Week 6 may not have featured Clemson or Alabama, but it did feature plenty of fireworks as SMU orchestrated a 21-point comeback, Jonathan Taylor steamrolled his way to 186 yards and four TDs, and Cyrus Habibi-Likio laid out a fan who foolishly ran onto the field during Oregon's game against California.
Week 7 is just days away and we have you covered with hard-hitting insight and analysis on some of this week's most eagerly anticipated games as well as the latest trends and storylines from across the U.S.
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*All odds are subject to change.#6 Oklahoma vs. #11 Texas
The Red River Rivalry resumes this Saturday with Oklahoma favored by 9.5 points over the Texas Longhorns. This is a matchup that almost always brings excitement as both teams come prepared with plenty of offensive firepower and coaches ready to empty their bag of tricks. Oklahoma has been favored for most of the recent history but things have been fairly evenly split, with each team winning seven of the last 14 games played in Dallas.Heading into 2019’s matchup, Oklahoma looks better positioned to win the big game and take pole position for the Big 12 regular season title. Quarterback Jalen Hurts has been a human wrecking ball leading Lincoln Riley’s offense. He is completing an impressive 75.2 percent of his passes en route to 1,523 yards and 14 touchdowns. He has also added on 499 rushing yards (at an 8.8 average yards per rush clip!) and seven touchdowns on the ground.
Despite growing up in Houston, Jalen Hurts has never been to a Texas-OU rivalry game.
— Jake García (@Jake_M_Garcia) October 5, 2019
"So this will be all new to you?"
"I've played in big games before. I think I'll be alright." pic.twitter.com/g1uPAH47eG
For Texas, quarterback Sam Ehlinger has given new life to a program that for years dwelled in mediocrity and uncertainty. He is pure Texas, the kid that grew up knowing he wanted to be in this position and demonstrating the kind of heart and passion that endears this sport to all of its fans. He has thrown for 1,448 yards and 17 touchdowns and has added another three TD’s on the ground, but he clearly has fewer weapons to help him carry the load.
The Texas roster and their corresponding injury report is littered with key players that can help take attention away from Ehlinger, including leading rusher Keaontay Ingram who left last week’s game and is questionable vs. Oklahoma. If Texas is to win this rivalry game it will most certainly be through a herculean effort from Ehlinger.
Bet on Oklahoma vs. Texas here.
#10 Penn State vs #17 Iowa State
A huge matchup takes place this Saturday between two teams that still have Big Ten title aspirations. Iowa suffered their first setback of the season last Saturday against Michigan in a 10-3 defeat, but they still control their destiny. Penn State is undefeated and appears to be the most capable challenger to Ohio State in the Big Ten East as Michigan continues to struggle offensively. Whichever team wins on Saturday will be in a great position for more huge games later in the season.Penn State is a 2.5 point favorite on the road at Iowa and this can certainly be contributed to recent outcomes. Iowa struggled tremendously against Michigan, turning the ball over repeatedly but also failing to protect quarterback Nate Stanley. Stanley was sacked eight times and while the offensive line can be blamed for some of this, Stanley simply held the ball far too long against an elite pass rush. If he doesn’t learn from his mistakes in that game he will likely face a similar fate against Penn State.
For Penn State, replacing former QB Trace McSorley has gone better than most probably expected. Sophomore QB Sean Clifford has 1,443 yards and 14 touchdowns and has pretty well dominated every team except Pittsburgh. Clifford has a lot of talent at his disposal and that’s why every week the highlights include Penn State receivers running wild. Clifford is fifth in the country in yards per pass attempt at 10.7, behind only Jalen Hurts, Tua Tagavailoa, Joe Burrow and Tanner Morgan. Not bad company.
Penn State undoubtedly has more talent on the roster than Iowa. Iowa, however, is well-known for their ability to develop talent and while they played poorly vs. Michigan, better turnover luck could have easily swung the game. This game will likely come down to whether Clifford and company buy enough time against a tough Iowa defensive line to make explosive plays for quick points. Penn State looks like the play, but beware the conference home team catching points.
Bet on Penn State vs. Iowa State here.
#7 Florida vs. #5 LSU
In the game of the week, undefeated Florida heads to undefeated LSU for a primetime national television game. LSU opened as a 13.5 point favorite and quickly shot up to a 14.5 point favorite. At first glance this seems absurdly high for a top 10 matchup of undefeated teams, but I’ve yet to meet a bookmaker that gives away money out of good will, so a second glance is certainly owed to this line.In the preseason, the game of year line for this game was LSU -2.5. Joe Burrow was expected to be good, but not this good. Florida was expected to be extremely tough and have Feleipe Franks leading the offense. Through 6 weeks, Florida has a new QB but is still fulfilling expectations related to the strength of their defense. The most points they’ve given up in a game this year is 21 vs. Kentucky. They’ve also only given up 16 points total in the last three weeks combined. This week’s game will be the real test, however, as their strength of schedule leading up to this point has been weak.
