College Football Picks Week 9: Vegas Odds and Predictions for Top 25 Games
The national championship picture will become clearer Saturday afternoon when two unbeaten teams battle for state supremacy and the opportunity to enter the College Football Playoff discussion.
The Michigan Wolverines and Michigan State Spartans clash at noon in a contest between two of the nation's best rushing attacks, headlining a gameweek that also sees top-ranked Georgia head to Florida. Elsewhere, Cincinnati looks to take care of business against Tulane and Ohio State will seek to drag Penn State's disappointing season further into the mud.
What is the AP Top 25 entering Week 9's matchups, what teams do Vegas like in the week's most significant games and what can you expect from that titanic clash between intrastate rivals?
Find out with this preview of Week 9 in college football.
AP Top 25 for the Week of October 25
- Georgia (7-0)
- Cincinnati (7-0)
- Alabama (7-1)
- Oklahoma (8-0)
- Ohio State (6-1)
- Michigan (7-0)
- Oregon (6-1)
- Michigan State (7-0)
- Iowa (6-1)
- Ole Miss (6-1)
- Notre Dame (6-1)
- Kentucky (6-1)
- Wake Forest (7-0)
- Texas A&M (6-2)
- Oklahoma State (6-1)
- Baylor (6-1)
- Pittsburgh (6-1)
- Auburn (5-2)
- SMU (7-0)
- Penn State (5-2)
- San Diego State (5-2)
- Iowa State (5-2)
- UTSA (8-0)
- Coastal Carolina (6-1)
- BYU (6-2)
Vegas Odds, Predictions for Week 9 Games Featuring Top 25 Teams
Thursday, October 28
Troy at Coastal Carolina (-19) (Prediction: Coastal Carolina)
Saturday, October 30
Michigan (-3.5) at Michigan State (Prediction: Michigan State)
Iowa at Wisconsin (-3) (Prediction: Iowa)
Cincinnati (-24.5) at Tulane (Prediction: Cincinnati)
Texas at Baylor (-2) (Prediction: Baylor)
Iowa State (-7) at West Virginia (Prediction: Iowa State)
Georgia (-14.5) at Florida (Prediction: Georgia)
Texas Tech at Oklahoma (-18.5) (Prediction: Oklahoma)
Colorado at Oregon (-24.5) (Prediction: Oregon)
Duke at Wake Forest (-16.5) (Prediction: Wake Forest)
Ole Miss at Auburn (-1) (Prediction: Ole Miss)
Kentucky (-1) at Mississippi State (Prediction: Kentucky)
SMU at Houston (-1) (Prediction: SMU)
Penn State at Ohio State (-17.5) (Prediction: Ohio State)
North Carolina at Notre Dame (-3.5) (Prediction: Notre Dame)
Virginia at BYU (-2.5) (Prediction: BYU)
Fresno State at San Diego State (-1) (Prediction: San Diego State)
Odds via DraftKings Sportsbook.
Michigan, Michigan State Clash in Big 10 Main Event
Michigan at Michigan State (Noon, Fox)
Two of the best rushing teams in the nation battle in a monumentally important game Saturday as the Michigan Wolverines travel to Spartan Stadium to battle the rival Michigan State. Both teams are undefeated and the home team enters the game fresh off a bye week.
Michigan's running back duo of Blake Corum and Hassan Haskins has been dominant this season. They head into Saturday on the back of a game against Northwestern in which each accumulated 100 yards on the ground and two touchdowns.
It may be the Wolverine's passing game that proves the difference in Saturday's showdown, though.
Quarterback Cade McNamara will face a leaky Spartan secondary allowing a little more than 285 yards per game. It is the one weak spot on the Michigan State defense and worth trying to exploit if you are head coach Jim Harbaugh.
If the Wolverines can get consistency out of McNamara and Corum and Haskins get hot against the 31st-ranked rushing defense in the country, they should be able to escape East Lansing with a win.
For Michigan State, running back Kenneth Walker III figures to fuel its offense and maintain the 200-yards-per-game output that the team has enjoyed this season.
Despite the Spartans' uncharacteristic defensive weaknesses, the high stakes and a red-hot crowd are far too important to overlook. The Wolverines will rack up yards, but look for Michigan State to come up with a big turnover when it matters most, probably during an ill-fated attempt to exploit the secondary.
Sparty wins.
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