With just four weeks left in the college football season, the pressure increases every Saturday as teams compete for spots in the College Football Playoff and conference championship games.
Week 11 presents a chance for an upset. The Power Four League has important showdowns that can dramatically change the postseason prospects of the teams involved and others. The difficult problem is predicting when and where these surprising results will occur across the country.
That’s why the USA TODAY Sports college football staff is here. Scooby Axon, Jordan Mendoza, Paul Meyerberg, Eric Smith and Eddie Timanas make bold predictions for Week 1 of the college football season.
Billy Napier’s reward for not being fired: Lost in Texas
On Saturday, the Florida Gators travel to Austin, Texas to take on the Longhorns. If the game goes as expected (Texas is a three-touchdown favorite), Napier will remain head coach until the end of the season, whether Texas wins by one point or 50 points. The reason doesn’t really matter. A poorly explained press release from the school’s athletic director.
Let’s play devil’s advocate for a moment and say Florida wins its next three games, including home games against LSU and Ole Miss, two teams with serious and realistic postseason ambitions. That’s not going to happen, but don’t pay a buyout to delay the inevitable or pray that Napier will turn things around sooner rather than later. The strategy here would be to save Napier’s $26.7 million buyout for a rainy day and use it to pay players. — Scooby Axon
Matches to watch: 7 big games scheduled for Week 11
Weekend Prediction: SEC clashes with top Week 11 picks in all Top 25 games
Miami suffers first loss
The Hurricanes have been playing dangerous football for most of the season, but they are still undefeated. Things will change if Miami heads to the ATL. Georgia Tech started the season playing good football with a 5-2 record, but has stumbled with back-to-back losses. A key factor in these games was that quarterback Haynes King was unable to play due to injury. The Yellow Jackets’ quarterback, who received a bye, is inclined to play, which will be a big boost. Georgia Tech’s offense erupted in a great game, and there’s no late-game magic for Miami to avoid an upset this time. — Jordan Mendoza
BYU suffers first loss to rival Utah
Utah pulled off a huge upset to end the rivalry with BYU. In the midst of a frustrating season marred by significant injuries, there is no greater motivation for the Utes than a victory in the Crusades, which would hand them their first loss to the Cougars and complicate their Big 12 and playoff contention. By doing so, stability will be required for the offensive line, which is extremely weak in league games. But if the Utes play a complete game, it will be Saturday night. — Paul Meyerberg
University of Colorado’s winning streak ends at Texas Tech
It was a great first season in the Big 12 for Deion Sanders’ team. The Buffaloes won four of their first five league games and are in contention for the conference championship game and a spot in the College Football Playoff. But playing on the road in an unfamiliar place can be difficult, and Lubbock is one place that can produce surprising results. And that’s even more true when the Red Raiders are playing well. Saturday will be a noisy environment, something Colorado State hasn’t experienced on the road this season. It will be a tough battle, but the home team will go home satisfied. — Eric Smith
Army’s luck ends in North Texas
Sorry about this prediction, but I actually hope it’s wrong. I’m a big fan of service academies and strongly believe that when those programs are good, it’s good for the sport. But he worries the Army’s luck may be running out in North Texas.
That’s part of the equation, but it’s not just Black Knights quarterback Bryson Daley’s availability that is in question. But even if he plays, Army will need a ton of points to win this game. North Texas features the most successful offense the Black Knights have ever faced. The Mean Green is scoring over 40 points per game and averaging 527.6 total yards, a difference of over 7 yards per snap.
The army moves the ball. NTU’s defense is never completely over, and preparing to thwart that option is difficult for even the most hermetic group. But getting stops will be a problem for Army, and mistakes by the offense will be magnified. Dear Black Knights, I am truly sorry, but I think your dream of perfection ends here. — Eddie Timanas
