Farrell Forecast: Predicting Week 8's biggest games
The Farrell Forecast isn’t only about predicting where high school football players will end up in college, it’s also about picking the winners and losers from each college football weekend. Last week I was an awful 2-4, killing my three-week streak of calling winners. Here’s my take on Saturday's games that interest me the most.
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Note: All times Eastern
No. 6 Texas A&M at No. 1 Alabama, 3:30 p.m., CBS
This is clearly the biggest game of the weekend and Texas A&M is the one team left on Alabama's schedule that could take the Crimson Tide down. That being said, picking against Alabama anytime is just dumb these days, especially at home. The defense makes the difference, again.
Prediction: Alabama 34, Texas A&M 21
No. 17 Arkansas at No. 21 Auburn, 6 p.m., ESPN
Who the heck do you pick here? Arkansas is completely unpredictable and the Auburn offense can put out a dud of a game at any time. I’ll go with the home team and the more consistent defense, but I don’t feel great about it.
Prediction: Auburn 27, Arkansas 24
TCU at No. 12 West Virginia, 3:30 p.m., ABC/ESPN2
I picked against West Virginia last week. I actually thought the 'Eers would get blown out in Lubbock. That was clearly dumb and I’m not going to doubt them at home following that win. But this will be more of a typical Big 12 shootout.
Prediction: West Virginia 36, TCU 33
No. 23 Ole Miss at No. 25 LSU, 9 p.m., ESPN
The best two-loss team in the country became the best three-loss team in the country last week when Ole Miss fell to Arkansas. So can the Fighting Orgerons with Leonard Fournette back drop the Rebels to four losses? They can, as Ole Miss consistently makes too many mistakes.
Prediction: LSU 27, Ole Miss 20
No. 2 Ohio State at Penn State, 8 p.m., ABC
Can Penn State keep this one close at home? The 20-point line suggests the Nittany Lions won't, and I certainly can’t see them winning outright even if Ohio State quarterback J.T. Barrett has looked human the last few outings.
Prediction: Ohio State 42, Penn State 21
No. 10 Wisconsin at Iowa, Noon, ESPN
Will Wisconsin have a letdown after giving it everything against the Buckeyes last weekend? Can Iowa continue to gain momentum? Something has to give here and the Badgers will be flat coming off last weekend’s heartbreaking loss.
Prediction: Iowa 24, Wisconsin 10
Washington State at Arizona State, 10 p.m., Pac-12
Mike Leach has his team playing hard again and he’s shooting off his mouth as usual. Can Todd Graham, accused of stealing signals, muster up enough defense to stop the Cougars? I don’t think so.
Prediction: Washington State 52, Arizona State 38
No. 19 Utah at UCLA, 4 p.m., FOX
Utah could be the most underrated team in the country and UCLA has looked awful with very few playmakers this season. Can UCLA quarterback Josh Rosen rise to the occasion and will his team to a win at home? I don’t think so unless he plays perfectly.
Prediction: Utah 28, UCLA 20
No. 16 Oklahoma at Texas Tech, 8 p.m., FOX
Texas Tech got throttled last weekend as Kliff Kingsbury's offense surprisingly sputtered at home. Can it happen two times in a row? Oklahoma’s defense isn’t that great, but the Sooners will be good enough to earn the win.
Prediction: Oklahoma 48, Texas Tech 34
Colorado at Stanford, 3 p.m., Pac-12
Colorado has been one of the most pleasant surprises of the college football season but I don’t see Stanford losing this one at home, with or without Christian McCaffrey.
Prediction: Stanford 21, Colorado 10
Texas at Kansas State, Noon, ESPN2
Kansas State has Texas' number, especially at home, and Charlie Strong needs every win he can get to save his job. The Longhorns play desperate football and it works.
Prediction: Texas 37, Kansas State 35