10 Biggest Questions Facing Top 25 Teams Heading into Week 6

October is here. It's a time for Halloween, way too much pumpkin spice and the real start of conference play in college football.

No conference game feels bigger than Ole Miss hosting Alabama, though Mississippi State and Texas A&M should be a great one, too. A showdown in East Lansing between arguably the two top teams in the Big Ten, Michigan State and Nebraska, caps off the evening.  

Which storylines are the most compelling for Top 25 teams in Week 6? The answers are in the following slides. 

The only criterion here is that one of the teams involved has to rank in either The Associated Press or Amway coaches poll. 

10. Can TCU Stop Its Big 12 Woes at Home Against Oklahoma?

LM Otero/Associated Press

Oklahoma will likely be the favorite in every game this season, so the Sooners' playoff hopes is a broken record as far as storylines go. How quarterback Trevor Knight looks against a solid Horned Frogs defense is also something to keep an eye on.

But check out this stat for TCU: Since joining the Big 12 in 2012, the Frogs are 1-7 in the, ahem, "friendly confines" of Amon G. Carter Stadium against conference opponents. 

Obviously, that's something head coach Gary Patterson wants to fix. And it can start in a big way against Oklahoma, a five-point favorite, per OddsShark.com. 

TCU's offense is much better than it was a year ago, and quarterback Trevone Boykin is spreading the ball around to an improved wide receiver group. 

However, Oklahoma will be the best defensive team the Frogs face all year. How far has the new-look offense really come?

9. Can UCLA Remain Explosive Against Utah?

Rick Scuteri/Associated Press

Finally, UCLA looked like the playoff-caliber team pundits expected the Bruins to be in a 62-27 blowout over Arizona State in Week 5. 

Granted, the inexperienced Sun Devils defense made scoring look easy, but the Bruins made it look hard during the first few weeks of the season. With a healthy Brett Hundley at quarterback, things started to come together. 

Can UCLA keep that explosiveness going on Saturday against Utah?

The Utes have the third-best scoring defense in the Pac-12, per cfbstats.com, but blew a 21-point lead in a 28-27 loss to Washington State in Week 5. The final touchdown for the Cougars was an 81-yard touchdown pass from Connor Halliday to Vince Mayle.  

Against Arizona State, UCLA had a pair of 80-yard touchdowns. Those are the types of big plays the Bruins will look to make against Utah. 

8. Will Baylor Be, Um, "Baylor" vs. Texas?

LM Otero/Associated Press

The series between Baylor and Texas has been mostly one-sided over the past few years with the Bears winning three of the last four games. Two of those wins have come by at least 20 points.

Texas players haven't been shy about launching verbal assaults on Baylor, though.

"They're still Baylor," receiver John Harris said Monday, via Mike Finger of the San Antonio Express-News. "Just because they started playing better in this era, that's good for them. We're still Texas."

You almost have to admire that kind of confidence when a team is getting beat on the regular by a specific opponent. It's laughable but admirable all the same. 

Baylor comes into Saturday's road game at Texas as a 15-point favorite. Bears quarterback Bryce Petty is fully healthy, as is his entire arsenal of receivers. 

Will Baylor be Baylor? And by that, we mean will the Bears put another hurting on Texas?

7. Which Everett Golson Will Show Up for Notre Dame?

Julio Cortez/Associated Press

Just how up and down was Notre Dame quarterback Everett Golson's performance in a 31-15 win against Syracuse?

The senior had 25 straight completions, a school record and one short of matching the FBS record for consecutive completions in a game. He also had career highs in touchdown passes (four) and passing yards (362). 

However, Golson also threw two interceptions, one of which was a pick-six, and fumbled twice. 

So, yeah. A tad inconsistent. 

That's not going to fly on Saturday against Stanford, which is No. 1 in the nation in scoring defense, giving up just less than a touchdown per game. The Cardinal have also been outstanding against the pass, though playing Army, which had just two passing attempts against Stanford, will skew stats. 

All the same, Golson has to be sharper. Stanford is actually a slight favorite even though the game is being played in South Bend. Golson can't afford to turn the ball over that much again. 

6. How Will LSU QB Brandon Harris Look in His First Start?

Gerald Herbert/Associated Press

It's finally Brandon Harris time for LSU—or something of that nature. It can be hard to tell sometimes with Tigers coach Les Miles. 

"It stands to reason that he [Harris] would get first snaps in the next game," Miles said this week, via LSU's Twitter account. 

Close enough. 

Sophomore Anthony Jennings has had a hard time moving the offense all season, but a pair of interceptions against New Mexico State was the last straw. Harris took off with three touchdown passes and another two scores on the ground. 

As Jerry Hinnen of CBSSports.com points out, however, getting your first career start on the road at Auburn isn't optimal: 

"

None of that means giving a true freshman his first career start on the road, at night, against the nation's No. 5 team and one of LSU's biggest rivals is Miles' optimal scenario. But after last Saturday, it certainly seems a better situation than the alternative.

"

How will Harris look? It's a tough situation to be in, but it's hard to argue that this isn't the right call. Miles has to go with Harris, who clearly has potential, through good times and bad. 

