Ole Miss, LSU on upset alert in our college football Week 4 bold predictions - USA Today
The final weekend of September brings the biggest Saturday in college football so far. There's six games matching teams ranked in the US LBM Coaches Poll and several others worth keeping an eye on that could impact the College Football Playoff.
Four of those ranked matchups will take place in the SEC as the league starts to sort out which teams will be the contenders and other others that will be pretenders. Three of them involve unbeaten teams in top 10 - Texas, Georgia and Mississippi - that could create some changes in the rankings and the pecking order in the conference race.
Could some of those top contenders fall? Are there other games to watch where there will be surprising results that shake up the rankings and playoff picture?
Thatβs where the college football staff at USA TODAY Sports comes in. Our experts weigh in with answers on where the upsets will happen in their bold predictions.
While Texas squeaks past Tennessee and Georgia sends Oklahoma scattering in covered wagons, Oregon reasserts itself as College Football Playoff contender.Β Dante Moore outduels Jayden Maiava as both quarterbacks show their NFL potential but it's Moore's four touchdowns to go along with more than 50 rushing yards that lift the Ducks in a shootout.Β -- John Brice
Love what Iowa offensive coordinator Tim Lester has done to change the identity of the team's offense after years of malaise. Made significant strides last season, and now has big arm quarterback Hank Brown who can stretch the field and accurately throw to all levels. If Iowa can protect Brown, it can escape Ann Arbor with a statement win at Michigan since 2010.Β -- Matt Hayes
Desperate doesn't even describe how badly Oregon and Southern California need to win this West Coast battle. This is the year Lincoln Riley's team takes off, but once again, there's several problems on defense. That's exactly what Dante Moore and company need to find their footing. A high-scoring affair goes the way of the Ducks, and the pressure reaches a boiling point with the Trojans again falling short in a must-win.Β -- Jordan Mendoza
Texas A&M rebounds from a putrid loss at home to Kentucky by stunning LSU on the road behind a revitalized performance from quarterback Marcel Reed. Beating the Tigers means getting it done on defense, too, and the Aggies haven't been impressive on that side of the ball after a terrific 2025. But LSU has been prone to turnovers, giving A&M a window to pull off a pretty sizable upset. -- Paul Myerberg
The most difficult part of playing your biggest game of the season isn't the game itself. It's the week after. That's the situation for Mississippi after beating LSU and former coach Lane Kiffin. That win was hard. Things will be harder when the Rebels travel to the Swamp and face Florida and first-year coach Jon Sumrall. There will be a raucous crowd and inspired team waiting for them. Look for Jadan Baugh to have a big day on the ground and Gators to win a back-and-forth game in the fourth quarter. -- Erick Smith
Since the SEC and Big Ten are consuming all the oxygen in the room, please allow us a moment to highlight a couple nominees for sneaky-good game of the week. One is in the Big 12, where West Virginia takes on Oklahoma State. Both teams own non-conference victories against opponents that were ranked at the time. In addition, both have future dates with presumptive league favorite Texas Tech and would therefore like to have this game in the bank. The Mountaineers will successfully defend their home turf, but we expect the Cowboys to make it interesting.
Elsewhere, Boise State heads to Kalamazoo to take on Western Michigan in a game that could serve as a key datapoint for the so-called group-of-six conferences. We boldly predict the Broncos will win that one. Hey, we had to do it. Seriously though, we know Boise State struggled to put away South Dakota last week, but the visiting Broncos will be sharper out of the gate and will pick up the road win. -- Eddie Timanus
USC has waited four-plus seasons for the payoff of hiring Lincoln Riley to appear. That comes this weekend. Famous last words, but Iβm picking Riley to win a big game. His Trojans will deliver a blow to Oregon that puts the Ducks on playoff life support before October even arrives. I donβt trust either Riley or Dan Lanning in games of this magnitude. So, why the belief in USC? Well, the game is at the Coliseum. The Trojansβ problems generally begin after they board a plane. At home, theyβve won 10 in a row. Also, although I donβt trust either coach, I do trust USC quarterback Jayden Maiava, more than I trust Oregonβs Dante Moore. -- Blake Toppmeyer
