College football Week 7 odds, picks against the spread: Washington-Oregon, Notre Dame-USC and more

The Athletic has live coverage of Oregon vs. Washington in Week 7 college football action

The Week 7 slate of the college football season features four top-25 matchups. The big one is an absolutely massive Pac-12 game where the Oregon Ducks visit the Washington Huskies.

In terms of potential playoff implications, that is the clear big game of the week as the winner will go a long way toward solidifying its resume while the loser will see its playoff dreams take a massive blow. Both teams also have Heisman frontrunners at quarterback with Bo Nix leading Oregon and Michael Penix Jr. putting up huge numbers for the Huskies.

The USC Trojans and Notre Dame Fighting Irish also renew their long-time rivalry with a game that doesn’t seem quite as big as it did a few weeks ago. The Trojans keep sliding down the rankings one spot at a time even though they keep winning, while Notre Dame’s playoff chances completely evaporated last week with a loss (its second of the season) to Louisville. A third loss on Saturday would quickly put the season on the verge of being a complete failure.

Speaking of complete failure, Mario Cristobal and the Miami Hurricanes are looking to rebound after last week’s staggering loss against Georgia Tech when they visit the North Carolina Tar Heels in a huge ACC game. A win there might not completely erase the embarrassment of last week, but it would go a long way toward making things right for Hurricanes fans.

All games listed are on Saturday unless otherwise indicated. Kickoff times are Eastern. Rankings are from the AP poll. All odds are from BetMGM.

Stanford at Colorado — Friday, 10 p.m. on ESPN

When the Stanford Cardinal travel to meet with the Colorado Buffaloes on Saturday for a Pac-12 bout, the game will feature two teams in the bottom half of the conference. Coach Prime’s Buffaloes will open as double-digit favorites at home.

Say what you want about Coach Prime, but there’s no disputing the fact that Colorado already has four wins halfway through this season after the Buffaloes were 1-11 last year. Of course, the players deserve credit, too — Shedeur Sanders is leading all of FBS in passing yards (2,020), and Xavier Weaver is producing like one of the best wide receivers in the Pac-12 despite the well-documented struggles of the offensive line.

Pass protection might not be as big of an issue as in previous weeks, considering the Buffaloes’ opponent, Stanford, has accumulated just eight sacks across five games this season. The Cardinal are allowing a conference-high 34.6 points per game.

Colorado wide receiver/defensive back Travis Hunter has a chance to return in this game. He hasn’t played since suffering a lacerated liver Week 3 against Colorado State.

Stanford might’ve emphasized similar points about its opponent this week in the lead-up to gameday — something along the lines of “exploit this bad defense.” For as much as the Cardinal’s defense is struggling, Colorado’s has as well, allowing 34.2 points per game. With two underperforming defenses on the field, the over might be something bettors consider.

No. 8 Oregon at No. 7 Washington — 3:30 p.m. on ABC

Pac-12 game of the week. College football game of the week. However you label it, this conference battle between the Washington Huskies and Oregon Ducks should be worth the hype. In this battle of unbeatens, the Ducks will enter as the underdog for the first time this season.

What more could a college football diehard possibly want from a Saturday afternoon in October? You’ve got two College Football Playoff hopefuls in peak form, getting ready to go against one another for neighboring bragging rights. Each team brings a different style but much of the same production.

The statistics say Washington has the most productive offense in college football. The Huskies’ 569.4 total yards of offense per game is the most in the sport, which is a product of Heisman Trophy hopeful quarterback Michael Penix Jr. and his rocket of an arm. The lefty’s 1,999 passing yards on the season is second in the country only to Colorado’s Shedeur Sanders.

The Ducks offense is next in line with 557.8 yards per game. They are who they’ve been for the last decade or so — a speedy, big-play, quick-hitting kind of prolific offense that can score in bunches and get it done offensively in various ways. Bucky Irving and Jordan James make up one of the nation’s most productive rushing offenses (227.2 yards per game). Then of course there’s Bo Nix with 15 passing touchdowns and only one interception this season.

Oregon comes into this game with a better defense by the numbers, but it would be a surprise to see either offense being significantly slowed by the opposing defense. Expect fireworks.

Iowa at Wisconsin — 4 p.m. on FOX

Control of the Big Ten West is on the line when the Iowa Hawkeyes tangle with the Wisconsin Badgers this weekend. The Badgers are a double-digit favorite at home against the rival Hawkeyes.

Wisconsin is off to a strong start under first-year head coach Luke Fickell. The Badgers’ only loss thus far came on the road against Washington State and they have won their first two Big Ten contests.

While Fickell has worked to put his stamp on this program one thing that hasn’t changed is Wisconsin’s success running the football. The Badgers are leading the Big Ten and rank 19th nationally in rushing at 204 yards per game. Braelon Allen has gone over 100 yards in back-to-back games and is averaging 6.5 yards per carry. He’ll be the focus of an Iowa defense that has allowed just one rushing touchdown through six games.

Fickell has tried to bring more balance to Wisconsin’s offense. The Badgers are in the middle of the pack in the Big Ten in pass attempts per game but senior quarterback Tanner Mordecai has struggled to find his rhythm. The SMU transfer is completing 64.2 percent of his attempts with as many touchdowns as interceptions (three each).

Meanwhile, Iowa is relying on a backup quarterback the rest of the way after Michigan transfer Cade McNamara tore his ACL in the win against Michigan State two weeks ago. Sophomore Deacon Hill replaced McNamara last Saturday and he picked up the win against Purdue in his first-ever start but the sophomore completed just six of 21 passes for 110 yards. The big offensive boost came from running back Kaleb Johnson, who ran for 134 yards and a touchdown. The sophomore had missed the past three games due to an ankle injury.

