The college football spotlight will shine Friday night on a matchup of explosive clubs when Central Florida hosts Florida Atlantic at 7 p.m. ET. The Knights will try to extend the nation's longest winning streak, which currently stands at 15 games, while the Owls will look to improve their performance against top-shelf competition after they were embarrassed by Oklahoma in Week 1. In the latest UCF vs. FAU odds, Central Florida is a 13-point favorite, the same as where the line opened. The Over-Under, or total number of points Vegas thinks will be scored, has ballooned from 71 to 74.5. Before you make any UCF vs. FAU picks, check out what SportsLine expert Emory Hunt has to say.
Hunt is the founder and CEO of Football Gameplan, which has been supplying analysis of all levels of football since 2007. The former running back joined SportsLine in 2016 and has provided his followers with winning seasons in college and pro football. He is off to a hot start this season with his college football picks, as he has hit 62 percent of his spread selections. What's more, he has had a keen eye for the tendencies of these two programs, with an undefeated 6-0 mark in picks involving Central Florida or Florida Atlantic over the past two seasons.
Hunt was all over the Knights' run to a New Year's Six bowl game last season against Auburn. He advised SportsLine members that UCF was a live 10-point underdog in the Peach Bowl, and was proven right when the Knights pulled the stunning 34-27 upset. Anyone who followed his advice booked an easy winner.
Now, he has turned his attention to Friday's prime-time battle between these high-powered clubs. Hunt has scoured every aspect of this matchup and released a confident point-spread selection. It's only available at SportsLine.
Hunt knows last year, the Knights became one of the best college football stories in recent memory. They were among the worst FBS programs in the country when Scott Frost took over. Two years later, they were undefeated and upset Auburn in the Peach Bowl. The program turnaround earned Frost the head job at Nebraska, his alma mater, but new coach Josh Heupel is looking to keep the Knights on top.
Heupel was a Heisman runner-up as a quarterback at Oklahoma and took the UCF job after serving as offensive coordinator at Missouri. He has reportedly changed schemes and approaches from the Frost era, but thus far the results look the same. The Knights have outscored their first two opponents by a combined score of 94-17.
Still, they are no sure thing to cover a massive spread against an upstart Florida Atlantic club that has plenty of firepower of its own.
The Owls (2-1) are coming off an 11-win season in their first year under Lane Kiffin, which included a Conference USA championship, a bowl victory and a 10-game winning streak to end the season. They were routed 63-14 by Oklahoma in Week 1, but have bounced back with two straight victories, including a 33-27 triumph over a tough Air Force club in Week 2. They defeated Bethune-Cookman 49-28 last week.
FAU has one of the most underrated weapons in the country in running back Devin Singletary, who gained 1,920 yards and scored 32 touchdowns last season. He has 210 yards on 53 carries with seven scores through three games.
We can tell you Hunt is leaning over, but he has unearthed the critical x-factor that causes one side of the spread to hit hard. He's only sharing what it is, and who to back, at SportsLine.
Who covers in Florida Atlantic vs. Central Florida? And what critical x-factor makes one side of the spread a must-back? Visit SportsLine now to see which side you need to jump on Friday, from an accomplished handicapper who is 6-0 in picks involving these teams.
