nbcsports
The seventh week of the college football season presents the most compelling slate yet, with six games matching teams ranked in the Associated Press Top 25. Among them are a top-five battle and a top-10 showdown.
In the afternoon, No. 4 Ohio State travels to No. 5 Indiana in a clash between the last two national champions. The victor will gain a crucial advantage in the race for the Big Ten championship game and bolster its College Football Playoff seeding résumé.
At night, No. 2 Notre Dame visits No. 8 BYU in the first top-10 game ever played at LaVell Edwards Stadium. The outcome could heavily influence playoff positioning, as neither team has faced a challenging schedule to this point.
Elsewhere, No. 16 Mississippi State heads to No. 22 LSU, where a Bulldogs win would likely extinguish LSU's playoff aspirations in Lane Kiffin's first season. No. 6 Alabama, coming off a home loss to now-No. 1 Georgia, looks to rebound at No. 14 Tennessee. The quarterback duel in No. 13 Missouri at No. 9 Mississippi is intriguing: Missouri's Austin Simmons started last season as Mississippi's starter before giving way to Trinidad Chambliss, who remains the starter in Oxford. The final Top 25 matchup pits No. 18 Oklahoma State at No. 20 Houston in Big 12 play. The Cowboys, after two dismal years, have become a feel-good story with 91 newcomers and first-year coach Eric Morris; they lost to Tulsa but have since won four straight, including an upset of Oregon.
Key Analysis
The Ohio State-Indiana game stands out as the weekend's premier matchup. The Buckeyes have reeled off four consecutive wins since a fourth-quarter collapse at Texas. The defending champion Hoosiers have won 22 straight, including a fourth-quarter comeback at Nebraska. When the teams last met, Ohio State was the reigning national champion and ranked No. 1; Indiana's 13-10 victory in the Big Ten championship game was its first in 31 series meetings and snapped the Buckeyes' 16-game win streak. Attention will focus on three of the nation's top receivers: Ohio State's Jeremiah Smith, who has posted gaudy numbers, and Indiana's elite duo of Charlie Becker and Nick Marsh.
Heisman Trophy watch: Preseason favorite CJ Carr of No. 2 Notre Dame has done nothing to diminish his candidacy through six games, throwing 16 touchdown passes against one interception while averaging 229 passing yards per game on 70% accuracy. However, his middling schedule has caused him to slip behind Ohio State WR Jeremiah Smith and Miami QB Darian Mensah in the wagering markets, both of whom have produced phenomenal stats. Carr has a chance to make a statement against BYU's top-10 defense. BYU quarterback Bear Bachmeier has shouldered a heavier load since star RB LJ Martin was injured against TCU on Oct. 3. Bachmeier threw for 329 yards and ran for 109 against Iowa State and is entering the Heisman conversation. Like Carr, he gets a big stage, but against what appears to be an even better defense.
Numbers to know: 4 – blocked kicks or punts by Vanderbilt, most in the nation, after none in the previous two seasons. 10 – Oregon State freshman Jesse Legree's nation-leading receptions of 30-plus yards. 18 – Pittsburgh's interceptions returned for touchdowns since 2020, most in the country. 23 – Nebraska has held each of its first six opponents to 23 points or fewer for the first time since 2010. 47.8% – Utah's opponent pass completion rate, on pace to be the lowest by a team since 2016. 106 – UTEP's consecutive games since 2017 without its defense returning an interception for a touchdown, the longest active streak in the nation.
Under the radar: Northwestern (4-1, 1-1 Big Ten) at Michigan State (2-4, 0-3), noon ET (Peacock). It's the Pat Fitzgerald Bowl. Fitzgerald was a two-time consensus All-America linebacker at Northwestern in the mid-1990s and later the program's longest-tenured head coach for 17 years. He was fired shortly before fall camp in 2023 amid a hazing scandal. He filed a $130 million wrongful termination lawsuit, and the sides settled last summer, with Northwestern acknowledging it could not establish that Fitzgerald was told by players about the hazing or that he directed or condoned it. Fitzgerald restarted his college coaching career in December when Michigan State hired him. David Braun, who joined the Northwestern staff as defensive coordinator seven months before Fitzgerald's firing, is now head coach and has the Wildcats off to their best start in six years.
Hot seat: Rutgers' Greg Schiano was mentioned here after an embarrassing 37-21 season-opening home loss to UMass. Maryland's Mike Locksley was here after a 51-point home loss to UCLA. Things haven't improved for either. The Scarlet Knights' only win in a 1-4 start came against Howard. The Terrapins are 2-4 with wins over Hampton and UConn. According to CoachesHotSeat.com and other observers, Locksley is the only coach on a hotter seat than Schiano. Neither athletic department wants to pay a buyout and conduct a coaching search, but it appears imminent for one and probably both. Locksley would be owed $9.7 million and Schiano about $18 million, per media reports. Rutgers visits Maryland. May the best coach win.
Originally reported by nbcsports.