Ranking/Predicting the Top 10 CFB Games of Week 9

Last Week: 5-5, 6-4 ATS

Season: 57-28, 48-37 ATS

*Rankings are based on my own top 25*

10. Northwestern at Nebraska (-6.5)

Not many people know about Northwestern this season, but they’re sitting at a surprising 5-2 entering Week 9. They’re certainly doing better than most thought, but their resume is about as unimpressive as a 5-2 Big Ten team’s could be; lacking good wins and getting blasted in both losses. On the other side, Nebraska is once again out of the top 25 after one week of being ranked after a disappointing performance against Minnesota last week. There’s no doubt Nebraska is a better team and has more talent, but don’t be surprised if Northwestern can pull off the upset.

Nebraska 20, Northwestern 17

9. Baylor at #20 Cincinnati (-4.5)

This is another sneaky good game, but this time in the Big 12. I would be shocked if this isn’t an offensive clinic, as both teams have much better offenses than defenses – especially Baylor. Cincinnati may be the best team in the country that no one is talking about right now, with its lone loss being by three points in basically a true road game against Nebraska, and QB Brendan Sorsby should be talked about more in the Heisman conversation. The Bearcats -4.5 is a SNAP Model best bet this week, and I can’t go against that. I’ve gotten burned too many times.

Cincinnati 41, Baylor 24

8. Minnesota at Iowa (-8.5)

Continuing the theme so far, this is a really sneaky important game in the Big Ten. Both teams sit at 3-1 in league play, and are playing their best ball of the season. The winner has a legitimate chance of making noise in the Big Ten and playoff race, but the loser will have its slim hopes of those completely shut. Iowa actually has a quarterback this year in Mark Gronowski, and he seems to be getting better every week – even post-injury. But the story of this game is how good the defenses are. I think whoever wins the turnover battle wins the game, and you can’t go wrong with the Hawkeyes in that department.

Iowa 20, Minnesota 13

7. #22 Illinois at Washington (-4.5)

The QB matchup in this game will be one of the most fun of the weekend. Both Luke Altmeyer and Demond Williams have had great seasons so far, but have struggled against better competition. Both teams are in desperation mode to try and salvage a decent season as well, with both taking two losses up to this point. I think Illinois is the better team, but traveling west is no joke, so give me the Huskies in a shootout.

Washington 31, Illinois 30

6. Houston at #25 Arizona State (-7.5)

Who would’ve thought before the season how much implication would be on this game? Cough cough I did. Houston was my most underrated team in the country heading into the season, while I was slightly lower on ASU than most, so I predicted this exact scenario entering this game. The Sun Devils are clearly a much different team with Sam Leavitt after their performance with and without him the last two weeks, and I think they keep their double-digit win streak at home alive through their edge in overall talent. Jordyn Tyson being out may give the Cougars a bit of a chance though.

Arizona State 27, Houston 17

Like this content? Subscribe here!

5. #3 Texas A&M (-2.5) at #23 LSU

What a season up to this point by A&M; 7-0, riding high, looking like a true SEC title contender. Surely there’s no way they lose to a struggling LSU team right? Wrong. LSU certainly hasn’t looked the part, at least offensively, up to this point of the season, but they’re going to be in complete desperation mode in front of an infamous night game at Death Valley. I think A&M’s a better team, I think they have more of a chance to make the playoff and SEC title game, but give me the Tigers to get it done Saturday night in the Bayou.

LSU 24, Texas A&M 22

4. #12 BYU at Iowa State (-2.5)

I seriously have no idea what to do with this game. If you know sports betting, you know to always take the unranked home favorite over the ranked road underdog, as the unranked team will win those games about 75 percent of the time. At the same time, I said last week if BYU beats Utah, I’m not picking against them until they lose. Along with that, Iowa State’s ridiculous amount of injuries it racked up in the past month has completely depleted the roster. I usually never go against what Vegas tells me, but I made a promise last week to not pick against BYU until they lose, as they always just find a way to win, and I’m sticking with that.

BYU 24, Iowa State 20

3. #17 South Florida (-3.5) at Memphis

It’s such a shame that this game lost all its national attention because of Memphis’ loss to UAB last week. This is still going to be maybe the biggest game in determining the G5 playoff spot of the entire season, as the Tigers could easily get it if they manage to win out. There is no denying that the Tigers’ loss last week was a bad one though, and I think it may stick with them for another week. At the same time, I think USF is just a better team overall, and is destined to get that playoff spot.

South Florida 35, Memphis 27

2. #15 Missouri at #10 Vanderbilt (-2.5)

These two teams are so similar in every aspect. They both love running the ball on offense, sucking time off the clock with every drive and suffocating you to death if they get a lead. Both these teams rely so heavily on that game script, so the first quarter or two in this game is going to be so crucial to who comes out on top in the end. If one of these teams can make the other have to throw the ball to get back into the game, I’m almost certain that the team who doesn’t have to throw will win the game. I think these teams are dead-even, so I’ll go with home-field advantage as the difference.

Vanderbilt 31, Missouri 28

1. #9 Ole Miss at #11 Oklahoma (-4.5)

Usually, when the best game of the day is in the early afternoon window, it’s the Big Noon Kickoff game, but not this week. Both of these top two games have such huge SEC and playoff implications, it’s hard to put into words. The winners will be in great position for both, while the losers will be pretty much eliminated from the SEC title game and have their backs against the wall regarding the playoff. Also like the last game, I think both these teams are pretty even, but Oklahoma’s defense is ridiculously good this year, rated as the number two defense in the country, according to the SNAP Model. Trinidad Chambliss and the Rebels’ offense has been balling, but I think the Sooners’ defense might continue the exposure of it that Georgia started at the end of the game last week.

Oklahoma 24, Ole Miss 17