Betting odds, top predictions and our best bet for Saturday October 19th

CFB YTD: 13-7 (+5.3 units)

After a tough doubleheader on Saturday, we’re ready to get back to winning ways in college football. Our pick for the Iowa Hawkeyes couldn’t have been better as they defeated Washington by a wide margin. Unfortunately, we suffered bad beats at both Ole Miss and Pitt and lost something in Week 7.

The best overall matchup for this Saturday comes from the SEC. Get ready for the biggest game on the college football slate of Week 8 by diving into our Georgia vs. Texas betting preview. Get all the information you need to make the best decisions for your budget.

Georgia Texas Betting Odds

Oddsmakers are expecting a close game between these two top-five teams as the odds opened at -3.5 on Sunday afternoon in Texas. The point differential briefly moved to Texas -4 after a flood of Longhorn money hit the market. However, there were enough buybacks from the Dawgs to bring the line back to its current value of Texas -3.5.

Most of the betting market is looking for an iconic, high-scoring duel. The total was initially at 55, but has since been set at around 56.5. The move makes sense considering both crimes involve serious assaults.

How will Georgia avoid a second defeat?

Georgia suffered a tough loss on the road to Alabama a few weeks ago, but bounced back to win two conference games by ten or more points. Carson Beck has the Bulldogs offense running like a well-oiled machine as he has thrown for 1,818 yards and 15 touchdowns on the young season.

Beck will have to play his best game against a Texas defense that is allowing just 126 yards per game (1st). Georgia’s defense isn’t as dominant as last year’s, but they still do a good job of getting off the field on third down.

However, the Dawgs have been somewhat disappointing against the pass this season (74th in yards per pass allowed). Tyrion Ingram-Dawkins leads the team with 3 sacks so far this season. He has to find a way to make Quinn Ewers uncomfortable in this case.

Can Texas keep things going?

Steve Sarkisian has helped this Texas team reach the No. 1 ranking, and they certainly looked like the best team in the country last week against Oklahoma. The Horns fell behind 3-0 but continued to score 34 unanswered points and defeat their arch-rival Sooners in the Red River Rivalry.

Ewers is the main man of the Texas offense, and it wasn’t even noticeable that he had missed several weeks with an oblique injury as he dominated OU. His favorite target is Alabama transfer Isaiah Bond, who has already found the end zone three times in 2024. The Horns offense ranks 10th in both yards per game and red zone efficiency.

As good as Texas’ offense was, most of this team’s improvements came on the defensive side of the ball. The Longhorns lead the country in both points allowed and yards per play allowed. Anthony Hill Jr. leads the team with 4.5 sacks, so Georgia may have to double him to keep Beck up.

Best bet: Georgia +3.5

This is one of the rare cases where I violate my performance claims. My numbers make Texas a 5-point favorite, but I agree with the more battle-tested Bulldogs at this point. Sure, UGA has a loss, but they also played the 12th toughest schedule in the country.

Texas has been impressive, but their schedule is only 64th. This will be the first real test for the Horns this year and I think they will have a hard time winning the game, let alone winning by 4 or more points. Give me the Dawgs!

Prediction: Georgia 31 – Texas 28