Week 10 College Football: Miami, Notre Dame, and the Holy War Top a Loaded Slate
Despite two top seeds dropping five combined games, the upcoming slate features four must-win scenarios and the first ranked Holy War in program history.
By Amit Chukwu ·
Fourteen games on the college football schedule this week carry major stakes, but only two involve teams ranked in the top ten of the College Football Playoff. The most striking number on the board is the gap between Notre Dame’s current standing and its potential: the Irish sit at No. 11 in the CFP rankings, seven spots below their AP poll position. That drop places them in a must-win scenario against Miami, a team that started the season unbeaten.
Miami’s path to a dominant start has been clouded by a specific injury. Star receiver Malachi Toney is out with a high ankle sprain, a loss that forces quarterback Darian Mensah to redistribute targets. Toney had 85 targets this season; no other Miami player had more than 35. Wideouts Cooper Barkate and Daylyn Upshaw, along with tight end Elija Lofton, must step up. Meanwhile, Notre Dame’s defense is missing linebacker Drayk Bowen and corner DJ McKinney to ankle injuries, though corner Leonard Moore is expected to return.
The betting line for that matchup moved from Irish minus 4.5 to minus 7.5 following the Toney news. However, Miami’s defense has shown cracks recently. The Hurricanes rank 120th in QBR allowed, dropping to 137th in the past three weeks. They have allowed 28.7 points per game in regulation against their last three opponents, a group that averages a 44.0 ranking in offensive SP+.
Another high-profile matchup is the Holy War between BYU and Utah, the first time the two teams have met while both are ranked in the top ten. BYU, which lost to UCF recently, will miss star running back LJ Martin for the fourth consecutive game. Utah, under rookie head coach Morgan Scalley, has won the last three games in this series but lost four of its first five meetings against BYU coach Kalani Sitake. The betting line for this game is Utah minus 4.5.
In the SEC, Alabama travels to LSU with quarterback Keelon Russell facing a defense that ranks first in the nation in sack rate at 11.8%. Alabama’s defense has allowed 21.3 points per game against the last three top-25 offenses it has faced. LSU quarterback Sam Leavitt ranks second in Total QBR since Week 4. The line for that game is LSU minus 6.
Georgia plays Ole Miss in a rematch of last year’s CFP quarterfinal. Ole Miss is looking for a win to stay in the playoff conversation, but they will be without star running back Kewan Lacy. The Rebels have scored touchdowns on 83.9% of their red zone trips this season, the best rate in the country. Georgia’s defense ranks fifth in yards per play allowed. The line for that game is Georgia minus 3.5.
Iowa hosts Northwestern at 7:30 p.m. on Fox. Iowa’s defense ranks first in three-and-out rate at 25.8% and 10th in sack rate. The Hawkeyes allowed 31 points to Ohio State but just 9.9 points per game to everyone else. Northwestern, under head coach Chip Kelly, just lost to Oregon. The line for that game is not specified in the source text, but Iowa is a projected favorite in its remaining games.
