You can call it “Breakup Saturday” if you want, because there’s a very good chance that there will be big changes in the landscape of college football in Week 9. Teams will get another chance to impress ahead of the College Football Playoff’s first rankings, which are just over the horizon Tuesday. While many of the country’s best teams have been riding high in the first half of the season – there are still nine undefeated teams at the half – this is the time of year when upsets are more common and the playoff picture becomes clearer.
The two opening afternoon games on Saturday will undoubtedly attract a lot of attention. Florida and No. 1 Georgia reignite their rivalry as the world’s largest outdoor cocktail party takes center stage as the SEC’s Game of the Week airs on CBS. Although the Bulldogs are still undefeated, they are nowhere near as impressive as they have been the past two seasons. Additionally, star tight end Brock Bowers – the Dawgs’ best offensive playmaker – will miss his first of a few games.
Georgia certainly spent the bye week preparing its offense to be successful in Bowers’ absence, but Florida had the same amount of preparation time after coming from behind for a decisive win at South Carolina two weeks ago. Gators quarterback Graham Mertz has (somewhat surprisingly) emerged as one of the most accurate passers in the country, and while UF still has some way to go to catch up with UGA, we’ve certainly seen some unexpected fireworks in this game before.
There will also be a Pac-12 elimination game when No. 8 Oregon visits No. 13 Utah. While the Utes have remained dominant at home and pulled off an upset against USC, the Ducks are looking for a rebound win after their loss to No. 5 Washington. Defeating Utah and establishing themselves as one of the top two teams in the Pac-12 will be crucial as Oregon hopes for a chance at redemption in the Pac-12 Championship Game.
Be sure to stick with CBS Sports all day Saturday for college football coverage starting with the opening game. Let’s take a look at our expert picks for the best plays in Week 9.
Odds via SportsLine Consensus | Always east
Indiana at No. 10 Penn State
lunch | CBS, Paramount+ with ShowtimeCBSSports.com, CBS Sports App — Look for Penn State to play angry and inspired football after its ugly performance in last week’s loss to Ohio State. The Nittany Lions are a one-loss team that can sweep Michigan in a few weeks. They still harbor big ambitions and should waste no time in returning to the dominance they enjoyed in the first half of the season. Indiana has shown it can hang with quality opponents for a half, but is overwhelmed offensively and will no longer have the firepower to keep up in the second half once the Nittany Lions start physically imposing their will. Pick: Penn State -32 – David Cobb
No. 6 Oklahoma at Kansas
lunch | Fox, fubo (Try it for free) — The Jayhawks will sorely miss the playing ability of Jalon Daniels. The Sooners’ defense has allowed more than 20 points only twice all season, but both teams have had their starting quarterbacks, including last week a UCF team that returned John Rhys Plumlee from injury. Meanwhile, the Kansas defense isn’t quite good enough to limit Oklahoma’s offense, especially if the Sooners can get the running game going again. Kansas has the potential to keep this game close for a while, but at some point Oklahoma’s depth on both sides of the ball will take over and the Sooners will pull away. Pick: Oklahoma -10 – Will Backus
No. 1 Georgia vs. Florida (Jacksonville)
3:30 p.m. | CBS, Paramount+ with ShowtimeCBSSports.com, CBS Sports App — Georgia is 1-5 against teams this season, and that trend will continue this week as a Florida team can even tie with the Bulldogs in the race for the SEC East title if they can pull off the upset . The Bulldogs’ offense will struggle a bit without Brock Bowers in the lineup, and that should allow Gators quarterback Graham Mertz to keep his team in the game into the fourth quarter. In the end, the Dawgs’ depth and versatility will shine through and they will achieve victory. This feels like a 10-point game and a Florida coverage. Pick: Florida +14.5 – Barrett Sallee
No. 8 Oregon and No. 13 Utah
3:30 p.m. | Fox, fubo (Try it for free) — Utah’s trends at home are so strong that it feels irresponsible to step on the other side, but I think Oregon is a more balanced and well-rounded team that would be favored by double digits at the neutral site. But college football isn’t decided in a vacuum under neutral conditions, so Utah clearly has a better chance of winning given the backdrop in Salt Lake City. Still, I think Utah played its best against USC last week, while the Ducks were able to get healthy and bounce back from the loss in Washington. Maybe some of that home-field advantage is negated by the fact that Oregon is a little fresher. Pick: Oregon -6.5 – Chip Patterson
No. 3 Ohio State at Wisconsin
7:30 p.m. | NBC, fubo (Try it for free) — With the Buckeyes, betting on the under was an extremely lucrative proposition. They were 6-1 in their first seven games because the market didn’t seem to understand that the offense wasn’t great and the defense was top notch. The average betting total on Ohio State games this year was 56 points. The average Ohio State game ended with 43.7 points, almost two full touchdowns below the betting line. This week’s total is much lower, but I still expect these teams to struggle to match it. Selection: Under 44.5 – Tom Fornelli
Which college football picks can you make with confidence in Week 9 and which underdogs will clearly win? Visit SportsLine to see which teams will win and cover the spread – all using a proven computer model that has returned more than $2,000 in profit over the last seven-plus seasons – and find out.