The USC football team is favored by a large pile of points against the Purdue Boilermakers in Week 3. It has been a big talking point in the days leading up to the game. Our Southern California Football Roundtable, a joint production of Trojans Wire and UCLA Wire, weighed in on this question. Trojans Wire staff writer Micah Huff had this to say about the opening line for this game, which was USC minus 21.5 points:
“I think it’s just right,” Huff wrote. “I know it’s the Trojans’ first Big Ten game, but they have shown they can score with the best of them. Purdue is also 2-0 to start the season but they are coming off a 31-17 win versus Southern Illinois. I think the Trojans can have their way with the Boilermakers and win by 25 points at least.”
UCLA Wire’s Ryan Lorenz wrote, “It looks like it’s a fair line. Purdue has improved massively from last year to this year, but the game shouldn’t be a close game by any means. Is 21.5 a bit too high? Maybe, but USC has dominated their opponents this year and Purdue is facing their first big challenge. It’s the Boilermakers’ time to prove that they can stand with the big dogs in the Big Ten.”
Notably, there has been some line movement since the opening -21.5 number for USC. Where does the line stand 24 hours before kickoff?
Let’s dive into the betting odds for this USC football game at Purdue in Week 3:
USC vs Purdue odds, money line, over/under
Odds courtesy of BetMGM as of Friday, September 12. Follow the game at USA TODAY Sports.
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USC vs Purdue prediction, pick
You can see that the line has moved one point toward Purdue over the course of the week. USC covered the spread in each of its first two games, and it wasn’t especially close. USC covered by more than 20 points against Missouri State and by 8.5 points against Georgia Southern. This is why USC is favored so heavily against a Purdue team the public expects to be bad. The question is this: Is Purdue actually that bad? The Boilermakers might not be good, but they haven’t looked terrible. USC struggled on the road in Big Ten games in the Midwest last season, falling at Michigan and Minnesota. USC is getting a level of respect from the sportsbooks it hasn’t frankly earned. The Trojans should certainly win, but 20.5 is still a ton of points.
Prediction: USC 31, Purdue 17
Best Bet: Purdue +20.5
USC vs Purdue channel, start time, streaming
Time: 3:30 p.m. ET, 12:30 p.m. PT
TV Channel: CBS
Live Stream: Fubo TV and Paramount
Stream USC vs Purdue
This article originally appeared on Trojans Wire: USC vs Purdue predictions, picks, odds: Who wins Week 3 college football game?
Reporting by Matt Zemek / Trojans Wire
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
