College Football Predictions for Week 6

Even with Alabama and Clemson on a bye, Week 6 of the college football season is packed to the brim with plenty of interesting matchups, including two physical showdowns between Big Ten heavyweights, one of the best quarterback prospects in the country facing off against one of the best defenses on the road, and a Top-10 SEC matchup in the Swamp.

Virginia Tech vs Miami

Justin Fuente's hot seat is currently on the surface of the sun after getting punked on national TV by a Daniel Jones-less Duke at home. His next matchup comes against the impressive freshman Jarren Williams and Miami. Williams is completing 72% of his passes, has yet to be intercepted, and has led the Hurricanes to two straight wins after falling to Florida and North Carolina early in the year. With Fuente getting desperate and not ready to name Ryan Willis the starting quarterback, things could get ugly in South Beach, and the Hokies could be looking for a new coach.

Miami 41, Virginia Tech 21

Arizona vs Colorado

Mel Tucker has guided the Buffs to a 3-1 start, and earned a nice upset win against Arizona State to make up for an overtime loss to Air Force. Kevin Sumlin hasn't named a starting quarterback in this game yet, as Khalil Tate's injury could force freshman Grant Gunnell, who impressed in a win over UCLA, back into the starting lineup. Tucker's defense could feast on the inexperienced Gunnell, while Steven Montez and the Buffs offense pounce on a poor Wildcats secondary.

Colorado 34, Arizona 31

Baylor vs Kansas State

Matt Rhule, who recently signed a massive extension that keeps him in Waco for the better part of the next decade, is off to a 4-0 start after an improbable late win against Iowa State. Chris Klieman is building something nice with Skylar Thompson, James Gilbert, and Kansas State, but the Wildcats' ground and pound offense showed their limitations during a loss against Oklahoma State last week. Charlie Brewer, star wide receiver Denzel Mims, and the Bears offense are rolling right now, and the Bears should sneak into the Top 25 if they can beat the Wildcats in Manhattan.

Baylor 31, Kansas State 17

No. 24 SMU vs Tulsa

Former Texas quarterback Shane Buechele has been letting it fly deep down the field in Sonny Dykes' Air Raid offense, and he's led the Mustangs to a 5-0 start and a Top 25 rankings. Their opponent this week is Tulsa, who was embarrassed by Michigan State early in the year but since managed to give Oklahoma State all they can handle, beat a San Jose State team that took down Arkansas, and handled a Wyoming side that bested Missouri. Dykes, who coached Jared Goff at Cal, is a master at exploiting bad secondaries, so expect Buechele and wide receiver Reggie Roberson Jr. to slice up the Golden Hurricane defense.

SMU 48, Tulsa 24

No. 18 UCF vs Cincinnati

Dillon Gabriel and UCF recovered nicely from a loss against Pitt by dominating UConn, which is the college football equivalent of winning 100-0 in Madden on Rookie mode. They'll face a much tougher task against Cincinnati, however, as Desmond Ridder and the Bearcats have the defense to withstand some of the body blows that Josh Heupel's Knights can dish out while scoring enough to stay in the game. Ultimately, the Knights are too fast and too deep at several key positions for Luke Fickell and the Bearcats to go all the way and pull off another stunning upset.

UCF 38, Cincinnati 30

Purdue vs No. 12 Penn State

Penn State has to be thrilled with the performance of first-year starter Sean Clifford, who is looking just as deadly a passer as Trace McSorley ever did in Happy Valley. Their 59-0 domination of Maryland certainly sets them up well for conference play. The Nittany Lions should coast to a win against Rondale Moore and Purdue, as an injury to Boilermakers senior starter Elijah Sindelar makes redshirt freshman Jack Plummer the starter. Plummer should be in line for a rough first visit to Beaver Stadium.

