Today's early best bets to target: Top picks for college football, NHL betting today – CBS Sports

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One of the most exciting players in nation takes the field on Wednesday night, and on a night with only two college football games on the schedule, this is a chance for fans of playmaking running backs to learn about Cam Cook. The junior running back for Jacksonville State leads the nation with 832 rushing yards, and largely due to his dominant season thus far, the SportsLine model is backing Gamecocks to defeat Delaware as one of its Wednesday best bets. Jacksonville State and Delaware kick off at 7 p.m. ET, which is one of the earliest games on a busy Wednesday sports calendar that includes college football, MLB playoffs, NHL games and NBA preseason action, and the model projects Cook to rush for more than 120 yards on Wednesday.
Cook has rushed for at least 120 yards in four of six games this season, including 218 yards last week against Sam Houston. Speaking of Sam Houston, the model likes the Sam Houston Bearkats to answer last week’s loss against Jacksonville State with a victory over UTEP as part of its Wednesday best bets. Both Jacksonville State and Sam Houston are underdogs this week, but the model projects them both to win in over 60% of simulations, making the money line the go-to option, rather than betting against the spread. The model also has a best bet on the NHL, backing Over 5.5 goals in Red Wings vs. Panthers, with the puck dropping at 7 p.m. ET.
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Whether you’re looking into MLB betting, college football betting, NHL betting or anything else on the Wednesday sports schedule, there are a number of online sports betting options, and our team can help point you in the right direction. Our computer model and experts will weigh in on all of the biggest events every day, and they’re offering their top sports betting picks right now.
Sam Houston has one of the worst scoring defenses in the nation, allowing 39.5 points per game, which ranks 130th of 136 schools. However, UTEP’s offense has been about as unproductive as Sam Houston’s defense, with the Miners ranking 129th in scoring offense (14 ppg). They’ve scored just 19 points (9.5 ppg) in two Conference USA games this season, as they are 0-2 in conference play. Sam Houston is 0-3 in Conference USA competition, but two of those three games came on the road, and they’ve had a tough early-season conference schedule, playing both schools that competed in last year’s conference championship game. UTEP lost both of its conference games at home. Sam Houston will host UTEP on Wednesday, and the model projects the Bearkats to win in 64% of simulations. Bet it at FanDuel, where new users get $300 in bonus bets with a winning $5 wager:
The defending Conference USA champions are home underdogs, despite being 2-0 in conference play compared to Delaware’s 1-1 mark in the league. Delaware is coming off a 27-24 loss to Western Kentucky on Oct. 3, so they do have the advantage of coming off a bye with more time to prepare, but the model still projects Jacksonville State’s talent to show off at home. Led by Cam Cook, a TCU transfer who has immediately become an integral part of the Gamecocks’ offense, Jacksonville State is fifth in the nation in rushing at 269.8 yards per game on 5.4 yards per rush, which ranks 14th. Jacksonville State is averaging 27 ppg over two contests since freshman dual-threat quarterback Caden Creel took over the offense, and Creel has 531 combined passing and rushing yards (265.5 per game) over his two contests playing extended snaps. Meanwhile, Delaware is in its first year as an FBS team, moving up from the FCS. The model projects Jacksonville State to win in 70% of simulations. FanDuel offers the best odds on this play as well, and new users get $300 in bonus bets with a winning $5 wager:
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The last two Panthers games have gone Over this total, with Florida winning 6-2 over Ottawa on Saturday before falling to the Flyers, 5-2, on Monday. The Panthers have scored multiple goals in all four games this season, led by Brad Marchand and Anton Lundell with two goals and two assists each. Marchand, a four-time All-Star, has more than 50 points in 10 straight seasons as a consistent offensive threat. Meanwhile, the Red Wings have gone Over this total in two of three games this year. Patrick Kane, who had 59 points in 72 games last season and has been one of the league’s better offensive players throughout his 19-year career, has a goal and three assists through three games. The model projects the Over to hit in 54.1% of simulations. Bet it at BetMGM, where you can receive up to $1,500 in bonus bets if your first bet loses.
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