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The Texas A&M Aggies (8-4) play the USC Trojans (6-6) Friday in the Las Vegas Bowl. Kickoff from Allegiant Stadium is scheduled for 10:30 p.m. ET (ESPN). Let’s analyze BetMGM Sportsbook’s college football odds around the USC vs. Texas A&M odds, and make our expert college football picks and predictions.
Riding a 7-1 start to the year, the Aggies were ranked as high as No. 11 in the US LBM Coaches Poll. However, they lost 3 of their final 4 games, punctuated by a 17-7 home loss as 4.5-point underdogs to No. 3 Texas Nov. 30, erasing any chance of reaching the College Football Playoff and falling out of the Coaches top 25.
USC won 3 of its last 5 games in a late-year surge but fell to then-No. 5 Notre Dame 49-35 as 7-point home underdogs Nov. 30 in a season-closing assignment of a disappointing Big 10 debut.
Each school made a quarterback switch during the season, producing an intriguing bowl matchup of mobile signal-callers between USC sophomore Jayden Maiava and A&M redshirt freshman Marcel Reed.
Both teams will see many player opt-outs, but the Aggies lose arguably the most significant name: Highly touted pass-rusher DE Nic Scourton will bow out to prepare for a potential top-half or top-10 selection in the NFL Draft.
– Rankings: US LBM Coaches Poll, conducted by the American Football Coaches Association and USA TODAY Sports
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Texas A&M vs. USC odds
Provided by BetMGM Sportsbook; access USA TODAY Sports Scores and Sports Betting Odds hub for a full list of college football odds. Lines last updated at 2:21 a.m. ET.
- Moneyline (ML): Texas A&M -190 (bet $190 to win $100) | USC +155 (bet $100 to win $155)
- Against the spread (ATS): Texas A&M -4 (-110) | USC +4 (-110)
- Over/Under (O/U): 51.5 (O: -110 | U: -110)
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Texas A&M vs. USC odds picks and predictions
Prediction
Texas A&M 28, USC 27
Moneyline
While the battle-tested SEC club rightfully is favored, A&M’s loss of Scourton for this game cancels out USC’s inconsistent offensive line play, giving the Trojans offense a better chance at making this a tight contest.
With talent piling up on the transfer and opt-out lists for both teams — collegefootballnetwork.com lists 38 players missing this showcase as of publication) — bettors should focus more safely on markets besides the direct game result.
To be fair, USC’s +155 ML price is tempting for a dart throw. If you have that in your lottery ticket budget, go for it.
PASS barring a sprinkle bet on USC.
Against the spread
Giving USC more than a field goal’s worth of points is a major mistake by the market. Maiava was able to keep things somewhat close with Notre Dame, one of the nation’s best defenses, and the Trojans rank top-10 to 15 in many major passing categories.
USC has a bit more continuity with major players being available, which should provide a razor-thin margin for whichever school comes out on top.
BET USC +4 (-110).
Over/Under
The strongest recommendation of this game trusts the higher offensive upside presented by Maiava and Reed under center.
Enough offensive talent remains on both sides, including USC RB Woody Marks (1,133 rushing yards, 9 TD), to preserve optimism in scoring.
BET OVER 52.5 (-110).
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