The 2024 Florida St. season. The series finale of How I Met Your Mother. Mount Rushmore.
Letdowns are inevitable. It’s part of human nature. But also a very common part of the college football season. You put so much energy into a specific game that it can be tough to come back a week later and do the same thing. But that’s where being an underdog can pay off. And that’s kinda the name of the G5 game.
So here are 10 games this week where one of the teams is ripe for a letdown. Maybe they are disappointed on how last week went. Maybe they are riding a high from a big win. Either way, it’s an opportunity for a game far more interesting that you might expect at first glance. You gotta fill out that quad box somehow right? (Lines as of Wednesday afternoon.)
Oklahoma at Temple
(Line: Oklahoma -21.5, O/U 51.5)
Reason for letdown: Oklahoma is getting a lot of shine after beating Michigan.
Immediately after a win over a potentially overhyped Michigan team, Heisman buzz was generated about John Mateer. So what better way to have it immediately evaporate than an upset by a Temple team that has put up 97 points in two games. (Ignore the fact that the opponents were UMass and Howard.)
Aside from that, it is a noon start in a pro stadium where you have to BYOJ (Bring Your Own Juice) as the road team. AND, Oklahoma is likely looking ahead to their conference opener next week against Auburn (Jackson Arnold Revenge Game). The line has moved from 24.5 to 21.5 throughout the course of the week. Don’t be surprised if it is even closer than that.
Central Michigan at Michigan
(Line: Michigan -27.5, O/U 42.5)
Reason for letdown: *Insert picture of Biff Poggi here*
On the other side of that “big game” from last week is Michigan. Bryce Underwood hype was borderline out of control. Reality is starting to set in. He is a very talented freshman, but a freshman nonetheless. Normally this might appear to be a get right position for the Wolverines, but Sherone Moore is using this game as part of his suspension. Enter Biff Poggi in all his sleeveless glory.
Meanwhile, Central Michigan is playing its third road game of the season already. They might want to muck this game up, which should be easy to do. It would also help if they could find a passing game, because getting a semblance of a rushing attack going against this defense is highly unlikely.
Memphis at Troy
(Line: Memphis -3.5, O/U 50.5)
Reason for letdown: Troy left it all out on the field at Clemson
In the American, early talk has been about USF, Tulane, Temple and the military academies. But another team who might be a sleeper in the conference is Memphis. Quarterback Brendon Lewis has been efficient through two games, but now might be an opportunity to open it up a bit ahead of a game against rival Arkansas against a team that made us believe in the Upset of the Year for about a half against Clemson.
UCONN at Delaware
(Line: UCONN -10.5, O/U 52.5)
Reason for letdown: Me, because both teams ruined my G5-Leg Parlay
This one is admittedly a bit personal, as UCONN losing by a touchdown in overtime qualifies as a bad beat. Not to be outdone, 23.5 point underdog Delaware lost 31-7 at Colorado. One point in the other direction and the G5-Leg Parlay is 2 for 2 this season. But I digress.
UCONN could absolutely be letdown themselves. They gave that game at Syracuse away. Do they have what it takes to bounce back on the road against a Delaware team that I still hold out hope will be a factor in the CUSA race.
South Florida at Miami
(Line: Miami -17.5, O/U 56.5)
Reason for letdown: Have you watched college football this season?
The bad news first. A USF win here pretty much wraps up all suspense regarding who will represent the G5 in the CFP. The good news? Them beating Miami would be hella funny.
South Florida has every reason to feel like they are playing with house money here. They already snagged a big fish last week at Florida. They don’t NEED to win this game to establish themselves. And ultimately, their being the Group of 5 rep in the playoff depends on winning the conference. On the other hand, winning this game could suggest that they would be more than bit players in the playoffs.
Ohio at Ohio State
(Line: Ohio St. -31.5, O/U 51.5)
Reason for letdown: Two straight difficult games, then going to Columbus?
One of the more impressive G5 teams north of Tampa has been the Ohio Bobcats. Sure it has only been two weeks, but they put quite a scare into Rutgers Week One before losing 34-31. They followed that up by collecting a P4 pelt, beating West Virginia at home by a touchdown. It’s not the first time they have done such a thing in recent memory. Just ask Iowa St.
Now for an encore? At Ohio St. Yikes.
Look, Ohio has proven they are going to be a player in the MAC, if not the outright favorite. And this feels like a game that could be close in the first half. But it’s a tough ask for them to hang around for the full 60 minutes.
Jacksonville State at Georgia Southern
(Line: Georgia Southern -3.5, O/U 58.5)
Reason for letdown:
This could be a double letdown situation. It’s a thing, trust me.
Jacksonville State reminded everyone in CUSA who the champ is, beating Liberty comfortably 34-24 last Saturday. The Gamecocks racked up 338 yards rushing, with TCU transfer Cam Cook garnering almost 200 of those yards. He is a big play maker going up against a team who has been absolutely shredded on defense the past game and a half.
Georgia Southern is playing their first game outside the state of California and could not be happier. In their losses to Fresno State and USC they have given up over 650 yards RUSHING. Cook and Gavin Wimsatt might be licking their chops. They may also be overlooking a non-conference opponent who is 0-2 but can still put up points.
Duke at Tulane
(Line: Duke -1.5, O/U 54.5)
Reason for letdown:
Last week was the week of revenge games. This week we have on pretty big one.
Quarterback Darian Mensah heads back to New Orleans to face the team he starred on last year. However, the host Green Wave is facing a Duke team looking to respond from a poor performance against Illinois last week. I don’t think the Blue Devils are as bad as they appeared last week, and Jake Retzlaff has been playing well to this point. It should be a fun game worthy of the toss-up status it currently has.
Old Dominion at Virginia Tech
(Line: Virginia Tech -6.5, O/U 50.5)
Reason for letdown: ODU isn’t afraid of Enter Sandman.
It wasn’t that long ago – 2022 to be exact – that Old Dominion beat Virginia Tech. Sure it was a home game, but this is not the Virginia Tech team that has been feared throughout the Commonwealth over the years.
Sure the entrance is great, but the ball eventually has to get kicked off. And so far, this Hokie team has lost to both South Carolina and Vanderbilt. Two SEC teams, sure. But if you squint, quarterback Colton Joseph looks a bit like Diego Pavia. Joseph leads the nation in rushing among quarterbacks, and if VT couldn’t slow Pavia or LaNorris Sellers down, they are likely to have the same struggles with Joseph. Fade Virginia Tech with confidence until further notice.
Texas State at Arizona State
(Line: Arizona St. -14.5, O/U 58.5)
Reason for letdown: ASU might have had their soul snatched in Starkville.
Get ready to learn Brad Jackson.
The freshman quarterback for Texas St. has a game that may remind people of….well, Arizona St. quarterback Sam Leavitt. And if you remember last year’s game, the Sun Devils had to hold on to beat the Bobcats 31-28. This team is not as good as last year’s if last Saturday’s loss to Mississippi State has shown us anything, and Texas St. still has a potent offense. ASU gave up several big plays last week and if they do that again they are ripe for an upset.
