How far the mighty have fallen! The Texas Longhorns are only a few years removed from playing for the National Championship.
Now, they're relatively big underdogs at home against a California Golden Bears team which hasn't been to a bowl game since 2011.
ODDS ANALYSIS
As mentioned, the Golden Bears opened up as small favorites in this game at -3. The real indication that Texas is set to struggle though, is the fact that the line moved all the way up to -7 within the first three hours of the betting lines being open then fell back to -6.5.
The total opened at 60 and was bet down to 57 soon after.
KEY MISMATCH
228 and 214. Those are the rushing yard totals the Longhorns allowed in Weeks 1 and 2 of the college football season.
The real problem that Charlie Strong is having this year is his lack of depth in his front seven on defense. The Longhorns aren't doing enough rotational work because they just don't have enough bodies to be bringing guys in and out religiously and effectively.
Enter: Cal's ferocious offense.
Sure, the Golden Bears aren't running for 200+ yards in this game (if they do, the Longhorns are dead), but we suspect they're going to run at least 80 plays against this defense.
That lack of depth is going to show in a hurry against an offense which is content to try to run plays after 15-20 seconds instead of 30-40 seconds like many in college football.
KEY STAT
8 – The number of passes redshirt freshman Jerrod Heard has thrown in his career. Instead, Heard uses his legs to try to get out of trouble. It was effective last week at times against Rice, and he did hit two long touchdown passes as well in the game, but we know that the Longhorns are going to have no choice but to run this ball for the rest of the year if they want to win games.
BETTING ANGLE
The Longhorns have failed to cover four straight games, but that is only the beginning of their troubles. They're also 1-4 ATS in their last five games played outside of the Big XII, and they are 1-5 ATS in their last six games here in Austin.
ANALYSIS AND PREDICTION
Early money is rarely wrong in college football, especially when the side with all of the line movement is proving to be the sharp side.
Bettors who know what they are doing realize that Cal is a bowl team this year, and Texas just is not. In fact, the Longhorns might not win four games this entire season if they can't figure out how to get to 300 yards of offense in a game.
Jared Goff looks like he is gaining in confidence with every pass that he throws in this Sonny Dykes system, and he's going to have the fans in Austin booing their hearts out when he is running up and down the field in the second half of this game.
Texas might keep this one close over the course of the first half or so, but in the end, the Longhorns aren't in the same class as Cal, which is really sad to say for such a proud program with seemingly unlimited resources.
California 35, Texas 17
The college football lines for this Saturday game surfaced at BookMaker before anywhere else on the internet. The California Golden Bears are favored at -3. Gamble on the game between every commercial break with BookMaker's live betting feature. Along with an adjusted in-game moneyline, you can wager on what will happen on the next play or how many points will be scored in the next quarter. Live betting is the most exciting way to play!
BookMaker offers play-by-play betting odds for live sporting events every day! The user-friendly wagering interface on your smartphone provides an easy way to place bets on the go. Mobile betting lines are updated by the minute so click here to start gambling on thrilling live action at BookMaker Sportsbook! The duel between the California Golden Bears and the Texas Longhorns will take place at Darrell K. Royal Texas Memorial Stadium on Saturday, September 19, 2015. This 7:30 p.m. ET kickoff can be seen live on FOX.
