College win totals

Though the games don't begin until next Thursday, let's start the process of making some money today by examining some over/under numbers.

Season win totals are, in fact, where the wise guys make a lot of their profit for the year, taking advantage of the sometimes not-so-savvy public, which tends to drive some of these numbers artificially up or down depending on the situation but more likely the team.

The Cowboys' win total, for instance, will be higher, if only slightly, than it otherwise would have been based solely on their widespread public appeal. In other words, their fans will open their wallets and hammer the over because their heart tells them to do so, not necessarily their head.

Whatever the case, there is money to be made here. You just have to be patient enough to let the long season play out. Here's our college football season win total plays for the year:

USC over 9.5

Despite the tumultuous offseason, which saw Pete Carroll leave, the controversial Lane Kiffin arrive and the NCAA drop sanctions on the Trojans, we love them to hit double digit wins this season. For starters, the non-conference schedule, while not SECesque, is not as daunting as in the past, so look for three wins there. Also, thanks largely to some of Oregon's legal problems, the Pac-10 likely won't have a dominant team. And we expect Matt Barkley, who now has a year underneath his belt, to be much better this year.

Notre Dame over 7.5

Yes, Notre Dame lost their quarter back and best receiver. But new coach Brian Kelley, who has three straight 10-win seasons, won a Big East title at Cincinnati in 2008 starting four different QBs. They also play only three true road games, with two neutral site games against Navy and Army.

Miami over 8.5

This is our strongest play. The Hurricanes have a tremendous non-conference schedule, with games at Ohio State and at Pittsburgh. Their most difficult ACC games, however, all come at home, where they will meet Florida St., Virginia Tech and North Carolina. Miami is young, but has national championship talent. The same could have been said last season, when they went 9-4 against arguably a more difficult schedule than the one the one they face this year.