Every week the Blue Zone gives you our can't lose prop bets for the upcoming football game:
Duke -6 vs. Boston College
Boston College, having had a bye for week 1 of the college football season, is coming off an unremarkable six-win season and a .500 record in conference play. Following the transfer of quarterback Anthony Brown from Boston College to Oregon, another transfer Phil Jurkovec seems set to take over the reins as starter for the Eagles. With a new quarterback at the helm, expect a slower start for the Eagles in this opener.
Despite a tough opening loss against Notre Dame, Duke football came into the season looking fairly strong. The Blue Devils kept the game close throughout the first three quarters, leading through the first quarter and covering the 20 point spread in a 14 point loss. Chase Brice, a graduate transfer quarterback from Clemson, had an impressive debut last week, throwing for 259 yards and tacking on a rushing touchdown. With Brice at quarterback and a solid defensive performance, the team looks like a promising choice for a bounce-back win and another spread cover.
Pick: Duke
Over/Under 51.5 points
Though Boston College has been mediocre in recent years, they still managed a respectable 27.7 points per game in the 2019 season. There might be a learning curve with the new quarterback, but Boston College returns a strong offensive line that should still make for solid offensive production. Even with Duke’s impressive defense against a formidable Notre Dame, the Blue Devils’ 30.6 points per game allowed in the 2019 season is hard to ignore.
Despite having a fairly low-scoring week 1 showdown for the Blue Devils in a 27-13 game at Notre Dame, the Duke offense seems poised to put up some more points. In that first matchup, the Blue Devils found themselves on the goal line three times, but struggles to convert those chances resulted in a paltry 13 points. Duke will have an easier scoring matchup against the Eagles, who allowed 33.8 points and 488.2 yards per game last season. Look for a high scoring matchup, and take the over on this bet.
Pick: Over
First half line: Duke -3.5
In their season opener following a chaotic offseason, Boston College comes in with hopes to get off to a hot start right out of the gates. But with a new quarterback and a new head coach in Jeff Hafley leading the team, you can’t help but think that Boston College will struggle to get going early in the game. In the 2019 season, the Eagles were able to score a remarkable 18.1 points per game in the first half, but, with a new system, expect some stagnance in the offense early on.
In last week’s loss, Duke showed promising signs in the early stages of the game, leading the nation’s seventh ranked Fighting Irish for a majority of the first half. The Blue Devils seem prepared to keep that trend going this Saturday. In a decision which is clearly unbiased from the perspective of a Blue Zone writer, I like Duke in this bet as well.
Pick: Duke
Coin toss: Heads +100, tails +100
Our final, and likely most anticipated prop bet is the coin toss. While many consider this bet to be a true toss up, some of our in-house experts at the Blue Zone have strong opinions regarding the outcome. One in particular summed up his views quite simply, saying, “Dude, I promise tails never fails.” Our analytics models, however, have tracked subtle variables such as wind resistance and changing conditions due to the nationwide coin shortage and recommend a bet on heads.
Overall, it’s tough for me to make a clear recommendation, but one piece of evidence has caught my attention. In Duke’s last nine games against Boston College, the toss has been tails seven times. This trend is far too strong to ignore, so I’m left with no choice but to say bet on tails. May it never fail for you, too.
Pick: Tails
Get The Chronicle straight to your inbox
Signup for our weekly newsletter. Cancel at any time.