College Football Picks Week 4: Predictions and Odds for Top 25 Schedule

Three weeks of surprising results in college football have produced some early-season shakeups in the polls. Preseason hype has made way for reality with teams rising and plummeting in the rankings with big wins and dramatic losses.

But as with every college football season, nothing is determined after three weeks of play. Ahead of the first-ever College Football Playoff following the year, every week is important for programs looking to remain in the chase.

The early odds for the fourth week of the season are set, including ranked teams facing stiff tests. Here is a look at the odds and predictions for the Week 4 slate.

Home	Away	Odds	Prediction
No. 1 Florida State	No. 22 Clemson	FSU (-20.5)	FSU, 47-28
No. 2 Oregon	Washington State	ORE (-19.5)	ORE, 42-24
No. 3 Alabama	Florida	ALA (-16)	ALA, 38-28
West Virginia	No. 4 Oklahoma	OU (-11)	OU, 27-21
No. 20 Kansas State	No. 5 Auburn	AU (-6.5)	AU, 23-17
SMU	No. 6 Texas A&M	TAM (-28)	TAM, 56-10
No. 8 LSU	Mississippi State	LSU (-7)	LSU, 34-23
No. 11 Michigan State	Eastern Michigan	MSU (-45)	MSU, 47-9
No. 13 Georgia	Troy	UGA (-35.5)	UGA, 52-10
Vanderbilt	No. 14 South Carolina	SC (-20.5)	SC, 35-13
No. 18 Missouri	Indiana	MIZZ (-16)	MIZZ, 45-28
No. 19 Wisconsin	Bowling Green	WIS (-17)	WIS, 38-13
No. 21 BYU	Virginia	BYU (-13.5)	BYU, 28-24
No. 24 Nebraska	Miami	NEB (-8)	NEB, 34-27

All game odds courtesy of Odds Shark.

The AP poll can be viewed at CollegeFootball.AP.org.

Picks Breakdown

No. 5 Auburn at No. 20 Kansas State

One of the lone matchups between top-20 opponents comes before the weekend ever arrives.

The Thursday night game marks a chance for Auburn to solidify its program as one of the top five in the country. On the other hand, it gives Kansas State the opportunity to prove it's worthy of being ranked.

Auburn is used to the big stage after winning the Iron Bowl and SEC Championship last season before falling short in the BCS National Championship. But for the Wildcats, it's unfamiliar territory, as Bryan Fischer of NFL.com notes:

The Tigers offense runs through Nick Marshall, who has started the season just as consistent as his 2013 campaign. Marshall hasn't been asked to pass with regularity, but he has been nearly flawless when doing so, compiling a passer rating of 114 or higher in both games.

He is a huge part of what makes Auburn one of the best teams in the country, as Paul Finebaum of ESPN notes:

His strength is clearly in the running game, where Marshall compiled 103 rushing yards and a touchdown against San Diego State. But the cupcakes are over on Thursday night when Auburn takes on K-State.

Equipped with a stout defense and an offense capable of running the ball against anyone, expect War Eagle to fly to 3-0. Oh, and they'll also keep those College Football Playoff hopes alive for another week.

No. 22 Clemson at No. 1 Florida State

Despite a 51-14 demolition of Clemson last season, Florida State's home game against the Tigers will feature the cast of College GameDay prior to the contest. But Clemson plans to do things slightly different this time around.

Mistakes hurt the Tigers last season, as turnovers led to several scoring drives for the Seminoles in the blowout. Clemson coach Dabo Swinney referenced the issues, per Natalie Pierre of the Tallahassee Democrat:

"

The biggest things is, we've got to take care of the ball. It doesn't take a rocket scientist to figure that out. We turned it over four times last year and just put the ball on the ground on one of them, in just a scoop and score. Those are things where you just don't have that type of room for error when you're playing a great, great football team like Florida State.

We've got to play a clean game – take care of the football and give ourselves a chance to win the game in the fourth quarter.

"

There is plenty on the line for both teams coming into the conference matchup. For Florida State, the stakes are obvious, as the team works toward making the College Football Playoff after going 14-0 last season.

Clemson, on the other hand, is simply hoping to remain in the rankings. The Tigers have a chance to break a school record for the most consecutive weeks of being in the polls, per the Clemson Football Twitter page:

Beating the Seminoles is easier said than done, especially with the team not losing a game in the last two years. In order to remain in the polls, Clemson will likely need a victory or to avoid a blowout.

Currently, the odds are stacked against the Tigers in the form of being a 20.5-point underdog. Anything close to that will surely leave Clemson on the outside looking in for both of the polls.

Follow @RCorySmith on Twitter.