One of the highlights of the first weekend of college football action is the showdown between the no. 8 Miami Hurricanes and no. 25 LSU Tigers. Kickoff is set for 7:30 on Sunday, September 2, at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas. The game will be broadcast nationally on ABC.

Spread: Also commonly referred to as the line or spread, a negative point spread value (-15.5) indicates that team is favored by 15.5 points. A positive value (+15.5) on its opponent means that. Live betting odds for Miami (FL) Hurricanes vs LSU Tigers - Sunday, September 2, 2018 at AT&T Stadium on Sunday, September 02, 2018. Up to date offshore betting odds of over 30+ sportsbooks available. Check out 2020 College Football Game of the Year Odds for the 2020 regular season, which is slated to begin in Week 0 on Saturday Aug. 29 and run through Week 14 into Saturday Dec. 12 at VegasInsider.

BetMGM Sportsbook has released its initial odds to win the national championship for the 2021 season, and LSU is on the board. LSU has the fourth-best shot at the championship next season. Point Spread: MIA -3.5/LSU +3.5 Over/Under Total: 48. Two highly prestigious programs will meet this Sunday night at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas when the no. 8 Miami Hurricanes square off against the no. Both Miami and LSU find their programs in similar situations.

If we look at the Week 1 odds, the Hurricanes are 2.5-point favorites. This line has barely moved at all since Miami opened as 3-point favorites. The over/under for the game is set at 48.5 points.

LSU vs Miami Vegas Game Odds & Betting Predictions

It’s been a long time since Miami fans were this excited for the start of a season. The Hurricanes started out last season 10-0, rising all the way to no. 2 in the CFP rankings. However, the end of their season did not go as planned. They lost their regular-season finale to Pitt, got blown out by Clemson in the ACC Championship Game, and lost the Orange Bowl (a de facto home game) to Wisconsin.

Of course, three straight losses to close out the 2017 season hasn’t stopped the Hurricanes hype train. Miami fans still believe they will be a national championship contender in 2018.

Things are a little different down on the Bayou. Despite a 9-4 season in 2017, fans are less than thrilled with head coach Ed Orgeron. Of course, that 9-4 season included a blowout loss to Mississippi State, a home defeat against Troy, and a Citrus Bowl loss to Notre Dame.

Orgeron now finds himself with an impatient fan base and a team with a few fundamental questions that need to be answered heading into the season. While the Tigers are accustomed to playing marquee opponents opening weekend, perhaps starting the season against Miami isn’t an ideal scenario for Orgeron and LSU.

Somehow, these two storied programs haven’t crossed paths since 2005 when the Tigers obliterated Miami in the Peach Bowl 40-3. This time around, both teams need this game badly. The Hurricanes don’t want to see all of their preseason hype spoiled by an early-season loss. Meanwhile, LSU needs a big win early in the year to inspire confidence, especially with an unforgiving SEC schedule ahead of them. Needless to say, this should be an intriguing game.

Free NCAAF Betting Prediction: Miami -2.5

Osu Miami Spread

This figures to be a close game and one that may not see that many points. However, the memory of Miami’s defense from a season ago and how they created turnovers makes me lean toward the Hurricanes. I’m not sold on the LSU offense, especially when it comes to avoiding costly turnovers that can make a big difference. With that in mind, I’ll swallow a few points and side with the Hurricanes.

The Tigers have both a new offensive coordinator and a new starting quarterback in Ohio State transfer Joe Burrow. While Burrow beat out Myles Brennan for the starting job, he didn’t arrive at LSU until the summer, so he’s had a lot to learn in a short period of time. Also, it’s not as if he got a ton of playing time as the backup at Ohio State, so he’s still short on playing experience.

Up against the Miami defense, the Tigers may be forced to keep things a little vanilla until Burrow gets more comfortable. That could make it difficult to move the ball against the Hurricanes, who have SEC-caliber speed and athleticism on defense. Of course, if LSU opens up the playbook a little, they could risk turning the ball over against the opportunistic Miami defense.

