Oddsmakers have released win totals for the 2016 college football season.
I’ll take a look at each power conference and pick the teams with the best chances to earn the over and the under. Here’s my look at two teams in the Pac-12 destined for the over in 2016.
Oregon State Beavers, over/under 3.5 (-110 over/-110 under)
I’m not exactly touting the Beavers as a sleeper team to compete in the Pac-12. Instead, I’m looking for value in a conference that should be as wide open as any conference in the nation.
Just look at which team tops the list of win totals in the Pac-12 — Washington. That’s enough to make you pause and reconsider everything you’ve seen during the last decade in the wild, wild West.
The Beavers have the lowest over/under of any team in the Pac-12 entering the season and with good reason. They return only two defensive starters and have to replace Sean Manion.
There’s virtually no experience at the quarterback position returning, but what I do get, is an offensive line that remains intact from last season. That line paved the way for a decent running game last year, and one of the main pieces of that attack — Storm Woods — is returning.
There’s not much to get excited about on paper for the Beavers on defense, but I trust Gary Andersen at the head-coaching helm. He turned around Utah State in quick fashion and he should be able to keep the Beavers afloat this season.
The Pac-12 doesn’t feature many dominant teams, so expect Oregon State to pull off some minor upsets this season. Watch for Oregon State to reach four wins by November, with games against Minnesota, Idaho State, Boise State, Colorado, California, Utah, Washington and Washington State.
None of those teams have me shaking in my Beaver-skin boots, so I’m banking on reaching the over by the time snow flies in November. — Over
UCLA Bruins, over/under 8.5 (+100 over/-120 under)
Experts are in the wait-and-see mode with the Pac-12 this season. The conference was as deep as any conference last year and, on paper, it appears those teams are on a crash course to repeating that again this year.
For my money, though, the Bruins are the best of the bunch in the Pac-12.
The team returns double-digit starters and has the best quarterback in the conference — Josh Rosen — on their team.
And while the secondary is completely back, I am a bit worried about the Bruins’ inability to stop the run. I’m looking for a tougher front line for the Bruins this season to get through the middle part of their schedule.
We’ll find out if the over is possible when the Bruins face a gauntlet from Sept. 24 to Oct. 22. UCLA squares off against Stanford, Arizona, Arizona State, Washington State and Utah in that time period, with a game at BYU preceding the Stanford game.
If UCLA can get by that slate with only one loss, then the over should be a forgone conclusion. — Over
