Cincinnati Bearcats Spread vs. Arkansas Razorbacks (September 3)
One of the marquee games of Week 1 and a test for both teams will be Cincinnati vs. Arkansas. The Razorbacks come into this one as a -6 favorite at BetUS. Arkansas (27) had a rating of 79.88. Cincinnati (31) has a rating of 79.39. With home field advantage, Gambling911.com has only come up with a line of Razorbacks -2.5 here.
Cincinnati Bearcats @ Arkansas (September 3)
Arkansas is getting between 85% and 89% of the betting action with a line that is drifting down from -7 to -6, an indication that books are really trying to get more action on Arkansas.
Cincinnati is seen as a fluke by many of the so-called experts, and entering this year's AP poll at No. 23 after finishing at No. 6 reinforces this sentiment.
We don't see it that way here at Gambling911.com
The Bearcats are favored to win OVER 9 regular season games whereas the Razorbacks are expected to win UNDER 7.5 regular season games.
Despite losing key players from last season, Cincinnati is in the enviable position of having developed new talent. The Bearcats have also had success on the recruitment front. They do lose Desmond Ridder at quarterback.
Ben Bryant is battling Evan Prater for Cincinnati’s starting QB spot. Both are talented enough.
As a starter EMU this season, Bryant threw for 3,121 yards, a 14:7 TD: INT ratio, and completed 68.4% percent of passes.
The Bearcats intend to use four runningbacks with the backfield seeing a rotation of Ryan Montgomery, Charles McClelland, Myles Montgomery and Corey Kiner.
While the Bearcats secondary is expected to take a step back this season, their defense will likely still be solid with Jabari Taylor, Jowon Briggs and Malik Vann all returning.
The one scary trend we don't like is that Cincinnati is 6-13 Straight Up as an underdog since 2017, although we still do think Arkansas could win here, just not cover.
The Bearcats should easily cover this spread.
Arkansas vs. Cincinnati (September 3)
Arkansas won nine games last season and spent some time among the top 10.
Player losses from last season's roster include the likes of ace receiver Treylon Burks, left tackle Myron Cunningham and top defenders Montaric Brown, Grant Morgan, John Ridgeway and Tre Williams.
But Arkansas gets back quarterback KJ Jefferson does return. He had four games where he passed for over 200 yards and ran for over 50 and, according to Pro Football Focus, Jefferson was the highest-graded deep passer in the SEC last season.
As a home favorite, Arkansas is 11-4 Straight Up since 2017. In non-conference games, they are 12-5 Straight Up over that time.
We would suggest Arkansas could be good on the moneyline but, get this, the Razorbacks are just 3-21 Straight Up against ranked opponents since 2017. The Bearcats have been reduced in the rankings, but they are still there.
Cincinnati Bearcats 2022 Schedule
Sept 3 at Arkansas
Sept 10 Kennesaw State
Sept 17 vs Miami University (in Cincinnati)
Sept 24 Indiana
Oct 1 at Tulsa
Oct 8 USF
Oct 15 OPEN DATE
Oct 22 at SMU
Oct 29 at UCF
Nov 5 Navy
Nov 12 East Carolina
Nov 19 at Temple
Nov 26 Tulane
Arkansas Razorbacks 2022 Schedule
Sat, Sept. 3 Cincinnati Fayetteville 2:30 p.m. ESPN
Sat, Sept. 10 South Carolina Fayetteville 11 a.m. ESPN
Sat, Sept. 17 Missouri State Fayetteville 6 p.m. ESPN+/SECN+
Sat, Sept. 24 Texas A&M Arlington, Texas TBA TBA
Sat, Oct. 1 Alabama Fayetteville TBA TBA
Sat, Oct. 8 Mississippi State Starkville, Miss. TBA TBA
Sat, Oct. 15 BYU Provo, Utah TBA TBA
Sat, Oct. 29 Auburn Auburn, Ala. TBA TBA
Sat, Nov. 5 Liberty Fayetteville TBA TBA
Sat, Nov. 12 LSU Fayetteville TBA TBA
Sat, Nov. 19 Ole Miss Fayetteville TBA TBA
Fri, Nov. 25 Missouri Columbia, Mo. 2:30 p.m. CBS
- Dan Shapiro, Gambling911.com
