This is not just a big week, it’s the big week in college football so far this season. Marquee matchups are up and down Week 7—so sit back, keep your remote handy and enjoy the best slate of matchups we’ve had all season.
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Noon
Penn State at Michigan (-7)
2016 seems like a long time ago. Penn State has certainly had successful seasons since its last Big Ten championship, but it hasn’t won a division or conference title since. It’s been reliably third fiddle to Ohio State and Michigan. This game will go a long way to proving whether this season will be any different for the Nittany Lions.
What to watch: Penn State’s offense against the chains. When the Nittany Lions struggle on offense, it’s largely because they struggle to stay on schedule. They’re one of the worst teams in the country by rushing success rate (how well an offense gains manageable chunks of yards on a down-to-down basis). You can win if you’re not on schedule against Northwestern and Central Michigan, but the Wolverines’ defense is a decidedly different animal if you become one dimensional.
Barry Reeger/AP Photo
Kansas at Oklahoma (-8.5)
The Jayhawks had some significant tumult this week regarding who’s even going to play starting quarterback the rest of the year. It was initially reported that Jalon Daniels would be out for the season before Kansas announced that he’d be out Saturday and then be continually evaluated. Jason Bean came in in the second half against TCU last week and played admirably, but if he has to play a whole 60 minutes, it’s a different proposition. The Sooners will finally get Dillon Gabriel back, and if last week is any indication, they’ll need him to get on track.
What to watch: Oklahoma’s defense vs. Kansas’s offense. The Sooners have been giving up points like a sieve the last two times out, and last week’s 49–0 embarrassment at the hands of Texas certainly did not go over well in Norman. Brent Venables has a long way to go to revamp this defense.
Iowa State at Texas (-16)
Quinn Ewers returned against Oklahoma, and the Horns absolutely roasted the Sooners. He simply offers the offense a destructively high gear because of what he can do in the vertical passing game, but he’ll get a unique challenge with Iowa State’s defense. There will be points where he’ll have to be less a gunslinger and more of a “take what the defense gives you” QB. It’ll be huge for Ewers’s development if he can be efficient as well as explosive.
What to watch: Iowa State’s offense vs. Texas’ defense. The Cyclones’ offense is horrendous against Power 5 teams, and it’s struggled to score double digits the last two weeks.
Midday
Alabama (-7) at Tennessee, 3:30 p.m.
You could say it feels like 1998 in Knoxville—at least that’s what Vols fans are hoping after a hot start and the program’s highest ranking in nearly two decades. The environment will be absolutely electric with an “orange out” planned by the crowd and College GameDay in town. Tennessee has waited for a team like this, and a game like this, for a long time.
What to watch: Bryce Young vs. everybody … assuming Young plays, which is how things have been trending this week. Young has shown a preternatural ability throughout his career to pull Bama out of tight spots—but if the Tide get in a shootout here with the Vols against a Tennessee defense that shouldn’t really be slept on, does he have heroics in him even if he’s not 100%?
Gerald Herbert/AP Photo
Oklahoma State at TCU (-4), 3:30 p.m.
The Big 12 is deep, and in the early part of the race, these two teams have hopped out to a lead early in the race. Now it’s time to see which ones are for real. The Cowboys are getting the best out of QB Spencer Sanders this season and have got a long way to improving their passing game and making them harder to stop. But Sanders may have to keep the team afloat in a shootout given what the Frogs can do on offense.
What to watch: Quentin Johnston vs. the Cowboys DBs. Johnston had his breakout game with a massive game against Kansas. It unlocked a new dimension for TCU’s offense to just set it and forget and get that guy the ball. They’ll be looking to replicate that performance this week.
James Madison (-11.5) at Georgia Southern, 4 p.m.
The Dukes came up to the FBS level this season, and it doesn’t seem like there’s any dropoff from their FCS success. They aren’t eligible for a bowl game, but if they win this game it would be their sixth. The Sun Belt is a really competitive league, but James Madison has arrived and started rolling right through it three games into their conference slate.
What to watch: James Madison vs. the spread. The Dukes have covered in every game this season, and nearly all their games have hit the over. It’s a sign that Vegas hasn’t pegged them right yet. Is this the week they don’t outperform expectations?
Night
Clemson (-3.5) at Florida State, 7:30 p.m.
Florida State has now lost two games in a row heading into a big Saturday night matchup with the Tigers. Last week’s defeat was particularly gutting with a late game interception that happened within field goal range. This is the real challenge for Seminoles’ offensive line against a Clemson front that’s one of the best in college football.
What to watch: FSU’s defensive pass rush game plan. NC State and Wake Forest seemed to take a tentative approach to getting after DJ UIagalelei, and he was able to pick them apart. The Noles have a great pass rusher in Jared Verse, and if he can be unleashed in this game to affect Clemson’s QB, it’ll be a different proposition for him.
Mark Stockwell/AP Photo
Mississippi State (-4) at Kentucky, 7:30 p.m.
The Bulldogs march into the Bluegrass state with confidence. Besides a weird game against LSU, they’ve been unblemished and firing on all cylinders. But here comes Kentucky, which has hung its hat on competence throughout Mark Stoops’s reign. The Mississippi State air raid attack has been buoyed by a nasty run game attached to it, and the Cats will need to be able to contain Dillon Johnson, who is seemingly an automatic first down when he carries the ball.
What to watch: Kentucky’s offensive line vs. Mississippi State’s defensive line. It seems like Cats quarterback Will Levis will play after sitting out last week with an injury. Kentucky’s OL used to be its pride and joy, but not so much this year, particularly in pass blocking. If this game is a track meet, Levis needs to stay upright.
USC at Utah (-3.5), 8 p.m.
Utah got its dose of an athletic offense last week, and it didn’t work out in a rout against UCLA where the final score didn’t even indicate how dominant the Bruins looked. Now here come the Trojans for a second dose of Southern California Pac-12 impressiveness.
Marcio Jose Sanchez/AP Photo
What to watch: Clark Phillips III against USC’s great receivers. Jordan Addison and Mario Williams are a handful for anyone, but Phillips is one of the best corners in the country. When he’s in coverage on either wideout, it’s a real best-on-best situation.
Washington State at Oregon State (-3.5), 9 p.m.
Don’t sleep on what should be an exciting Pac-12 matchup. These two teams were thought to be the conference’s cellar dwellers, but they pose interesting threats in the league.
