UCLA vs. Colorado: College football betting lines, odds and how to watch

UCLA hosts Colorado at 6 p.m. Saturday at the Rose Bowl.

The Bruins lost 44-24 at Utah on Oct. 30 to fall further behind in the Pac-12 race. It was their second straight loss after losing to Oregon the previous week. They get to step down in class against Colorado (3-6) and should be able to get back on the winning track as they try positioning themselves for a bowl bid.

But is that the way to bet the game? VSiN’s Dave Tuley gives his breakdown.

Colorado at UCLA (-17, 57), 6 p.m. PST, Pac-12 Networks

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Bill Parcells was famously quoted as saying “You are what your record says you are.” That pretty much says it all about the Bruins at 5-4 as they’ve proven to be an average team. For the most part, they’ve beaten the teams they were supposed to and lost to superior teams. They were double-digit favorites against Hawaii and Arizona and went on to win and cover those big spreads. The Bruins did win as short underdogs against Louisiana State (arguably the high-point of the season so far), but they’ve lost the last two weeks to Oregon and Utah.

They now face an inferior team in Colorado. The Buffaloes average only 19.1 points per game compared to the Bruins’ 32.2. The gap isn’t nearly as big on defense as neither has been guilty of playing defense at times with Colorado allowing 25.7 points per game while UCLA gives up 28.2.

Overall, the edge goes to UCLA, and with the oddsmakers making them such a big favorite, it’s probably tempting for UCLA fans to want to back them. However, we believe this line is set too high. While the Buffaloes are below average in the Pac-12, they are an impressive 3-1 against the spread this season as double-digit underdogs. In the second game of the season, they lost just 10-7 to nationally-ranked Texas A&M as 17 1/2-point dogs. Two weeks later they failed to cover in 35-13 loss at Arizona State as 14-point dogs, but then covered their two most recent games: covering as 24 1/2-point dogs in a 52-29 loss at Oregon and then beating Oregon State 37-34 in overtime as 12-point dogs.

If they could hang with Oregon and beat Oregon State, they can stay within three scores of the Bruins.

Pick: Colorado +17

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