College Football Rankings 2015: Latest Standings and Predictions for Week 10 – Bleacher Report
Brace yourself for a wild week of college football.
We’ve had a few upsets and plenty of crazy finishes in recent weeks, but Week 10 finally brings the marquee matchups we’ve been waiting for this season.
Starting Tuesday night with Toledo, Week 10 features ranked teams playing four different nights. And it’s all capped off with a classic SEC battle between LSU and Alabama on Saturday night.
The updated polls and the Week 10 schedule and spreads are below followed by a breakdown of a few of the most intriguing matchups of the week.
Time (ET) | Matchup (Odds) | TV | ATS Picks |
Tuesday, Nov. 3 | |||
8 p.m. | Northern Illinois at No. 20 Toledo (-7) | ESPN2 | TOL |
Thursday, Nov. 5 | |||
7:30 p.m. | No. 2 Baylor (-18.5) at Kansas State | FS1 | BAY |
9 p.m. | No. 24 Mississippi State (-7.5) at Missouri | ESPN | MSST |
Friday, Nov. 6 | |||
8 p.m. | No. 23 Temple (-11.5) at SMU | ESPN2 | TEM |
Saturday, Nov. 7 | |||
12 p.m. | Duke at No. 21 North Carolina (-8) | ESPN2 | DUKE |
12 p.m. | Vanderbilt at No. 11 Florida (-19) | ESPN | VAND |
12 p.m. | No. 8 Notre Dame (-7.5) at Pittsburgh | ABC | ND |
1 p.m. | No. 9 Stanford (-16) at Colorado | PAC12 | STAN |
3:30 p.m. | No. 17 Florida State at No. 3 Clemson | ABC | |
3:30 p.m. | Arkansas at No. 19 Ole Miss (-11) | CBS | MISS |
3:30 p.m. | No. 10 Iowa (-8) at Indiana | ESPN | IND |
3:30 p.m. | Rutgers at No. 16 Michigan (-21.5) | BTN | RUTG |
3:30 p.m. | No. 5 TCU (-5) at No. 12 Oklahoma State | Fox | TCU |
3:30 p.m. | Cincinnati at No. 18 Houston (-9) | ESPN2 | HOU |
4:30 p.m. | No. 22 UCLA (-15.5) at Oregon State | PAC12 | UCLA |
7 p.m. | Navy at No. 15 Memphis (-8.5) | ESPN2 | MEM |
7 p.m. | Iowa State at No. 14 Oklahoma (-26) | ESPNU | OKLA |
7 p.m. | No. 6 Michigan State at Nebraska | ESPN | |
7:30 p.m. | No. 13 Utah (Even) at Washington | Fox | UTAH |
7:30 p.m. | Auburn at No. 25 Texas A&M (-8.5) | SEC | TA&M |
8 p.m. | No. 4 LSU at No. 7 Alabama (-7) | CBS | LSU |
8 p.m. | Minnesota at No. 1 Ohio State (-23) | ABC | MINN |
Spreads from Odds Shark
Note: Due to key injuries, the lines for Michigan State-Nebraska and Florida State-Clemson have not been posted as of Monday morning, according to Odds Shark. No against-the-spread picks have been given for these games.
Notable Games
Baylor (-18.5) at Kansas State
Jerome Miron-USA TODAY Sports
It’s safe to assume Baylor would be favored by at least three touchdowns with a healthy Seth Russell under center, but the unknown factor of freshman Jarrett Stidham taking over drops the line a few points.
We’ve seen Art Briles‘ staff plug in unknown quarterbacks into this system and churn out highly productive passers year after year, and there’s little reason to expect a drop-off with Stidham.
Stidham is not the typical off-the-radar recruit being groomed to fit Briles‘ offense. He was graded as a 4-star recruit by both Rivals and ESPN, making him one of the most highly touted high schoolers to join Briles at Baylor.
#Baylor WR Lynx Hawthorne on Seth Russell, “we’ll miss him greatly, but catching pass from @Jarrett_Stidham is almost like a gift from God.”
— David Smoak (@DavidSmoak) October 28, 2015
A night game in Manhattan is not the ideal environment for Stidham to make his debut, as Bill Snyder has a knack for getting his squad to play its best on the biggest stages. But this Kansas State group, which is currently winless in Big 12 play, appears to be in rebuilding mode and not ready to keep pace with the Baylor offense.
Prediction: Baylor 48, Kansas State 24
No. 17 Florida State at No. 3 Clemson
Jason Getz-USA TODAY Sports
Clemson will be the favorite in this game, but the spread will be heavily influenced by the status of Dalvin Cook and Everett Golson.
The Florida State star running back and quarterback both missed the Seminoles’ game against Syracuse. Golson was held out due to a concussion, while Cook missed the game with an ankle injury.
Head coach Jimbo Fisher offered little clarity on the status of his star players after Florida State’s victory over Syracuse but did say he would “evaluate” the quarterback situation, according to ESPN.com’s Jared Shanker:
In his postgame interview, FSU coach Jimbo Fisher said he will “evaluate” the quarterbacks. Everett Golson or Sean Maguire against Clemson?
— Jared Shanker (@JShankerESPN) October 31, 2015
The key to the game could be Cook’s health. Clemson has allowed just 437 rushing yards in five ACC games this season, with an average of just 2.7 yards per attempt.
Opponent | Att | Yards | TD | First Downs |
Louisville | 28 | 19 | 1 | 3 |
Georgia Tech | 42 | 71 | 0 | 6 |
Boston College | 38 | 159 | 1 | 7 |
Miami FL | 29 | 53 | 0 | 4 |
N.C. State | 27 | 135 | 2 | 5 |
Sports-Reference.com
Florida State has won three straight in this matchup, but the Tigers have won five of the last six at home.
Prediction (assuming Cook, Golson are healthy): Clemson 35, Florida State 28
No. 4 LSU at No. 7 Alabama (-7)
Derick E. Hingle-USA TODAY Sports
Alabama has won four straight against LSU, holding the Tigers to 17 or fewer points in every game.
Despite the recent success, it’s difficult to get behind the Crimson Tide as a touchdown favorite against one of the most dangerous rushing attacks in the nation.
LSU’s passing attack has struggled at times this season, but quarterback Brandon Harris has shown development as the season has progressed. According to CFB Film Room, Harris is completing over 50 percent of his passes in his last two games against SEC opponents, a dramatic improvement over his early-season performance:
If the last two weeks is the real Brandon Harris, LSU might run away with the SEC.. pic.twitter.com/4nos2FBcpK
— CFB Film Room (@CFBFilmRoom) October 23, 2015
If LSU can make some plays down the field in addition to the production it’s sure to get from Heisman Trophy candidate Leonard Fournette, this should be a close battle—if not an outright win for the Tigers.
Prediction: LSU 21, Alabama 17
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