Week 1 gave us a few answers. Week 2 could completely change what we think we know about the college football season.
On the latest Game Day Collective College Football Show, presented by Outlier, Josh Mahler and Jeremy Russell break down a loaded Week 2 slate featuring marquee matchups, upset candidates, betting picks, and games that could already begin shaping the College Football Playoff picture.
At the center of the weekend is the GDC Game of the Week: No. 1 Ohio State at Texas.
Ohio State enters Austin with another roster loaded with talent, led offensively by quarterback Julian Sayin and superstar receiver Jeremiah Smith. Texas counters with Arch Manning and an offense that will have a chance to make an early national statement in front of its home crowd.
Both Josh and Jeremy ultimately sided with the Buckeyes. Josh called for a close 24-20 Ohio State victory, while Jeremy predicted Ohio State would pull away late for a 28-14 win.
The Longhorns may have home-field advantage, but taking down the nation’s No. 1 team would immediately strengthen their early playoff résumé.
Oklahoma Gets Its Chance to Make a Statement
Another major game on the Week 2 schedule sends Oklahoma to Michigan, and Josh isn’t expecting the Sooners to leave Ann Arbor quietly.
After Michigan struggled offensively in its opener, Josh believes Brent Venables’ Oklahoma defense could create serious problems for quarterback Bryce Underwood and the Wolverines.
Oklahoma entered the discussion as Josh’s GDC Lock of the Week, with the Sooners favored by 5.5 points.
His prediction?
Oklahoma 34, Michigan 6.
Jeremy also sided comfortably with the Sooners, predicting a 35-21 Oklahoma victory.
For a Sooners program looking to make an early statement, a road victory at Michigan would provide exactly that opportunity.
Who’s on Upset Alert?
Embed from Getty ImagesWeek 2 also brings another round of GDC Upset Alert picks.
Jeremy went big, calling for Iowa State to upset Iowa in the latest edition of the Cy-Hawk rivalry. He predicted a 28-21 Cyclones win despite Iowa State entering as a sizable underdog.
Josh’s upset pick is Duke over Illinois.
After watching Duke hold Tulane under 300 total yards while controlling the football for more than 36 minutes, Josh believes the Blue Devils have the defensive formula to walk into Champaign and knock off Illinois.
He went beyond simply putting Illinois on upset alert — he’s picking Duke to win outright.
Saturday Night After Dark
When the daytime games end, the Week 2 action isn’t finished.
The guys highlighted Arkansas at Utah as the week’s late-night matchup to watch. Utah enters as the favorite, but a late kickoff, a hostile environment, and two teams still trying to establish their identities could make this one worth staying awake for.
Both Josh and Jeremy picked Utah, with Josh projecting a 34-28 Utes victory and Jeremy taking Utah 28-21.
The show also runs through the weekly GDC Pick ‘Em Board, featuring predictions for Missouri-Kansas, Oregon-Oklahoma State, Alabama-Kentucky, Arizona-BYU, Tennessee-Georgia Tech, Iowa-Iowa State, Memphis-Boise State and San Diego State-UCLA.
After both Josh and Jeremy went 6-2 last week, the race is on to see who can finally put together the perfect Saturday.
Week 2 may only be the beginning of the season. Still, with Ohio State-Texas, Oklahoma-Michigan and several potential upsets on the schedule, we could know considerably more about the national championship picture by the end of Saturday night.
Catch the full Game Day Collective Week 2 College Football Preview, presented by Outlier, for complete predictions, betting breakdowns, and picks for the weekend.
And as always, be part of the Collective — follow Game Day Collective across YouTube, podcast platforms, and social media, and keep up with the latest college football coverage right here at GameDayCollective.media.
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