At a time when all the attention in college football seems to be focused on the Big Ten and the SEC, it’s a definite change of pace when the biggest games of the weekend take place in the Pac-12 and Big 12.
That’s the case for Week 6, which kicks off with a headline matchup as No. 11 Utah visits No. 19 UCLA. The Utes, despite an early loss to Florida, remain a Pac-12 favorite with Southern California. But the calculus of who will finish atop the league has changed with the surprising start of the Bruins, who have posted five wins and could take a giant step toward the conference title game with a win.
Even with UCLA’s impressive start, the Bruins aren’t the greatest story in college football. That honor is reserved for No. 17 Kansas, who is 5-0 and joined the top 25 coaches poll this week for the first time in 13 years. The Jayhawks host undefeated No. 18 TCU with the presence of College GameDay on what should be a memorable day in Lawrence.
PODCAST:Sober October for trainers. Texas A&M, Oklahoma still fighting
QB RATINGS:Surprise SEC contender moves behind Ohio State’s Stroud
Follow all the matches: Live NCAA College Football Scores
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BOWL PROJECTIONS:Georgia continues to lead Alabama as the top seed in the playoffs
The latest ranked matchup sees No. 23 Mississippi State receive a visit from No. 25 Arkansas. The Bulldogs have an impressive win against Texas A&M, while the Razorbacks have back-to-back losses to the aforementioned Aggies and Alabama. Someone will get a key win to keep their hopes of a top finish in the SEC West alive
Bold Week 6 College Football Predictions
UCLA defeats Pac-12 favorite Utah
The two best defenses in the Pac-12 meet when Utah takes on surprising UCLA. Both are also scoring 41-plus points per game, so something has to give. Look for UCLA to continue their hot game and after beating the conference favorite, also look for the Bruins’ viability as a fringe playoff contender. To beat Utah, Dorian Thompson-Robinson must have a 300-yard passing game and add another 75 on the ground. It’s also important that UCLA comes out of the game injury-free, even though they have a week off before traveling to Oregon on Oct. 22. –Scooby Axson
TCU spoils Kansas’ great start
The Red River Rivalry gets renewed on Saturday but, improbably, the annual Texas-Oklahoma matchup isn’t even the biggest Big 12 matchup being staged at the same time. That distinction goes to No. 18 TCU vs. No. 17Kansas. The surprising Jayhawks (5-0) already have their most wins in a season since 2009 and are looking to become bowl eligible for the first time since 2008. The Horned Frogs, meanwhile, are off to a 4-0 start under the first-year coach Sonny. Dykes which includes the demolition of the Sooners last week. Kansas has certainly captured the imagination of college football on Twitter and the team should be commended for the real progress it has made in the second year under coach Lance Leipold. That said: I think TCU is probably even better and will play spoiler on the big day in Kansas, which includes the first College GameDay visit. –Jace Evans
LSU defeats Tennessee at Death Valley
LSU figures out how to stop Hendon Hooker and beats Tennessee for the first big win of Brian Kelly’s tenure. (No offense to Mississippi State.) It would be even bolder to predict that Jayden Daniels will pass Hooker after Daniels had only 80 passing yards in last week’s win against Auburn, so I won’t go that far. But given the Volunteers’ explosive offense, the key to an LSU victory is winning the turnover battle, so it’s a good thing Daniels is one of four Power Five quarterbacks with at least 100 no-go attempts. throw an interception. One of the others is Hooker, so I’m prepared for this pickaxe to blow up in my face. –Paul Myerberg
It is not an easy day for USC
Aside from a tough win at Oregon State, Southern California has had a mostly quiet run during Lincoln Riley’s first season with Caleb Williams at quarterback. Washington State comes to town and this could look like a comfortable win for the Trojans ahead of their matchup with Utah next week. However, the Cougars are more than capable of pulling off an upset if USC looks to the future. They already narrowly lost to Oregon at home in a game they led all the way. Cameron Ward has been impressive in his first year at quarterback. If the state of Washington can avoid the rotation bug that has stung other Trojan opponents, this will be a challenge. –Eric Smith
BYU wins Las Vegas jackpot with Notre Dame win
Legendary BYU coach LaVell Edwards once joked that when Cougars fans traveled to their bowl destination, they brought with them a $100 bill and a copy of the Ten Commandments, and didn’t break either. Still, there should be a significant crowd advantage on Saturday, as the Cougars will be much closer to home when they take on Notre Dame in Las Vegas, even if the BYU faithful won’t be visiting the casinos.
However, the real advantage for the Cougars will be the passing game. Notre Dame is one of four FBS teams yet to intercept a pass this season (Ohio, Michigan State and Fresno State are the others), and Jaren Hall has been intercepted just once in 171 attempts so far. The Fighting Irish still won’t have a pick and the Cougars will have another win after Saturday’s game. –Eddie Timanus
The state of Florida recovers in the state of North Carolina
The Seminoles had a frustrating performance last week against Wake Forest, losing 31-21 despite playing decently well in many areas. Wake Forest’s maturity and experience showed on third downs, going 10-for-18 while Florida State was just 4-for-11. But that game was just a play or two away from being really interesting late, and it should be a good one. learning experience for a Seminoles team that perhaps needed a taste of reality after a 4-0 start. This is a good place for Florida State to leap forward and catch up with a North Carolina State team that might be questioning a bit after a 30-20 loss at Clemson wasn’t nearly as close as the bottom line. Florida State will hit the road and win, setting up a big showdown in Tallahassee on Oct. 15 with Clemson. –Dan Wolken