The Week 3 college football action rolls on into the afternoon.
Check out our four college football best bets for Saturday afternoon's games on Sept. 14, including picks for WVU vs. Pitt, Troy vs. Iowa and more.
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College Football Best Bets for Saturday Afternoon
The team logos in the table below represent each of the matchups that our college football betting staff is targeting from Saturday afternoon's slate of games. Click on the team logos for any of the matchups below to navigate to a specific bet discussed in this article.
| Game | Time (ET) | Pick |
|---|---|---|
  | 2:00 p.m. | |
  | 3:30 p.m. | |
  | 4:00 p.m. | |
  | 6:00 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. | ||
Coastal Carolina vs. Temple
By Greg Liodice
After spending the first two weeks on the road, Temple opens its doors to the red-hot Coastal Carolina Chanticleers.
To put it nicely, the Owls’ season hasn’t gotten off on the right foot. They got brutalized in Norman in Week 1 and then suffered a beatdown in Annapolis in Week 2.
I think it’s fair to say that Temple is among the worst teams in the FBS right now. It’s 103rd in Passing Success Rate and 119th in Success Rate on the offensive end.
Defensively, the Owls are just as bad, ranking 97th in stopping the run and 56th in stopping the pass.
I’m not trying to rip on Temple, but those passing defense numbers are skewed a bit. Navy is a run-heavy offense, so naturally, it’ll prop up overall pass-defense numbers. Meanwhile, Oklahoma dissected the Owls with its aerial attack.
Coastal Carolina has started the season off on the right foot. Receivers are creating separation, and the run game is clicking for everyone.
I’m a little disappointed in Ethan Vasko, who’s completed his passes under a 50% rate, including going 8-for-23 against an FCS program in William & Mary.
Vasko has his options in Tray Taylor, Malick Meiga and Jameson Tucker, who have all managed to create high-end separation. It’s Vasko’s inaccuracy that’s the problem.
I can also see Coastal’s run game making a difference in this one. The Chanticleers are 27th in Run Success Rate, and I’m a believer in both Christian Washington and Darren Lloyd.
Coastal can run the score up in a hurry. It went to Jacksonville State during Week 1 and put 55 on the Gamecocks. Its run game performs at a high level and gets a ton of volume. If Vasko can find his touch, this will be an ugly game.
I can easily see the Chants creating an 18.5-point gap between them and the Owls, and I’d be willing to take these odds fairly deep.
Pick: Coastal Carolina -17.5
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West Virginia vs. Pitt
By Pete Ruden
What’s better than the Backyard Brawl? The Backyard Brawl with a spread under a field goal.
However, I don’t think this game is going to be as close as the books believe.
I’m just not a big believer in this Pitt team, whose defense has taken a significant step back from where it was in previous seasons under head coach Pat Narduzzi.
The Panthers now rank just 95th in scoring defense, 79th in total defense and 86th in Defensive Finishing Drives.
That’s bad news against a West Virginia offense that features a star-studded group in the backfield in quarterback Garrett Greene and running backs CJ Donaldson and Jahiem White.
Donaldson and White have combined for 300 yards and three touchdowns on an average of 6.9 yards per carry through two games.
To bolster that duo, Greene’s dual-threat ability could spell trouble for the Panthers on third downs, where they rank a very average 52nd in opponent third-down conversions.
Now, I wouldn’t be shocked if Pitt running back Desmond Reid has himself a day after racking up 254 all-purpose yards against Cincinnati last week. But that’s exactly what the game script called for when Pitt fell into a 27-6 hole late in the third quarter.
It’s worth noting that the Mountaineers held the Panthers in check last season (3.6 yards per carry) and rank 22nd in Defensive EPA per Rush in 2024.
West Virginia has struggled mightily in the secondary this season, but I don’t expect Pitt quarterback Eli Holstein to take advantage. The Alabama transfer has recorded only three big-time throws to seven turnover-worthy plays through two games against Cincinnati and a Kent State team that just lost to St. Francis, per PFF.
In a game with a 1.5-point spread, a turnover or two could absolutely swing the momentum.
Give me West Virginia to win the Backyard Brawl for a second straight season. Take me home, country roads!
Pick: West Virginia ML (-120) · Play to -3
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Troy vs. Iowa
The Iowa Hawkeyes will look to bounce back against visiting Troy after last week’s heartbreaking last-second loss to Iowa State.
Initially, Saturday’s game against the Trojans was circled as a let-down game for Iowa, given it was sandwiched between a massive rivalry game and the start of Big Ten play.
But after losing to their bitter rivals last week, Saturday has suddenly become an important bounce-back spot for the Hawkeyes.
Iowa still has tons of promise this season, with everything on the table besides a perfect record. With Iowa seeking a restart victory this weekend, there is no better opponent to face for a redemption game than the Troy Trojans.
Troy entered the 2024 season with some of the worst returning production in all of FBS, ranking 131st in the SP+ returning production rankings. As a result, Troy is a very young team with zero players in their final year of eligibility who started their careers with the team. Reliant on the portal, Troy had 16 players make their first FBS starts in the last few weeks.
In a troubling juxtaposition for Troy, they will be pitted against one of the most veteran units in all of FBS.
Senior quarterback Cade McNamara is under center for his sixth season and will be working behind a veteran offensive line of upperclassmen. On the defensive side, the Hawkeye defense is “who we think they are,” a continuation of one of the best defenses in recent years.
After changing its offensive coordinator in the offseason, Saturday becomes a perfect chance for the Hawkeyes to get back on track with a statement win. Last week was a letdown, albeit an explainable one, but this week needs to feature a lot of points against an easy FBS opponent.
Through two games, Troy ranks 116th nationally in scoring defense, allowing 33 points per game. The Trojans have been eviscerated on the ground, allowing 212.5 rushing yards per game. Look for Iowa to exploit this and establish a heavy run game behind its veteran offensive line.
The zeitgeist here is that Iowa must bounce back in preparation for its Big Ten schedule and will look to get its new offense clicking against a weak defense.
The Iowa defense will be excellent as usual, and I recommend laying the chalk at 24 or lower in favor of the Hawkeyes.
Pick: Iowa -22.5 (Play to -24)
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FIU vs. Florida Atlantic
FIU picked up a huge win in Week 2 as 3.5-point underdogs, destroying Central Michigan 52-16.
The Panthers forced six turnovers, but most importantly, they averaged over six yards per play, with most of their success coming on the ground.
They have a couple of really good running backs in Shomari Lawrence and Kejon Owens, who combined to average over five yards per carry last season.
On top of that, they have four starters back on their offensive line, so this rushing attack is looking like it’s only going to get better.
Nobody got gutted worse than Florida Atlantic in the offseason as it lost almost everyone on both sides of the ball.
The defensive front looks to be solid and did a good job of stopping Michigan State outside of one big rush, but it’s going to be tough to keep the Panthers’ rushing attack at bay all game long.
The Owls’ offense has been pretty terrible through their first two games, only scoring a total of 17 points against Michigan State and Army.
Cam Fancher transferred in from Marshall and is really struggling averaging only 5.1 yards per attempt through his first two games with four turnover worthy plays.
The problem is they haven’t been able to block for him. Florida Atlantic only brought back one starter on its offensive line, which has resulted in Fancher being under pressure on 37% of his dropbacks.
He also doesn’t have very many weapons to throw two, as Tom Herman brought only one transfer in at wide receiver after losing his top four pass catchers from last year.
So, given all of the struggles so far with Florida Atlantic, I don’t think it should be this big of a favorite, and I like the value on Florida International at +5.5.
Pick: FIU +5.5 (Play to +4.5)
