What an amazing weekend of college football in Week 5! You won’t see a better game this year than that fantastic Tennessee-Georgia SEC thriller. Meanwhile, the University of Washington emphatically showed that it’s finally back among the nation’s elite with wipeout of Stanford. On the flip side, Florida State’s College Football Playoff hopes disappeared with an upset loss to North Carolina. Here are five Week 6 games to watch and their Sports Interaction NCAA football odds. Matchups on Saturday unless noted.
No. 9 Tennessee at No. 8 Texas A&M
When: 3:30 p.m. ET Point spread: Texas A&M -7 NCAAF ATS pick: Volunteers
Potential SEC Championship Game preview? It’s possible. The Vols are in total control of the SEC East at the moment following their 34-31 win at Georgia on a 43-yard Hail Mary TD pass from Joshua Dobbs to Jauan Jennings as time expired. Tennessee rallied from a double-digit deficit for the fourth time in five games to stay unbeaten. Texas A&M coach Kevin Sumlin was on the hot seat entering the season but that has cooled with the 5-0 start. I should remind A&M fans that their team started 5-0 the past two seasons as well but finished a disappointing 8-5 in each. Tennessee is 2-0 all time vs. Texas A&M but this is the first time the schools play as co-SEC members.
No. 1 Alabama at No. 16 Arkansas
When: 7 p.m. ET Point spread: Alabama -13 NCAAF ATS pick: Razorbacks
Both teams warmed up for this game with easy wins in Week 5. Alabama pounded Kentucky 34-6 and Arkansas routed Alcorn State 52-10. The Crimson Tide remain national championship favourites but now we start to really find out what they are made of as it starts the team’s toughest four-game stretch of the season. Alabama goes to Tennessee next week, hosts Texas A&M on Oct. 22 and visits LSU on Nov. 5. If the Tide win all of those, they will be going to Atlanta for the SEC Championship Game. Alabama has won nine straight over Arkansas, but the past two have been very competitive. Last year, the Tide won 27-14 at home. The Hogs led 7-3 at the half and trailed only 10-7 entering the fourth quarter. Calvin Ridley had a big game for Alabama with nine catches for 140 yards and an 81-yard TD to give the Tide the lead for good.
No. 5 Washington at Oregon
When: 7:30 p.m. ET Point spread: Washington -9.5 NCAAF ATS pick: Ducks
No team was more impressive in Week 5 than the Huskies, who destroyed No. 7 Stanford, the reigning Pac-12 champion, 44-6 last Friday. It was UW’s most lopsided win over an AP Top-10 team in 26 years. Oregon, meanwhile, is a shocking 2-3 after a 51-33 loss to Washington State, and Coach Mark Helfrich could be in major trouble. Washington leads this series 51-41-4, but it has been incredibly lopsided in Oregon’s favour of late as the Ducks have won the past 12 meetings. All of those were decided by at least 17 points until last year. Oregon won 26-20 in Seattle behind 138 yards rushing from Royce Freeman. UW’s Jake Browning threw for 199 yards with a TD and a pick and Myles Gaskin rushed for 155 yards and a score. It does feel like the tide is changing in the Pacific Northwest matchup. You can pretty much put Washington in the Pac-12 title game with a win here.
No. 23 Florida State at No. 10 Miami (Fla.)
When: 8 p.m. ET Point spread: Miami -3.5 NCAAF ATS pick: Seminoles
It was thought that Florida State might reach the College Football Playoff this year with every offensive starter returning. That’s not happening following FSU’s 37-35 loss to North Carolina on a 54-yard field goal as time expired to end the Seminoles’ 22-game home winning streak. The Hurricanes had little trouble with Georgia Tech on Saturday. It the first taste of this rivalry for new Miami coach Mark Richt. This series is deadlocked 29-29, but FSU has won the past six — its longest winning streak in the series since winning seven straight from 1963-72. Last year, the No. 12 Seminoles escaped with a 29-24 home victory against the unranked Hurricanes. FSU star running back Dalvin Cook, a Miami native, ran for 222 yards and three touchdowns, the last a 23-yarder with 6:44 remaining for the winning score. Cook also scored the go-ahead fourth-quarter TD against the Hurricanes in 2014.
Texas vs. No. 20 Oklahoma
When: Noon ET Point spread: Oklahoma -8 NCAAF ATS pick: Sooners
As usual, the annual Red River Rivalry game is held at the Cotton Bowl in Dallas and the winner gets the Golden Hat Trophy. I believe firmly that Texas will fire Coach Charlie Strong after the season if the Horns lose this one. That UT defense is a mess in the wake of a 49-31 loss to Oklahoma State on Saturday. It’s the third time this season that Texas has allowed at least 47 points. The Sooners had a wild victory at No. 21 TCU in Week 5. Arguably the biggest victory in Strong’s tenure at Texas was last year in this game as his Longhorns upset No. 10 Oklahoma 24-17 as 16-point underdogs on NCAA football odds. Texas gashed OU for 313 rushing yards and finished with only 55 passing yards, its fewest in a win over Oklahoma since 1970 and fewest in any win since 1983. The Sooners were held to 278 yards. QB Baker Mayfield had one of his worst games of the season, throwing for 211 yards and one TD. Texas hasn’t won back-to-back games in the series since 2005-06.
