Fresno State vs Kansas Prediction, Picks & Odds for August 23 — College Football Week 0

Farmer’s prediction: Jalon Daniels will lead the Jayhawks to a double-digit cover on Saturday night.

Douglas Farmer - Betting Analyst at Covers
Douglas Farmer • Betting Analyst
Aug 22, 2025 • 13:59 ET • 4 min read

NCAAF

Match starts: 26 hrs
KU
67 %
FRES
33 %
EXPERT PICK - SPREAD
Kansas -13.5 (-114) Kansas -13.5 (-114)
Read Analysis
Jalon Daniels Kansas Jayhawks NCAAF
Photo By - Imagn Images. Kansas Jayhawks quarterback Jalon Daniels (6) passes the ball.

No one in college football is more ready for a home game than Kansas Jayhawks fans.

A stadium renovation forced all Jayhawks games to Kansas City last season, but now 47,000 fans can pour into The Booth to watch what should be a win against the Fresno State Bulldogs.

My Fresno State vs. Kansas predictions expect a Jayhawks’ rout, only in part because those home fans are thirsty for a show.

Find out more in our college football picks for Saturday, August 23.

Fresno State vs Kansas prediction

Fresno State vs Kansas best bet: Kansas -13.5 (-114)

Kansas went a putrid 1-5 in one-score games last season, undone largely by turnovers.

Those turnovers began with quarterback Jalon Daniels more often than not, throwing eight interceptions in the first five games of the season, three of those being one-score losses.

But as Daniels regained some of his 2022-23 form, so did the Jayhawks. In the five games heading into the season finale, Daniels threw seven touchdowns against just two interceptions, pushing Kansas to a 4-1 record.

While the Jayhawks began the year 0-6 against the spread, they went 5-0 ATS in that stretch.

As Daniels goes, so goes Kansas.

His 2024 struggles could be, at least in part, attributable to a change at offensive coordinator, struggling to find the same week-to-week communication with Jeff Grimes that he previously had with Andy Kotelnicki. New offensive coordinator Jim Zebrowski has worked with Daniels for four years.

Expect Daniels to return to his most explosive form, the kind we saw as Kansas pondered a bowl game in 2024. That explosive form should exploit Fresno State’s extensive roster turnover.

Fresno State vs Kansas same-game parlay

Looking from one season to the next is rarely a proper handicap in college football, but note that Daniels threw for more than 200 yards and at least two touchdowns in three of his final seven games last season, even as Kansas struggled.

And in two of those three games, the Jayhawks covered the spread as the Overs cashed. As Daniels goes, so goes Kansas.

Our deep-ball SGP: Damn, Daniels!

Doubting E.J. Warner is not so much doubt in him as it is recognition that Fresno State first-year head coach Matt Entz is going to commit much of his FBS debut season to offensive line hopes and a rushing game.

The former North Dakota State head coach prefers physical football, and trusting it in Lawrence will give the Bulldogs their best hope of shortening the game and staying within a reasonable distance of Kansas.

Fresno State vs Kansas odds

  • Fresno State vs. Kansas spread: Kansas -13.5
  • Fresno State vs. Kansas moneyline: Fresno State +420, Kansas -580
  • Fresno State vs. Kansas Over/Under: 50.5

Fresno State vs Kansas betting trend to know

In the last three season openers, Kansas has scored at least 48 points in each game. Find more college football betting trends for Fresno State vs Kansas State.

How to watch Fresno State vs Kansas

Location David Booth Kansas Memorial Stadium, Lawrence, KS
Date Saturday, August 23, 2025
Kickoff 6:30 p.m. ET
TV FOX

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Fresno State vs Kansas weather

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Odds are correct at the time of publishing and are subject to change.
Not intended for use in MA.
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Douglas Farmer
Betting Analyst

Douglas Farmer spends his days thinking about college football and his nights thinking about the NBA. His betting habits and coverage follow that same pattern. He covered Notre Dame football for various outlets from 2008 to 2024, most notably spending eight seasons as NBC Sports’ beat writer on the Irish. That was also when his gambling focus took off. Knowing there were veteran beat writers with three decades more experience than he had, Douglas found his niche by best recognizing Notre Dame’s standing in each year’s national landscape, a complex tapestry most easily understood and remembered via betting odds.

In 2021, that interest created a freelance opportunity with Covers, a role that eventually led to Douglas joining the company full-time in 2023. In the fall, Douglas will place five or six dozen bets each week, a disproportionate amount via BetRivers because the operator tends to have lines slightly different than the rest of the market. The same can be said of Circa Sports’ futures markets.

While Douglas is an avid NBA fan and covers the league throughout the year, the vast majority of his bets are on college football, because that is the biggest key to sports betting: Know what you do not know.

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