College Football Best Bets: October 24, 2026
Six college football best bets for October 24: LSU, Texas Tech, Iowa and three unders, with matchup analysis and key injury context.
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Saturday’s college football card starts with two offenses we trust to create separation and three totals where the defensive matchup stands out. LSU’s pressure, Texas Tech’s balance and Iowa’s run defense are the side bets. Michigan’s passing struggles, Baylor’s disruptive front and UCLA’s defensive form lead the under selections.
Our six best bets for October 24 cover the noon and afternoon windows. These are individual plays, with a different matchup case behind each. The strongest total is Indiana at Michigan under 42.5; LSU -7 leads the sides.
DraftKings lines observed October 24, 2026, at 1:38 a.m. ET. All start times Eastern. Lines can change.
College Football Best Bets: October 24
- Indiana at Michigan: Under 42.5 | Noon
- LSU -7 at Auburn | Noon
- Texas Tech -11.5 at Cincinnati | Noon
- Baylor at Kansas: Under 53.5 | 1 p.m.
- Iowa -7.5 at Minnesota | 3:30 p.m.
- Michigan State at UCLA: Under 43.5 | 3:30 p.m. broadcast window
Indiana at Michigan: Under 42.5
Michigan has played five games with 39 or fewer combined points. The exception was its 52-17 win over UTEP. Its three Big Ten games have finished 20-19, 20-14 and 21-18, a more relevant starting point than assuming Indiana’s offensive reputation automatically creates a shootout. Those results are recorded on Michigan’s official schedule.
The Wolverines’ passing game remains the concern. Against Penn State, Bryce Underwood completed five of 11 attempts for 43 yards with two interceptions before Tommy Carr went five of seven for 47 yards. Michigan won, but those numbers do not establish a reliable downfield attack. The team’s Penn State recap reinforces the distinction between a better second half and a solved passing offense.
Indiana can make that problem worse. Tobi Osunanmi entered this week with a sack in six consecutive games, while Mario Landino added two against Ohio State. The Hoosiers’ official preview details a front capable of turning manageable downs into stalled possessions. We favor sustained defensive resistance over repeated clean scoring drives.
The risk: Josh Hoover’s 18 touchdown passes without an interception show Indiana can score efficiently. Short fields or a couple of explosive completions could undo an otherwise slow game. Under 42.5 is the play, not a prediction that Indiana’s offense disappears.
LSU -7 at Auburn
LSU’s combination of offensive balance and defensive pressure makes it our favorite side. The Tigers enter after a 31-0 win over Mississippi State in which Sam Leavitt completed 31 of 38 passes for 289 yards and four touchdowns. Dilin Jones contributed 84 rushing yards and another 58 through the air. That distribution matters: LSU can move the ball without relying exclusively on deep completions. See the official LSU recap.
The defensive matchup is equally important. Auburn’s own game preview identifies LSU’s 26 sacks, fewer than 100 rushing yards allowed per game and fewer than 16 points allowed per game. Auburn quarterback Byrum Brown can extend possessions with his legs, but LSU has the front to make the home team earn those yards rather than surrender a comfortable rushing rhythm.
The risk: Auburn just won 27-24 at Georgia, with Brown rushing for 115 yards on 26 carries. His mobility is a real counter, not something to dismiss as an emotional letdown. LSU also lost both of its previous SEC road games. We still prefer its more complete offensive options and pass rush to produce the separation needed to cover seven.
Texas Tech -11.5 at Cincinnati
Texas Tech’s offensive ceiling is obvious after its 53-25 victory over Arizona State. More useful than the final score is how early it established control: 404 yards and 43 points in the first half. The Red Raiders’ official preview also notes four consecutive road victories. This is a team with evidence of taking its game away from Lubbock.
The foundation is balance. Cincinnati’s matchup preview lists Tech at 231.2 rushing yards per game while allowing just 82.0, fifth nationally. That gives the favorite a plausible route to controlling the game on both sides: extend its own possessions on the ground and make Cincinnati’s offense work through longer passing situations.
The risk: Cincinnati is dangerous enough to threaten a late cover. JC French threw for 389 yards in the 45-42 loss at West Virginia, and the Bearcats generated 622 total yards. We are not treating them as an automatic shutdown opponent. Tech has also scored four defensive touchdowns, production that should not simply be projected forward. The -11.5 selection rests on the rushing advantage and offensive depth, with Cincinnati’s passing game the clear threat.
Baylor at Kansas: Under 53.5
This total asks for a substantially more productive game than Baylor’s recent defensive profile suggests. The Bears have held all six opponents to 20 points or fewer. Against TCU, they allowed only 33 rushing yards and produced four sacks and 10 tackles for loss, according to Baylor’s game recap. Kansas will need to solve a front that regularly gets offenses off schedule.
Baylor has its own blocking problem. Dave Aranda’s Monday assessment followed a game with 54 rushing yards, 1.6 yards per carry and four sacks conceded. That makes sustained offensive efficiency a tougher assumption than the Bears’ season passing average might imply.
Kansas has allowed 174.3 passing yards per game, third in the Big 12, while Baylor has allowed just 86.7 rushing yards per game. Those official matchup numbers put each offense against a relevant defensive strength. We like the under without needing to pick the winner.
The risk: Isaiah Marshall’s mobility can break a defensive structure, and Baylor still has a productive passing connection between DJ Lagway and Gavin Freeman. Explosive plays are the danger. Repeated efficient drives are the outcome we are betting against.
Iowa -7.5 at Minnesota
Iowa’s defense supplies the clearest reason to lay the points. The Hawkeyes have allowed 84.7 rushing yards per game and only one rushing touchdown. Against Washington, six sacks helped push the Huskies’ net rushing total to minus-three. Iowa’s game notes also put its scoring defense at 14.5 points allowed per game. That combination can make Minnesota sustain drives through the air rather than live on comfortable early-down gains.
There is a concrete offensive development, too. Kirk Ferentz confirmed in his October 20 news conference that Jeremy Hecklinski would start. This is not an assumption based on an injury listing: Ferentz also said Hank Brown was healthy. Hecklinski’s previous start produced 202 passing yards and three touchdowns, complementing Kamari Moulton’s 208 rushing yards at Washington.
The risk: Minnesota quarterback Drake Lindsey has completed 64.8% of his passes, per the Gophers’ preview. A controlled passing game could keep this within one score. Iowa -7.5 needs more than a narrow rivalry win, but the defensive front and improved offensive balance offer a credible path.
Michigan State at UCLA: Under 43.5
UCLA has won its last two games 17-15 and 17-7. In the latter, the Bruins held Wisconsin to just 66 passing yards. Their official preview describes a team capable of winning through defense and rushing production, without turning every possession into an aggressive passing contest.
The quarterback change is material. Michigan State’s official preview reports that Bob Chesney announced Nico Iamaleava would miss the rest of the season. Ty Dieffenbach threw for 264 yards against Wisconsin, but UCLA finished with two rushing touchdowns and a field goal. A competent replacement performance does not require us to forecast a high-scoring game.
Michigan State has scored 10, 13, three, 37 and 21 points during its five-game losing streak. The Illinois game is the outlier in that stretch. UCLA’s defense looks well placed to make the Spartans’ possessions laborious, and a Bruins lead would allow them to lean on their ground game.
The risk: UCLA’s rushing attack can create explosive touchdowns, and Michigan State’s recent Illinois performance shows it can contribute more than the season record suggests. We prefer under 43.5 to asking UCLA to cover a large spread.
Market sources: DraftKings morning matchups and afternoon matchups. These selections carry risk. Keep stakes within a predetermined budget.