The No. 20 North Carolina Tar Heels will try to stay unbeaten when they host the Minnesota Golden Gophers on Saturday afternoon. UNC escaped with a 40-34 win over Appalachian State in double overtime last week after beating South Carolina in its opener. Minnesota is getting set for its first road game after beating Nebraska and Eastern Michigan at home. This is the first meeting between these programs.
Kickoff is set for 3:30 p.m. ET on Saturday at Kenan Memorial Stadium in Chapel Hill. UNC is favored by 7.5 points in the latest North Carolina vs. Minnesota odds, while the over/under is set at 51 points, per SportsLine consensus. Before entering any Minnesota vs. North Carolina picks, you’ll want to see the college football predictions from the model at SportsLine.
The SportsLine Projection Model simulates every FBS college football game 10,000 times. Since its inception, it has generated a stunning profit of nearly $2,500 for $100 players on its top-rated college football picks against the spread. Anyone who has followed it has seen huge returns.
The model has set its sights on Minnesota vs. UNC. You can head to SportsLine to see its picks. Here are several college football betting lines for UNC vs. Minnesota:
- North Carolina vs. Minnesota spread: North Carolina -7.5
- North Carolina vs. Minnesota over/under: 51 points
- North Carolina vs. Minnesota money line: North Carolina: -289, Minnesota: +231
- North Carolina vs. Minnesota picks: See picks here
Why North Carolina can cover
UNC survived a scare from Appalachian State last week, improving to 2-0 with a double-overtime victory. The Tar Heels were led by running back Omarion Hampton, who rushed for a career-high 234 yards and three touchdowns. He was named the Doak Walker Award National Running Back of the Week, picking up the slack after wide receiver Tez Walker was ruled ineligible by the NCAA.
Kobe Paysour has been the team’s leading receiver without Walker in the mix, catching 15 passes for 139 yards and a touchdown. Sophomore quarterback Drake Maye has thrown for 477 yards and two touchdowns through two games. North Carolina has won 15 of its last 20 home games, while Minnesota has only covered once in its last five contests.
Why Minnesota can cover
North Carolina was not impressive in its home opener, coming nowhere close to covering the 19-point spread against Appalachian State. Maye did not throw a touchdown pass, and this will be a trickier assignment for the Tar Heels’ rushing attack. Minnesota’s defense has allowed 16 combined points through the first two weeks of the season, beating Nebraska and Eastern Michigan.
Freshman running back Darius Taylor rushed for 193 yards and a touchdown last week, earning Big Ten Freshman of the Week honors. It was the second-most rushing yards from a freshman in team history. Minnesota is 16-7 all-time against teams from the ACC, and it has won seven of its last eight games dating back to last season. See which team to pick here.
How to make North Carolina vs. Minnesota picks
The model has simulated Minnesota vs. North Carolina 10,000 times and the results are in. The model is leaning Over, and it’s also generated a point-spread pick that is hitting in well over 60% of simulations. You can only see the pick at SportsLine.
So who wins North Carolina vs. Minnesota, and which side of the spread hits well over 60% of the time? Visit SportsLine now to see which side of the Minnesota vs. North Carolina spread to jump on, all from the advanced computer model that’s up nearly $2,500 on its top-rated college football spread picks since its inception, and find out.
