As spooky season nears its finale, one of our bettors is frightened by his own bad luck, and the other is getting scary confident. 

JON GREENBERG (2-4 last week, 14-19-1): Just like that, it’s late October. It’s cold and gray out, I have a birthday coming up, and I’m wondering how I’m going to afford going anywhere on Christmas break when I’m this bad at gambling.

I should’ve taken some of your suggestions last week, and I also should’ve bet on the Bengals like I suggested. How can I cure my malaise? Maybe by betting on over 47.5 in Kent State-Bowling Green?

ZAC JACKSON (4-3, 22-23-1): I counted them up, and I’ve now had two straight winning weeks. I’m headed for a winning October, so it looks like the kids in my neighborhood will be getting the medium-sized candy for trick or treat this year. I bought a bag of the king-size ones at Costco, but I ate them on the way home. 

November will bring us mid-week MAC games. Until then, though, I’m not seeing much. I had two other picks I liked last week and wanted to get in the column. One won. The other lost by about five touchdowns. Even my genius has its bounds. With nearly every Browns season as a reminder, there’s a long way to go…

GREENBERG: I’m glad you’re doing well. All I do is lose — betting, paddle tennis, my hair, my patience with my kids. But hey, it could be worse. I could’ve been playing poker with Chauncey Billups or fading Damon Jones.

Let’s get that losing straightened out this week. I’m taking the under 60.5 in Ohio at Eastern Michigan. (The Bobcats are favored by 12.5.) I think that’s the only out-of-state conference road game I covered in two years on the beat in college. My junior year, I took the bus up with the team (I felt like Forrest Gump, because no one wanted to give up an empty seat to a reporter, except a very nice third-string QB) and spent the night in Ann Arbor with a friend. I got a ride back from the Messenger’s beat writer, who got us home to Athens at about 105 mph so he could make last call. The only things I remember from that game were that the Bobcats lost and they served Papa John’s in the pressbox, which I thought was fine cuisine in 1999.

I flirted with the idea of UCLA +25.5 at Indiana and Virginia -10.5 at North Carolina, but I’m going with Mizzou +2.5 at Vanderbilt. I just have a feeling.

My one MAC lean is Kent State getting a touchdown at home, but I’ll leave it as a lean. I simply can’t match your Ypsilanti story or your enthusiasm for Ohio-EMU, so I’ll rest up for mid-week MACtion.

I’m late to the party based on line movement, but I’ll take South Florida -6 at Memphis. The Bulls are chasing that Group of Five playoff berth, and Memphis lost quarterback Greg Lewis to injury last week. His status is unclear, but I think USF is pretty legit and was going to be the right side in this game either way.

Did you know Wisconsin hasn’t scored a touchdown in its last 27 possessions? In a development that will completely stun you, I actually stumbled upon a gathering of Wisconsin alums watching the Badgers in Central London a few weeks ago. They were unimpressed by my ability to rapidly name all 41 starting quarterbacks in the Browns’ post-1999 era, but pretty impressed that I knew Joe Thomas. We’ll call that a wash, and we’ll go with under 44 as Wisconsin goes to Oregon. What can the Ducks really accomplish here? I think both teams will be content with running out the second-half clock.

Tennessee-Kentucky over 55 seems like a winner, as does over 67 in Cincinnati-Baylor. The Bearcats might be legit, and this one should be a track meet.

GREENBERG: The last time the Eagles were favored by 7.5 points was two games ago against the Giants. They lost 34-17. In this week’s rematch, the Eagles are favored by the same spread against the same team, only this time it’s at home. After the Giants’ disaster against Denver last week, I’m rolling with the Eagles -7.5. (The BetMGM consensus is on the Giants right now, which tilted the scale.)

I always love the Steelers as home underdogs. I’ll take Pittsburgh +3 against Green Bay in Aaron Rodgers’ “Not a Revenge Game” revenge game. And I’ll take the Bears +6.5 at Baltimore. I think the Ravens win (if Lamar Jackson plays), but the Bears are on a roll and taking the ball away on defense, so it should be close.

JACKSON: Cowboys +3.5 in Denver is my pick of the month. The Broncos used up a lot of energy (and a year’s worth of luck) in that fourth-quarter rally to beat the Giants last week, while Dak Prescott has quietly been operating the Dallas offense at a high level. Cowboys kicker Brandon Aubrey might be able to make field goals from 75 in the Denver elevation, and I think the Cowboys can at least keep it within a field goal.

Under 40.5 in New England feels like a winner, too. Drake Maye hasn’t seen a defense like the Browns, but the Cleveland offense is just bad. Lots of punts here and a few field goals, too.

The Lamar Jackson status makes that game a complete mystery. It’s a pretty big deal going forward, too, obviously. The Ravens can still win the division if they get healthy. I’ll pass on Ravens–Bears for now, but I’ll take the Steelers +3 at home Sunday night. Mike Tomlin just finds a way in these games, and the Packers haven’t been ultra-impressive.