College Football Best Bets (11/8/25)
Author: Dylan Lieck | November 8, 2025 | 2:10 A.M. CST
Note: We’ve been on a heck of a run lately, and luckily we laid off last weekend, because I just hated the card. I’m glad I did, as the majority of my leans and considerations ended up as losses. We went 0-1 in the NFL last week, but we are over 65% over the past month in CFB and NFL combined. Let’s finish the season strong, and have a great November. My best bets for week 11 are listed & explained below!!
Best Bets:
1) UNLV -3.5 vs. Colorado State
This is far more a fade of Colorado State, than it a backing of UNLV. The Rebels have had a weird season under 1st year coach Dan Mullen. They struggled mightily their opening game with an FCS opponent in Idaho State (specifically defensively). However, despite struggling to stop a nosebleed, the Rebels started the season a perfect 6-0 & were positioned perfectly to compete for a CFB Playoff Spot in the second half of the season. Those hopes have quickly come crashing down, following back-to-back losses to Boise State and New Mexico the last two weeks. That said, they are still a far superior team to their opponent in this spot, in Colorado State.
The Rams have just two wins all season: a 4 point win over an FCS team in Northern Colorado week 2, and a 49-21 win over Fresno State a few weeks ago. This team was not talented from the start of the season, but injuries, late transfers, and now a coaching firing have derailed their season entirely. Head Coach Jay Norvell was fired following a 31-19 loss to Hawaii three weeks ago. The rams had a full two weeks to prepare for their next game under their interim head coach, as they entered their bye week at the time of Norvell’s exit. They also had the benefit of playing Wyoming, one of the worst teams in the MW. With all that in their favor, they came out and laid an absolute egg in Laramie. The Cowboys THROTTLED the Rams, 28-0. It looked like CSU had given up on the season, as Wyoming has been one of the worst offenses in the country, and managed to put up 28 points on them.
UNLV’s defense is the only area of concern in covering this number. However, the Rebels mainly struggle against the pass. That’s okay in this spot, because CSU has one of the worst passing offenses in the country for a non-option team. They turned to their backup QB, Jackson Brousseau early in the season. He’s thrown just 6 TDs and 3 picks in his 4 starts. All three of those picks came last week against Wyoming. He was benched for a true freshman QB, who came in and was worse in his 25 snaps. I just don’t see the Rams being able to exploit this UNLV secondary the way they need to in order to win this game. UNLV has been decent enough against the run, and CSU is not a great running team anyways. As long as UNLV can force some third and medium to longs & get CSU into some known passing downs, they’ll be able to get enough stops to run away with this one.
In my opinion, CSU has quit on the season. The firing of Norvell clearly was not a positive factor in the locker room over the bye week, and now they have to handle one of the best offenses in the country in the Runnin’ Rebels. Back UNLV and lay the 3.5 (I’d lay 4 at the same level, but decrease unit if it gets to 4.5 or higher).
Official Pick: UNLV -3.5 (-110)
Play Rating: 2-Star
2) Temple +7 @ Army:
Temple has been one of the pleasant surprises in college football this season. They’ve been one of the worst teams in the country over the past half decade, but they come into this game 5-4, just one game away from bowl eligibility. Reaching a bowl would be a big accomplishment for first year Temple Head Coach, K.C. Keeler. That said, if Temple does want to get back to a bowl game for the first time since 2019, they may have to pull an “upset” this week against Army, as their final two games are against Tulane and North Texas, two of the best teams in the conference. Luckily for the Owls, I believe they are a live dog in this spot.
Army has been a very odd team in 2025. They opened the season getting upset by Tarleton State, at home; then, followed that up by upsetting pre-season top 25 Kansas State in Manhattan. They come into this game with 4 wins, needing 2 more for bowl eligibility (with 4 total games left to play). They have a much easier schedule to finish the season, though. They likely will get to a bowl game with a win, but will still have a good shot of finishing the season 2-1, based on their schedule.
Now, it can be hard to defend option teams if you have not seen them before. However, Temple already played Navy earlier this season, losing a shootout 32-31 on a 2-point conversion with just 1 second to play. Although Temple lost the game, their post-game win expectancy was over 90%. The Owls just crumbled defensively on the final possession against a team that doesn’t traditionally drop back and throw the ball efficiently. That said, Navy is a MUCH BETTER team (and offense) than Army, and the Owls were right there for 60 minutes. Prior to the final drive, Temple was out-gaining Navy by over 200 yards, and had done a pretty good job holding a potent Navy offense somewhat in check. My overall point of all of this is that this won’t be a shock to the system seeing this style of offense for the Owls. They will be more than prepared for this option style attack.
On the other side of the ball, Temple has a distinct advantage. The Army defense has better the past month, but overall they still rank outside the top 75 in college football, despite playing a bottom 35 strength of schedule. Temple’s offense isn’t elite by any stretch, but they will be able to find plenty of success today against this Army defense.
I believe Temple is a live dog here, and this number has gotten up to 7. I think there’s clearly value catching a full touchdown here. The Owls have a legitimate shot to win this here, and we’re going to get a motivated performance from a team trying to earn the right to play in a bowl game. Let’s back Temple and the points and sprinkle a little on the moneyline.
Official Pick: Temple (-110)
Play Rating: 2-Stars
