College Football Week 9 Straight Picks
Week 9 candidates for Before The Snap include Texas A&M-LSU, BYU-Iowa State, Illinois-Washington, and more.
- USA TODAY sports experts are predicting some upsets in Week 9 of the college football season.
- LSU is expected to beat Texas A&M and stay in the College Football Playoff race.
- Other bold predictions include wins for Iowa and Iowa State, and a possible coaching change at Auburn University.
This is where things start to get better. The college football season has reached its final weekend in October, and the favorites and favorites are starting to part ways. The pressure is on. Some teams are losing on the road, eliminating their chances of making the playoffs. Some teams have firmly established themselves as front-runners.
Some of the teams in both of these situations will be tested with a Week 9 schedule that features three big showdowns in the SEC and potential pitfalls for other teams. There will be a surprise on Saturday. I don’t know where they come from.
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That’s why USA TODAY Sports’ college football staff is here to provide answers to your tough questions. Matt Hayes, Jordan Mendoza, Paul Meyerberg, Eric Smith, Eddie Timanas, and Blake Topmeyer share their bold predictions for Week 9 of the college football season.
Mississippi State upsets Texas for rare SEC home win
Cowbells. Started at 11am on a sleepy day. The idea of easy victory. Welcome to the Starkville Trap, another SEC first for Texas. Mississippi State earned its first SEC home win since November 2022. It was the last game under the late, great coach Mike Leach. — matt haze
Bill Belichick wins ranked Virginia
We all know about the mess North Carolina State is in, but the Tar Heels looked a lot better last week against California. In comes a ranked Virginia team that has played some very close games in recent weeks. With Gio Lopez finally fulfilling the promise he had at the beginning of the season, the home crowd definitely favors North Carolina. Belichick gets his first ACC win in a big way. — jordan mendoza
Vanderbilt continues winning streak against Missouri
Vanderbilt defeated Missouri and took another big leap toward a spot in the at-large playoffs in what is shaping up to be a special season. That would give the Commodores seven wins in the regular season for the first time since 2013 and improve their chances of the first 10-win season in program history. The biggest benefit of a win against the Tigers is that it gives Vanderbilt the cushion to play Texas (away), Auburn, Kentucky, and Tennessee (away) in November. — Paul Mayerberg
LSU turns the tide and defeats Texas A&M
There are teams that find it in themselves to fight the hardest when cornered. That’s certainly the situation at LSU. The Tigers must beat Texas A&M to stay in the College Football Playoff race and protect coach Brian Kelly’s job. As the Tiger Stadium crowd went wild and the game became more intense, the Aggies suffered their first loss in a decision that rocked the SEC race. — Eric Smith
Big win for both teams at Iowa State
This week I’m going to take a bold shot at the Hawkeye State parlay. There are two notable games in the state, one involving the Big 12 championship and the other with the biggest trophy in all sports at stake.
Let’s start with something less daring. The Hawkeyes defeat Minnesota in Iowa City and retain the coveted bronze hog known as Floyd of Rosedale. It’s not a very bold choice, since the Golden Gophers have only beaten Iowa once since 2015, and that win in 2023 was only made possible by a ridiculous ruling from the replay booth with a phantom fair catch signal nullifying an Iowa touchdown.
The bolder prediction involves the game in Ames, with BYU coming into town undefeated while the Cyclones have lost their second straight. But Iowa State will be ready to recover after a much-needed week off. The Cougars have come close a few times, but this time it’s the Cyclones who will get the deal. — Eddie Timanas
If Auburn loses, will Hugh Freeze be next in line?
Shooting is just warming up. Hugh Freeze, you’re next. Auburn’s program has struggled for five seasons since firing Gus Malzahn in 2020. Freeze couldn’t pull Auburn out of the hole Brian Harsin put him in. As Freese said earlier this season, his team specializes in finding ways to lose. It was created specifically to fire coaches. Auburn heads off to face Arkansas, another winless team in the SEC. However, while the Razorbacks can score, Auburn’s incompetent offense will have a hard time keeping up. After five consecutive losses since the Freeze, the sweet release of buyout bliss may finally be unlocked. — blake topmeyer
