Joel Klatt reveals his pick on winner, spread for Miami vs. South Florida

USF heads to Miami to take on the Hurricanes fresh off beating Florida in the swamp. According to BetMGM, Miami is still a 17.5-point betting favorite to defeat USF on their home turf.

FOX Sports analyst Joel Klatt revealed his picks for this weekend’s marquee matchups ahead of Week 3. He predicted the Hurricanes to take care of business against the Bulls, winning 31-14. However, Klatt expects USF to cover.

“(USF’s) defense did an incredible job in the secondary taking away the big plays for DJ Lagway even if they didn’t produce a lot of pressure,” Klatt said. “Their secondary is good. … They took away those big plays even without getting the pressure on Lagway and him escaping a few times so their secondary they can do it. But if they don’t get to back, I trust (Carson) Beck to create the plays on the outside.”

Florida QB DJ Lagway threw for 222 yards but was held to one touchdown and an interception during the 18-16 loss. Klatt believes Beck, who’s off to a strong start to his tenure in Coral Gables, can overcome the same obstacles Lagway struggled with during Week 2.

Through two games, Beck has completed over 75% (42-55) of his passing attempts for 472 yards and four touchdowns. More importantly, he hasn’t thrown an interception through his first two games at Miami — something he was criticized for during his final season at Georgia last year.

Beck hasn’t been the only highlight on the Hurricanes’ offense. He has a pair of favorite wide receivers in Malachi Toney and CJ Daniels, who have combined for 281 yards all for of Beck’s touchdown passes. The Hurricanes also have over 300 yards on the ground as a team and have rushed for five touchdowns.

“Mario Cristobal has built the proper blueprint for a team that can go and play at the high end, because they can handle themselves at the line of scrimmage,” Klatt said. “They can produce pressure on the quarterback. They can run the football. And for me, I’m a big believer in Miami. But that doesn’t mean that this is going to be easy, because South Florida is a really good team.”

Kickoff between Miami and South Florida is set for Saturday at 4:30 p.m. ET and will air live on The CW Network. The over/under is set at 57.5 points, meaning Klatt is taking the under.