Picking wins and losses (Photo by Author)
Rivalries like Tennessee-Alabama, BYU-Utah, Notre Dame-USC, Baylor-TCU, and ranked matchups like Vanderbilt-LSU and Georgia-Ole Miss highlight Week 8 of college football!
#3 Miami wins over #25 Louisville
Jeff Brohm and Louisville are an underrated, good team. If this game were in Louisville instead of Miami, I might have gone with the Cardinals. While Carson Beck and Miami will just be too much for Louisville, an upset here wouldn’t be surprising.
#17 Nebraska wins over Minnesota
PJ Fleck and Minnesota have given Nebraska fits since joining the Big Ten. The Gophers are 8-5 against the Cornhuskers and have beaten them five times in a row since 2019. This Nebraska team is turning a corner, though, and gets their first win over Minnesota since 2018, and their first win in Minneapolis since 2015.
Notre Dame wins over #20 USC
USC has not won in South Bend since 2011. This will be a battle between two potent and high-powered offenses. With both offenses being great, it will come down to the defenses, and that gives Notre Dame the edge. The Irish defense will get a few more stops, and that will be the difference.
#12 Virginia wins over Washington State
This is a game that at first didn’t look like it was worth mentioning. Then, Washington State nearly upset Ole Miss. If the Cougars play like they did against the Rebels, they could pull an upset. Virginia prevails at home.
#23 Oregon wins over Rutgers
Oregon heads to the East Coast again. Rutgers is like Penn State in that they started 3-0 and are now 3-3. The Ducks will rebound from their loss against Indiana with a win over Rutgers behind a big game from Dante Moore.
#8 Texas Tech wins over Arizona State
Tech has looked like an unstoppable juggernaut this season. They are the heavy favorite for the Big 12 title. This game will be closer than expected, though, and will depend on the health of the quarterbacks. ASU’s Sam Leavitt and Texas Tech’s Behren Morton are both battling injuries. The Red Raiders have more weapons, including running back Cameron Dickey, who will lead them to victory.
#14 Georgia wins over #9 Ole Miss
The Dawgs will try to pay back Ole Miss for beating them 28-10 last season in Oxford. Gunnar Stockton has been a threat both passing and rushing this year. He’ll hurt the Rebels passing and rushing and the homefield advantage will help Georgia get the victory.
Baylor wins over TCU
This Big 12 battle has produced some classics, and this one looks like it could be the same. It’s going to be an old-fashioned Texas shootout between Baylor quarterback Sawyer Robertson and TCU quarterback Josh Hoover. Robertson will prevail in this clash of great quarterbacks.
Houston wins over Arizona
I like Houston because they’re at home, and Willie Fritz is a good coach with a good track record. The Cougars’ only loss was at Texas Tech, and they are better than people give them credit for.
#16 Washington wins over michigan
Demond Williams will be the deciding factor of this game. Williams will beat michigan with both his arm and his legs, and if they key on him too much, Jonah Coleman and Denzel Boston will be ready to keep michigan off balance.
#7 Georgia Tech wins over Duke
Duke could upset Georgia Tech. I like Darian Mensah and Haynes King. They are both fantastic quarterbacks, but I give Tech and King the edge here because of King’s impact in the rushing attack. Still, this game could go either way because Many Diaz has Duke improving and being one of the better two-loss teams in the country.
Vanderbilt wins over #21 LSU
I like Vanderbilt at home because Diego Pavia is another dual-threat quarterback. Having that extra element a defense has to account for can be the difference in big games that look to be very close. LSU might be looking a little ahead to Texas A&M, too.
#11 UNLV over Boise State
UNLV is 0-6 playing at Boise State. The Rebels haven’t beaten the Broncos since 1976, 49 years ago. I want to pick Boise State at home, and after having beaten UNLV twice last season, including in the Mountain West Championship for a playoff berth. Revenge and Dan Mullen’s skill as a coach pushed me to change this at the last minute and take UNLV.
#13 Alabama wins over #15 Tennessee
Tennessee hasn’t won in Tuscaloosa in 22 years. In 2003, with quarterback Casey Clausen, the Vols defeated the Tide in Alabama. Tennessee’s offense can score with anyone. Their defense is struggling but they have the most sacks in college football. If they can consistently sack Ty Simpson, they’ll have a good shot. However, Simpson, DeBoer, and Alabama are just firing on all cylinders right now and will put up a lot of points on the Vols.
#2 BYU wins over #19 Utah
This game will come down to how well BYU’s star linebackers, Jack Kelly (out injured last week) and Isaiah Glasker, keep Devon Dampier in check. They’ll need to both shut down Dampier’s rushing attack and provide pressure on him as well. If BYU attacks Utah with LJ Martin as their main weapon and keeps their loud homefield advantage as a factor all game, they’ll beat the Utes.
#1 Ohio State wins over Wisconsin
This should be a layup for the Buckeyes. Wisconsin is just bad this year, especially on offense. They’re ranked 131st in scoring offense, and are going up against the 1st-ranked scoring defense in Ohio State. Ohio State will win and start the process of Wisconsin searching for a new coach, like Penn State is.
2025 Record: 76-52 (Overall: 178-95)
All the Rankings are from Week 7 of the Power Rankings. See where these teams are after these games in the Week 8 Power Rankings!
