The TCU Horned Frogs (2-0) travel to the heart of Dallas to battle their rivals the SMU Mustangs (2-1) Saturday at noon p.m. ET (ESPNU). Below, we analyze Tipico Sportsbook‘s lines around the TCU vs. SMU odds, and make our expert college football picks and predictions.
The 101st Battle for the Iron Skillet takes on more excitement this season as coach Sunny Dykes returns to SMU after leaving the Mustangs to take over as TCU coach. TCU comes in off a bye week after beating 2 inferior teams in Colorado and Tarleton State. Neither of which were of any challenge to the Horned Frogs.
SMU comes in after a 34-27 loss to Maryland last Saturday following wins against North Texas and Lamar.
Both teams have solid offenses and are a bit lacking on defense. This rivalry is always played close (TCU leads all-time 51-42-7), and another close margin is expected between these teams in 2022.
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TCU at SMU odds
Provided by Tipico Sportsbook; access USA TODAY Sports Scores and Sports Betting Odds hub for a full list. Lines last updated Wednesday at 11:41 p.m. ET.
- Money line (ML): TCU -130 (bet $130 to win $100) | SMU +110 (bet $100 to win $110)
- Against the spread (ATS): TCU -2.5 (-105) | SMU +2.5 (-115)
- Over/Under (O/U): 70.5 (O: -115 | U: -105)
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TCU at SMU picks and predictions
Prediction
TCU 48 SMU 45
Money line
BET TCU -130.
TCU has the better team and Dykes has the offense rolling in Forth Worth. It will be close as this game always is. But I like the Horned Frogs to come out with a win.
Against the spread
I only “lean” slightly toward the road team here with TCU -2.5 (-105).
If you want to make a wager here, TCU is the way to go. If it stays under -3. But I would rather pay the extra juice and take the ML (-130) to be safe.
Over/Under
TAKE OVER 70.5 (-115).
This is an enormous number. But it is still not enough.
This game could easily be Over by half time, and it could hit triple digits by game’s end. This is by far my FAVORITE PLAY of this showdown.
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