10) #17 UNC AT VIRGINIA – 9AM PT/12PM ET [ACC NETWORK]
UNC is playing quiet, and also playing hot. They survived the last three games against Miami, Pitt, and Duke. Now they head into November with a rivalry matchup in Virginia. Prior to the Tarheels win over Virginia last season, they lost the last four meetings. The Tarheels’ defense must step up or this match turns into a shootout by Virginia quarterback Brennan Armstrong. Expect the Heels to run away eventually.
MY PICK: UNC
9) #24 TEXAS AT #13 KANSAS STATE – 4PM PT/7PM ET [FOX SPORTS 1]
Kansas State coach Chris Klieman may have defeated Oklahoma three out of the four seasons, but he has never defeated Texas since becoming the K-State coach. After getting his first win against Oklahoma State, anything is possible. Any team that defeats the Big 12’s Big 3 teams (Oklahoma, Oklahoma State, and Texas) is likely going to the Big 12 championship. The Wildcats are 2-0 with only Texas as their biggest obstacle with Quinn Ewers as the starter. Kansas State is at home for the second straight game after dismantling the Cowboys. It might not be that way with the Longhorns, but the Wildcats are motivated enough to defeat them too.
MY PICK: KANSAS STATE
8) #19 TULANE AT TULSA – 9AM PT/12PM ET [ESPNU]
Tulane’s ranked for the first time since 1998. They have one of the better defenses in the AAC in scoring and total yards allowed led by linebacker Dorian Williams. The offense isn’t half bad when having quarterback Michael Pratt and dynamic back Tyjae Spears running the show. Tulsa has not been great but have been in close battles with good teams like Wyoming, Ole Miss, Cincinnati, and SMU. It’s possible they can do the same to Tulane and put them on upset alert, but the Green Wave will find a way to survive.
MY PICK: TULANE
7) #18 OKLAHOMA STATE AT KANSAS – 12:30PM PT/3:30PM ET [FOX SPORTS 1]
Kansas continues their “Stuck at 5” situation after starting 5-0. They are a better team this season than they have in the past decade combined. Unfortunately, the loss of quarterback Jalon Daniels put this program in neutral and sliding backwards downhill. Oklahoma State botched their season after being shut out by Kansas State last week and unfortunately stays in the Sunflower State for the second straight game to play the Jayhawks. This could be Kansas’s chance to upset Oklahoma State at home and get their sixth win. Upset alert is possible, but it’ll take a lot of Bean (quarterback Jason Bean) to make it even probable.
MY PICK: OKLAHOMA STATE
6) APPALACHIAN STATE AT COASTAL CAROLINA – 4:30PM PT/7:30PM ET [ESPN ON THURSDAY]
Coastal Carolina and Appalachian State became the competitive program in such a short time and could control the Sun Belt now and in the future. However, it’s been a challenging season for both. Appalachian State played a tough non-conference schedule but managed to upset Texas A&M. Then they were slowed by losses against James Madison and Texas State. Coastal Carolina couldn’t keep up with Old Dominion and were totaled in their only loss of the season. Six of their eight games were decided by 12 points or less as well. Coastal has leverage at home, but Appalachian State is good enough to handle this situation.
MY PICK: APPALACHIAN STATE
5) #25 UCF AT MEMPHIS – 12:30PM PT/3:30PM ET [ESPN2]
UCF walks into a trap game knowing that they are a ranked team in November. They’re better than Memphis across the board, but Memphis has challenged them for the past decade. UCF lost a close one to Louisville and weren’t able to handle ECU on the road. They have proven to be talented and deep to compete for the AAC championship this year. While Houston and Cincinnati were the hot topics of the conference, UCF was busy building and improving their roster under coach Gus Malzahn. That has paid off to where they control one of the two AAC spots above them, especially over Cincy after the win last week. Memphis is offensively strong and sound with quarterback Seth Henigan under center, but they lost the last three games against good AAC teams (Houston, ECU, and Tulane), and things might become difficult against UCF.
Let’s hope homefield works in Memphis’s favor like it did for East Carolina. The Tigers could chalk up some points, but there’s no way they will keep up with them. What’s worse is their defense has only allowed 20 points twice this whole season. They won’t slow down the offense.