5. How Does Alabama Handle Oxford?

Brynn Anderson/Associated Press

This is going to surprise you, but Nick Saban teams at Alabama have been remarkably consistent. That includes the locations in which the Tide lose—when they lose—which isn't often.

Since Saban's first year with Alabama in 2007, the Tide have lost exactly six road games and six home games, not including bowls or conference championship games. 

Saban is also 3-0 as Alabama's coach against Ole Miss in Oxford, but it's safe to bet this is the Rebels' most talented team in a while. Quarterback Blake Sims is a veteran guy who's seen it all, but how will he handle the first true road environment as a starter?

The last time Sims travelled to Oxford in 2011, he was a running back for Alabama, notes Michael Casagrande of al.com. 

How does Sims play? How does Alabama's defense do? Ole Miss is going to be ready, and the stadium is going to be amped, which means the Tide has to be ready to weather the storm. 

4. Will Dak Prescott's Heisman Campaign Get a Boost?

Mississippi State's surprising win at LSU opened many eyes to what Bulldogs quarterback Dak Prescott can do. 

Prescott will have a chance to open even more eyes on Saturday against Texas A&M.

The Aggies have an excellent pass rush despite having some young players along the defensive front. This is going to be Prescott's toughest test on defense to date—yes, even tougher than LSU.

If Mississippi State's O-line can pave lanes for the running game and pass-protect like it did against the Tigers, A&M has been vulnerable enough in pass defense that Prescott can do a lot of damage. 

And if he's a factor in the running game, watch out.

Aggies quarterback Kenny Hill has been getting a lot of publicity since throwing for 511 yards against South Carolina. Prescott has a chance to out-duel Hill and move his name up the Heisman conversation as well. 

3. Whose Playoff Chances Survive: Michigan State's or Nebraska's?

Nati Harnik/Associated Press

The Big Ten's playoff hopes have taken a hit. There's no denying that. Matt Murschel of the Orlando Sentinel even wrote last month that he believed the Big Ten was completely out of the playoff picture. 

But that was after Week 3. To say the Big Ten is completely out of the playoff race? That's way too premature. 

Nebraska is 5-0 heading into Saturday's game at Michigan State, whose only loss is at Oregon. That's nothing to scoff at. 

The Big Ten's possible place at the playoff picture can become clearer after Saturday. If Nebraska upends the Spartans on the road, it'll be a huge boost to the Huskers' resume. Conversely, Michigan State needs to keep winning if it's going to even think about being in the playoff discussion at year's end. 

For those who said the regular season wouldn't matter if a playoff was implemented, you are presented the following game. It's important for both sides to win. 

2. Will Texas A&M Do It Again on the Road?

Tony Gutierrez/Associated Press

Here's a remarkable stat about Texas A&M coach Kevin Sumlin: Since taking over the program in 2012, Sumlin has led the Aggies to an 11-2 record away from Kyle Field in the regular season.

If there's one thing the college football world has learned about A&M under Sumlin, it's that just when you think you can count 'em out on the road, you can't. The Aggies' surprise win on the road at South Carolina in Week 1 was evidence of that. 

It's not much of a surprise, then, that Mississippi State is less than a field-goal favorite over A&M at home. It's basically a coin-flip game. 

The best matchup will be in the trenches. The Bulldogs and Aggies have both been bullies in terms of getting in the backfield, ranking among the best teams in the SEC in tackles for loss and sacks. Similarly, both teams have been great along the offensive line. 

This looks to be as evenly matched as a game can get. Mistakes, in terms of turnovers and penalties, have to be at a minimum. Can A&M continue its winning ways on the road? It'll get a leg up in a wide-open SEC West race if it does. 

1. Can Ole Miss Finally Get over the Hump?

Rogelio V. Solis/Associated Press

These are the types of games Ole Miss wanted to be a part of when it hired head coach Hugh Freeze.

Well, the Rebels have their chance with Alabama coming into town. Freeze has recruited his tail off and young, talented guys like Laquon Treadwell and Robert Nkemdiche have been playing from Day 1. 

It's all led to this. Now, the Rebels just have to seize it.

Ole Miss is ranked just outside the top 10 in both major polls. The Rebels haven't always played like a fringe top-10 team this season, but that's not going to matter if it can upend the Tide at home. 

Ole Miss isn't lacking confidence, that's for sure. Here's what safety Cody Prewitt said about Alabama, according to Brandon Speck of FOXSports.com: 

"

We understand that we haven’t played a team that’s going to be as good as Bama. But we don’t really think Bama is as good as they have been. And we’re better than we have been. We’re looking forward to getting to the game plan and really nailing down all the tweaks and stuff that we’re going to have to put into Bama.

"

To defend Prewitt, Alabama has looked beatable against teams like West Virginia. 

If Ole Miss is finally going to make a dent in the SEC West, and perhaps on the national scene, it starts with beating Alabama. All eyes are going to be on Oxford with ESPN's College GameDay making its first trip to The Grove. 

Can the Rebels handle the moment?