The Hawkeyes need all the offensive production they can muster. They enter this game ranked second to last in the nation in total yards per game at less than 250. They also are 131st out of 133 FBS teams in passing offense (129.8 yards per game). That signals trouble heading into this matchup against Wisconsin, even if the Badgers haven’t been quite as stingy on defense compared to previous seasons.

No. 10 USC at No. 21 Notre Dame — 7:30 p.m. on NBC

The Notre Dame Fighting Irish get a chance to play spoiler when they host the undefeated USC Trojans this weekend. The Irish (5-2) saw their College Football Playoff hopes come to an end last Saturday when they lost at Louisville while the Trojans (6-0) needed three overtimes to escape the Arizona Wildcats. Although undefeated, USC is a slight underdog on the road against Notre Dame, a place the Trojans have won since 2011.

Reigning Heisman Trophy winner Caleb Williams is making a strong case for a repeat. USC’s quarterback leads the nation with 22 touchdown passes, has just one interception, is completing 71.7 percent of his attempts and also has six scores on the ground. He’s the engine that makes the nation’s No. 1 scoring offense (51.8 points per game) hum.

With Williams leading the way and head coach Lincoln Riley dialing up the plays; this will be an extremely challenging test for a Notre Dame defense that gave up a season-high 33 points in last week’s loss to Louisville. Still, any concerns about the Irish’s defense pale in comparison to the questions surrounding USC’s. The Trojans have given up 41 points in each of their last two games, the most recent coming against an Arizona Wildcats team that was led by a redshirt freshman backup quarterback. Overall, USC is allowing 27 points and 421.3 yards per game.

Even with USC’s apparent vulnerability on defense, the problem for Notre Dame is that its offense has been a prime culprit in the team’s two losses. Against Ohio State and Louisville, Notre Dame averaged 324.5 yards per game compared to the 483.2 piled up in the five wins.

On top of that, Irish quarterback Sam Hartman is coming off by far his worst showing, committing five turnovers in the loss to the Cardinals. The forgettable performance included his first three interceptions this season. He is tied for third nationally with 16 touchdown passes and he’ll need to add to that total if Notre Dame wants to keep up with the Trojans. Hartman also needs more help from his running game after the Irish were held to just 44 yards last weekend.

No. 25 Miami at No. 12 North Carolina — 7:30 p.m. on ABC

A road matchup against the North Carolina Tar Heels may be one of the last things the Miami Hurricanes want to deal with following their stunning loss to Georgia Tech last week — or it could be what gets Miami back on track. The Hurricanes and Tar Heels meet this week in Chapel Hill for a game with major implications in the ACC. North Carolina is favored.

How Miami responds to its instantly infamous loss to Georgia Tech is going to be a major storyline for this game. The Hurricanes could have taken a knee at the end of the game to run out the clock, but ran another play, turned the ball over and then let the Yellow Jackets go 74 yards in four plays to win the game.

North Carolina didn’t get into nearly as much drama last week as Miami did. The Tar Heels were dominant on both sides of the ball against Syracuse and have all the momentum coming into Saturday’s showdown. North Carolina is 5-0 for the first time since 1997.

Miami and North Carolina have flexed two of the highest-producing offenses in the ACC. The Hurricanes and Tar Heels are first and second, respectively, in the conference in total yards per game, and both are in the top 10 among FBS teams. Miami is second in the ACC in points per game and North Carolina is third.

The Tar Heels got a boost last week with the news that Tez Walker had been cleared to play by the NCAA. Walker caught six passes for 43 yards in his Tar Heels debut and makes an already potent North Carolina offense that much more dangerous moving forward.

Miami’s defense appears up for the challenge on paper. The Hurricanes have allowed 14.6 points per game, but that figure is helped out by three matchups against Miami (OH), Bethune-Cookman and Temple in which the Hurricanes surrendered a total of 17 points. Miami allowed 56 total points in its two matchups against Georgia Tech and Texas A&M, and it will be tested again this week.

No. 18 UCLA at No. 15 Oregon State — 8 p.m. on FOX

A big Pac-12 matchup takes place this weekend in Corvallis when the Oregon State Beavers host the UCLA Bruins. Both teams have one conference loss and can ill afford a second in a deep and talented Pac-12 making one last hurrah. Oregon State is the favorite.

It will be strength vs. strength this Saturday with Oregon State’s offense and UCLA’s defense each coming off impressive showings. The Beavers scored 52 points last week in a win against Cal, and quarterback DJ Uiagalelei was stellar with five passing touchdowns and 275 yards while completing 76 percent of his passes. Oregon State scored on all five of its second-half drives (four touchdowns and one field goal) that did not end the game last week.

UCLA has to be feeling confident in its defense after forcing four turnovers and holding Cam Ward and an electric Washington State offense to its lowest point and yardage totals of the season. The Bruins’ defense is tied for eighth in FBS with 12.2 points allowed per game, ranks fifth in yards allowed per contest and has twice as many interceptions as passing touchdowns allowed.

Bruins freshman quarterback Dante Moore has had his struggles since the schedule turned to conference play. After throwing seven touchdowns with just one interception in the first three games, Moore has two touchdowns with three interceptions against Utah and Washington State. The Bruins might lean more heavily on their running game after Cal rushed for 241 yards and three touchdowns on 7.3 yards per carry last week against the Beavers.

Picks records

(Photo of Caleb Williams: Katelyn Mulcahy / Getty Images)