College Football Parlay Picks for Week 1: Cream of the Crop

College football is back! Sure, Week 1 of the regular season means a lot of lopsided games and cupcake opponents for playoff contenders. But it also means a full slate of games, which means we can get back to making our parlays.

I’m in on a couple of favorites to get off the mark quickly and cover the fairly reasonable spreads they’re handing to their overmatched opponents. I’m also going to look at a regional rivalry for a same-game parlay option that has us betting on a star quarterback who had a huge year last season. 

Read on to see who I’m betting on in my best college football parlay picks for Week 1.

Week 1 college football parlay picks

• Washington -14 + Tulane -6.5 = +264
• North Carolina moneyline + Over 64.5 + Drake Maye Over 2.5 TD passes = +294

Click on each pick to jump to the full analysis.

Best college football parlay Week 1

Washington -14

Tulane -6.5

+264 at DraftKings

It may be hard to remember, but the Washington Huskies have actually played in a College Football Playoff game, getting there back in 2016. And while the Huskies might not be a favorite to reach the CFP this year, they’re certainly in the mix after an 11-2 mark in 2022. 

The Huskies are at home, and will once again have a dynamic offense led by Michael Penix Jr., who threw for 4,641 yards and 31 touchdowns last year. While the Boise State Broncos were solid last year, they struggled against better competition and look to be missing most of their wide receiver corps for this game. With Boise State likely needing to score a lot to stay in this matchup, that’s a bad sign. Washington should win easily at home.

The Tulane Green Wave is coming off one of the best seasons in school history, going 12-2 and beating the USC Trojans in the Cotton Bowl. They’ll be opening their season against another small-time program on the rise, as South Alabama Jaguars finished 10-3 last year, easily the best record in the school’s history as an FBS team. 

Both teams are bringing back their star quarterbacks, with Michael Pratt commanding Tulane while Carter Bradley takes the ball for the Jaguars. Outside of the loss of Tyjae Spears from the Green Wave backfield, these two teams will look a lot like they did last season. That’s enough reason for me to think Tulane can cover the spread at home, as the Green Wave were definitely the better team in 2022, and they figure to carry over that momentum into the 2023 season.

Best college football SGP Week 1

UNC moneyline

Over 64.5 points

Drake Maye Over 2.5 TD passes

+389 at FanDuel

The North Carolina Tar Heels looked like a top-15 team for much of the 2022 season, jumping out to a 9-1 record before losing four straight to close out the season. In the wake of that collapse, changes were made to the coaching staff, with Chip Lindsey taking over as offensive coordinator.

While the Tar Heels didn’t score a lot of points down the stretch, the offense was hardly the problem. Drake Maye threw for 38 touchdowns against just seven interceptions and looks like he’s heading toward a top-10 selection in the 2024 NFL Draft.

He’ll get a shot at showing off his skills against the rival South Carolina Gamecocks, who were mediocre against the pass and awful against the run last year. UNC doesn’t play much defense either – North Carolina gave up 31.3 points per game last season to BCS opponents, while South Carolina allowed 30.4 – so we should see a high-scoring game where both teams are forced to throw the ball.

If that’s the case, I love the Tar Heels to win this game. While Maye will happily light up the Gamecocks through the air, Spencer Rattler is much more prone to mistakes, throwing 12 interceptions against just 18 touchdowns last year. I also like the Over, as this should be a shootout on both sides. 

Finally, I’m taking Maye to throw at least three touchdowns. That’s a lot of production, but Maye wants to earn some Heisman trophy consideration this year, and carving up a struggling South Carolina defense is a great way to start. In a game with lots of points in the making, I’m backing Maye to get to the endzone with regularity. 

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