Pinnacle   -6  -110   BET365  -6 -110  Sportsinteraction  -6 -110  888port  -6 -110

Posted at 8:00 AM ET. Odds are subject to change

Virginia Tech -6 over California

Lane Stadium – Blacksburg, VA

7:30 PM ET. This is an opportunity to buy low on the Hokies, even if it appears otherwise. The market sees California — sitting at 5-2 and taking back nearly a touchdown — against a 2-5 Virginia Tech team that’s covered just twice in its last ten games dating back to last season, and instinctively leans to the Bears. In fact, there are touts out in droves calling for the Golden Bears outright on the money line. After all, on paper, Cal looks like the better team. They’ve got a 5-2 record, they’ve got bowl aspirations, and they’ve been the more consistent side through the first half of the season. Virginia Tech, meanwhile, continues to look like a program without direction — a rudderless ship for lack of a better term. And yet, despite all of that, the Hokies are the chalk here.

That alone should make bettors stop and think. Why is a 2-5 team laying six points to a 5-2 opponent? The answer lies beneath the surface. The market is sending a signal, and it’s one that contradicts the perception of these two programs. On paper, this line doesn’t make sense. But when you dig into the matchup, it starts to. Virginia Tech’s defense — while inconsistent — remains capable of creating havoc at home with Enter Sandman playing, and Cal’s offense has documented struggles when faced with push-back on the road. San Diego State after all bageled California back in September and the Golden Bears also needed heroics to escape Boston College in Chestnut Hill with a win. This team is not impervious to getting clipped here by any stretch.

There’s also the situational angle. Cal hosts a ranked Virginia team next week in a game that could define its season and potentially give it a path to Charlotte. That looming matchup brings a natural lookahead risk. Combine that with the cross-country travel to Blacksburg and you’ve got the recipe for a flat spot. But would California be looking ahead though? It doesn’t matter at the end of the day, that’s hyperbole to justify the number but it’s the number that speaks. When a line looks wrong that’s usually the direction to go. Lay the points and see you at the cashier window.

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