CFB odds, tips and best bets for week 3

Kansas slipped out of the Associated Press Top 25 after losing to Illinois last week in a game in which quarterback Jalon Daniels threw three interceptions.

Now Kansas returns home on Friday night to host UNLV in a rematch of last year's Guaranteed Rate Bowl, a game the Jayhawks won in a shootout with nearly 1,000 yards of offense.

Can the Rebels get revenge or will Kansas get back on track after a bad loss in Week 2?

Here is our UNLV vs. Kansas game preview which includes prediction and tip for the game.

UNLV vs. Kansas Odds

UNLV vs. Kansas Prediction

The last time these two teams faced each other, there were plenty of fireworks.

Quarterback Jason Bean threw six touchdowns in Kansas' 49-36 win.

Of course, both teams look different now that Bean was no longer eligible and UNLV quarterback Jayden Maiava transferred to USC.

For Kansas, Daniels returns to the quarterback position after only appearing in 12 games over the past two seasons.

His health is of utmost importance for a Jayhawks team that relies heavily on its offense to keep up with top-tier opponents

In addition to Daniels, the team's three best receivers (Lawrence Arnold, Quentin Skinner and Luke Grimm) and the team's best running back (Devin Neal) are important offensive returners.

This combination of specialty position players, minus Bean, helped them achieve the ninth-best offense in the country in 2023.

Daniels hasn't quite shaken off the rust yet and has had a slow start to the season (three touchdowns, four interceptions), but he should have his breakthrough soon.

Until then, however, he has Devin Neal, one of the best running backs in the country, at his disposal.

Neal ran 14 times for 101 yards against Illinois and could have a big day Friday as the Rebels ranked 78th in opponent rushing yards per game last season.

Despite losing offensive coordinator Andy Kotelnicki to Penn State, the Jayhawks offense has all the tools to be explosive.

However, new OC Jeff Grimes came under fire for his plays against Illinois, particularly his lack of running plays. Neal and Daniel Hishaw Jr. combined for just 21 carries (two in the fourth quarter), despite averaging nearly 7 yards per attempt in the game.

That will likely change against UNLV, which ranked 91st nationally in running last year (171.8 yards per game).

“I have to do a better job of passing the ball to them at the crucial time,” Grimes said this week.

Meanwhile, UNLV was ranked as the 13th-worst team in coverage in 2023, according to PFF.

However, they spent most of the offseason solving that problem by adding safeties Tony Grimes, Jalen Catalon, Jarvis Ware and Kodi DeCambra, as well as cornerbacks Malik Chavis and La'Vario Wiley. Grimes, Catalon and Chavis all start in the Rebels' revamped secondary.

UNLV vs. Kansas tip

The Rebels remain questionable in the secondary after allowing Utah Tech 14 points – both on long touchdowns through the air.

And while their run defense appears to have improved (52.5 yards per game on the ground in the first two weeks), the results against Houston and FCS opponent Utah Tech showed their impact.

Betting on college football?

Kansas has been ahead in four of its last five home games and is currently undervalued in the market after last week's loss. While I liked the number earlier in the week when it was at 6.5 points, I'm still betting on the current 8.5 as the Jayhawks are in a perfect position to rebound.

Selection: Kansas -8.5 (-120, BetMGM)

Why you can bet on the New York Post

Andrew Norton evaluates the NBA, WNBA, NFL, college basketball and football, UFC and golf. During the 2022-23 NBA season, he delivered an outstanding 14.1% ROI, collected 60% of his NBA spread picks and led Tallysight in its SportsIQ metric.