College Football Picks Week 6: Top 25 Rankings, Schedule, Odds and Predictions
The dust hasn't even settled from an upset-filled weekend in college football, but there's no rest for the weary as Week 6 provides the promise of even more madness.
On the heels of a weekend that saw the nation's top two teams severely tested and three other top-10 teams get upset altogether, there's a chance for even more fireworks in Week 6. As some of college football's best get entrenched in their conference slates, anything can happen.
Here's a glance at the latest Top 25 before a breakdown of how the top games will go this weekend.
.jpg?w=256 "Ohio State Team Doctor")
Week 6 Odds and Predictions
| 9 p.m. (Thu., Oct. 8) | Washington at No. 17 USC (-17) | ESPN | USC |
| Sat., Oct. 10 | - | - | - |
| 12 p.m. | New Mexico State at No. 14 Ole Miss (-43) | SECN | Ole Miss |
| 12 p.m. | No. 7 LSU (-13) at South Carolina | ESPN | LSU |
| 12 p.m. | No. 3 Baylor (-38) at Kansas | FS1 | Baylor |
| 12 p.m. | No. 10 Oklahoma (-13.5) at Texas | ABC | Oklahoma |
| 12 p.m. | Illinois at No. 22 Iowa (-10) | ESPNU | Iowa |
| 12 p.m. | Maryland at No. 1 Ohio State (-28.5) | BTN | Ohio State |
| 3 p.m. | Kent State at No. 24 Toledo (-16.5) | ESPN3 | Toledo |
| 3:30 p.m. | Navy at No. 15 Notre Dame (-16) | NBC | Notre Dame |
| 3:30 p.m. | No. 13 Northwestern at No. 18 Michigan (-10) | BTN | Northwestern |
| 3:30 p.m. | No. 19 Georgia (-2.5) at Tennessee | CBS | Georgia |
| 3:30 p.m. | Georgia Tech at No. 6 Clemson (-7.5) | ABC | Clemson |
| 7 p.m. | Arkansas at No. 8 Alabama (-16) | ESPN | Alabama |
| 7 p.m. | No. 21 Oklahoma State at West Virginia (-6) | ESPN2 | West Virginia |
| 7 p.m. | No. 25 Boise State (-12) at Colorado State | CBSSN | Boise State |
| 7:30 p.m. | No. 2 TCU (-7) at Kansas State | Fox | TCU |
| 7:30 p.m. | No. 11 Florida (-3.5) at Missouri | SECN | Florida |
| 8 p.m. | Miami at No. 12 Florida State (-9) | ABC | FSU |
| 8 p.m. | No. 4 Michigan State (-17) at Rutgers | BTN | MSU |
| 10 p.m. | No. 23 California at No. 5 Utah (-7) | ESPN | Utah |
Odds courtesy of Odds Shark
Game of the Week: No. 23 Cal at No. 5 Utah
If I told you at the beginning of the season that the Pac-12's game of the year by Week 6 would include these two teams, you would have been in stitches laughing.
Alas, college football has shocked us again and made for all sorts of possibilities that nobody could have expected at the onset of the year. No surprise among them has been more pleasant than the Utah Utes, who have risen fast as the Pac-12's best team and its most central College Football Playoff contender.
For a long time, the Utes' role in college football has been relegated to upsetting other teams in their conference and spoiling the party for schools they're playing. Now, they're the ones with the target on their backs as Kevin McGuire of College Football Talk noted:
This hot start for Utah has not been a fluke. Anyone who wanted to argue that lost their argument when the Utes absolutely took it to Oregon, the Pac-12's longtime darling, in a 62-20 walloping.
The scary part about Utah? The Utes seem to have the complete package on both sides of the ball capable of keeping this hot start going.
Travis Wilson is a dynamic playmaker at the quarterback position, with an arm that can spread it to his receivers and legs that have already racked up 200 yards. With a 68 percent completion rate, Utah has little trouble sustaining drives while Devontae Booker totes the rock.
The defense truly puts the Utes on another level and makes them a tough beat for any of the Pac-12's high-flying offenses—one of which is the California Golden Bears.
Jared Goff has been lighting up defenses to start 2015, but he hasn't faced a defense nearly at the caliber of Utah. The Utes are shutting opponents down on defense and limiting their biggest strength, which will have them honing in on Goff and his receivers.
A week of rest will be the best thing in the world for Utah, who was coming off a successful two-game road trip and now has everything to play for. The Utes won't scoff at their opportunity in the Pac-12 and will roll over an overmatched foe.
Prediction: Utah 44, Cal 28
.jpg?w=480 "Ohio State Team Doctor")
