It has been awhile since a college football game had national title implications in Week 1. That will be the case on Monday when No. 3 Boise State faces No. 10 Virginia Tech (8:00 p.m. ET, ESPN).
The Labor Day game will be played at FedEx Field in Landover, Maryland so the edge in terms of fan support goes to Tech.
Virginia Tech is listed as 1.5-point favorite at SBG Global and the total is set at 51.5. On the moneyline, the Hokies are -125 favorites and the Broncos are +105 dogs.
Boise State has gone 49-4 the last four seasons under head coach Chris Peterson, but because they play in the WAC they don’t get as much respect as other marquee teams. That may change if they win this game. It will also change next season as Boise State moves into the Mountain West Conference.
Boise State has won two BCS bowl games in the last four seasons but they want to take the next step and play for a national championship this season. If they win this game on Monday against Virginia Tech they may get a chance as the rest of their schedule is pretty easy.
The Broncos are led by Heisman Trophy candidate Kellen Moore. The junior quarterback threw 39 touchdown passes last season with only three interceptions. It was the best TD to interception ratio in NCAA history.
Moore has thrown for 7,022 yards with 64 touchdowns and 13 interceptions the past two years. He has excellent receivers in Austin Pettis and Titus Young who combined for 142 catches and 24 touchdowns last year and the Broncos can also run with Jeremy Avery who had 1,151 yards last season.
Virginia Tech should provide a stiff test for Boise State. The Hokies were No. 9 in the nation last season in points allowed and No. 11 in pass defense. That said, the team did lose seven defensive starters.
The Hokies have a solid offense of their own led by quarterback Tyrod Taylor and running back Ryan Williams.
Here are some key college football betting stats for Monday’s game:
The Broncos are 5-0 ATS in their last five games in September. The Broncos are 7-1 ATS in their last eight non-conference games.
Virginia Tech is 16-7 in season openers under head coach Frank Beamer but the Hokies have lost the last two including 34-24 to Alabama last season. The Hokies are 5-0 ATS in their last five games overall.
The under is 6-1 in the Broncos’ last seven non-conference games. The under is 5-2 in the Hokies’ last seven games overall.
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