CFB Week 8 Predictions + Best Bets !!

Lonte Smith and Dave Essler talk betting for College Football Week 8 Lonte Smith and Dave Essler return for Week 8 of the RJ Bell Dream Preview from the Pregame.com Podcast Network, delivering a sharp college football betting breakdown with sides, totals, team totals and two best bets. Dave arrives on a heater with only one best bet loss all season after cashing Air Force last week, while Lonte sits at three and four and is chasing a return to break even and beyond. The episode opens near the 1 minute mark with Tennessee visiting South Carolina, where the Gamecocks are favored by 2.5 as an unranked team against a ranked opponent, a spot Lonte notes has produced 63 wins and 33 losses straight up in his Power 4 sample. Dave points to five straight high scoring meetings and the ability of LaNorris Sellers to put points on the board as reasons to back the Gamecocks and the over, while Lonte also sides with South Carolina on the moneyline but expects a defensive game against a Tennessee unit under Jim Knowles that leads the nation in scoring defense, allows about 159 passing yards per game and has 30 sacks through seven games, with the Vols quarterback situation between Faizon Brandon and George MacIntyre still unsettled. Around the 6 minute mark the hosts move to USC at Wisconsin, and both like the Badgers and the under, with Dave citing a Wisconsin defense whose only losses came to UCLA and Notre Dame, a revenge angle from 2024 and a Luke Fickell program that needs this game more, while Lonte highlights a secondary ranked 10th in EPA per pass allowed and suggests grabbing plus 3 where available despite a penalty problem that cost the Badgers more than 100 yards last week. Virginia Tech at Clemson follows near the 11 minute mark, with both hosts on the under in Death Valley as Clemson has failed to top 28 points against any FBS opponent and has thrown just two touchdown passes in six games, while Lonte waits on a 3 to back James Franklin and the Hokies and likes the first half under as well. At the 15 minute mark LSU visits Auburn laying 7, and Lonte sees Lane Kiffin and his Tigers pulling away late for a double digit win, while Dave prefers Auburn plus the points and the under, noting that Alex Golesh and his team already beat Georgia and that LSU still looks overvalued. The strongest agreement comes near the 20 minute mark on Ole Miss plus 3.5 at Texas, as Lonte calls Trinidad Chambliss the best player on the field with Colin Simmons likely out for Texas, and Dave argues the Rebels play with a chip on their shoulder while the Longhorns have fallen from first to 19th in ten days. Dave delivers his best bet at the 24 minute mark, taking Stanford plus 6.5 against NC State on Friday night and fading an ACC team traveling coast to coast, and Lonte answers at the 25 minute mark with Tulsa on the moneyline against Army, pointing to a defensive line that has now seen three straight option style quarterbacks and a series of Army games in which nine of the last ten against FBS teams were decided by four points or fewer. The rapid fire segment covers Indiana at Michigan, where both like the under and Michigan plus 7, a Texas Tech team total over at Cincinnati, Oklahoma and the Mississippi State team total under in the Jeff Lebby Bowl, an Aggies team total under at Alabama, North Dakota State plus 4.5 at New Mexico on a market move Dave calls a math problem, and a Houston team total under at Utah where altitude could take a toll after halftime. The show closes with a reminder about accountability, shopping for the best number and betting responsibly. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices