drop rate of 7.7%.
The question on this side of the ball is whether or not Florida State will contain the ground attack and tackle in space. The Seminoles finished 31st in tackle grading a year ago, per PFF, but that number drops to 100th in broken tackles allowed.
Georgia Tech will likely rip a few explosives with King and Haynes, but generating a quality drive could be a struggle. The Florida State defense ranked sixth last year in preventing quality drives — a statistic measuring possessions that end in a score, feature 10-plus plays, last longer than three minutes or cover more than 50 yards.
My Florida State vs Georgia Tech College Football Pick
Bet Florida State to Cover the Spread
Both offenses prefer a slight lean to the rushing attack with heavy concepts in zone read with counter.
The handicap circles around which defensive front can contain the quarterback and running back duo while limiting explosives in passing downs.
Florida State should have no issues moving the trench against a defensive line that fields edge rushers and linebackers at less than 230 pounds. Yellow Jackets defensive tackle Makius Scott lists at 290 pounds and ranked 33rd out of 38 Georgia Tech defenders in defensive rush grading.
The Seminoles are expected to find themselves in scoring position often, where Atkins' absence could force a decline in FSU's Finishing Drives rank of 20th from 2023.
Georgia Tech will counter with a number of explosive options on offense, returning 17 rushing touchdowns with Haynes and King along with 10 receiving touchdowns from Rutherford and Singleton.
The Seminoles defense is not expected to give anything up in the passing game, so tackling in space will be the biggest concern when facing the Yellow Jackets offense.
Ultimately, Georgia Tech has no answer for Uiagalelei and Co. in short-yardage situations.
With an Action Network projection of Florida State -19.5, look for the Seminoles to take over in the second half with a dominant offensive line and an elite secondary.
Pick: Florida State -11 or Better
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Delaware State vs. Hawaii College Football Picks, Preview for Week 0
For the first time since 1979, the University of Hawaii will play an HBCU when Delaware State comes to Honolulu on Saturday of Week 0.
Clarence T.C. Ching Complex will be the site when the Rainbow Warriors kick off the third season under head coach Timmy Chang. After a rise from three to five wins in 2023, Chang will look to get Hawaii playing in a bowl for the first time since 2020.
For Delaware State, the football program has gone a decade without a winning record. Head coach Lee Hull enters his second season with the Hornets, generating just a single victory in 2023.
The university has been a part of the MEAC since 1971, making a postseason bowl or playoff only three times since the program began play in 1924. Furthermore, Delaware State consistently fell to the bottom of FCS ranks thanks to a negative point differential of -21 points on the season.
With the Hawaii entering this game as a heavy favorite of -39.5, where does the betting value lie? Let's take a look at my Delaware State vs. Hawaii prediction below.
Delaware State Hornets Betting Preview vs Hawaii
The Hornets were a well-balanced unit a season ago, opting to run the ball on 54% of offensive attempts. Hull called outside zone read as the primary rush concept for the offense, running strictly out of 11 personnel with only 16% of passing attempts using play action.
Junior running back Marquis Gillis returns after serving as the workhorse in 2023 with 140 rushing attempts. Gillis had a pedestrian 2.9 yards after contact in 2023 and also served as a weapon in the passing game with 12 catches on 18 targets.
Quarterback Marqui Adams returns to the roster after leading the Hornets with 184 passing attempts last season. The sophomore signal-caller logged more than double the number of turnover-worthy play rates than big-time throws, ending the season with an even distribution of touchdowns to interceptions.
There are experienced weapons on the roster, as receiver NyGhee Lolley and tight end Edward Core led the team in targets.
The same level of pass protection is expected from the Hornets, as four of the five starters return. That unit is led by tackle Malcolm Jefferies, the team's best pass- and run-blocking lineman.
Despite the returns on offense, Delaware State ranked outside the top 100 in FCS in numerous offensive categories, including scoring, red-zone efficiency and time of possession.
Hawaii's 2-4-5 defense boasts one of the higher marks in returning production in FBS, generating at least 80% of returning experience in tackles and pressures.
Safety Peter Manuma leads the way with three interceptions and a pass breakup from last season.
Four of the top five tacklers also return for a Warriors defense that finished top-15 in pressure rate but struggled to find consistency in tackling and containing pass explosives.
Hawaii Warriors Betting Preview vs Delaware State
Chang's Run-and-Shoot offense picked up steam at the end of last season, winning three of the final four games in the Mountain West.
Hawaii returns 84% of a loaded offense, led by quarterback Brayden Schager. After severe struggles in his first two seasons, Schager dropped his turnover-worthy play rate to 2.2% while increasing his overall depth of target.
More importantly, the signal-caller learned to deal with pressure by limiting his turnover-worthy play rate to 2.6% in 212 pressured dropbacks.
Brayden Schager takes it himself for the 4-yard rushing TD.
Drive Summary: 8 plays, 75 yards, 4:38
Hawai‘i 10
New Mexico State 17
10:22, 3rd quarter#HawaiiFBpic.twitter.com/5nSCn05S8U— Spectrum Sports HI (@specsportshi) September 24, 2023
The biggest news from camp is the suspension and depth chart exclusion of star wide receiver Steven McBride.
The good news is the return of slot receivers Pofele Ashlock and Koali Nishigaya, who generated 169 targets, 1,154 yards and 10 combined receiving touchdowns.
Alex Perry and Jonah Panoke also return out wide after racking up 69 targets last season, giving Schager one of the more dynamic passing attacks in all of the Group of Five.
Delaware State runs a 3-3-5 scheme with a coverage tendency of Cover 3. Schager posted an average Success Rate and EPA per Play in more than 150 snaps against Cover 3 a season ago.
However, the Hornets may struggle against Hawaii's Run-and-Shoot after finishing 120th of 122 FCS teams in passing efficiency defense a season ago.
Edge Eric Montes and defensive interior Darren Cook return to the Delaware State defensive line after posting a combined 43 pressures a season ago. More importantly, the Hornets return 11 of their top 12 tacklers, led by linebacker Charles Brown Jr.
My Delaware State vs Hawaii College Football Pick
Bet the First Half OVer
There are two conclusions that could be made about Delaware State to kick off the 2024 season.
First, power ratings provided by SP+ and Sagarin agree that the Hornets are nearly the worst FCS team in the nation. However, secondly, the returning experience on both sides of the ball gives bettors something to love.
With a returning starter at the skill positions, just a single loss on the offensive line and 11 of the 12 top tacklers back, there's experience for the underdog in this game.
Chang is not expected to flash the entire playbook with UCLA on deck for Hawaii in Week 1. Even with McBride out, the Rainbow Warriors will look to get downfield on the first snap with the Run-and-Shoot offense.
The Delaware State defense didn't show enough against the pass or in the red zone last season to believe it can keep Hawaii out of the end zone in this game.
Look for both teams to find success early before Chang goes vanilla on the play sheet.
Pick: 1H Over 29.5
