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Oregon St. Beavers vs. Utah Utes Gambling Prediction & Week 3 Preview

Beavers vs Utes NCAA Football Spread/Handicapping

The Oregon State Beavers travel to Rice-Eccles Stadium  on Saturday to take on the Utah Utes in their first in-conference battle  of the season. OSU is 1-1 on the year, while the Utes have started 2-0.

Oregon State (1-1) @ Utah (2-0)
Saturday, Sept. 14, 10:00 PM ET @ Rice-Eccles Stadium
Moneyline:  Oregon State +145, Utah -165 
Spread: Utah -3.5 
O/U: 58
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Oregon State

Last season, the Beavers took down the Utes 21-7. Unfortunately for the fans in Corvallis, Ore., they have a team that has started slowly compared to the 6-0 start in 2012. Utah will look to take advantage of that, as it’s played extremely well up to this point.

The Oregon State Beavers haven’t fully recovered  from their disturbing loss to the FCS’s Eastern Washington, but they  took a step in the right direction with a 33-14 win over the Hawaii  Warriors in Week 2.

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In their most recent matchup, they dominated through  the air, as Sean Mannion threw for 372 yards and four touchdowns. That  performance put him at second in the nation in passing yards, and the  team currently stands at third with 436.5 per contest.

Unfortunately for the Beavers, their defense has been  the real story thus far, and not for good reasons. They showed improvements  in holding Hawaii to just 14 points, but they’ll need to revert back  to their 2012 ways if they want to contain the Utes. Utah is currently  No. 10 in the country in scoring, and their approach on offense is balanced  through both the air and on the ground.

The Beavers are giving up more than 300 yards per  game to opposing quarterbacks, and putting pressure on Travis Wilson  will be crucial. He hasn’t thrown a pick yet this season, and OSU’s  secondary will need to make him uncomfortable, as tackling has been  a problem thus far. [soliloquy id=”82219″]

Utah

The Utes have started off their season in impressive  fashion. They’ve averaged 50 points per game, which is good enough  for 10th in the nation, and they’ve given up just 16.5, which places  them at 31st. The caliber of competition hasn’t been the highest,  as Utah State and Weber State will be two of the easier opponents, so  now it’s time to prove they have what it takes against a legitimate  Pac-12 opponent.

Defensively, it’s all about stopping the pass. Oregon  State has a couple of potential playmakers at running back, but Mannion  has been running the show thus far, and that’s not expected to change.  Utah has recorded nine sacks in just two weeks, and must look to get  to the quarterback in Week 3.

Offensively, this one is all about Wilson making plays  both through the air and on the ground. We mentioned that the attack  is balanced, and Wilson is the reason why. He had five total touchdowns  against Weber State—three through the air, two on the ground—and  that’s the exact skill set that drove the Beavers to an upset loss  in the first week of the season.

When looking at the numbers, Utah has to be favored.  Despite Oregon State’s surprisingly impressive 2012 performance, it’s  just 5-14 Straight Up in its last 19 road contests. The Utes are 4-1  Straight Up in their last five games at home, and luckily for them,  they hold home-field advantage in this one.

O/U Pick: Under
Score Prediction: Utah 33 – Oregon State 27

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Articles on CappersPicks.com are written by Q (the Head Honcho) at Cappers Picks or by our resident "in house" handicapper Razor Ray Monohan! Enjoy the free picks folks! "Pad that bankroll one day at a time!"