SMU vs. Nevada ATS Pick: How to Bet Saturday's Primetime Clash

The Week 0 headliner between Florida State and Georgia Tech is not the only game of the weekend featuring some ACC action.

One of the conferences’s three new members this year, SMU, gets a season it enters with high expectations underway at 8 p.m. ET on CBS Sports Network.

That’s when the Mustangs meet Mountain West foe Nevada in a road matchup in which the former are favored by a wide margin.

The Wolf Pack was awful in 2022 and 2023, with 2-10 records in both of those seasons. Saturday’s game marks Jeff Choate’s head coaching debut at Nevada after recent stints as head coach at Montana State, then three years as co-defensive coordinator at Texas.

SMU finished the 2023 season ranked No. 22 in the nation after winning the American Athletic Conference in its final season in the AAC. Mustangs coach Rhett Lashlee led one of the highest-scoring offenses in the country last year, and this offense promises to be potent once again in 2024.

SMU averaged 38.7 points per game last year and brings back its star QB and nearly all of its top skill-position players.

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SMU vs. Nevada Betting Odds

	DraftKings	FanDuel	ESPN BET	bet365
SMU spread	-25.5 (-110)	-26.5 (-110)	-26 (-110)	-26 (-110)
Nevada spread	+25.5 (-110)	+26.5 (-110)	+26 (-110)	+26 (-110)
SMU ML	-3200	-4000	-3500	-3000
Nevada ML	+1400	+1400	+1500	+1400
Total	55.5 (o-110; u-110)	55.5 (o-110; u-110)	55.5 (o-105; u-115)	55.5 (o-110; u-110)

How to Bet SMU vs. Nevada

At first glance, the Mustangs are laying a ton of points on Saturday night, especially on the road against an unkown opponent. Under Choate, whose only head-coaching experience was his four-year stint at Montanta State from 2016-19, Nevada is an unknown entering 2024.

What we do know is that the Wolf Pack was not competitive in either of the last two seasons, and even if Choate is able to improve this team, it will probably take some time to make it competitive against opponents like SMU.

The Mustangs’ over-under win total this year is set at 8.5 despite the jump up to the ACC, which speaks volumes about the upside for veteran SMU QB Preston Stone and Co. This team’s tendency to run the score up makes it a tempting one for bettors to back, even when the spread is as lopsided as it is on Saturday night.

In 2023, SMU won seven games by 20 or more, including a 69-point romp over Praire View A&M and three wins in AAC play by at least 45 points (over Temple, Tulsa and Navy).

Stone, who threw for 3,197 yards, 28 touchdowns and six interceptions a year ago, is coming off a leg injury late last year and should come out slinging over the next two weeks to get himself in rhythm. After early-season tune-ups against Nevada and Houston Baptist next week, SMU faces BYU, TCU and Florida State in September.

The Mustangs are a good bet to win big each of the next two weeks as they look to hit their stride as soon as possible.

SMU vs. Nevada Best Bets

We’ve liked SMU in this spot since we took an early stab at Week 0 back in July.

Our confidence hasn’t wavered, as the Mustangs’ track record from last year makes them as trustworthy as anyone on the board in Week 1. The spread for this game has moved in SMU’s direction all week, so be sure to lock in any SMU bets you have ASAP to avoid needing them to win by 30 to cover.

Best bets:

SMU -27 (best odds: -112 at DK)
SMU Team Total Over 41.5 (best odds: -125 at DK)
SMU First Half -16.5 (best odds: -110 at bet365)

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