It also doesn’t help that the Tigers will be entering the season with a young offensive line and without a lot of established players at either wide receiver or running back. LSU’s best offensive player may be Texas Tech transfer Jonathan Giles, who posted impressive numbers two seasons ago but had to sit out last season. Even with the long line at running backs at LSU, the Tigers begin 2018 without one who has proven himself, even in a backup role.

Of course, the Miami offense is not without questions of their own. Malik Rosier gives them an experienced quarterback with loads of talent. But he was so hot and cold last season that the Hurricanes didn’t always know what to expect from him. If he can play four quarters anywhere close to the best of his ability, the Hurricanes are going to win this game easily. However, Rosier has proven that he can be mistake-prone at times.

Meanwhile, the LSU defense has the kind of athletes who can take advantage of Rosier if he makes mistakes. The Tigers are just as capable of forcing takeaways as Miami. The Hurricanes are also without a power running game or a lot of proven receivers unless Ahmmon Richards can return to full health after his 2017 season ended early due to injury. Without a lot of proven players around him, the success of Miami’s offense will ride on Rosier’s shoulders.

I’m going to go out on a little bit of a limb and say that Rosier will be just fine. Despite the Hurricanes losing three in a row to close out last season, it’s not as if Rosier didn’t prove himself against quality defenses. I’m a little more concerned about the LSU offense than I am the Hurricanes. In such a tight matchup, that’s enough for me to be comfortable leaning toward Miami covering a 2.5-point spread.

Miami vs. LSU Prediction

The Miami Hurricanes and LSU Tigers will own the college football spotlight on Sunday night when they battled at 7:30 p.m. ET. After Miami was a playoff contender a year ago, will the ‘Canes start the 2018 season off on the right foot or will LSU pull off the small upset?

Game Snapshot

7:30 p.m. ET, Sunday, September 2, 2018

AT&T Stadium, Arlington, TX

Public Betting Trends

According to oddsmakers from online sports book BetNow.eu, the Hurricanes are 3-point favorites to beat the Tigers. The total, meanwhile, sits at 47 points. As of this writing, 61% of the public betting tickets wagered on this matchup are on the Hurricanes.

Miami Hurricanes

Lsu Miami Spread

Miami coach Mike Richt said freshman DE Gregory Rousseau is 'going to play, and play a lot.' This is great news for Rousseau who has reportedly played well throughout the spring. He enrolled early and was listed as a player who could make an impact in 2018 by ESPN. The former three-star prospect boasts ideal size (6'7/250) and could play a big factor if the team is able to untap his potential.

LSU Tigers

Ross Dellenger of Sports Illustrated reports that LSU redshirt junior QB Joe Burrow will be named the starting quarterback for Sunday's game against Miami. Burrow transferred to LSU from Ohio State with an eye on taking the starting job, and he's beaten out Myles Brennan to begin the year as the starting signal-caller. LSU head coach Ed Orgeron has repeatedly said he doesn't want to rotate quarterbacks during games, so as long as Burrow plays well, he's going to be the guy. A former four-star recruit, Brennan will be right on Burrow's shoulder -- assuming he doesn't join several other LSU quarterbacks who transferred out -- so Burrow will have to play well early to keep the job. Obvious point is obvious, but considering how much turmoil there's been at the position over the past few seasons, it's worth pointing out.

Betting Trends

Miami

The Hurricanes have won 15 of their last 18 games overall.

Lsu Miami Point Spread

LSU

The Tigers have covered the spread in six of their last seven games dating back to last season.

Prediction

Believe it or not, LSU should have an explosive passing attack this season. Burrow comes over from Ohio State and will work in a more pass-happy offense this season with loads of talent on the outsides. Meanwhile, the Hurricanes thrived on turnovers a year ago but if they can’t generate those takeaways again this year all of those one possession games that they won last season could go the other way this year. Even though Ed Orgeron’s seat will be hot all year, I think LSU surprises out of the gate.

College Football Prediction: LSU Tigers +3