No. 8 Oregon at No. 7 Washington (Pier Cummings)
Final Score Prediction: Washington 44, Oregon 38
In this top– 10 matchup of two offensive powerhouses, a shootout is to be expected. Both teams have averaged 40 or more points in their first five games of the 2023 season. However, only one team ranks top-10 in total defense, the Oregon Ducks.
Despite a scare at Texas Tech earlier in the season, this will be the Ducks’ first real test of their top– 10 ranking.
Michael Penix Jr. has become a Heisman front-runner on the back of the Huskies’ prolific offense, and he will be difficult for the Ducks to contain. Because of this, I believe the Huskies will give the Ducks more than they can handle. This game will come down to the wire, and ultimately Washington will come out on top.
No. 10 USC at No. 21 Notre Dame (Griffin Ray)
Final Score Prediction: Notre Dame 28, USC 24
Recently, the USC Trojans have not been playing up to the standard that was expected of them entering the season. The Trojans were expected to be dominant with Heisman favorite Caleb Williams at quarterback and renowned Head Coach Lincoln Riley, but they have not been playing like a top-10 team, at least on defense
Just this past week, they narrowly escaped an upset in three overtimes to unranked Arizona, who lost to Mississippi State in Week 2; moreover, USC had to mount a comeback against unranked Arizona State in Week 4.
The Fighting Irish have not played their best football as of late, losing 33-20 to Louisville last week, but I think quarterback Sam Hartman will have a career game against the struggling Trojans, earning the Fighting Irish their first big upset of the season.
No. 18 UCLA at No. 15 Oregon State (Cameron Larkin)
Final Score Prediction: Oregon State 34, UCLA 24
These Pac-12 matchups will continue to get more interesting as the season goes on. This one between the Bruins and Beavers promises a highly competitive, back-and-forth contest, one in which both teams are vying for a spot in the Pac-12 championship game.
After a QB carousel to start the season, UCLA Head Coach Chip Kelly landed on freshman Dante Moore to spearhead the offense. With him at the helm, the Bruins bested Washington State, who edged out Oregon State a couple of weeks ago.
Clemson transfer DJ Uiagalelei has looked good in his new shade of orange to start this season at Oregon State. The Beavers were said to be a quarterback away from national relevance last year, and he has more than provided them with great QB play.
I think, since Oregon State has this one at home, the Beavers sneak past UCLA to improve to 6-1.
No. 12 North Carolina versus No. 25 Miami (Tanner Shapiro)
Final Score Prediction: UNC 34, Miami 27
In this top ACC matchup, North Carolina faces off against a Miami team that has looked dominant at times but struggled mightily in their loss to Georgia Tech last weekend.
UNC is coming off of a good win against Syracuse and just welcomed back dynamic playmaker Tez Walker, who will help the Tar Heels tremendously in the passing game. UNC is led by QB Drake Maye, who is mocked as the second or third quarterback off the board for the upcoming draft.
The Miami offense is led by QB Tyler Van Dyke, who is a great downfield passer but often struggles with turnovers. The key of this game will be QB play, and I think Maye will be a force to be reckoned with.
