Stanford will stamp itself as title contender with win at Oregon

Bryce Love, last year’s Doak Walker Award winner as the nation’s premier running back, managed just 29 rushing yards against San Diego State and did not play against UC Davis.

Yet Stanford is 2-1 against the spread and has ascended to No. 7 in the country in the polls.

Most people are just getting familiar with Stanford’s other offensive standouts in tight end Kaden Smith, wide receiver J.J. Arcega-Whiteside and quarterback K.J. Costello. The defense also has not allowed more than 10 points in a game this season despite losing arguably its four best players from 2017.

Meanwhile, Oregon put up just 35 points last week against a San Jose State team that had given up at least 40 in 10 of its last 14 games.

The Cardinal crushed the Ducks 49-7 last year when Oregon QB Justin Herbert was out, so the Ducks will be looking for revenge. But is Herbert and playing at home worth 40 points?

Love also will be motivated after missing last week with an undisclosed injury. The Cardinal need this game in order to challenge Washington in the Pac-12 North. I like Stanford as a 2-point road favorite.

Four more plays (home team in CAPS):

Mississippi State (-9½) over KENTUCKY: If the Bulldogs had a good passing game, they’d be capable of winning a championship. If you ranked every team in the country by its combined ability on the offensive and defensive lines, Mississippi State easily would be in the top 10. Bully ball matches up well against Kentucky, which runs more than 63 percent of the time. Kentucky RB Benny Snell rushed for a regular-season career-low 18 yards in last year’s 45-7 loss to Mississippi State. The Wildcats have added former Oregon QB Terry Wilson, who is slippery as a runner. Otherwise these rosters are much the same as they were last year. Mississippi State can win by three touchdowns.

South Carolina (-2½) over VANDERBILT: South Carolina is 8-0 against Vanderbilt in the 2010s. The Commodores haven’t come within a field goal since 2008. The market has moved in opposite directions for these two teams since the preseason, with Georgia embarrassing South Carolina and Vanderbilt nearly upsetting Notre Dame. But it’s not fun playing Georgia this year. I still think South Carolina is the second-best team in the SEC East, and coach Will Muschamp has had an extra week to prepare for Vanderbilt after Hurricane Florence canceled the Gamecocks’ game against Marshall.

Kansas State (+16½) over WEST VIRGINIA: I took Mississippi State big against Kansas State two weeks ago, so I wasn’t surprised with the result (the Bulldogs won, 31-10). The market was surprised, though, and I think it has overcorrected. West Virginia QB Will Grier is outstanding, and may lead the country in passing yards per game this year. But I still don’t trust the Mountaineers defense, and a comfortable win over Tennessee to start the season taught us nothing. Wildcats coach Bill Snyder is 24-9 ATS as a road underdog in the last decade, and Kansas State hasn’t lost multiple games in a season by more than 20 points since 2009.

Northern Illinois (+10½) over FLORIDA STATE: Not only is Florida State 0-3 ATS this season, but the Seminoles have failed to cover the closing number by a combined 78 points. This is a big number for a team with one of the worst offensive lines in the Power Five operating against one of the best defensive lines in the Group of Five.

Last week: 1-4

Season: 5-10

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Christopher Smith of AL.com, NOLA.com and MyBookie is providing college football analysis for the Las Vegas Review-Journal. Follow @cfblocksmith on Twitter.