South Florida’s fairytale start hit a speed bump with a loss to No. 3 Miami, but the Bulls still project to be a force in the AAC and Group of 5 for the rest of the campaign.
USF is essentially a co-favorite to win the AAC with Tulane and Memphis, and they are +330 to make the College Football Playoff.
The Bulls open their conference schedule as 27.5-point favorites over Charlotte on Friday night.
Charlotte vs. South Florida odds, prediction
No team impacted the early part of the college football season more than South Florida.
Not only did the Bulls upset Boise State in Week 1, but they handed Florida a crippling loss in Week 2, essentially ending the Gators’ season on the spot.
USF couldn’t pull off another stunner against Miami a week later, but they showed no ill effects from that drubbing in a 51-point victory against South Carolina State in Week 4.
Coming off a bye in Week 5, South Florida gets a plum assignment for its first AAC game of the season.
There was some optimism around Charlotte a few years ago when it hired the effervescent Biff Poggi to take over the program in 2023, but Poggi’s charms couldn’t turn things around at Jerry Richardson Stadium.
Charlotte went 8-16 over the last two seasons (Poggi was fired midway through 2024), and now has tallied nine losing seasons since joining the FBS ranks 10 years ago.
Betting on College Football?
Tim Albin was brought in after a successful stint at Ohio, but it will take some time for this program to get on solid footing.
Charlotte is 1-3 on the season, with the lone win coming against Monmouth by one score. According to SP+, Bill Connelly’s catch-all metric, the 49ers are the 10th-worst program in college football’s top flight.
USF, meanwhile, grades out as one of the best teams in the Group of 5, and has shown that it can punch up with some impressive programs.
This is a gigantic spread to cover, and USF has a huge game with North Texas on deck next Friday, so I’d shy away from laying it over the full game as we could see the Bulls rest their starters if they build up a big enough lead, which leaves the backdoor open.
Instead, we’ll target the first-half spread of -16.5 as this could get ugly pretty quickly.
The Play: USF 1H -16.5 (-114, FanDuel)
Why Trust New York Post Betting
Michael Leboff is a long-suffering Islanders fan, but a long-profiting sports bettor with 10 years of experience in the gambling industry. He loves using game theory to help punters win bracket pools, find long shots, and learn how to beat the market in mainstream and niche sports.
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