MY PICK: UCF
4) #23 OREGON STATE AT WASHINGTON – 7:30PM PT/10:30PM ET [ESPN ON FRIDAY]
While the Beavers and the Huskies have little to no hope for a Pac-12 championship, either team could play spoiler to Oregon in a few weeks. Washington’s offense could try carving the Ducks’ defense while the Beavers have a rivalry game at home and their defense could create problems. Before I get ahead of myself in those scenarios, one of them must win to stay afloat with the other Top 4 best Pac-12 teams. Oregon State’s 0-2 against ranked opponents this season, but they are 6-0 against the rest. They are also 3-1 without quarterback Chance Nolan but his return before the Oregon matchup would be nice. Washington’s offense is pretty dang good since Kalen DeBoer arrived and brought in Michael Penix Jr. from Indiana. They scored under 30 points just once in a win over Cal last week. The focus will be on Penix, backs Wayne Taulapapa and Cameron Davis, and the receiving core to carve up the Beavers’ defense.
Oregon State’s defense might struggle but their offense is capable enough to keep up with Washington. What matters is the Beavers’ defense slowing down Washington, and they have the roster to do it and win an important game in Seattle.
MY PICK: WASHINGTON
3) #4 CLEMSON AT NOTRE DAME – 4:30PM PT/7:30PM ET [NBC/PEACOCK]
Clemson and Notre Dame meet for the first time since 2020. The last matchup was DJ Uiagalelei’s first official start when Trevor Lawrence tested positive for COVID. It was an offensive assault that carried into overtime before the one-time ACC member, Notre Dame, triumphed to appear in the playoffs. This is potentially a defensive struggle because Notre Dame has a proven defense while Clemson’s offense is so-so. I said this about a hundred times already but running back Will Shipley is the bell cow for the offense. While the passing game has looked better, it’s still shaky with the quarterback situation. Notre Dame’s offense is shaky too. Quarterback Drew Pyne isn’t bad, but the offense runs through the running back group. Anything they can do against Clemson’s defense will have to come through big plays.
Just like the 2020 matchup, Notre Dame will challenge Clemson all four quarters and put them in critical situations. Clemson will struggle, but they’ll eventually figure it out and escape another upset.
MY PICK: CLEMSON
T – 1) #1 TENNESSEE AT #3 GEORGIA – 12:30PM PT/3:30PM ET [CBS]
Part one of the epic SEC matchup of the year takes place between the hedges between Tennessee and Georgia. Tennessee hasn’t been ranked overall since the Peyton Manning days in 1998 (went undefeated and won the Natty). This team surprised with national championship aspirations with such offensive talent that’s comparable to the 2019 LSU Tigers. Do they have what it takes to go that far? Possibly, but we shall see. Georgia has the biggest challenge of the regular season. The offense is built for this challenge and will potentially carry the load while having faith their defense slows down Hendon Hooker and company. Despite allowing 20 plus points three times for the first time since 2020, they are still a good squad not to mess with from time to time.
Tennessee is playing their best football and are the hottest team in the country. Year two’s Hendon Hooker was electric from the beginning to now. Georgia continues their undefeated regular season run and their offense is better than last year’s with tight ends Brock Bowers and Darnell Washington, and three-year starting quarterback Stetson Bennett. While plenty of people are riding on Georgia, the SEC East had the changing of the guard in the past two seasons: Florida in 2020 and Georgia in 2021. I’m not kidding when Tennessee has strong comparisons to the 2019 LSU Tigers, and this could be their time to win the SEC East.
MY PICK: TENNESSEE
T – 1) #6 ALABAMA AT #10 LSU – 4PM PT/7PM ET [ESPN]
Part two of the epic SEC matchup of the year takes place in Death Valley between Alabama and LSU. Oh boy will this be a good one. The Tide travels to Death Valley with so much riding on their season after Tennessee handed them their first loss. Quarterback Bryce Young does everything in his power to put this team in winning position, especially when the defense fails to slow the offensive opposition. LSU’s unit continues their improvement each week and is looking more and more formidable in coach Brian Kelly’s first year. Quarterback Jayden Daniels is a bit more comfortable with the Tigers and finding ways to extend plays with his arm and legs. He will be heavily counted on to try and dismantle the Tide’s defense.
LSU defeated Ole Miss two weeks ago and are looking to take full control of the SEC West outright. They’re at home and had a bye week to prepare for Alabama. But so did Alabama. They hopefully took advantage of their bye week to clear up miscues involving penalties, dropped catches, and missed opportunities on defense. It could either be an offensive battle or a defensive struggle, but I’m aiming towards Alabama to survive Death Valley in hopes of controlling the SEC West after next week’s matchup against Ole Miss.
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