SOURCE: Los Angeles Times

There are times when oddsmakers peg an event so right, money is split evenly for supporters on each side. That's the case with several college football games this week, highlighted by USC's 39½-point line over Stanford.

Although the Trojans, who have won 35 consecutive home games, are heavily favored to defeat the Cardinal, about half of the early bettors do not agree they will cover the spread at the Coliseum on Saturday.

When you consider Coach Pete Carroll's team is 2-8 in its last 10 games against the spread when it has been favored by 10½ points or greater, it makes sense to see USC receive only 50.59 percent of the bets (436-426), as of Wednesday night, according to Wagerline.com.

Stanford, which will start backup quarterback Tavita Pritchard, is 7-3 in its last 10 games as a road underdog against the spread, and although the Trojans have won five games in a row in the series, the Cardinal have won two of the last three games against the spread.

Oddsmakers do not only make things difficult for bettors on oversized-point lines, they also can draw wager balance with tight games. Rutgers is a 3½-point home favorite over Cincinnati and the Scarlet Knights have picked up 51.2 percent (535-510) of the bets.

It's a similar situation with Wyoming, which is a three-point home favorite over Texas Christian. The Cowboys hold a slight edge at 50.50 percent (452-443).

Then you have a game such as Oklahoma vs. Texas at the Cotton Bowl in Dallas. After last week, this game lost a great deal of luster when the Sooners lost at Colorado and the Longhorns were upset at home by Kansas State.

But bettors have liked the action this week with Oklahoma listed as an 11-point favorite by Sportsbook.com. Texas, which is expected to start quarterback Colt McCoy (who was injured last week), has received 48.68 percent support, compared to the Sooners 51.32 percent (546-518).