The first jam-packed week of College Football gets underway with a three-day extravaganza spreading across Thursday, Friday and Saturday. With a small-plate taste of the sport coming from Week 0, fans and bettors alike are champing at the bit for an overdose of action. There is no better feeling than opening the season with a big parlay victory, so let’s do exactly that — maximize value and blast a three-leg parlay to the moon. There are some sneaky favorites worth eyeing and possibly a dog or two on the spread. Make sure you check out this week’s Upset of the Week (we hit UMass outright last week). Here is the best CFB parlay for Week 1’s slate!
Looking for more 2023 college football predictions? OddsShopper’s experts are here to break down this college football season — make sure to check out the rest of our college football articles, including our best bets for Week 1. If you still need more picks, our market-based betting model might just be for you — or try it out now!
Best CFB Week 1 Parlay | September 2
Week 1 Parlay Pick: Colorado-TCU
Let’s call this for what it is: A ridiculously overhyped team getting some love on a line versus a team that just lost in last year’s title game. The biggest reason why people are even on the Buffaloes this year — outside of just wanting to bet on Deion Sanders — is the Horned Frogs only return a handful of starters, like on one hand. There is just zero respect for Chandler Morris, who returns at the quarterback spot after getting hurt in last year’s game against Colorado. While Max Duggan took off with this offense, expect the TCU machine to be even better this year. For some odd reason, possibly the love affair with Sanders, bettors are willing to penalize TCU for losing a bunch of key players while willingly ignoring the amount of Buffaloes talent brought in via the transfer portal. Sanders has a few returning defensive starters but is going to need his kids to gel in a matter of minutes against a better and deeper squad.
It is easy to forget how good Morris is when caught in the hype of the new-look Buffs, and TCU should end this by the half.
Week 1 Parlay Pick: Fresno State-Purdue
This is another opener that seems to rely heavily on last year’s work, especially for a Fresno State team that lost a bunch of key players. Gone are Jake Haener and the impact skill players around him. It is going to be super difficult to duplicate what the Bulldogs did in winning their final nine games of the year, as they are replacing basically everyone who mattered. The Boilermakers are undergoing some changes of their own but just have better personnel to execute. Hudson Card comes over from Texas, but the big additions are Ryan Walters at coach and a full year for offensive coordinator Graham Harrell. The biggest difference between these two offenses is who comes back around the quarterback position. While the Bulldogs are building from scratch, the Boilermakers return key players around their new quarterback, not to mention all but one of their starting offensive linemen.
Fresno State cannot rush the passer and cannot do much against Purdue’s defensive front. It is hard to see a pathway for Fresno to walk away victorious.
CFB Parlay Pick: Purdue Moneyline
Week 1 Parlay Pick: Bowling Green-Liberty
For some reason this line dropped below 10, and it should be hammered. It is going to be similar to the beatdown handed down by Liberty to one of the worst college football teams in the nation. There is no hiding for Bowling Green, as it is outmatched pretty much everywhere on the field, including at head coach. Jamey Chadwell comes over from Coastal Carolina to run the show for Liberty, with some high expectations for a productive offense. There are big shoes to fill left by Hugh Freeze, but Chadwell has a resume. Bowling Green brought in Connor Bazelak from Missouri and Indiana, most recently having an average year at best for the Hoosiers. While he should thrive in a weaker conference, that will not come until after the Liberty game.
The Flames are an astounding 8-2 against the spread in their last 10 Week 1 games, while Bowling Green sits at just 1-7 against the spread in its last eight openers. Roll on, Flames; roll on.
CFB Week 1 Parlay Final Odds
TCU -20.5: -112
Purdue Moneyline: -167
Liberty -9.5: -121
Best CFB & Sportsbook Promotions
