{
  "season": 2026,
  "week": 3,
  "intro": "Week 3 picks cover the nine ranked-team games still to kick off Saturday afternoon and night. The only ranked-vs-ranked matchup left is No. 7 LSU at No. 8 Ole Miss, where LSU is laying a field goal on the road. The rest of the board is long numbers: No. 15 Tennessee -35.5 against Kennesaw State, No. 1 Texas -29.5 against UTSA, No. 3 Notre Dame -28.5 against Michigan State, No. 20 Missouri -27.5 against Troy and No. 24 Oklahoma -21.5 against New Mexico, with No. 10 Alabama -18.5 against Florida State in the early window. Big spreads are priced on margin, not on who wins, so each one comes down to whether the favorite keeps its starters in long enough to cover and whether the underdog has an offense that can score late. No. 25 Virginia and West Virginia meet at a neutral site in Charlotte, and No. 11 BYU travels to Colorado State.",
  "sources": [
    "https://site.api.espn.com/apis/site/v2/sports/football/college-football/scoreboard?groups=80&limit=400",
    "https://www.covers.com/ncaaf/florida-state-vs-alabama-prediction-picks-odds-today-sept-19-2026",
    "https://www.si.com/college/alabama/football/florida-state-at-alabama-game-central-rundown-live-updates-analysis",
    "https://www.sportsbettingdime.com/news/college-football/florida-state-vs-alabama-odds-prediction-picks-sep-19/",
    "https://www.cbssports.com/betting/news/college-football-score-predictions-odds-lines-picks-best-bets-for-week-3-2026/"
  ],
  "published_at": "2026-09-19T20:49:44.546194+00:00",
  "updated_at": "2026-09-19T20:49:44.546194+00:00",
  "picks": [
    {
      "season": 2026,
      "week": 3,
      "game_id": "401856685",
      "away": "FSU",
      "home": "ALA",
      "away_name": "Florida St",
      "home_name": "Alabama",
      "away_rank": null,
      "home_rank": 10,
      "neutral": false,
      "kickoff": "2026-09-19T21:15:00+00:00",
      "pick": "ALA",
      "line": -18.5,
      "reason": "Alabama -18.5 is two points shorter than the 20.5 posted earlier in the week, which buys a better number on the stronger side. SMU outgained Florida State by 261 yards and still only won 27-24 after four turnovers, while Alabama has allowed one third-down conversion in 23 tries. Kickoff heat near 98 degrees favors the deeper roster after halftime, and Alabama has last season's 31-17 loss to answer for.",
      "recap_result": null,
      "recap_final": null,
      "recap_title": null,
      "recap": null,
      "recap_at": null,
      "created_at": "2026-09-19T20:49:44.546194+00:00"
    },
    {
      "season": 2026,
      "week": 3,
      "game_id": "401856689",
      "away": "TROY",
      "home": "MIZ",
      "away_name": "Troy",
      "home_name": "Missouri",
      "away_rank": null,
      "home_rank": 20,
      "neutral": false,
      "kickoff": "2026-09-19T23:00:00+00:00",
      "pick": "TROY",
      "line": 26.5,
      "reason": "Troy +26.5 against a Missouri total of 49.5 means the market is asking Missouri to win something like 38-11. Austin Simmons has 544 yards and seven touchdowns without an interception, but Troy is 2-0 under Gerad Parker and has a reputation for physical, well-coached games that do not get out of hand. At 26.5 the backdoor stays open once Missouri empties the bench in the fourth quarter.",
      "recap_result": null,
      "recap_final": null,
      "recap_title": null,
      "recap": null,
      "recap_at": null,
      "created_at": "2026-09-19T20:52:23.84782+00:00"
    },
    {
      "season": 2026,
      "week": 3,
      "game_id": "401856688",
      "away": "LSU",
      "home": "MISS",
      "away_name": "LSU",
      "home_name": "Ole Miss",
      "away_rank": 7,
      "home_rank": 8,
      "neutral": false,
      "kickoff": "2026-09-19T23:30:00+00:00",
      "pick": "LSU",
      "line": -3,
      "reason": "LSU -3 is the price after Sam Leavitt was cleared and removed from the injury report Friday night, per CBS and On3. The Tigers are third nationally in havoc rate at 30.2 percent and have 48 pressures to Ole Miss 21, and Ole Miss may start a redshirt freshman at right tackle with Tommy Kinsler IV doubtful. Laying a field goal on the road is fair when one defense is that much better at the line of scrimmage.",
      "recap_result": null,
      "recap_final": null,
      "recap_title": null,
      "recap": null,
      "recap_at": null,
      "created_at": "2026-09-19T20:52:23.84782+00:00"
    },
    {
      "season": 2026,
      "week": 3,
      "game_id": "401856690",
      "away": "UNM",
      "home": "OU",
      "away_name": "New Mexico",
      "home_name": "Oklahoma",
      "away_rank": null,
      "home_rank": 24,
      "neutral": false,
      "kickoff": "2026-09-19T23:30:00+00:00",
      "pick": "UNM",
      "line": 21.5,
      "reason": "Oklahoma scored 10 points at Michigan, is without left tackle Michael Fasusi and receiver Trell Harris, and has Georgia and Texas coming next. New Mexico is 2-0 with no turnovers, eight takeaways and 14 points allowed, and Jason Eck runs a ground game that keeps the clock moving. Oklahoma has gone under in six straight non-conference games, and a low-possession game favors the team getting 21.5.",
