by Kyle Hunter
Thursday, Aug 21, 2025College football week zero is this Saturday. We have five games to get us ready for the big week one action next weekend. Season win totals are one of my favorite bets, and I’ve been successful in those in the long run. Let’s take a look at three conference only win totals I have bet for this season.
James Madison over 5.5 (-110) We need a 6-2 Sun Belt record out of James Madison, and I think they will win at least 7 games in the conference. The depth James Madison has at quarterback is almost unheard of at the Group of 5 level. Matthew Sluka is back with his old coach. Alonza Barnett has proven to be a star at quarterback too. You could argue that James Madison has two quarterbacks better than the starting quarterback on every other Sun Belt team.
James Madison will likely be favored in either seven or possibly all eight games in the conference. The Dukes have a terrific trio of running backs as well, and they are going to put up a bunch of points this year. I think they are a level above everyone in the Sun Belt.
Nevada under 2.5 (-110) Nevada was able to be competitive last year thanks in large part to a much better than expected secondary. The Wolf Pack lost nearly everything from the secondary, and I expect this defense to be much worse this year.
The schedulers did them no favors this year. They host both Boise State and San Jose State (the expected top two teams in the MWC). UNLV is another team they must host and they are expected to be third or fourth. I think Fresno State could be better than expected too with the former North Dakota State coach taking over at Fresno. Nevada is likely to struggle in Mountain West play this season.
Maryland under 2.5 (-190) A lot of juice here, but I think Maryland will be an underdog in every single Big Ten game this season. The Terrapins are notoriously fast starters and slow finishers under Mike Locksley. The team has chemistry question marks heading into the season. They also lost a bunch of defensive guys to the portal, including a couple key linebackers entering the portal last minute. Maryland’s defense kept them competitive most of the time last year, but I expect them to take a big step backward.
The Terrapins have a couple talented young quarterbacks, but the offensive line in front of them is likely to be dominated by most of the Big Ten defensive fronts. I expect Maryland to have a tough season in 2025.
