College football games to look forward to in Week 9
The biggest game on the Week 9 college football slate features the Utah Utes hosting the Oregon Ducks in a battle between two excellent Pac-12 programs. But a meeting between the Georgia Bulldogs and the Florida Gators in Jacksonville should also be fun. That rivalry has lacked juice in recent years, but there are reasons to believe the two will deliver a good game here. And overall, the Week 9 college football schedule has a bunch of enticing matchups. So, keep reading to see my Week 9 Games of the Week.
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Week 9 Games of the Week
Oklahoma Sooners (-10, 65.5) at Kansas Jayhawks
Last week, Oklahoma barely hung on in a 31-29 win over the UCF Knights. The Sooners now head on the road to face a Jayhawks team that had a bye week to mull over a 39-32 loss to the Oklahoma State Cowboys on October 14. I’d expect Kansas to come out fired up in this one, but Oklahoma could still prove to be too much for Lance Leipold’s group. The Sooners haven’t lost to the Jayhawks since 1997. Oklahoma is on an 18-game winning streak against this Kansas team, and the Sooners won all of those games by double digits. The spread here suggests there could be a similar outcome this time around, which really wouldn’t be all that surprising. I’m not sure how the Jayhawks will be able to slow down Dillon Gabriel and this Sooners passing game. Meanwhile, Oklahoma’s defense hasn’t looked as strong in recent weeks, but the Sooners are still 13th in the nation in scoring defense.
Georgia Bulldogs (-14.5, 47) vs. Florida Gators – Jacksonville
It’s time for “The World’s Largest Outdoor Cocktail Party” once again. And this year’s game has the potential to be a good one. Georgia has beaten Florida by a combined 49 points over the last two years, but the Gators did cover in last year’s game. And the Bulldogs come into this year’s contest at just 1-5-1 against the spread through seven games. Georgia simply hasn’t played up to expectations, even though the team is currently first in the AP Poll. With that in mind, Florida has to feel like there’s a real opportunity here. The question is whether quarterback Graham Mertz and this Gators offense can get going against a Bulldogs team that is seventh in the nation in scoring defense. But Mertz has been good this season, throwing for 1,897 yards with 12 touchdowns and only two picks. He has also completed 76.2% of his passes, and he has just generally done a great job of taking care of the football. That said, I think this game has the potential to be closer than expected. And it’s hard not to like that Florida is 6-3 ATS as an underdog under head coach Billy Napier.
Oregon Ducks (-6.5, 48.5) at Utah Utes
Oregon got back in the win column after a disappointing 36-33 loss to the Washington Huskies, as the Ducks went out and beat the Washington State Cougars 38-24 last week. However, the win was rather unconvincing for Oregon, and a matchup with Utah could be trouble. This Utes team just went on the road and beat the USC Trojans, and they now head back to Rice-Eccles Stadium. Utah has won each of its last 18 home games, and the team has also won 29 of its last 30 at home. The Utes also happen to have the 11th-best scoring defense in the country, so they will like their chances of slowing down Bo Nix and the Ducks offense. Meanwhile, Utah also happens to be playing better offense in recent weeks, with Bryson Barnes getting comfortable under center. Barnes threw for 234 yards with three touchdowns and one pick in the win over USC, and he has also rushed for at least 50 yards and a score in back-to-back games. His improvement as a quarterback is crucial with Cameron Rising now officially out for the year. And overall, Barnes’ play is the reason this one looks like a blockbuster matchup. This one could very well decide who gets to play in the Pac-12 Championship Game.
Duke Blue Devils at Louisville Cardinals (-4, 46)
This game has lost some of its shine because of the two teams having suffered some losses in recent weeks, but these are still two very good football teams. As of this moment, Louisville would be playing in the ACC Championship Game, but Duke is in fourth place in the conference and isn’t out of it yet. So, this is a very important game for all parties, and I’m interested in seeing which way it goes. However, it does feel like a game the Cardinals should win. For starters, star quarterback Riley Leonard reinjured his ankle in the Blue Devils’ loss to the Florida State Seminoles last week. He’s questionable for this one, but his movement would likely be compromised even if he does play. That’s not good for a running quarterback. Also, Louisville is coming off a bye week, so the team has had extra time to prepare and get healthy. That’s always a huge advantage, but it’s an even bigger one when Jeff Brohm is your head coach. Brohm is 7-4 ATS when coming off bye weeks throughout his career.
Ohio State Buckeyes (-14.5, 43.5) at Wisconsin Badgers
The Buckeyes are coming off an eight-point win over the Penn State Nittany Lions. Ohio State is now a perfect 7-0 on the year, and this group has a real shot at making the College Football Playoff. However, I do think this could be something of a letdown spot for Ryan Day’s team. There was all sorts of hype heading into that meeting with Penn State last week, and it isn’t outrageous to think that Ohio State will feel it can sleepwalk to a win over a disappointing Wisconsin team. But the Badgers are coming off an exciting comeback win over the Illinois Fighting Illini, and it felt like the team built some momentum with freshman Braedyn Locke under center. Considering we know the Badgers can be trusted to compete defensively and run the football — Braelon Allen is one of the top running backs in the country — this just feels like a tough spot for the Buckeyes. This game also happens to pit Wisconsin head coach Luke Fickell against his alma mater. He’ll badly want to find a way to spoil their season while also earning his first true statement win in Madison.
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