By Dave Cokin


Here we go! California and Hawaii got the college football season underway last weekend in Australia, but this is the real opening night of the season. I’ll be doing my weekly “wise guy reports” on Thursday of each week, so here’s the first installment for this season.

The info is garnered from various sources on the other side of the counter. That includes local Las Vegas books, offshores where I have good contacts, as well as some solid underground books stateside. Please note these are not my plays, nor my opinions. It’s just info for those who enjoy finding out what the sharps are playing, as well as noting matchups where the so-called squares are on the other side. Here’s what I’ve gathered for this week.

133 INDIANA drew serious early money and the steam chasers have jumped on the Hoosiers in a big way to boot.

144 MINNESOTA is getting a good deal of pro dough. The public is on the other side of this one, taking the points with the Beavers. The consensus seems be that this line has topped out at 13.

189 APPALACHIAN STATE is an under the radar sharp side. Tennessee is getting a ton of hype which could well be spot on, but there’s a little more smart money showing on the dog side.

151 KANSAS STATE drew some pro money, although the general feeling is that 14 is as low as this will get and that it could tick back up close to post time.

159 WESTERN MICHIGAN has gotten some very sharp play. Northwestern actually got as low at -4.5 at one point today, although there was then some buy back at the store that offered that number. Not overwhelming, but the public appears to like the Wildcats a bit more than the Broncos.

164 PENN STATE drew wise guy action early, and the public is also firing on the Nittany Lions. The ticket count on this game is lopsided and one of the sources I talked with thinks there’s another line bump coming on game day.

168 UTEP has been a popular sharp side and the steam chasers have jumped on the Miners as well.

170 NORTH TEXAS is now starting to loom as a sharp/square battleground. The joes are laying the lumber with SMU, but the pros are buying Mean Green and this game has run right through a key number.

171 SOUTH ALABAMA is a huge dog at Mississippi State, but there has been some Jaguars support from the smarts and this line has dropped some.

178 ARKANSAS was tagged early and the hits just keep on coming. Simply stated, if you like the Razorbacks to romp and didn’t play it already, you missed the boat.

185 UCLA is interesting, in that the early money has shown on Texas A&M, but the consensus among those I spoke with is that the Bruins are going to draw late pro dough. If that’s accurate, look for this to move back toward the opener on game day.

192 WASHINGTON is surprisingly not a big choice with the public yet. But the sharps have hit the Huskies and I don’t think this line has topped out yet as the anticipation is that the steam chasers will start laying the points as well.

197 OKLAHOMA has gotten solid two-way action, and there appears to be sharply divided opinions on this game. As of now, more of the professional money has arrived on the Sooners.

205 BYU has been a 50/50 game so far, but the consensus among my contacts is that the Cougars are going to get the late money from the sharps.

211 MISSISSIPPI is the stand alone Labor Day game, and it sure looks like it’s going the pros vs. joes route with the sharps backing the underdog Rebels.

I always like to close these reports with the following caveat. Sharp money doesn’t always win, and my advice has always been to trust yourself on these games. It’s good info, it’s fun to follow, but if you’ve got a good opinion that conflicts with what’s here, don’t get overly influenced.


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