Week 3 was fun. It was stressful, but it was fun. It featured great finishes (Texas @ California), fantastic performances (hello, Lamar Jackson), and national powers asserting themselves (how do Nick Saban and ‘Bama do this year-in and year-out?). This coming weekend, most Power 5 teams will be engaged in battles within their respective conferences. In other words, ish is about to get real.
DK’s 2016 Week 4 CFB Game Picks
All game times in Eastern Daylight Time.
Last Week: 6-4 (.600)
2016 Season: 20-10 (.667)
Georgia @ Mississippi (Saturday, September 24th, 12:00 p.m., ESPN)
Georgia has won each of its games going into Week 4, and Mississippi is the nation’s highest-ranked two loss team. The Rebels played well early against Alabama, so they do have something to build upon. Georgia notched a quality win in its opener against North Carolina, but has not looked great since. QB Chad Kelly will start fast, and Ole Miss will hold on for the win.
Pick: Mississippi 37, Georgia 35
Upset Special of the Week:
Florida State @ South Florida (Saturday, September 24th, 12:00 p.m., ABC/ESPN3)
The Seminoles got thumped in Louisville by new Heisman front-runner Lamar Jackson and the Cardinals last week. How will they respond? FSU is more talented, but Willie Taggart’s Bulls are playing terrific offensive football, and they are averaging 51 points per game, ranking 5th amongst FBS schools. QB Quinton Flowers will be a handful, and will be this week’s breakout star. South Florida will pull the upset at home.
Pick: South Florida 45, Florida State 41
Wisconsin @ Michigan State (Saturday, September 24th, 12:00 p.m., BTN)
The surprising Badgers begin a very tough stretch against three B1G foes ranked in the Top 10 with a trip to East Lansing to take on Michigan State. Paul Chryst’s team got caught looking ahead last week, and barely survived Georgia State as a result. Michigan State opened some eyes with its early-game performance in South Bend, and will win handily this week at home.
Pick: Michigan State 42, Wisconsin 20
Florida @ Tennessee (Saturday, September 24th, 3:30 p.m., SEC)
The SEC game of the year of the week is in Knoxville on Saturday. The Vols are slight favorites at home, but it doesn’t feel like that should be the case. QB Luke Del Rio will not be available for the Gators, and Tennessee has played–and beaten–stiffer competition so far this season. QB Jalen Hurd is a difference-maker, and he will be the key difference in this contest. Tennessee will win.
Pick: Tennessee 38, Florida 17
LSU @ Auburn (Saturday, September 24th, 6:00 p.m., ESPN)
LSU brings QB Danny Etling and RB Leonard Fournette to eastern Alabama to take on Gus Malzahn’s struggling Tigers. Auburn’s QB drama lingers, while LSU seems to have solved its issue at that position. Auburn plays one of the nation’s toughest schedules to start the season, and it welcomes its third ranked foe to campus during the season’s opening month. Mr. Fournette brings his punishing stiff arm, and he will not be afraid to use it. The Bayou Bengals will win going away.
Pick: LSU 38, Auburn 24
Nebraska @ Northwestern (Saturday, September 24th, 7:30 p.m., BTN
The Cornhuskers made a statement at home in Week 3 against Oregon, and they look to continue their momentum against a Northwestern team experiencing the opposite. The Wildcats win a lot of games like this one with Pat Fitzgerald as their head coach, even when they are inconsistent early in a season, as is the case this year. Nebraska will win a closer-than-it-should-be game at Ryan Field.
Pick: Nebraska 30, Northwestern 24
Burgeoning Rivalry Game of the Week:
Arkansas vs. Texas A&M (Saturday, September 24th, 9:00 p.m., ESPN)
These two SEC West foes do not like one another, almost always playing tough, physical games against one another that are close until the end. TAMU handled Auburn last week, behind new QB Trevor Knight, who is playing well within Kevin Sumlin’s offensive system. Arkansas’ offense has struggled against quality competition, but the Hogs have played just well enough on defense to remain undefeated. The Aggies are better and they have the 12th Man at AT&T Stadium on Saturday. They will get the win, and will get it decisively.
Pick: Texas A&M 35, Arkansas 20
USC @ Utah (Saturday, September 24th, 9:00 p.m., FS1)
Southern Cal benched Max Browne at QB, and will try the talented youngster Sam Darnold. Darnold runs better, but it seems like an overreaction by trying-to-keep-his-permanent-head-coach-status Clay Helton. Furthermore, the Utes play tough at home, and they possess a lot of talent. USC is desperate, though, and the Trojans will use their speed on the outside to get the win.
Pick: USC 31, Utah 27
Road Warriors Game of the Week:
Brigham Young vs. West Virginia (Saturday, September 24th, 3:30 p.m., ESPN2)
BYU Athletic Director Tom Holmoe stacked the scheduling deck against his new Head Coach Kalani Sitake, as if he doesn’t like the guy that he hired. The Cougars are a tough out in 2016, but have lost two of their first three games, managing only to squeak by Arizona on a neutral field. Now, they travel to Landover, MD to play the Mountaineers? This will be another loss for the road warriors from Provo, and the rest of the schedule will not be much easier.
West Virginia 31, BYU 28
Stanford @ UCLA (Saturday, September 24th, 8:00 p.m., ABC)
David Shaw and the Cardinal ride an eight game winning streak against UCLA into the Rose Bowl this weekend. Coach Shaw is now the second winningest coach in the history of Stanford football, trailing only the legendary Glenn “Pop” Warner. Christian McCaffery has gained 200+ total yards in each of his last eight games, and looks to extend that streak, which is the longest in the nation by six games. Significantly, Coach Shaw owns Jim Mora, Jr., going 6-0 against him at the helm in Westwood. That streak must end sometime, but it will not end this weekend.
Pick: Stanford 41, UCLA 28
