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The Florida Gators and the Utah Utes open their seasons at Rice-Eccles Stadium in Salt Lake City on Thursday night. Kickoff is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. ET (ESPN). Below, we analyze BetMGM Sportsbook’s lines around the Florida at Utah odds, and make our expert college football picks and predictions.
The Gators stunned the Utes last season in Gainesville, winning 29-26 in a thriller. QB Anthony Richardson rushed for 3 TDs in the win, but he is now plying his trade for the Indianapolis Colts on Sundays.
The Utes aren’t exactly sure who will be their signal caller. QB Cameron Rising suffered a torn ACL in the Rose Bowl, and his status is up in the air for the opener. To compound things, backup QB Brandon Rose suffered an injury in preseason camp, so things are murky in SLC at the moment.
The Utes have a nasty defense, and they’ll make things very difficult on the mistake-prone QB Graham Mertz, who was a disaster at Wisconsin.
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Florida at Utah odds
Provided by BetMGM Sportsbook; access USA TODAY Sports Scores and Sports Betting Odds hub for a full list. Lines last updated Wednesday at 10:49 p.m. ET.
- Moneyline (ML): Florida +165 (bet $100 to win $165) | Utah -200 (bet $200 to win $100)
- Against the spread (ATS): Florida +4.5 (-110) | Utah -4.5 (-110)
- Over/Under (O/U): 44 (O: -110 | U: -110)
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Florida at Utah picks and predictions
Prediction
Utah 23, Florida 20
Moneyline
Utah (-200) is a little on the pricey side. On a standalone wager, my personal moneyline limit is -180, so this is just too expensive. If you wanted to toss the Utes into a multi-team parlay, that wouldn’t kill the value of a ticket too much, but with Rising uncertain, and the QB situation a little fluid for the Utes, I’d just assume pass.
AVOID.
Against the spread
FLORIDA +4.5 (-110) makes me nervous because of Mertz. He threw too many interceptions at Wisconsin, and overall he just wasn’t very good. Facing a turgid Utah -4.5 (-110) in his first game with a new team is worrisome. However, Utah has problems of its own under center, and I think Florida can hang in a fairly defensive battle.
Over/Under
UNDER 44 (-110) is an awfully low number, but the lean is to go low. Just play it very lightly.
Utah has a suffocating defense, and both teams have some issues under center. My biggest fear for Under bettors is not seeing the offenses go up and down the field. My concern is that we could see at least 1 Pick Six, especially from Mertz against this active Utes D.
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