Penn State 42, Purdue 17

No. 11 Texas vs West Virginia

Sam Ehlinger and Texas can't afford any more mistakes, as one Oklahoma loss could see the Longhorns vaulted back to the top of the Big Ten. While West Virginia has played them tough in recent years, and even managed to beat them last year, these aren't the Mountaineers of the past. The jury is still out on Neal Brown as a coach, and the early reviews for Oklahoma transfer Austin Kendall have been less than stellar. As long as Todd Orlando's defense can hold it together on the back end, Kendall will likely make a crushingly poor throw that seals another win for Tom Herman.

Texas 34, West Virginia 24

Cal vs No. 13 Oregon

The Golden Bears can kiss their Pac-12 title hopes good bye, as quarterback Chase Garbers will be sidelined indefinitely and will be replaced by backup Devon Modster, who Justin Wilcox clearly doesn't trust given his play calling against Arizona State. Their defense, led by Ahstyn Davis and Evan Weaver, could give Justin Herbert and Oregon problems, as they did with Jacob Eason and Washington. However, the loss of Garbers will likely be too much for Cal to overcome, and the Ducks should sneak by with a close win in a low-scoring game.

Oregon 24, Cal 10

Utah State vs No. 5 LSU

On paper, this looks like an easy win for Joe Burrow and the Tigers, who have one of the most explosive offenses in college football. However, the Aggies will throw out one of the best quarterback prospects in all of college football in Jordan Love, who is a lock to be picked high in the draft this spring. It will be extremely interesting to see how Love's terrific arm matches up against arguably the best secondary in college football. Love should make it close, but Burrow should be in line for four more touchdowns in an easy LSU win, as the talent gap from top to bottom is too great to overcome.

LSU 52, Utah State 31

No. 3 Georgia vs Tennessee

Tennessee is a complete mess right now, and a matchup against one of the best teams in the country is not what Jeremy Pruitt probably had in mind. Pruitt has declined to name Jarrett Guarantano that starting quarterback, and that dysfunction on offense should make it easy for Kirby Smart and the Bulldogs to exact revenge on former Georgia OC Jim Chaney. D'Andre Swift and Jake Fromm could be out of this game early, as Pruitt and the Volunteers are poised to sink further into the dregs of mediocrity that they have found themselves in over the last few years.

Georgia 45, Tennessee 13

No. 14 Iowa vs No. 19 Michigan

If Michigan struggled with the best center in the country in Wisconsin's Tyler Biadasz, expect more of the same against Iowa, as the Hawkeyes have two first round lineman in Tristan Wirfs and Alaric Jackson. That line should provide more than enough protection for Nate Stanley, who is finally emerging as a quality passer this season. Jim Harbaugh and the Wolverines made it a point to get more physical at the line of scrimmage, and that renewed focus will be put to the test against AJ Epenesa and the Hawkeyes. If Shea Patterson struggles in this game, Michigan will likely fall and the #Harbaughout talk will fire up again.

Iowa 27, Michigan 20

No. 25 Michigan State vs No. 4 Ohio State

Justin Fields and the Buckeyes just announced their arrival as one of the best teams in all of college football when they chewed up Nebraska and spat them back out at Memorial Stadium. Brian Lewerke and the Spartans are starting to find somewhat of a rhythm on offense, but a matchup with Chase Young, Jeff Okudah, and an improved Ohio State defense could put a swift stop to all of that. Fields and JK Dobbins are in the zone right now, and Sparty isn't going to do much to knock them out of it.

Ohio State 41, Michigan State 21

No. 7 Auburn vs No. 10 Florida

Bo Nix finally showed that he can win a game with his arm alone, as he played his best game of the season in what became a dominant win over Mississippi State. Nix and JaTarvious Whitlow will be a tough ask for Todd Graham's Florida defense, but they have not allowed a touchdown ever since quarterback Kyle Trask took over the starting role. If Trask can continue to complete passes at a high rate and, perhaps most importantly, get the ball out quick, Auburn's terrific defensive line can be somewhat neutralized. This is going to be a dogfight from start to finish, but the Gators should pull out the win in The Swamp.

No. 10 Florida 28, No. 7 Auburn 24