Early college football odds have BYU as a touchdown-plus underdog to Utah.
To satisfy the college football fan bases early college football lines seemingly come out earlier and earlier each year. On Thursday, another batch of lines came out from the South Point sportsbook in Las Vegas and they are not just Week 1 odds but rather go throughout the season. BYU is featured in three of these games and this now gives lines to four BYU games as odds from 5Dimes were announced last week which included one game featuring the Cougars.
A lot can change from now until Week 1 and even more so until games nearing Thanksgiving. Just look at BYU, they do not know who their starting quarterback will be as Taysom Hill is still recovering from his lisfranc injury and is not full strength. That quarterback battle this fall between Hill and Tanner Mangum will make a difference. Then there is the new coaching staff for BYU which features a first-time head coach in Kalani Sitake and Ty Detmer who has never coached at the collegiate level.
All of those are variables that are awfully hard to put together, but the public wants these lines to create interest. Of the four lines out BYU is favored in two and underdogs in two.
They are a 1.5-point favorite over Arizona which is technically a neutral site game on Sept. 1 in Glendale, Arizona, just 125 miles from Tucson. The next game is the Cougars second contest which is on the road against the Utes and this road game has BYU as a 7-5-point underdog. That seems like a lot of points to give up since Utah is also not sure who their starting quarterback will be as they are looking at three different potential signal callers.
Boise State is the next game listed and it is also another road game on Oct. 20 on the blue turf. The Broncos have a large 11.5-point favorite against the Cougars. These two teams are getting close to be considered a rivalry as they have played and will play well into the next decade, so seeing the Broncos as a double-digit favorite seems a bit much. However, it does make sense as the Broncos return most of their offense from last year and at the skill positions with quarterback Brett Rypien, running back Jeremy McNichols and wide receiver Thomas Sperbeck.
The final game on the list fast forwards the schedule to Thanksgiving weekend where BYU hosts Utah State and this game has the Cougars only a one-point favorite. This might be the most bizarre since Utah State lost their entire linebacking corp to the NFL as well as their top wide receiver in Hunter Sharp. Saying BYU is a one-point favorite means that they would be an underdog if this game was in Logan, Utah, or even a neutral location.
A lot of things will definitely change from now until Week 1 and look for the odds later in the season to change once there is more info about who this BYU football team is with their new coaching staff.
