College Football Picks: Expert Predictions For Ohio State-Oregon, Ole Miss-LSU, Texas-Oklahoma & More

The weekend that college football fans have had circled on their calendar since the season started has finally arrived. 

Whether it's Ohio State versus Oregon, Texas and Oklahoma in the ‘Red River Rivalry’, Ole Miss traveling to ‘Death Valley’ to take on LSU, or even Kansas State heading to Colorado, we're in for a fun day of football. 

While the marquee games will take center-stage, we certainly can't forget some of the matchups flying under the radar, like Tennessee hosting Florida and Penn State traveling to USC. 

Wallace: 16-8 straight up, 13-11 against the spread (15 points)

Sallee: 19-5 straight up, 14-10 against the spread (18 points)

Ohio State (-3) @ Oregon

Wallace: This feels like a game where Ohio State will try to wear down the Ducks defense, with the powerful Quinshin Judkins and TreVeyon Henderson duo. The Buckeyes are getting enough from QB Will Howard, who has thrown for 12 touchdowns and just 3 interceptions. After watching Oregon against Michigan State last week, QB Dillon Gabriel needs to make better decisions in the red-zone, after his 2 interceptions last week. But, I do love the uptempo offense, which could cause Ryan Day’s Buckeyes some problems. 

I’m taking Ohio State to go into hostile territory and get the win, and cover the spread, in what could be the first, of two games against Oregon this season. 

EUGENE, OREGON - OCTOBER 4:  Head coach Dan Lanning  and wide receiver Tez Johnson #15 of the Oregon Ducks lead the team out of the tunnel before their game against the Michigan State Spartans at Autzen Stadium on October 4, 2024 in Eugene, Oregon.  (Photo by Tom Hauck/Getty Images)

Sallee: I have gone back and forth on this game all week, and I have settled on Ohio State winning and covering. Oregon’s offensive line has been better since the disasters that were the first two games, but it won’t be enough to hold off a ferocious Buckeyes front seven. As a result, expect Ducks quarterback Dillon Gabriel to take a few too many shots deep that will come back to cost him. Like Trey said, I think that this could be - and likely will be - the first of two (and maybe three) games between these two Big Ten powers.

Ole Miss (-3.5) @ LSU

Wallace: Here we go, this one has major playoff ramifications. Ole Miss got back on track last week offensively at South Carolina, and Jaxson Dart looked more like himself. As for LSU, I still wonder at times what type of team Brian Kelly has, especially on the defensive side. This is the type of game Lane Kiffin lives for, going on the road in the SEC and crushing the hopes of the opposing team, in this case Brian Kelly. At the end, I feel as though the Rebels defense will do enough, giving the offense enough opportunities to pull away in the fourth. 

But, playing at night, in Death Valley is a whole different type of atmosphere. Saying that, I predict Ole Miss will tame the Tigers, cover the spread, and continue pushing towards the playoffs with that one loss, for now. 

BATON ROUGE, LOUISIANA - OCTOBER 22: Head coach Brian Kelly of the LSU Tigers and head coach Lane Kiffin of the Mississippi Rebels talk before a game at Tiger Stadium on October 22, 2022 in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. (Photo by Jonathan Bachman/Getty Images)

Sallee: Ole Miss coach Lane Kiffin won’t fall victim to the voodoo that exists in night games at Tiger Stadium. LSU’s defense just hasn’t improved in the way that I expected. It’s next-to-last in the SEC in plays given up of 20 or more yards, and is 15th in the conference in yards per play allowed at 5.85. That’ll come back to haunt (pun intended) the Tigers against an Ole Miss offense, led by Jaxson Dart, that is as dangerous as any in the country against porous defenses. I’ll take the Rebs to win and cover.

Texas (-14.5) vs. Oklahoma

Wallace: Here we go, the first ever SEC showdown between the Longhorns and Sooners. The return of Quinn Ewers will be fascinating to watch against this daunting Oklahoma defense, led by Danny Stutsman. My bigger question surrounds OU quarterback Michael Hawkins Jr. and keeping his composure in such a highly-contested environment. I know what he did against Auburn late in the fourth quarter, but playing in this game doesn’t compare. 

I think we get another ‘Red River Rivalry’ classic, and the Sooners cover the spread, but come up short at the end. Texas wins, behind a returning Ewers, but this will be closer than 14.5 points entering the fourth. 

The 'Red River Rivalry' goes down again this weekend, as Texas and Oklahoma face-off for the first time in the SEC (Photo by John Korduner/Icon Sportswire/Corbis/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)

Sallee: TOO MANY POINTS!!! Look, Texas will win and likely control the game from the outset. However, when they take a controlling lead under quarterback Quinn Ewers, they will do their best to drain the clock and get out of there as quickly as possible. After all, we’ve seen how wild this rivalry game can get over the years. Texas will either make this as boring as possible to give the Sooners the cover, or Oklahoma will sneak in the back door in the waning minutes. Either way … the Longhorns will roll.

Wild Card Games

Florida @ Tennessee (-16)

Wallace: I’ll be honest, there’s nothing about this Tennessee offense right now that shows they will score a lot of points against Florida. The Gators look rejuvenated, but they still have to face this fantastic Vols defense. Will Graham Mertz, or DJ Lagway, have enough time in the pocket to find receivers? I know Tennessee fans are worried about Nico Iamaleava and the offensive output, but I expect Josh Heupel to open things up more this week. 

Having said that, I still think we get one of those wild Gators vs. Vols matchup that comes down to some wacky play, or players. Florida covers the spread in Knoxville, though Tennessee wins.

Kansas State (-3.5) at Colorado

Sallee: What’s the best way to beat Colorado? Keep quarterback Shedeur Sanders on the sideline. That’s exactly what the Wildcats will do late Saturday night in Boulder. "Three yards and a cloud of dust" is not exactly how the Wildcats play. The play "Six yards and a cloud of dust" as they lead the Big 12 in rushing yards per play (6.93). Kansas State will win, cover and have roughly 2 hours and 15 minutes in time of possession.

There you have it, another week of picks across college football, as this weekend is bound to create a lot of chaos.