Week 7 of the college football season features four Top 25 matchups, including two marquee games involving teams in the heavily contested Pac-12.
The first game features a pair of undefeated foes when the No. 7 Washington Huskies, led by Michael Penix Jr., face Bo Nix and the No. 8 Oregon Ducks (3:30 p.m. ET on ABC). Both teams enter Saturday afternoon’s game with similar profiles. Washington and Oregon have strong offenses with Heisman-contending quarterbacks and have a chance at the Pac-12 championship and a spot in the College Football Playoff with a victory.
However, the race for the Pac-12 title might come down to the outcome of the another high-profile matchup on Saturday, when current Heisman favorite Caleb Williams and the No. 10 USC Trojans head to South Bend to take on the No. 21 Notre Dame Fighting Irish. Elsewhere in the Top 25, the No. 25 Miami Hurricanes travel to Chapel Hill to face Drake Maye and the No. 12 North Carolina Tar Heels (7:30 p.m. ET on ABC).
This weekend features plenty of betting opportunities, and our experts have you covered with everything you need to know ahead of Week 7.
All odds and lines are courtesy of Caesars Sportsbook.
Washington (-3, 67) faces Oregon in a battle of undefeated top 10 ranked teams. What are your thoughts on this game?
Matt Barrie: This is the game Pac-12 fans have been waiting for. Washington and Oregon are the two best teams in the conference and I expect this game to look and feel like the Pac-12 championship. I think Oregon is the more complete team on both sides of the ball right now, but the game being in Seattle gives the Huskies a slight advantage. I wouldn’t be surprised if this was the first of two meetings.
Matt Miller: This is the game of the week for me. We get two senior quarterbacks — Bo Nix vs. Michael Penix Jr. — plus great wide receivers in Troy Franklin and Rome Odunze, Jalen McMillan and Ja’Lynn Polk. The strong offensive talent on both sides of the ball has me thinking the over is the play here. As for who wins… Washington is my pick, but I do think this will be very close. If the Huskies can get Nix to turn the ball over, that’s the game for them.
Jorge Sedano: If you like offense then this is the game for you. You have two Heisman candidates and a couple of potential first round draft picks at wide receiver. I feel we’ll have a tight contest and for all the chatter about the offense, I think the defense for Washington can be the difference. The Huskies have scored 46 points off the eight turnovers they have forced this season. I think the winner of this game will be in the Pac-12 championship game. I’m not ready to say they will be the favorite or make the CFP. There’s a lot of football left to be played.
Kevin Haswell: This might not only be the game of the week, but it might be the game of the year in the Pac-12. The battle between these two offenses will be a sight to be seen. Washington and Oregon rank first and second in the FBS in total offense respectively. The winner of this game will most likely be the favorite to win the conference. As for a prediction, I’m going to go with Oregon +3. In a game that includes two tremendous offenses, I think the team with the better defense will prevail.
No. 10 USC (-3, 62.5) is currently an underdog to a No. 21 Notre Dame that is coming off an upset loss to No. 14 Louisville? Is Notre Dame right side in this game? Are the Trojans not getting enough respect?
Matt Barrie: Notre Dame is on the right side. Rain is predicted in the forecast, and the Fighting Irish are at home in South Bend. I think USC will start to be respected when it puts together four full quarters of sound football, which it hasn’t done all season.
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Is Notre Dame the right side as 2.5-point favorites vs. USC?
Joe Fortenbaugh discusses Notre Dame being 2.5-point favorites over USC.
Matt Miller: USC limped to an overtime win last week and Notre Dame’s defense is better than Arizona‘s, so I think that’s why we’re seeing the disrespect to the Trojans. However, I believe it’s bounce-back time for the USC offense. I have a very hard time seeing Lincoln Riley and Caleb Williams struggling in back-to-back weeks. Williams is coming off his worst game as a USC quarterback and we just saw Notre Dame give up 33 points to Louisville. I think USC wins big.
Kevin Haswell: USC struggled to get past Arizona last week but maybe that was a wakeup call for the Trojans. USC’s offense has been as good as it gets, averaging 51.8 points per game this season. They will face their biggest test on Saturday as Notre Dame is allowing just 15.8 points per game. I think that’s a test that Caleb Williams and Lincoln Riley pass, give me USC +3.
Who do you see as the strongest conference through the first six weeks of the season?
Matt Miller: I’m still rocking with the Pac-12. There are three undefeated teams in the top 10 right now, plus one-loss Oregon State and Washington State in the top 20. We’ll see at least one of those undefeated teams lose this weekend, but the Pac-12 has both the numbers and the impressive on-field play to bolster its reputation.
Kevin Haswell: I really wanted to roll with the Pac-12 here but how could you not go with the Big Ten. They have three of the top six teams in the AP poll in Michigan Wolverines, Ohio State Buckeyes and Penn State Nittany Lions, and three of the top eight according to ESPN’s FPI. The bookmakers also agree the Wolverines, Buckeyes and Nittany Lions have three of the five shortest odds to win the national championship.
What is your upset pick for Week 7?
Matt Miller: Missouri (+2.5) over Kentucky. Give me Brady Cook and the Tigers over Kentucky to get a bounce-back win after a heartbreaking home loss to LSU Tigers. Missouri has arguably the best receiver in the nation not named Marvin Harrison Jr. in Luther Burden III. I expect he will get loose against the 5-1 Wildcats.
Do you have any best bets for Week 7?
Kevin Haswell: I’m going to go back to the well this week and taking the over in the Auburn Tigers-LSU game Saturday. LSU has gone over the total in 10 consecutive games, the longest active over streak in the FBS. On the other side, all five of Auburn’s games against AP-ranked opponents have gone over the total since the start of last season. Lock it in, over 61 in Auburn-LSU.
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