Chris “The Bear” Fallica’s 2024 College Football Week, 6 “Bear Bytes”

College football Week 6 is here and I couldn't be more excited.

This means the next few days will be exciting for fans who love football and bettors looking for fun ways to bet a few bucks.

I've already given you my best bets for the Week 6 games, but now it's time to have a little fun with my Bear Bytes.

These little “bytes,” as I call them, are just nuggets that give you some fun topics of conversation to draw from while watching the football festivities with friends and family or chatting around the water cooler with your co-workers.

Here are the biggest takeaways that stood out to me in my research.

Only two teams have played at least three games against Power Four competition and won all of them – BYU and Notre Dame.

(All times ET)

Friday, October 4th

No. 10 Michigan @ Washington (7:30 p.m., NBC)

Are you expecting a close event in Seattle? In the last 25 seasons, there have been 18 top-10 teams that were underdogs this late in the season against teams not ranked. Only seven of the 18 won the game outright, but 13 of the 18 made it.

Saturday, October 5th

UCLA @#7 Penn State (midday, FOX and FOX Sports app)

UCLA is 0-3 against Power Four teams this season and has been outscored by 67 points. Of the Power Four teams, only Purdue has scored more points than Power Four teams (-94). Additionally, the Bruins have allowed 3.67 points per drive against Power Four teams this season (worst among Power Four teams). In two games against Power Four opponents, Penn State has allowed 3.8 yards per game (second among Power Four teams vs. Power Four opponents; Tennessee 3.1).

No. 9 Missouri @#25 Texas A&M (lunch, ABC)

Since 2000, Texas A&M is 3-11 at Kyle Field when the Aggies are ranked and host a top-10 team. This affects six different coaches (RC Slocum 0-2, Dennis Franchione 0-1, Mike Sherman 1-1, Kevin Sumlin 1-4, Jimbo Fisher 1-2 and Mike Elko 0-1). The Aggies were the favorite in five of those games and lost four, including the season opener against Notre Dame.

Pitt @ North Carolina (Noon, ESPN 2)

Pitt hasn't started 5-0 since 1991. The Panthers finished 6-5 on the year. Over the past two weeks, North Carolina has allowed 70 points against James Madison and blew a 20-0 second-half lead against Duke.

marine @ air force (Midday, CBS)

Outsiders have played 18 of the last 23 games between service academies. This includes nine of twelve games with four overall wins in which a team was at least a TD favorite. It's 4-0 Navy at Air Force and 4-0 Army at Tulsa. It is the first time since 1945 that the Army and Navy are each 4-0. Both started this season 5-0.

Purdue @ Wisconsin (lunch, BTN)

If Wisconsin is shockingly disappointed by Purdue, it would be the fourth time in five years that the Badgers have a losing record after five games. From 1991 to 2019, the Badgers never had a losing record in five games.

Auburn @#5 Georgia (3:30 p.m., ABC)

Hugh Freeze has a 4-10 record in his last 14 games against FBS opponents and a 3-9 record in his last 12 against Power Four teams. In Auburn's last seven games against Georgia on the road at Jordan-Hare, the Tigers have scored four touchdowns, are 0-7 and have been outscored 216-54. In three games against Power Four teams, Auburn has committed 11 turnovers, the most among Power Four teams. That's good for a Power Four-worst -9 TO margin.

Iowa @#3 Ohio State (3:30 p.m., CBS)

Iowa has lost its last three games to ranked opponents, losing 92-0 overall. Iowa has lost seven straight times when playing against ranked opponents, by a combined score of 235-44, and has not scored more than 17 points in any game. Ohio State is the only Power Four team to have played just one game against a Power Four opponent. That was last week's 38-7 win at Michigan State.

Indiana @ Northwest (3:30 p.m., BTN)

Indiana hasn't started 6-0 since the Hoosiers' 1967 Rose Bowl season.

No. 12 Ole Miss @ South Carolina (3:30 p.m., ESPN)

Under Shane Beamer, the Gamecocks faced six top-15 teams. South Carolina has pulled off three upsets – twice as a Dog with at least 14 points – and has played five of the six games.

Rutgers @ Nebraska (4 p.m., FS1)

As an underdog, Rutgers has lost 15 straight conference games, including only three. The last win came in Indiana in 2021.

West Virginia @ Oklahoma State (4 p.m., ESPN2)

The last time Oklahoma State didn't have a winning record after six games was 2007 (3-3). This was Mike Gundy's third year in Stillwater and of course the same season in which his famous “I'm a man, I'm 40” comments took place.

No. 14 Clemson @ State of Florida (7 p.m., ESPN)

Florida State was a home underdog by more than 14 points twice, losing those two games by a combined score of 104-25. The Seminoles lost 59-10 to Clemson as an 18.5-point dog in 2018 and lost 45-15 to Florida as a 16.5-point dog in 2008. Since the start of 2022, Mike Norvell has gone 21-3 with Jordan Travis at quarterback, winning his last 17 starts. Without Travis as QB, Norvell and FSU's record has fallen to 3-5 over that span, including 1-4 this year.

No. 11 USC @ Minnesota (7:30 p.m., BTN)

Since 2021, Lincoln Riley has been favorite away from home 14 times. His team has won 10 of 14 games but is just 3-11 against the spread (ATS) (2-8 at USC).

Baylor @#16 Iowa State (7:30 p.m., FOX and FOX Sports app)

Iowa State last started 5-0 in 1980.

UCF @ Florida (7:45 p.m., SEC Network)

This is the fourth straight home game against an FBS opponent where Florida is an underdog. The Gators have been home in just four of their last 26 games against FBS opponents. From 1992 to 2011, Florida was a home dog in just four of 117 home games against FBS teams.

duke @ Georgia Tech (8 p.m., ACC Network)

Since 1979, there have been eight teams with a record of 5-0 or better that were at least seven points behind an unranked team. Lost seven of the eight, the only win was 6-0 for Liberty. In this case, the Flames won 38-35 at Virginia Tech in 2020 as 17-point underdogs.

Syracuse @#25 UNLV (9 p.m., FS1)

This is the first time since 2008 that UNLV has been favored over a Power Four (formerly Power Five) opponent. UNLV beat Iowa State 34-31 that day as a 2.5-point favorite. Since then, the Rebels have been underdogs in 25 straight games against ranked four or five opponents. Was the last time UNLV was this big of a favorite against a Power Four or Five team? That was in 2003, when UNLV lost to Kansas 46-22 as an 11-point favorite.

Miami @ Cal (10:30 p.m., ESPN)

Mario Cristobal faced Justin Wilcox three times while coaching a ranked Oregon team against a ranked Cal team. Cristobal's teams failed to cover any of those three issues, including losing at Cal in 2020 as a 9.5-point favorite. In those three games, Cristobal's team averaged 19.3 points per game.

Mario Cristobal coaches ranked teams against unranked Wilcox teams:

2021: spread, -13.5; Won 24-17
2020: Spread: -9.5; Lost 21-17
2019: Spread: -21.5; Won 17-7

Chris “The Bear” Fallica has been covering sports for nearly three decades. While his focus has been college football, he also enjoys playing in the NFL, soccer, golf, tennis, MLB, NHL and horse racing, with an “occasional” bet on such events. Chris recently won the inaugural Circa Football Invitational and finished in the top 10 of the Golden Nugget Football Contest. He has qualified for the NHC Handicapping Championship multiple times. Remember: “The less you bet, the more you lose when you win!” Follow him on Twitter @Chrisfallica.

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