      "recap_result": null,
      "recap_final": null,
      "recap_title": null,
      "recap": null,
      "recap_at": null,
      "created_at": "2026-09-19T20:52:23.84782+00:00"
    },
    {
      "season": 2026,
      "week": 3,
      "game_id": "401856795",
      "away": "BYU",
      "home": "CSU",
      "away_name": "BYU",
      "home_name": "Colorado St",
      "away_rank": 11,
      "home_rank": null,
      "neutral": false,
      "kickoff": "2026-09-19T23:30:00+00:00",
      "pick": "BYU",
      "line": -17.5,
      "reason": "This opened BYU -21 and has been bet down to 17.5 without a quarterback injury to explain it: Bear Bachmeier threw three touchdowns and no picks against Arizona and is healthy, and the notable absence is rover Siale Esera. BYU allows 12 points per game, and Colorado State's 46.5 scoring average came against a soft opening schedule. The 3.5 points of movement make the favorite the better value.",
      "recap_result": null,
      "recap_final": null,
      "recap_title": null,
      "recap": null,
      "recap_at": null,
      "created_at": "2026-09-19T20:52:23.84782+00:00"
    },
    {
      "season": 2026,
      "week": 3,
      "game_id": "401856802",
      "away": "WVU",
      "home": "UVA",
      "away_name": "West Virginia",
      "home_name": "Virginia",
      "away_rank": null,
      "home_rank": 25,
      "neutral": true,
      "kickoff": "2026-09-19T23:30:00+00:00",
      "pick": "UVA",
      "line": -10.5,
      "reason": "Virginia opened -8.5 and is now -10.5 at a neutral site in Charlotte. West Virginia has allowed 22 pass plays of 10-plus yards, tied for 121st nationally, and Beau Pribula has hit five of six throws of 20-plus yards. Virginia is 14th in early-down EPA allowed while West Virginia's offense is 102nd, and Mike Hawkins Jr. carries a 4.2 percent turnover-worthy play rate.",
      "recap_result": null,
      "recap_final": null,
      "recap_title": null,
      "recap": null,
      "recap_at": null,
      "created_at": "2026-09-19T20:52:23.84782+00:00"
    },
    {
      "season": 2026,
      "week": 3,
      "game_id": "401858453",
      "away": "MSU",
      "home": "ND",
      "away_name": "Michigan St",
      "home_name": "Notre Dame",
      "away_rank": null,
      "home_rank": 3,
      "neutral": false,
      "kickoff": "2026-09-19T23:30:00+00:00",
      "pick": "ND",
      "line": -29.5,
      "reason": "Notre Dame -29.5 is a big number, but the Irish have allowed 6.5 points per game with CJ Carr at 71 percent and no interceptions, and Michigan State ranks 100th in rushing success rate allowed, so the Irish can grind the margin on the ground. The Spartans rank 63rd in passing success rate and now face the best secondary they will see all year.",
      "recap_result": null,
      "recap_final": null,
      "recap_title": null,
      "recap": null,
      "recap_at": null,
      "created_at": "2026-09-19T20:52:23.84782+00:00"
    },
    {
      "season": 2026,
      "week": 3,
      "game_id": "401856692",
      "away": "KENN",
      "home": "TENN",
      "away_name": "Kennesaw St",
      "home_name": "Tennessee",
      "away_rank": null,
      "home_rank": 15,
      "neutral": false,
      "kickoff": "2026-09-19T23:45:00+00:00",
      "pick": "TENN",
      "line": -35.5,
      "reason": "Kennesaw State lost its starting quarterback, a starting corner and an offensive lineman to the portal and gave up 483 yards to Georgia State. Tennessee has beaten non-power opponents by an average of 46.9 points over four seasons and is 12-4 against the number laying 20-plus since 2022. Freshman Faizon Brandon needs reps before Texas visits, which argues for the starters staying in longer than usual.",
      "recap_result": null,
      "recap_final": null,
      "recap_title": null,
      "recap": null,
      "recap_at": null,
      "created_at": "2026-09-19T20:52:23.84782+00:00"
    },
    {
      "season": 2026,
      "week": 3,
      "game_id": "401856693",
      "away": "UTSA",
      "home": "TEX",
      "away_name": "UTSA",
      "home_name": "Texas",
      "away_rank": null,
      "home_rank": 1,
      "neutral": false,
      "kickoff": "2026-09-20T00:00:00+00:00",
      "pick": "UTSA",
      "line": 29.5,
      "reason": "Texas is coming off a 24-23 comeback over Ohio State and goes to Tennessee next week, a letdown spot on both ends. Arch Manning threw for 195 yards in that game and the Texas offense has not shown it can pile on points against a real defense. UTSA beat Texas State 31-26, and Owen McCown is a third-year starter completing 72.5 percent, enough offense to score late against the second unit at 29.5.",
      "recap_result": null,
      "recap_final": null,
      "recap_title": null,
      "recap": null,
      "recap_at": null,
      "created_at": "2026-09-19T20:52:23.84782+00:00"
    }
  ],
  "record": {
    "win": 0,
    "loss": 0,
    "push": 0
  },
  "season_record": {
    "win": 0,
    "loss": 0,
    "push": 0
  }
}