College Football Free Pick – Cincinnati vs Nebraska

So here we are, the first day of week 1 in college football 2025. The Cincinnati Bearcats will play the Nebraska Cornhuskers on a neutral field (Arrowhead Stadium). The betting line currently has Nebraska -6.5 and the total is 53.

Cincy jumped out to a 5-2 start last year and had people believing they were the real deal. They beat #7 Arizona State 24-14 and were feeling great. They then proceeded to lose their last 5 games. Word around the Lockeroom is that players are bitter about how they finished 2024 and want to come out in this game and prove themselves.

Bearcats star QB Brendan Sorsby threw for 2,813 yards – 18 TD’s and 7 picks. He also rushed for 400+ yards and 9 more TD’s. This guy has the goods. When Cincy is hitting on all cylinders their offense can be dangerous.

Defense for the Bearcats was not good last season. They allowed 25 PPG and routinely got cooked for long yardage plays. They return 8 starters from last season to this defense. For their sake, I hope they worked out all summer and got bigger, stronger & faster. They will need it against Nebraska.

Huskers Looking to Establish Themselves

Nebraska is returning 11 starters from last season. They started 2024 with three straight wins and won five of their first six games. However, just like Cincinnati did, the Huskers went into the tank the second half of the season, losing 5 of their last 6 games in the regular season. A win in the Pinstripe Bowl was a good way to end the season though.

QB Dylan Raiola is a pure passing QB. He had 2,819 passing yards, 13 touchdowns, and 11 interceptions in 13 games. He actually rushed for negative yards last season (-45 yards & 0 TD’s). The rumor mill says he has been working on his footwork and speed all off-season long and will be looking to run when the pass isn’t there a little more frequently.

Matchup & Free Pick

The Bearcats Offense can score and will score. Same can be said about Nebraska. Where these two teams fork in the road is on defense. Nebraska’s defense is stouter than Cincinnati’s. Last season they allowed less than 20 PPG. Look for Nebraska to run a similar defense to last year but work in some more weakside and robber blitzes. They will change things up bit so offenses see something different than what was on last year’s film.

OK here goes. Free pick time. I can see a 27-23 Nebraska victory here. This means that Cincy will cover the spread (+6.5 at BetOnline.ag) and the Under will hit. Good luck and don’t drink too much. Friday is a workday. Saturday isn’t here yet.