The No. 13 LSU Tigers hope to pick up where they left off last year as they kick off their 2024 college football season against the 23rd-ranked USC Trojans at Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas on Sunday. LSU won its final four games in 2023 to finish with 10 victories for the second time in as many seasons under head coach Brian Kelly. USC begins its first campaign in the Big Ten Conference after going 8-5 in its final season in the Pac-12.

Kickoff is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. ET. The Tigers are 4.5-point favorites in the latest LSU vs. USC odds from SportsLine consensus, while the over/under for total points scored is 66.5. Before making any USC vs. LSU picks or CFB predictions, you need to see what the SportsLine Projection Model has to say.

The model simulates every FBS college football game 10,000 times. Since its inception, it has generated a profit of well over $2,000 for $100 players on its top-rated college football picks against the spread. It also is coming off a profitable 13-9 season on top-rated spread picks. Anyone who has followed it has seen STRONG returns!

The model knows LSU is expecting big things from quarterback Garrett Nussmeier after ranking first in the country in total offense last year (543.5 yards per game) and scoring a nation-leading 45.5 points per contest. Nussmeier, who replaces Jayden Daniels under center, has thrown for 1,720 yards and 11 touchdowns in limited action over the last three seasons. With 1,000-yard receivers Malik Nabers and Brian Thomas Jr. now in the NFL, Kyren Lacy will have the opportunity to shine after making 30 catches for 558 yards and seven TDs last year.

The model has also taken into account that while the Tigers watched Daniels get drafted by the Washington Commanders with the second pick in the 2024 NFL Draft, USC saw Caleb Williams go first overall to the Chicago Bears, leaving the Trojans' quarterbacking duties to Miller Moss - at least to start the season. Moss set several records by throwing six TD passes in USC's victory against Louisville in last year's Holiday Bowl and beat out Jayden Maiava for the starting role on Sunday. Wideout Zachariah Branch proved to be a threat wherever he played during his 2023 freshman season, as he made a pair of touchdown catches, ran for a score and returned both a kickoff and a punt for a TD.

The model has simulated LSU vs. USC 10,000 times and the results are in. We can tell you the model is leaning Over on the total, and it also says one side of the spread hits well over 50% of the time!

Who wins USC vs. LSU, and which side of the spread hits well over 50% of the time? ... Join SportsLine right now to find out which side of the spread you should be all over, all from the model on a 13-9 roll on top-rated CFB picks!