College Football Picks Week 8: Odds, Predictions, Schedule, Rankings for Top 25
The most important game to date that will alter the College Football Playoff landscape takes place in Columbus, Ohio on Saturday.
The Ohio State Buckeyes host the Penn State Nittany Lions in a Big Ten battle of Top 10 teams.
Ohio State enters the home contest as the favorite and with the higher spot in the AP Top 25.
The Buckeyes own a six-game winning streak over Penn State and they have captured 10 of the last 11 contests between the two sides.
Penn State's biggest knock under head coach James Franklin is that it is unable to win the big games.
The Nittany Lions appear to be in the best position ever during Franklin's tenure to reverse that poor form.
The Tennessee Volunteers ended a losing streak against the Alabama Crimson Tide that lasted back to 2007 last season. The Vols will try to win consecutive games in the series for the first time since 2003 and 2004, but that may be difficult against an improving Alabama side.
For the latest lines on these games, go to DraftKings.
Saturday, October 21
No.7 Penn State at No. 3 Ohio State (-4.5) (Noon ET, Fox)
UCF at No. 6 Oklahoma (-18) (Noon ET, ABC)
No. 22 Air Force (-10) at Navy (Noon ET, CBS)
Washington State at No. 9 Oregon (-19) (3:30 p.m. ET, ABC)
No. 17 Tennessee at No. 11 Alabama (-9.5) (3:30 p.m. ET, CBS)
South Carolina at No. 20 Missouri (-6.5) (3:30 p.m. ET, SEC Network)
North Texas at No. 23 Tulane (-19) (3:30 p.m. ET, ESPN2)
Minnesota at No. 24 Iowa (-5.5) (3:30 p.m. ET, NBC)
No. 8 Texas (-22) at Houston (4 p.m. ET, Fox)
Virginia at No. 10 North Carolina (-23) (6:30 p.m. ET, CW Network)
No. 13 Ole Miss (-5.5) at Auburn (7 p.m. ET, ESPN)
No. 2 Michigan (-25) at Michigan State (7:30 p.m. ET, NBC)
No. 16 Duke at No. 4 Florida State (-14) (7:30 p.m. ET, ABC)
Army at No. 19 LSU (-30) (7:30 p.m. ET, SEC Network)
No. 14 Utah at No. 18 USC (-5.5) (8 p.m. ET, Fox)
Arizona State at No. 5 Washington (-28.5) (10:30 p.m. ET, FS1)
No. 25 UCLA (-16.5) at Stanford (10:30 p.m. ET, ESPN)
Ohio State defeated Penn State by at least nine points in each of their last four meetings.
The Buckeyes outpaced the Nittany Lions recently after losing in State College in 2016 and winning a pair of one-point games after that.
Ohio State's continued success in the rivalry will come down to Kyle McCord's play against Penn State's secondary.
The first-year starting quarterback turned the ball over once this season and he has he best offensive weapon in the game in wide receiver Marvin Harrison Jr.
Ohio State's other star skill position players have been banged up. A few of them missed last week's win over the Purdue Boilermakers to be healthy as they can be for Saturday's clash in Columbus.
Penn State holds the edge at running back with the duo of Nicholas Singleton and Keytron Allen, but it needs a big-play wide receiver to combine with Drew Allar to match what the McCord-Harrison pairing is capable of.
Neither defense is expected to give up much. Both teams have not allowed an opponent to reach 20 points, so the best play of them all for the Top 10 clash is the under.
Ohio State's winning score has not been under 25 during its current winning run versus Penn State, but that could change this year with two excellent defenses on the field against two quarterbacks with a lot of inexperience.
McCord may have a bit more trust with bettors because he led Ohio State to a road win over the Notre Dame Fighting Irish, but the difference between he and Allar is small enough where it may be difficult to choose a side in the contest.
The Tennessee-Alabama rivalry could go back to business as usual in Tuscaloosa on Saturday.
Alabama won 15 straight contests in the rivalry before the Vols won a 52-49 thriller in Knoxville last season.
Tennessee has taken a step back in 2023 with Joe Milton at quarterback, while Alabama remained at its remarkably high standard for most of the campaign.
The Crimson Tide found stability at quarterback with Jalen Milroe. He led the Tide to four straight 20-point performances after a brutal two-game stretch for the program in September.
Tennessee has been steady at home, but its one defeat came on the road thanks to a miserable offensive outing against the Florida Gators.
Milton led the Vols to just 16 points in Gainesville, and his inability to produce touchdowns on the road could haunt them inside Bryant-Denny Stadium.
Alabama's defense has not been spectacular, but it has been good enough to allow Milroe to pull away in a handful of contest.
The Crimson Tide typically dominate on defense at home in the rivalry with Tennessee. The Vols eclipsed the 20-point mark once in Tuscaloosa during Bama's 15-game winning run. Nick Saban's side won 52-24 in the one game in which the Vols put up a respectable point total.
Alabama should force Milton into some bad decisions that lead to a turnover or two, and if Milroe remains steady in the pocket, the Tide will come away with yet another double-digit win in the rivalry.
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