College Football Picks - Week 1

Welcome back to another exciting season of college football! And a thank you to those of you still paying attention to ECB after a slow summer.

With all the shuffling of conferences coming up the next couple seasons, this year's games should hold extra meaning, especially in rivalries. I hope you're as excited as I am. So let's get straight to the picks for the first week's best games:

Pitt (+3) over UTAH - This is the first really good matchup of the year, played tomorrow. Homefield and the altitude will help a solid Ute team, but I think the physical play of the Panthers and a steady diet of Dion Lewis will carry them to victory.

MICHIGAN (-3) over UConn - What has the college football world come to? Is this spread real? Even with Rich Rod at the helm, I have to think the Wolverines can pull this off. I know UConn is no chump team, but they're not even the best team in the Big East.

BYU (-3) over Washington - The Cougars at home are still good enough to beat an improving Huskies team.

LSU (-1) over North Carolina - Seriously?

Boise St. (-2.5) over VIRGINIA TECH - Does anyone still think Boise is a fluke? Played on a neutral site, this game will be a fascinating mix of styles. However, the Hokies have started slow recently, and the experience of the Broncos will pay dividends. This may be Boise's biggest game of the year, and Peterson won't let them forget that. Boise played terribly in last year's opener against Oregon and still won.

NAVY (-6.5) over Maryland - I think all I need to say here is that Navy almost won at Ohio St last year in their first game, and the Midshipmen will be extra motivated for state bragging rights.

PS. The spreads I'm looking at on USA Today have Georgia at home against ULL as a 28 pt underdog which has to be a typo even with UGA's QB issues. If your local bookie will give you that line, bet a lot.

Enjoy the season!