Week Seven Guide: Games to Watch

Welcome to Week Seven of the College Football Season.

The Hawkeyes bye week has come and gone, which means it’s time for Kirk Ferentz and Co. to get back at it. They’ll travel to Madison for a matchup with Wisconsin at Camp Randall Stadium, but that’s not the only game on the college football slate this week. If you are someone who sets up 2-3 TVs, like me, that means watching several games at a time. We’ve got you covered with what to watch. Once again, let’s skip an extended intro and just get into the games. HawkeyeReport breaks down the top games to watch during week seven of the college football season.

***All betting odds/lines are provided by Bet MGM***

Must Watch Game of the Week: #7 Indiana (5-0) at #3 Oregon (5-0)

Game Info: Saturday, October 11th – 2:30pm CT – CBS Line: Oregon -7.5

This game has been circled on the calendar for quite some time, but the vast majority of people probably didn’t think it would end up being a pair of 5-0 teams. As the first half of the season has gone by, week by week, this game has grown in importance.

The Ducks have been one of the most impressive teams to this point, outscoring opponents 203-37 through four weeks and then knocking off Penn State in State College. Quarterback Dante Moore has answered every question, completing nearly 75% of passes for over 1,200 yards, 14 touchdowns and just one interception. Indiana escaped Iowa City with a late touchdown to keep their undefeated start alive, while their 63-10 win over #17 Illinois is still as impressive as any win out there. I’m also hard-pressed to believe there’s many, if any QB-WR1-WR2 trio better than Mendoza-Cooper-Sarratt. It’s possible both of these teams make the CFP, but the fanbase for the winning team will start thinking about their chances of getting a bye in the playoff, as they will likely be favored in the rest of their games.

Best Weekday Game: #24 South Florida (4-1) at North Texas (5-0)

Game Info: Friday, October 10th – 6:30pm CT – ESPN2 Line: USF -1.5

If you are a true college football fan, you understand the importance of this game. Yes, UNLV and Old Dominion are still in the hunt, but it seems very likely that the Group of 5 spot in the College Football Playoff will go to someone in the American. These two teams, South Florida and North Texas, are amongst those in consideration, along with #23 Memphis. The Bulls were the early talk of the season, grabbing wins over Boise State and Florida, which don’t look as good, but their lone loss is to #2 Miami FL and they’re averaging 36.2 points per game. Meanwhile, the Mean Green are 5-0, with a 59-10 win over Washington State, led by redshirt freshman quarterback Drew Mestemaker who has 11 touchdowns and zero interceptions. If you need a side to root for in this one, Hayden Fry was head coach at UNT from 1973-1978.

Best 11:00am Game: #8 Alabama (4-1) at #14 Missouri (5-0)

Game Info: Saturday, October 11th – 11:00am CT – ABC Line: Alabama -3

Whether you agree with the number of SEC teams in the rankings or not, it means that every single week delivers a ranked matchup or two. It’s been well documented that Alabama’s loss in the opener to Florida State put them in tough spot. The good news? They’re 4-0 since then, including wins over #10 Georgia and #20 Vanderbilt, while quarterback Ty Simpson leads the SEC in pass yards (1,478) and is second in touchdowns (13). The bad news? 9-3 wasn’t good enough last season and the Crimson Tide have four ranked games remaining, including this road trip.

As for Missouri, they have been impressive against a pretty manageable slate, averaging 45.2 points per game. PSU transfer quarterback Beau Pribula leads the SEC in completion percentage (75.9%), while running back Ahmad Hardy leads the SEC in rush yards (730). Can the Tigers prove they are a playoff contender and put Alabama into a real bind at 4-2?

Best Primetime Game: #15 Michigan (4-1) at USC (4-1)

Game Info: Saturday, October 11th – 6:30pm CT – NBC Line: USC -2.5

The Trojans and Wolverines have met in California nine different times, but eight of those came at the Rose Bowl. Michigan’s lone trip to the LA Coliseum was all the way back in 1957. It’s just been a ho-hum season for the Wolverines thus far. A decisive road loss to #6 Oklahoma and a decent road win at Nebraska are the highlights, but they were less than impressive last week against Wisconsin. Freshman quarterback Bryce Underwood has been above average, but not great, while the Michigan defense has tallied 15.0 sacks, seven interceptions and one forced fumble.

The Trojans got a bye week between their heartbreaking loss at Illinois and this one, which was probably much needed. Offensively, USC is averaging 48.4 points, 565.0 yards and 26.6 first downs per game, but their defense has allowed 32.5 points, 419.5 yards and 22.5 first downs in two Big Ten games. The higher scoring it is the better for USC, while Michigan probably wants the opposite.

