The 2026 college football season has reached Week 9, and because the season doesn’t officially end until the second half of January, it feels like it’s still a lot earlier than it really is.
College football might have a shorter season than most major sports, but these are the dog days, and life hasn’t been kind to top-ranked teams so far this fall.
Which ranked teams need to be most on upset alert this weekend to avoid having their College Football Playoff chances take severe hits?
Here are the matchups featuring at least one ranked team to keep an eye on this weekend.
12:45 p.m. ET
SEC Network
Line: Ole Miss -13.5
Not only does Ole Miss have to play this without stud running back Kewan Lacy, but it also gets Auburn at the worst possible time. Ole Miss is coming off a heartbreaking loss at Texas and welcomes Georgia to town next week. In the middle it gets an Auburn team that has essentially nothing to lose and that has already knocked off Georgia this month.
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7:30 p.m. ET
NBC
Line: Ohio State -6.5
After last week’s showing at Wisconsin, there is no way USC can compete with mighty Ohio State, right? Well, if USC is ever going to win a big game under Lincoln Riley, doesn’t this have to be it?
Ohio State is (likely) trotting out freshman Luke Fahey as a replacement for the injured Julian Sayin, and that brings issues. Can Bo Jackson take over the run game for Ohio State to keep the offense moving?
12 p.m. ET
ESPN2
Line: SMU -10
Did Syracuse figure a few things out last week in its upset win at North Carolina? One thing is for certain: good Steve Angeli is hard to beat – the former Notre Dame quarterback has five touchdowns and zero interceptions in two wins as a starter. He’s thrown just one touchdown and five picks in two losses, though.
SMU hasn’t looked good in either of its two road games this season, and the most recent one was over a month ago when it lost at Louisville.
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12:00 p.m. ET
ESPN
Line: Texas Tech -3.5
Texas Tech should be refocused coming off a tough loss at Cincinnati, but can overly vocal mega-boosters add pressure to a team already feeling it?
Arizona brings one of the nation’s best teams at converting third downs (54.7%, 3rd nationally) while Texas Tech ranks 65th in stopping third downs. Factor in a Texas Tech offense that has struggled mightily in the red zone while Arizona’s defense inside the 20 has been elite, and the Red Raiders have reason for concern.
3:45 p.m. ET
ESPN
Line: Utah -6.5
How often do we see a Western team get a huge win and then have to go on the road next week, and proceed to lay an egg?
We just saw it with BYU when the Cougars beat Notre Dame but got upset at UCF. Utah has to travel to take on a better Cincinnati team than the UCF squad BYU faced. How does it handle success against a team that just worked over previously unbeaten Texas Tech?
Be afraid, Utah. Be very, very afraid.
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