Overtime is where unders go to die in this CFB Week 5 Betting Recap.
That betting adage certainly rang true in the marquee matchup of college football Week 5 between No. 3 Penn State and No. 6 Oregon.
Over bettors had to piece together their winning tickets after tearing them up at halftime, while under bettors had to wonder what they did to deserve such a cruel fate.
With a total of 52.5, and the game was tied 3-3 at halftime, the under looked like a lock. Under bettors were still counting their winnings when Oregon went ahead 10-3 in the third quarter and 17-3 in the fourth.
But the Nittany Lions rallied to tie the game on two touchdown passes by Drew Allar, the second with 30 seconds left to send the game to overtime.
Any hopes of still winning an under wager were quickly extinguished as the teams traded touchdowns in the first overtime to make it 24-24. Oregon quarterback Dante Moore threw a 25-yard touchdown pass on the first play of the second OT to put under bettors out of their misery and give the Ducks a 30-24 lead.
Oregon won outright as 4-point underdogs to Penn State on the next play when Dillon Thieneman picked off Allar’s pass to seal the fate of Nittany Lions backers.
Penn State coach James Franklin lived up to the sarcastic nickname of “Big Game James” given to him by disgruntled gamblers as he fell to 4-21 against Top 10 teams and 1-16 against Top 5 teams with the Nittany Lions.
Dogs Dominate Saturday
Underdogs dominated The Associated Press Top 25 matchups this week, going 11-5 against the spread with four outright wins, breaking the overall trend from the previous Week 4.
No. 17 Alabama upset No. 5 Georgia 24-21 as a 2.5-point underdog to snap the Bulldogs’ 33-game home winning streak.
In hindsight, Georgia coach Kirby Smart’s decision to go for it on fourth-and-1 from the Alabama 8 early in the fourth quarter wasn’t too bright. The Bulldogs could’ve tied it at 24-all with a chip-shot field goal, but instead turned it over on downs when Cash Jones was stopped for a 3-yard loss. Neither team scored again.
Over bettors were dealt a bad beat as the SEC showdown was on pace to fly over 52.5 after Bama and Georgia combined for 38 points in the first half. The Bulldogs scored a touchdown on their first possession of the second half to make it 24-21, but both teams were blanked the rest of the way.
Top 25 CFB Week 5 Betting Recap Roundup
Illinois knocked off USC 34-32 as a 6.5-point home underdog. The Fighting Illini fell behind for the first time in the game when the Trojans took a 32-31 lead with 1:55 left. But that was plenty of time for Illinois to march into position for David Olano’s game-winning 41-yard field goal with no time remaining.
Unranked Virginia stunned No. 8 Florida State 46-38 in double overtime on Friday night as 7-point underdogs.
Top-ranked Ohio State was one of the favorites that came through for bettors as it covered 9.5 points in a 24-6 win at Washington.
Ole Miss dealt LSU its first loss of the season and covered as 3.5-point home favorites in a 24-19 triumph.
Irish bettors’ eyes were smiling as Notre Dame annihilated Arkansas in a 56-13 road rout as 5.5-point favorites, and the game went over the total of 62.5.
Iowa State bettors also had a stress-free experience as they rolled to a 39-14 win and cover as 4.5-point favorites over Arizona.
Arizona State stormed back from a 17-0 deficit Friday night to win and cover as a 2.5-point favorite over TCU.
Strange Safety Snuffs Spread
Indiana didn’t cover in a 20-15 win over Iowa after closing as an 8.5-point favorite. But bettors who jumped on the Hoosiers when they opened as 7-point favorites were dealt a brutal beat.
Indiana took a 20-13 lead with 1:28 left on Fernando Mendoza’s 49-yard touchdown pass to Elijah Sarratt, putting early bettors in position for a push. When the Hoosiers forced the Hawkeyes to turn it over on downs at midfield with 16 seconds left, all they needed to do was run out the clock to end it.
After three kneeldowns, Indiana faced fourth-and-19 from its own 40 with three seconds remaining. Instead of having Mendoza drop back and throw a long pass out of bounds as time expired, Hoosiers coach Curt Cignetti instructed him to take a safety, which he did by sprinting 40 yards back into his own end zone.
“Coach said, ‘Hey, take a safety, run out of the end zone,'” Mendoza told ESPN. “When I got to the 2, I saw all zeros on the clock, but I kept going.
“I know I really cooked people’s spreads. My apologies [go] out to them.”