WATCH: Joe Burrow guarantees win vs. Florida on Saturday pic.twitter.com/ctb2i8PtmF
— Rowdy Reptiles (@UFRowdies) October 8, 2019
On the home sideline are the LSU Tigers, a team playing an entirely brand new type of football in 2019 than LSU is accustomed to. While they can still line up and run the ball, LSU is winning games on the strength of their passing game. Burrow is hitting an incredible 78.4% of his passes and has 1,864 yards and 22 touchdowns. Burrow’s completion percentage is the best in the nation, and while there are plenty of metrics that can measure performance, the most basic role of the quarterback is to throw it to his teammates. Burrow does that at an incredibly effective rate. He’s doing it by the spreading the ball around, too, with no wide receiver over 547 receiving yards. Justin Jefferson leads the team, but Ja’Marr Chase and Terrance Marshall Jr. each have six touchdowns.
LSU has been an unstoppable offensive machine in 2019 and while Florida has been tough, this line suggests they aren’t equipped to matchup with all of Burrow’s weapons. Expect Florida to try and slow things down a bit to give themselves a chance at staying in the game in the second half. Florida seems like the logical choice catching 14.5 points, but history says that double digit underdogs in Top 10 matchups do not fare well against the spread. Regardless of the outcome, however, Baton Rouge on a Saturday night is going to make for appointment viewing.
Bet on Florida vs. LSU here.
Here are the betting trends you need to know heading into Week 7:
- Home teams have won 70% of all games SU in 2019
- Home favorites have won a staggering 87% of all games SU in 2019
- Teams ranked in the AP Top 25 went 11-2 against unranked opponents in Week 6
- 53% of all games have gone UNDER the projected total in 2019
- Underdogs were 22-25-1 ATS in Week 6 and have won 49% of their games overall in 2019
We’ve narrowed down the top remaining games you can’t afford to miss from Week 7.
Game | Date | Spread | O/U |
---|
#20 Virginia vs. Miami | Fri, October 11 | MIA -2 | 45.0 |
South Carolina vs. #3 Georgia | Sat, October 12 | UGA -24.5 | 52.5 |
#16 Michigan vs Illinois | Sat, October 12 | ILL +21.5 | 50.5 |
#22 Memphis vs. Temple | Sat, October 12 | TEM +6 | 50.5 |
#1 Alabama vs. #24 Texas A&M | Sat, October 12 | TAM +17 | 59.5 |
Florida State vs. #2 Clemson | Sat, October 12 | CLEM -27 | 60.5 |
Michigan State vs. #8 Wisconsin | Sat, October 12 | WIS -10 | 40.5 |
Washington State vs. #18 Arizona State | Sat, October 12 | ASU -2 | 59.0 |
#25 Cincinnati vs. Houston | Sat, October 12 | HOU +7 | 55.0 |
Texas Tech vs. #22 Baylor | Sat, October 12 | BAY -10 | 58.0 |
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Dan Mullen: "We were the biggest game in the country last week. We're the biggest game in the country this week."
— Nick de la Torre (@delatorre) October 7, 2019
Florida head coach Dan Mullen has never lacked for confidence. He'll have a chance to prove his team's 6-0 record isn't a fluke when the Gators take on the Tigers in Baton Rouge.
Jim Harbaugh on Michigan's offense:
— Brad Galli (@BradGalli) October 6, 2019
"I really think we're hitting our stride. I really do. The way our offense has been practicing, the way they've been preparing, I have great faith that they're hitting their stride." pic.twitter.com/HkQbaNMhYU
Those are bold words for a man whose team scored 10 points against Iowa and ranks 81st in the nation in yards per game.
Ohio State RB J.K. Dobbins ran his way into the Heisman race on Saturday after racking up 172 yards and a TD against Michigan State. Here are three things you need to know about the dynamic junior:
- Ohio State's coaching staff didn't have to do a hard sell on Dobbins. The La Grange, Texas native committed to OSU before even setting foot on the school's campus.
- Dobbins was a Top 50 recruit coming out of high school despite the fact that he broke his right leg on the first play of his senior season and missed the remainder of the year.
- Dobbins is the first running back in school history to record 1,000 yard seasons as a freshman and sophomore.