Can a College Football Upset Happen? Yes, It Can
USC is good this year, with a lot of talent, and the SEC, too, is rolling again. Ohio State looks okay, but it seems to fall short in big games. However, there are some things that are pretty much the same year after year when it comes to college football. Do you want to know something else that is? That’s that every single week, big upsets will happen in college football. What does this mean for you? Don’t just bet on your favorites, and rely on your instincts, too. Besides that, though, you have to be ready to be a laughingstock (at least a little bit) if those instincts, too, are wrong.
Most of us have our own way to bet on college football. One good thing to remember is that we should expect upsets to happen. Here are a few situations to keep in mind in regard to upsets when you make your picks.
If a team has just won a game important to them, they might be too happy, relaxed and confident to prepare properly for the next game.
If the opponent is from the conference and is unranked, they know the opponent very well even if they’re not a BCS Bull team.
If a team is playing a primetime game on national TV with all the attention on them and they’re not used to the stage, watch out. There are more situations to pay attention to, but these are good ones to start with.
In the 2008 season, upsets have already begun to happen. For example, Oregon State beat USC even though everybody thought USC was going to be in the BCS Championship game. In fact, everyone thought that playing Oregon State was going to be a letdown for USC. In fact, this was true. Florida was beaten by Mississippi because Mississippi made some big plays and had some luck. That said, though, anything is possible in the SEC. What do both of the games just discussed have in common? Both involved conference opponents who were unranked.
Sometimes it’s harder to predict unranked upsets. This is especially true if an unranked team doesn’t play in the Bull Subdivision. In fact, last season, Michigan was beaten by Appalachian State in the “Big House.” Bowl games, too, are protected from upsets. If anyone remembers the incredible game played between Oklahoma and Boise State, that’s one example. That totally debunks the theory that the big program will always win the big game.
The Top 25 has some nontraditional powers, which means that more BCS Bowl upsets could be due this year. Boise State, Utah and Brigham Young University could all pull out all the stops if they play in front of a national audience in a big bowl game. Connecticut and Wake Forest aren’t renowned for their programs in football, but their talent is formidable enough that they, too, could bring some excitement — and upsets — into big bowl games, too.
The point of all this is that you have to be prepared for an upset. Keep an eye out for the situations just spoken about previously. Don’t just automatically assume the obvious when you bet online. No game or team is ever guaranteed to win 100%. Take a look at the matchup and predict the upset before it happens so that you can make some cash.
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