Pittsburgh vs. West Virginia Week 1 Betting Preview, Odds, and Spread

Pittsburgh football opens its 2022 season with a non-conference game against West Virginia on Sept. 1 at 7 p.m. Pennsylvania sportsbooks have the No. 17 Pittsburgh Panthers as 7.5-point favorites with the total points at 51.5.

Though Kenny Pickett won’t be walking through Acrisure Stadium in a Pitt Panthers uniform, he is replaced with USC transfer Kedon Slovis. Unranked West Virginia also has a former USC quarterback, JT Daniels.

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West Virginia vs. Pittsburgh betting lines and preview

Pittsburgh Betting info and stats by DraftKings PA Sportsbook

Each of West Virginia’s last five road games against AP-ranked teams have gone under the total point line
The team ranked 17th in the AP Poll has covered the spread it five of its last six games
In 2021, Pittsburgh was 11-3 overall, 10-4 ATS and 8-6 O/U
In 2021, West Virginia was 6-7 overall, 6-7 ATS and 5-8 O/U

Players to watch for Pittsburgh

Kedon Slovis: A transfer from USC, the senior has big shoes to fill. Slovis was a first-team freshman All-American, Pac-12 Freshman of the Year and was named to the first-team All-Pac 12 as a sophomore. Slovis threw 58 touchdowns and completed 68% of his passes in his three years at USC.
Offensive Line: The starting five of Carter Warren, Marcus Minor, Owen Drexel, Gabe Houy and Jake Kradel are coming back to protect Slovis. Warren, Houy and Kradel each have three years of experience starting for the Panthers. Warren finished on the All-ACC second team.
Calijah Kancey: Kancey started all 14 games at DT last year and led the team with 13 tackles for losses. The redshirt junior is getting plenty of recognition this preseason, getting named to six defensive watch list awards.

Players to watch for West Virginia

JT Daniels: Daniels and Slovis played on the same USC team in 2019, and it was Daniels’ season-ending injury in Week 1 that allowed Slovis to take the job and run. Daniels transferred to Georgia and went 7-0 under Kirby Smart in his two seasons.
Dante Sills Jr.: The senior DT is the team’s active leader in sacks (19) and tackles for losses (43).

College football Week 1 betting analysis and insight: West Virginia vs. Pittsburgh

Pittsburgh vs. West Virginia Week 1 betting splits at DraftKings
(As of Aug. 31)

54% of the money is on West Virginia +7.5
55% of the money is on the Over (51.5)
55% of the money is on West Virginia ML +250

Max Meyer, content writer for Caesars Sportsbook, spoke with Joey Feazel, lead college football trader at Caesars Sportsbook, said this of Pittsburgh’s outlook for the season and Week 1 vs. West Virginia:

“Bettors have been really low on Pitt whether it’s for season win total or other futures,” Feazel said. “They lost [Kenny] Pickett to the NFL and [Jordan] Addison to USC, so they thought it’s not going to be close to the same team. But they still have Kedon Slovis coming in and a defense that should be really improved. We’re pretty split on this game. We opened Pitt at -7, and now that it’s 7.5 I don’t see it going much higher.”

How to bet on college football in Pennsylvania

You can place bets on college football in PA at any of the 14 sports betting apps. Here are some ways you can wager on college football:

Spread
Moneyline
Total
Live/in-game betting
1st half spread, moneyline, total,
Quarters

Player props for college football are not offered at Pennsylvania sportsbooks. So, you won’t see any over or under lines for specific players.

College Football Week 1 promos at Pennsylvania sportsbooks

FanDuel Sportsbook in PA is offering customers one of the best promos to kick off college football Week 1 action – bet $5 and get $150, win or lose.