Best After Dark Game: #21 Arizona State (4-1) at Utah (4-1)

Game Info: Saturday, October 11th – 9:15pm CT – ESPN Line: Utah -5.5

Another week, another Big 12 matchup that feels like it has big-time implications. It seems like Texas Tech is the best team in the conference, but even they aren’t a lock for anything. It’s going to be a bloodbath fighting for a spot in the conference title game and this is the next important battle on the docket. The Sun Devils perfectly embody the bloodbath Big 12 feeling, defeating both Baylor and TCU 27-24 on late game-winning field goals. The Utes are 4-1, outscoring opponents 185-39 in their four wins, but they were dominated by Texas Tech (34-10) at Rice-Eccles in week four. Quarterback Devon Dampier has nearly 1,300 total yards and 13 touchdowns, but threw two interceptions against Texas Tech. Utah will really want to get a bounce back win over a ranked opponent at home after the Tech loss.

Underrated Game of the Week: #1 Ohio State (5-0) at #17 Illinois (5-1)

Game Info: Saturday, October 11th – 11:00am CT – FOX Line: OSU -14.5

It’s Illibuck week! For the first time since 2017, the Illini and Buckeyes will do battle, with the second-longest trophy passed between Big Ten schools on the line. There’s zero doubt that Ohio State is the best team in the country, outscoring opponents 187-25 through five games, including holding three P5 opponents to 5.3 points per game. Redshirt freshman quarterback Julian Sayin has completed 80.2% (!!) of his passes for over 1,300 yards and 13 touchdowns, while defensive end Caden Curry leads the Big Ten with 8.5 tackles for loss.

As for Illinois, they’ve bounced back with wins over USC and Purdue since the disheartening loss to Indiana, but their defense is allowing 40.7 points per game in Big Ten play, which is very concerning. The Illini are averaging 42.4 points per game in their five wins, while quarterback Luke Altmyer has thrown for over 1,500 yards and has 12 touchdowns to zero interceptions. The Buckeyes are big favorites, but if Illinois could pull the upset, they’d be favored in each of their remaining five games.

Other Games to Watch

Rutgers (3-2) at Washington (4-1) (-10.5) (Friday – 8:00pm – FS1)

The longest trip in the Big Ten, the Huskies visited Piscataway last season and now they’ll play host to the Scarlet Knights on Friday night. Rutgers has lost back-to-back contests after starting 3-0 but get a bye week to prepare for their trip to the West Coast. Despite the two losses, the Scarlet Knights have put up 393.5 yards per game in those games but are 0/4 on field goal attempts. The KJ Duff–Ian Strong–TJ Sheffield receiver trio has combined for 1,159 yards, which is the most in the Big Ten.

The Huskies lone loss came against Ohio State, but haven’t played a tough slate outside of that. They came from behind against Maryland, erasing a 20-0 deficit to 24-20 in College Park last weekend. Quarterback Demond Williams has almost 1,500 totals yards and ten touchdowns to one interception, while running back Jonah Coleman leads the country in rushing touchdowns (10).

Texas (3-2) vs #6 Oklahoma (5-0) (+1.5) (Saturday – 2:30pm – ABC) (Cotton Bowl – Dallas, TX)

The Red River Rivalry is one of the best in all of college football, but I don’t think many envisioned this scenario coming into the season. Texas unranked? Oklahoma in the top ten, but most likely without their starting quarterback? The Longhorns are just one of three preseason AP Top 25 teams yet to defeat a Power 5 opponent, with their wins coming against San Jose State, UTEP and Sam Houston State. Quarterback Arch Manning has tossed five interceptions and has been nowhere near the Heisman conversation. Meanwhile, Oklahoma has outscored opponents 169-36, including wins over #15 Michigan and Auburn. That being said, quarterback and Heisman candidate John Mateer might be out, so they’d have to turn to sophomore Michael Hawkins who is 4-4 during his OU career.

#10 Georgia (4-1) at Auburn (3-2) (+3.5) (Saturday – 6:30pm – ABC)

Another historic rivalry, the Deep South’s Oldest Rivalry used to be a mid-November staple, but it hasn’t been played in November since 2019, which feels wrong. It’s really quite a surprise that Georgia isn’t more than a 3.5-point favorite, as they have been a double-digit favorite in each of the last four meetings. The big number to watch for the Dawgs is that they are 1-7 against the spread as a road favorite over the last two years. Since Auburn grabbed a noteworthy season-opening win over Baylor, the Tigers have been less than impressive against the SEC, averaging 13.5 points and 232.0 yards per game en route to an 0-2 start in conference play. If it wasn’t for that 1-7 ATS as a road favorite, I’d be big time on Georgia, but Jordan-Hare Stadium is a weird place to travel to.

Rest of the Week Seven Big Ten Schedule

• UCLA (1-4) at Michigan State (3-2) (-8.5) (Saturday – 11:00am – BTN)
• Northwestern (3-2) at Penn State (3-2) (-21.5) (Saturday – 2:30pm – FS1)
• Nebraska (4-1) at Maryland (4-1) (+6.5) (Saturday – 2:30pm BTN)
• Iowa (3-2) at Wisconsin (2-3) (+3.5) (Saturday – 6:00pm – FS1)
• Purdue (2-3) at Minnesota (3-2) (-8.5) (Saturday – 6:30pm – BTN)