It’s a loaded week in NCAA Division I football, and we’ve got four predictions featuring some of the best teams.
The pregame narrative: The Ohio State Buckeyes have been as dominant as anyone so far, and they should be able to handle the Wisconsin Badgers with ease. In a top-10 matchup between the Georgia Bulldogs and Ole Miss Rebels, look for Cayden Lee to make his mark in between the hedges.
Check out the best college football Week 8 picks, featuring a prediction for the Utah Utes vs. BYU Cougars matchup.
College football picks Week 8
Best bet: Iowa -3 (-106)
I wish I knew what this line would’ve been before the season. A lot has changed since then, at least on the Penn State side.
The Nittany Lions were in the Big Ten championship game and the College Football Playoff last year. But their 2025 season has gone off the rails.
Penn State has lost three games in a row, including two in which it was favoured by 21+ points. Quarterback Drew Allar is out for the year with an injury, and head coach James Franklin was ousted after the team’s most recent defeat.
Times are tough in State College, and I doubt they’ll get any easier this week in the hostile environment of Iowa’s Kinnick Stadium.
The Hawkeyes are 4-0-1 ATS in their past five games, which includes a 20-15 loss (as 9-point underdogs) vs. No. 3 Indiana a few weeks back.
I picked Iowa to cover a -3 spread last week in Wisconsin, and the Hawkeyes came up big with a 37-0 win.
Penn State still has two talented running backs in Nicholas Singleton and Kaytron Allen, but Iowa is stout against the run (2.8 yards per carry, eighth in D-I).
Given how much Penn State’s stock has tanked in the past week, this is a worthwhile number to back a solid Iowa team at home.
Key stat: Penn State is 0-6 ATS, losing each of its past three games outright as a favourite.
More college football best bets
Lee over 45.5 receiving yards (-118): In arguably the biggest matchup of the week, No. 5 Ole Miss visits No. 9 Georgia. Lee should be an X-factor for the Rebs.
The third-year wideout has been steadily productive in the past four games:
- Sept. 13: 3 catches, 75 yards
- Sept. 20: 2 catches, 60 yards
- Sept. 27: 4 catches, 70 yards, 1 TD
- Oct. 11: 3 catches, 56 yards, 1 TD
Coinciding with Lee’s production uptick is the ascendence of quarterback Trinidad Chambliss. The former D-II quarterback took over for the injured Austin Simmons and has been lighting it up.
I wouldn’t hate seeing a greater volume of receptions from Lee, but his big-play ability has shined through.
Georgia’s defence is gettable through the air. The Dawgs rank 84th in defensive EPA per pass, according to Game On Paper (compared to eighth in defensive EPA per rush).
Lee put up 81 yards on four catches against Georgia last year.
Utah over 26.5 points (-112): One of the pluses of conference realignment is the annual reinstatement of the Holy War, a rivalry game that’s renewed this week in Provo, Utah.
No. 15 BYU is a home underdog against No. 23 Utah, which probably has something to do with their strength-of-schedule discrepancy.
The Utes have the 71st-ranked schedule, per ESPN, while the Cougars rank 85th in that regard.
Utah has a dangerous dual threat quarterback named Devon Dampier. The transfer from New Mexico leads the Big 12 in completion percentage (71.5%) and has rushed for five TDs and 5.8 yards per carry.
Having scored 30+ points in five of their six games, the Utes should be able to cash this bet. They rank fifth in the country in offensive success rate.
BYU just coughed up 27 points to a mediocre Arizona team that ranks 72nd in success rate.
No. 1 Ohio State vs. Wisconsin ATS pick
Ohio State -25 (-112): Coming off a shutout loss at home to Iowa, the Wisconsin Badgers have to face the top-ranked Ohio State Buckeyes. This could — and should — be ugly.
- Ohio State is 5-0-1 ATS this year and has won its six games by an average of 30.0 points.
- The Buckeyes are scoring 36.8 PPG, while the Badgers have only scored 34 total points in their past four games.
- Wisconsin is just 1-3 ATS at home this season.
Advanced stats swing heavily in Ohio State’s favour. The Buckeyes rank third in net EPA per play, while the Badgers sit way down at 109th.
Offensively, the Buckeyes should be able to blow the doors off the Badgers. Ohio State is third in offensive success rate; Wisconsin is 93rd.
Despite facing excessive roster/coaching turnover following its national championship season, Ohio State has hardly missed a beat. The Buckeyes should bury the Badgers on Saturday.
College football picks made at 12:50 p.m. on 10/15/2025.
Jordan enjoys writing data-driven game previews and analysis articles — especially for MLB markets or NFL/NBA props. And as a proud Ohio University grad, he’ll always have a soft spot for college sports (especially if the Bobcats are involved). Previous stops include mlb.com, Sportsnet and The Athletic.