Philly Special: Our favorite parlays in the Philadelphia market this weekend

The debut of the Philly Special parlay last week was profitable for neither of us. Jeff went 2 for 3, and Devin went 1 for 3. But, if at first you don’t succeed... you know the rest.

We’re back at it again this weekend. Temple is more than a touchdown favorite at home vs. lowly UMass, Penn State hosts a MAC opponent (Central Michigan) and the Eagles, with Super Bowl hype being revved up, go on the road to take on Carson Wentz and the Washington Commanders. The Phillies, meanwhile, are hosting the Braves this weekend as they try to hold on to a wild card spot.

Like betting on your local teams? Here are our favorite Philly parlays of the weekend.

(Odds are courtesy of FanDuel Sportsbook and are reflective of the time of writing. They are subject to change.)

We’ll start with Penn State, since the 12 p.m. Nittany Lions-Chippewas start kicks off a Philly football weekend. Do I think Penn State can win by four-plus touchdowns? Probably, but as Devin pointed out earlier this week, Central Michigan is tough and could be contending for a MAC championship later this season. I’m not going to say this is a letdown spot for Penn State before conference play begins, but I’m not as comfortable laying this many points as I am betting on the total (62.5 points). It’s a lot of points, to be sure, but the Nittany Lions put up 41 on Auburn last weekend, and scoring 50-plus on their own Saturday afternoon doesn’t feel out of the question.

At 2 p.m. Saturday, Temple hosts UMass as betting favorite of more than a full touchdown. This retooling Temple team took a big leap last week when it hung tough with Rutgers and almost won. And Saturday the Owls host what may be the worst team in FBS football. UMass has faced two FBS opponents so far in 2022 (Tulane and Toledo) and was outscored, 97-20, in those two contests combined. The Minutemen got their first win this past Saturday over FCS Stony Brook, 20-3, but that score doesn’t tell the story. UMass was out-gained, 333-264, and would have been in a much tighter game if not for Stony Brook turnovers. Bet Temple to win by double digits.

A family member — probably your uncle that talks too much, or maybe one of your friends — is going to tell you the Eagles are in a classic letdown spot after their national television domination of the Minnesota Vikings and the continued discussion of their chances of winning the Super Bowl. That’s a scarred sports fan. Put your hand on their shoulder, look them in the eye, and tell them everything is going to be OK. Carson Wentz and the Commanders needed to rally late to beat the Jaguars in Week 1 and allowed the Detroit Lions to run all over them last weekend. The Eagles have matchup advantages all over the field. Don’t be scared to believe.

The parlay (lines courtesy of FanDuel): Penn State/Central Michigan over 62.5 (-105); Temple -8.5 (-110); Eagles -6.5 (-110)

Odds: +611 (bet $10, win $61.10)

The theme of this week’s games locally, at least in the college football and NFL worlds, are ‘prime letdowns’ in the making. And personally, I agree that I would not be comfortable taking any of the three teams on their respective betting lines this weekend.

Penn State has won and covered in its last five matchups against MAC opponents, but Central Michigan has created magic in three of its last four games against Power 5 opponents. I have no qualms about Penn State winning comfortably, but the 27.5-point number is too much for me to take. I’m taking the over 62.5 points at FanDuel in this one.

As for Temple, the Owls played as well as they could’ve against Rutgers, and if you listened to my advice last week about them being a sneaky bet, you could’ve earned yourself money on that ridiculous 17.5-point line. This week, though, Temple should cover the slightly small 8.5-point line, but taking the under of 43.5 seems more realistic, as UMass has been one of the worst teams in college football over the last couple of seasons.

Finally, the Eagles are receiving all types of love locally and in the betting world, seeing an improvement in their Super Bowl odds, and Jalen Hurts’ odds to win MVP. Washington’s defense has been awful this season, but its offense has looked the part, led by former Eagles quarterback Carson Wentz. While the Eagles’ defense looked much improved from Week 1 one, I’m inclined to think this is a slugfest scoring-wise and taking the over on 47.5 total points to hit Sunday.

The parlay (lines courtesy of FanDuel): Penn State/Central Michigan over 62.5 (-105); Temple-UMass under 43.5 (-114); Eagles-Commanders over 47.5 (-110)

Odds: +599 (Bet $10, win $59.97)

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