2020 college football picks, Week 8 predictions from proven model

The North Carolina vs. North Carolina State rivalry has been running since 1894, and while the programs have both had their successes at times, it’s rare that both football teams are on the upswing when they play each other. But on Saturday, North Carolina enters the game ranked No. 14 in the AP Top 25 and NC State is ranked No. 23. The game kicks off at noon ET on Saturday in Kenan Memorial Stadium and a limited number of fans will be allowed in attendance.

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Oct 3, 2020; Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts, USA; North Carolina Tar Heels running back Javonte Williams (25) crosses the goal line for 41-yard touchdown ahead of Boston College Eagles defensive back Josh DeBerry (21) during the second quarter at Alumni Stadium.

NC State has won three of the last four, but the Tar Heels have covered in each of the last five games the teams have played. This time around, the Tar Heels are 15-point favorites with the over-under for total points at 60.5 in the latest North Carolina vs. North Carolina State odds from William HIll. Before entering any NC State 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. Over the past four-plus years, the proprietary computer model has generated a stunning profit of over $4,100 for $100 players on its top-rated college football picks against the spread. It is a sizzling 25-13 on top-rated picks through seven weeks of the 2020 college football season, returning over $700 in profit already. Anyone who has followed it has seen huge returns.

Now, the model has set its sights on UNC vs. North Carolina State. You can head to SportsLine to see its picks. Here are several college football odds for North Carolina State vs. UNC:

• North Carolina vs. NC State spread: North Carolina -15
• North Carolina vs. NC State over-under: 60.5 points
• North Carolina vs. NC State money line: North Carolina -650, NC State +475

What you need to know about North Carolina

UNC was upset last week 31-28 against the Florida State Seminoles. UNC was close to capping off a huge comeback (it was down 31-7 at the end of the half), but just didn’t have quite enough. The losing side was boosted by running back Javonte Williams, who rushed for one TD and 119 yards on 18 carries in addition to snatching one receiving TD.

Wiliams and fellow running back Michael Carter have combined to produce 1,166 yards from scrimmage already this season and 11 touchdowns. They should see a heavy workload against an NC State defense that gave up 314 yards rushing to Virginia Tech in their only loss of the season.

What you need to know about NC State

The Wolfpack have had to battle to get to 4-1 with their four wins coming by a combined 32 points. However, the defense has been really locked in over the last two weeks, allowing just 4.4 yards per play against Virginia and 3.9 yards per play against Duke.

With Bailey Hockman back in as quarterback after Devin Leary was lost to a leg injury, the defense will have to pick up the Wolfpack again on Saturday. Last week the Wolfpack had five sacks against Duke and if they can get to Sam Howell similarly on Saturday, it will give them a huge leg up to slow down a pretty solid UNC offense.

How to make North Carolina vs. NC State picks

The model has simulated North Carolina vs. NC State 10,000 times and the results are in. It is leaning over on the total, and it’s also generated a point-spread pick that is hitting in well over 50 percent of simulations. You can only see the pick at SportsLine.

So who wins North Carolina vs. NC State? And which side of the spread hits well over 50 percent of the time? Visit SportsLine right now to see which side of the NC State vs. North Carolina spread you need to jump on, all from the computer model that has crushed its college football picks.