College Football Picks Week 13: Predictions for Top 25 Games on Updated Schedule
The Week 13 college football slate is not as loaded as Week 12, but it still pits a pair of College Football Playoff contenders against Top 25 foes.
Ohio State will be in focus early Saturday when it welcomes Penn State to Ohio Stadium for its third clash with a ranked opponent in 2019.
After LSU racked up a few impressive wins, the Buckeyes can attempt to match the Tigers' resume with three consecutive victories over quality opponents.
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Georgia has one final SEC hurdle to conquer before playing two consecutive games in Atlanta.
The addition of Texas A&M to the Week 13 polls could help the Bulldogs' resume if they control yet another conference matchup.
Week 13 Schedule
All Times ET; predicted winners in bold.
Saturday, November 23
No. 9 Penn State at No. 2 Ohio State (Noon, Fox)
Western Carolina at No. 5 Alabama (Noon, ESPN)
No. 11 Minnesota at Northwestern (Noon, ABC)
Samford at No. 16 Auburn (Noon, SEC Network)
Illinois at No. 19 Iowa (Noon, BTN)
No. 22 Oklahoma State at West Virginia (Noon, ESPN2)
Boston College at No. 15 Notre Dame (2:30 p.m., NBC)
Texas State at No. 23 Appalachian State (2:30 p.m., ESPN+)
No. 24 Texas A&M at No. 4 Georgia (3:30 p.m., CBS)
No. 12 Michigan at Indiana (3:30 p.m., ESPN)
Texas at No. 13 Baylor (3:30 p.m., FS1)
No. 21 SMU at Navy (3:30 p.m., CBS Sports Network)
Pittsburgh at No. 25 Virginia Tech (3:30 p.m., ESPN2)
Purdue at No. 14 Wisconsin (4 p.m., Fox)
No. 18 Memphis at South Florida (4 p.m., ESPNU)
Arkansas at No. 1 LSU (7 p.m., ESPN)
Temple at No. 17 Cincinnati (7 p.m., ESPN2)
No. 6 Oregon at Arizona State (7:30 p.m., ABC)
TCU at No. 8 Oklahoma (8 p.m., Fox)
No. 7 Utah at Arizona (10 p.m., FS1)
No. 20 Boise State at Utah State (10:30 p.m., CBS Sports Network)
Predictions
Ohio State 45, Penn State 21
For the first time since October 26, Ohio State is facing a team headed for a postseason berth.
In their last meeting with a ranked Big Ten opponent, the Buckeyes smothered Wisconsin 38-7 on home soil.
Ryan Day's team could use a similar formula to flatten Penn State's Big Ten Championship Game and College Football Playoff hopes.
The Buckeyes held the Badgers to nine first downs, 108 passing yards and 83 rushing yards. They also forced a pair of turnovers.
J.K. Dobbins led Ohio State with 163 rushing yards versus a Wisconsin rushing defense that allows 103.3 ground yards per game.
That is significant because Penn State enters with the fourth-best rushing defense with 75.9 yards per game. Only Utah, San Diego State and Georgia have recorded better numbers.
But there is no guarantee the Nittany Lions stop the run against an Ohio State side that has a 100-yard rusher in five of the last six contests.
In Week 12, James Franklin's side conceded 91 rushing yards to Indiana and allowed Peyton Ramsey to throw for 371 yards.
Two weeks ago, Minnesota's Tanner Morgan lit up the Penn State secondary for 339 passing yards and three scores.
Justin Fields could do even more damage with six wide receivers that have more than 10 receptions.
If he combines early with Chris Olave, Binjimen Victor and K.J. Hill, who have combined for 21 touchdowns, the transfer from Georgia could turn in a performance that moves him up the Heisman Trophy hierarchy.
The Ohio State defense could hand Fields a few opportunities to score with a short field and open up an early double-digit advantage.
Chase Young earned four sacks in his last appearance versus Wisconsin, and in the last two games without him, the Buckeyes downed the quarterback eight times.
With Davon Hamilton, Malik Harrison and others playing with more confidence from increasing their sack totals, Sean Clifford could have a rough afternoon in the pocket.
In his last road game, the Penn State quarterback tossed three interceptions against Minnesota.
If the Buckeyes put him under the same amount of pressure, they could earn their third 20-point win over a ranked foe.
Georgia 31, Texas A&M 12
In the last four games, Georgia has allowed 31 points and earned two shutouts.
Twenty-eight of the 31 points were scored in the fourth quarter by Auburn and Florida.
If Kirby Smart's team dominates for three quarters once again, it could eliminate the threat of a Texas A&M comeback at Sanford Stadium.
For that to happen, Jake Fromm needs to be more effective in the pocket. He went 13-of-28 for 110 yards and three scores against Auburn.
The junior signal-caller has only reached the 200-yard mark on four occasions, but he deserves credit for not turning the ball over in the last four weeks.
In Texas A&M's three Top 25 matchups, it allowed 286.6 passing yards per game to Alabama, Auburn and Clemson.
If Fromm increases his totals to complement D'Andre Swift, who has at least 80 rushing yards in his last five games, the Bulldogs could eclipse 30 points for the first time since October 5.
If Georgia reaches 30, it could end up winning by close to 20 points if its defense finishes the job in the final stanza.
The Bulldogs allow 191.7 passing yards, 75.5 rushing yards and 10.5 points per game, so it could be difficult for Kellen Mond to develop a rhythm in the pocket.
The Aggies quarterback totaled 835 passing yards versus three ranked opponents, but the majority of those yards occurred in comeback attempts against Alabama and Clemson.
Even if Mond converts a few big plays, he may not have enough support to consistently score.
Before totaling 557 rushing yards versus UTSA and South Carolina, the Aggies went five games without a 100-yard rusher.
If Georgia takes away Texas A&M's running backs, Mond could face too many long-yardage downs in which Richard LeCounte, J.R. Reed and others could thrive off of with either interceptions or pass breakups.
Follow Joe on Twitter, @JTansey90
Statistics obtained from ESPN.com
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