USC vs. Wisconsin odds, line, spread: 2024 college football picks, Week 5 predictions by proven model

SportsLine's model revealed its CFB picks and predictions for USC Trojans vs. Wisconsin Badgers in a Week 5 contest on CBS and Paramount+

The Wisconsin Badgers will make their first road trip of the season when they visit the USC Trojans Saturday on CBS and Paramount+. The Badgers (2-1) didn't look overly impressive in back-to-back home wins to open the season before getting clobbered, 42-10, by Alabama two weeks ago. However, UW did have a bye last week to help prepare for USC (2-1), which suffered a last-minute loss to Michigan last Saturday. Wisconsin won the last meeting between the programs in 2015, but USC won the previous six matchups.

Trojans vs. Badgers will kick off at 3:30 p.m. ET from the L.A. Coliseum. USC is 2-1 against the spread in the 2024 college football season, while Wisconsin is 0-3 ATS. The Trojans are 14.5-point favorites, per SportsLine consensus, in the latest USC vs. Wisconsin odds. The over/under for points is 50.5. Before making any Wisconsin vs. USC picks, be sure to check out the college football predictions and betting advice from the SportsLine Projection Model.

Saturday's game can be seen live on CBS and streamed live on Paramount+, which you can now get for a 7-day free trial. Sign up right here.

The model simulates every FBS college football game 10,000 times. Since its inception, it has generated a profit of over $2,000 for $100 players on its top-rated college football picks against the spread. It is also coming off a profitable 13-9 season on top-rated spread picks. Anyone who has followed it has seen strong returns.

Now, the model has dialed in on USC vs. Wisconsin and just revealed its coveted picks and predictions. You can head to SportsLine now to see the model's picks. Here are the college football odds for the spread, money line and over/under:

• Wisconsin vs. USC spread: USC -14.5
• Wisconsin vs. USC over/under: 50.5 points 
• Wisconsin vs. USC money line: USC -654, Wisconsin +460
• Wisconsin vs. USC picks: See picks at SportsLine
• Wisconsin vs. USC streaming: Paramount+ (Get seven days free)

Why Wisconsin can cover

Wisconsin is a team that plays fundamentally and doesn't beat itself, as evident by how disciplined Luke Fickell's squad is. It has committed the second-fewest penalties (11) in all of college football, with the fewest penalty yards (53) in the nation. The Badgers are also one of a handful of teams that hasn't thrown an interception all season, so they both protect possessions on offense and don't allow cheap yards via flags.

With that type of approach, the Badgers rank seventh in FBS in time of possession, and simply limiting the number of times that USC has the ball will contain the Trojans offense. Additionally, the Trojans have trends going in the wrong direction as QB Miller Moss' completion percentage has dropped in every game this season, while USC's number of turnovers has increased in each game. See picks at SportsLine. 

Why USC can cover

Wisconsin coming off a 42-10 defeat to Alabama, which is its largest loss in a decade and doesn't inspire much confidence for this matchup. Starting QB Tyler Van Dyke tore his ACL on the opening possession of that loss, so UW is going from a QB with 28 college starts to Braedyn Locke, who has just three. Locke struggles with accuracy and has failed to eclipse a 50% completion percentage over 178 career pass attempts. He also doesn't have the luxury of a potent rushing attack to help as Wisconsin's 4.0 ypc ranks third-worst in the Big Ten.

Those offensive struggles will be compounded with facing a greatly improved USC defense. The Trojans are allowing less than half as many PPG (15.7) this year than last (34.4). They have not allowed a passing TD in each of their last two games, and their 147.7 passing ypg allowed ranks among the top 25 in the nation. Lincoln Riley-coached teams also take care of business versus lesser foes as USC is 17-1 straight-up against unranked teams under Riley. See picks at SportsLine.

How to make USC vs. Wisconsin picks

SportsLine's model is leaning Over on the total, projecting 61 combined points. It also says one side of the spread hits nearly 60% of the time. You can see the model's pick at SportsLine.

So who wins Wisconsin vs. USC, and which side of the spread hits nearly 60% of the time? Visit SportsLine now to see which side of the spread to jump on, all from the advanced model that is up well over $2,000 on top-rated spread picks since its inception, and find out, and don't forget to stream Wisconsin vs. USC on Paramount+.