Week 10 brings a Saturday loaded with ranked matchups, but the one that towers over everything else is Miami at Notre Dame.
The Hurricanes have made no secret of their long-term ambitions, but for now they are the ACC team everybody else in the Power Four is leaning on. If Miami beats the Irish, it opens the door a little wider for everyone else. If Notre Dame wins, the Irish are basically back on track for the kind of finish that gets them into the College Football Playoff.
That’s the backdrop for a day that features seven games between ranked teams and a whole lot of scoreboard watching. Notre Dame sits at 7-1 and has the built-in CFP carve-out that rewards a top-12 finish with a berth.
Win Saturday evening, and an 11-1 finish looks good enough. Lose, and the road gets a lot tighter.
The Irish could only get to 10-2, with defeats to Miami and BYU and no wins over ranked teams based on the current CFP rankings. The committee would almost certainly look at that skeptically, just as it did last year when the 10-2 Irish were left out in controversial fashion.
That’s why this game matters far beyond South Bend and Coral Gables. If Notre Dame takes a spot, there are six at-large bids for everyone else.
If the Irish are not involved, there are seven. That extra berth could shift to another ACC or Big 12 team, or create room for a fourth team from the Big Ten or SEC.
Either way, it’s a spot that would go to the power conferences, not to an Independent working under its own set of rules.
Miami, notably, will be without star receiver Malachi Toney.
Here are the picks for the day, with all times Pacific:
TCU (+9) at Arizona
UCLA (-5.5) at Minnesota, 9 a.m. on Fox
The setup is awkward for the Bruins: a long trip and an early kickoff. Minnesota, meanwhile, has already shown it can handle bigger names, with wins over Iowa and Michigan.
Bob Chesney’s influence is part of the equation here, too. Pick: Minnesota
BYU (+5) at Utah, 9 a.m. on ABC
This is the Big 12’s game of the day and, in rivalry terms, the game of eternity. The numbers point to the Cougars as the value side.
BYU has repeatedly shown it can finish close games, and the last two meetings between these teams were decided by a combined four points. With BYU getting more than a field goal, that’s the side to take.
Pick: BYU
Penn State (+2) at Washington, 12:30 p.m. on FS1
The line is hard to make sense of unless Washington’s quarterback situation is driving it. The expectation here is that Demond Williams starts and plays well.
Penn State, on the other hand, is described here as essentially a decent Big 12 team with the players Matt Campbell brought from Iowa State. Pick: Washington
Oregon (+7.5) at Ohio State, 12:30 p.m. on CBS
This was supposed to be the game of the day, but injuries at quarterback and mounting losses have taken some shine off it. Ohio State still needs the win for its playoff hopes, while Oregon’s path is now extremely narrow. Pick: Oregon
Alabama (+5.5) at LSU, 12:30 p.m. on ABC
LSU may be the more talented team - maybe even the most talented team - and Death Valley is still Death Valley. But Alabama has Kalen DeBoer, and he’s one of the best big-game coaches in the country.
LSU’s Lane Kiffin is not. Pick: Alabama
Boise State (-17) at Colorado State
Miami (+5.5) at Notre Dame, 4:30 p.m. on NBC
This one has Game of the Year potential, even with the injury to Malachi Toney, who hurt his ankle in practice Wednesday and needs surgery. Notre Dame is in must-win mode because of its weak schedule and the loss at BYU, while Miami’s defense was shaky against North Carolina. Pick: Notre Dame
West Virginia (+16.5) at Texas Tech, 6:30 p.m. on ESPN
No one is claiming Rich Rodriguez is definitely about to pull off the outright upset in Lubbock. But nobody is ruling it out, either, because Texas Tech has been inconsistent enough to keep the door cracked open. Pick: West Virginia
Texas State (+6.5) at Oregon State, 7:30 p.m. on The CW
In Other News...
BYU Heads To Utah With Its Big 12 Hopes Suddenly On The Line
A decisive win over Cincinnati pushed Utah to the top of the Big 12 standings and suddenly made the conference race feel a lot tighter for everyone else, including BYU. With Arizonas loss to Texas Tech effectively knocking the Wildcats out of title contention, the path through the league is narrowing fast as the calendar turns to Week 10 and the stakes keep rising.
Now the Cougars head to Utah for a matchup that could reshape the Big 12 championship picture in a hurry. It is the kind of late-season game that can swing more than one conversation at once, with bowl eligibility also in play around the league, but for BYU the bigger question is whether this trip keeps its title hopes alive or hands the edge to the team sitting at the top. [Read more 🡒]
BYU Faces Its Biggest Holy War Test With Doubts Still Lingering
Week 10 brings one of the biggest games on BYUs schedule, and the Holy War arrives with both teams carrying real weight in the rankings. No. 9 BYU gets No. 3 Utah in a matchup that has plenty of national attention attached to it, but for the Cougars it is also the kind of measuring-stick game that can clarify just how far this season can go. The buildup has centered on how each team has been playing and which key pieces will be available, the sort of details that can swing a rivalry game before the first snap.
For BYU, the intrigue is not just the opponent but the uncertainty still hanging over the matchup. Utahs form and personnel situation have made this a difficult one to sort through, and the article frames it as a game where the margin for error should be thin from start to finish. A prediction is part of the conversation, but the larger issue for the Cougars is whether they can answer the doubts that come with facing one of the best teams on the schedule at the most pressure-packed moment of the season. [Read more 🡒]
BYU Just Reached A Crucial Point In Pursuit Of Elite Prospect
BYUs pursuit of Luka Lukic has reached a meaningful stage, with the 2027 international prospect set to begin a busy run of official visits in the United States this week. Jonathan Givony reported that the Cougars are among eight schools on the itinerary, and BYU is scheduled to host him on Saturday after recruiting him for months.
Lukic has already built a strong rsum for a young player, starring for a club in Spain while also representing Serbia on the international stage. He helped lead Serbias U17 team to a silver medal at the FIBA U17 World Cup and was named MVP at the NBA/FIBA Basketball Without Borders event, which helps explain why so many programs are now making room for him on their calendars. [Read more 🡒]