College Football Week 10 ATS Picks: Can SMU and Oregon Keep Winning Streaks Alive?

• Week 10 of College Football starts on Thursday, October 31st
• SMU and Oregon are both riding impressive winning streaks
• Which teams should you bet ATS in Week 10?

Week 10 is another important one with several games that have playoff implications.

Oregon and SMU will try to keep their impressive winning streaks alive, while Michigan looks to build off its big win over Notre Dame against a struggling Maryland team.

Find my three best ATS picks for Week 10, below.

Oregon vs USC Odds

Oregon has won seven straight games after losing their season opener to Auburn and is facing a 5-3 USC team in Week 10. This is the Ducks’ chance to assert their Pac-12 dominance against a conference rival.

The Trojans were trailing  Colorado for the majority of their Week 9 clash before rallying for a 35-31 comeback win. USC could very well have lost that game had the Buffaloes not made a few costly mistakes and been flagged 13 times for 109 yards.

Justin Herbert is leading a dynamic Oregon offense that is dangerous both in the air and on the ground. Herbert has thrown 21 TD passes, while RB CJ Verdell rushed for a career-high 257 yards against Washington State. They should have their way with a lackluster USC defense that ranks 98th in the country.

As good as Trojans freshman QB Kedon Slovis has been, USC’s run game is lacking and will struggle against a Ducks run defense that is only allowing 3.2 yards per carry and 101.3 yards per game.

The Ducks will have their hands full with Slovis and USC’s talented wide receiver group, but they have the tools to emerge victorious. The Ducks have 23 sacks and 14 interceptions this season and can win this game by putting pressure on the true freshman QB and making big plays.

USC should be able to stick with Oregon for the majority of the game, but the Ducks dual-threat offense will be too much for USC’s lacklustre defense and Oregon will pull away in the fourth quarter to win by at least one TD.

Pick: Oregon (-5.0)

Michigan vs Maryland Odds

Michigan made a statement with a 45-14 victory over Notre Dame in Week 9. Coach Jim Harbaugh had been receiving criticism for inability to beat the best teams, but Michigan ended an eight-game losing streak against top-10 teams under Harbaugh.

I like Michigan’s chances of carrying that momentum into Maryland in Week 10. The Terrapins have lost five of their last six games, including a disappointing 52-10 defeat to Minnesota last week.

Michigan has won seven of the eight games played against Maryland.

MICHIGAN MONDAY » https://t.co/u7EzQho14j#GoBlue pic.twitter.com/ytNGho6EHE

— Michigan Football (@UMichFootball) October 29, 2019

Maryland is also dealing with injuries at the QB position, as redshirt junior quarterback Tyrrell Pigrome was injured against the Gophers. Starting QB Josh Jackson suffered a high-ankle sprain three weeks ago against Rutgers and looked very rusty against Minnesota. He’s expected to get the start against Michigan with redshirt freshman Tyler DeSue backing up.

With Maryland likely turning to a struggling QB, I don’t like their chances of covering the spread against a Michigan team that flexed both its offensive and defensive muscles against the Irish. The Wolverines held a strong Notre Dame team to just 180 yards of offense, while QB Shea Patterson continues to look more confident and is hitting his talented receivers with ease.

Michigan ended an eight-game losing streak against top-10 teams [by routing Notre Dame 45-14 in Week 9].

Maryland comes into this game with a bottom-20 pass defense that is allowing 274 yards per game. I don’t see them having an answer for a Michigan offense that has put up at least 40 points in two of its last three games and finally appears to be clicking on all cylinders.

Pick: Michigan (-20)

SMU vs Memphis Odds

ESPN’s “College GameDay” will be in Memphis for the Week 10 showdown between the No. 24 Tigers and the No. 15 Mustangs. Despite Memphis having home-field advantage, I see good value in betting undefeated SMU to cover the spread.

The Mustangs are coming off a 34-31 victory over Houston in which they didn’t play their best game. SMU was actually outgained 510-385 yards by a 3-5 Houston team and won the game by taking advantage of Houston’s three turnovers. The offense should rebound against Memphis with the American West Division title potentially on the line.

SMU QB Shane Buechele has thrown eight TD passes in his last two games, while running back Xavier Jones has rushed for over 100 yards in four straight. Memphis has their own lethal QB/RB tandem in Brady White and Kenneth Gainwell, but I give SMU the edge.

SMU has the 25th-best rush defense in the nation, while Memphis hasn’t been nearly as good and is giving up 189 yards on the ground per game. WIth how good Xavier Jones has been playing, he could be the difference against a Memphis defense that struggles against the run.

SMU’s winning streak may finally come to an end in Week 10, but the Mustangs have the talent to keep this game close and at least cover the spread.

SMU can also win this game by putting pressure on the talented Brady White. The Mustangs rank second in the country with an impressive 36 sacks this season with Pat Nelson leading the way. The SMU safety ranks second nationally with 10 sacks, trailing only Ohio State DE Chase Young.

Memphis’ lone loss this season came against Temple, a team SMU beat convincingly by a 45-21 score.

SMU’s winning streak may finally come to an end in Week 10, but the Mustangs have the talent to keep this game close and at least cover the spread.

Pick: SMU (+6.0)