A few weeks ago, I offered up a piece of betting advice — bet Kenny Pickett to win the Heisman. I grabbed him at 75/1 at the time. Later that day, he was 50/1. Now? He’s 25/1 at BetMGM.
Pittsburgh’s starting quarterback is having a ridiculous season. If he played in the SEC — or a team not named Pitt — his odds would be vastly different. After beating Virginia Tech in Blacksburg, Pickett has 24 touchdowns (21 passing, three rushing) and thrown one interception.
Absurd.
He is the best quarterback in the ACC, which is not something I thought I would say this year. And on Saturday against Clemson, he will finally have a national showcase to convince others he’s worthy of consideration.
The rest of the schedule, which features four home games, is also conducive for more huge statistical games.
The problem? He still plays for Pitt.
That is not meant as an insult to the Panthers; it’s simply the reality of the award. If the numbers continue to be this overwhelming, however, I wonder if Pickett could sneak into further consideration if the madness continues.
Bryce Young is still in the driver’s seat. Matt Corral is still in the mix. Caleb Williams, who I will talk about momentarily, is emerging. And C.J. Stroud is certainly still right there.
We have a long way to go, but a win over Clemson at home changes this conversation completely. The days of 25/1 will be long gone if that happens, and it could. Heck, Pitt is favored.
For the select few who jumped aboard at 75/1 or 50/1, I salute you. Let’s ride!
Tidbits and observations
- Spencer Rattler will not be playing football at Oklahoma next year — that pretty much feels obvious. In his first start, freshman Caleb Williams was electric against TCU. In fact, the offense looked the one we’ve grown accustomed to under Lincoln Riley. There’s a lot to unpack with this, and the betting impact is massive. Oklahoma might be viable College Football Playoff threat again. And do we want to get weird and bet Williams to win the Heisman? It might be too late in the year, although I grabbed him at 50/1. He’s now around 20/1 at most books.
- You either love or hate Mark Stoops this week. There is no middle ground. (Well, unless you didn’t bet on Georgia-Kentucky. Then you probably don’t know what I am talking about.) Kentucky’s coach called timeout with seven seconds left in the game with his team on Georgia’s 1-yard line. The score was 30-7 Georgia, and the Bulldogs were covering the 21.5-point spread. Well, that was until after the timeout when the Wildcats touchdown ultimately pushed the final score to 30-13 essentially as time expired. I’ve been asked plenty whether college football coaches know the spreads of the games they play in. The answer, in almost every instance, is absolutely. Congrats to the Kentucky boosters who cashed.
- How about Louisiana-Monroe? The Warhawks beat Liberty outright as a 32.5-point underdog, which is the kind of upset that seems to surface once in a great while. ULM lost outright to Georgia State by 34 points the previous week.
- UNLV has a slot machine on its sideline. Not a picture of a slot machine or an inflatable slot machine, but a device that looks like a real-life slot machine to celebrate key moments. I have nothing to add other than I love college football more than I could possibly put into words.
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