College football odds, picks for Week 9: Georgia, Iowa State keep things rolling

This week's best bets include Florida-Georgia, TCU-Iowa State and Rutgers-Michigan

By Jerry Palm

Oct 26, 2017 at 12:36 pm ET • 2 min read

Each week, I will use this space to tell you what I think are a few of the best bets heading into the weekend. I will also throw in an upset of the week, which will be a team that is at least a touchdown underdog that I am picking to win outright.

I got back on a roll last week, with all three of my picks coming through. I should have used Louisville as my upset special instead of going with Ole Miss. My record for the season is now 15-8-1, but 1-6 on the upset specials. Let's keep the mojo going this week.

Week 9 Picks

Florida vs Georgia (-14): Georgia has one of the top defenses in the nation and Florida struggles to score on anyone, at least without Luke Del Rio at quarterback. Florida's defense is good enough to keep them in games, but unless it scores, Florida may get shut out. The Bulldogs will grind out a comfortable win. The under looks good in this game, too. Pick: Georgia (-14)

TCU at Iowa State (+6.5): The Cyclones are that rare team that loses its starting quarterback and seems to get better. Since Jacob Park took a leave of absence from the team for medical reasons, ISU has won at Oklahoma and Texas Tech. Now, undefeated TCU comes to Ames. The Horned Frogs will get a fight, but they have shown they can win big games. Pick: Iowa State (+6.5)

Rutgers at Michigan (-23.5): Rutgers is feeling pretty good about itself after consecutive wins over Illinois and Purdue. Those are nice, but they aren't Michigan. The Wolverines have some frustrations to take out on someone and that someone is going to be Rutgers. Pick: Michigan (-23.5)

Upset of the Week

Nebraska at Purdue (-6): Last week, there is no way I would make this pick. That was before we got a reminder that Purdue coach Jeff Brohm is still trying to win with mostly Darrell Hazell's players in an anemic loss at Rutgers. The Boilers' offense got off to a good start this season, but has only managed one touchdown in the last two games. Nebraska is a hot mess too, but they are coming off a much needed bye week and they did manage to beat Rutgers. Mike Riley's job may not be salvageable, but a loss here and he may not last until Monday. Pick: Nebraska (+6)