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Week 5 predictions for top 10 games in college football
It's only late September, but a favorite from the Pac-12 for a place in the first-ever College Football Playoff could emerge this weekend. The top two games of the college football weekend will be played on the West Coast, and a third matchup on this top-10 list features two Pac-12 contenders.
CFB 24/7 experts Gil Brandt, Bucky Brooks, Daniel Jeremiah, Bryan Fischer, Chase Goodbread and Mike Huguenin have provided their predictions for each game.
Season records entering Week 5:
Brooks: 31-9
Fischer: 31-9
Huguenin: 31-9
Brandt: 29-11
Goodbread: 29-11
Jeremiah: 26-14
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
Details: Saturday, 8 p.m. ET, FOX
The skinny: Baylor quarterback Bryce Petty (above) looks fully healthy and ready to begin Big 12 play with a difficult night game at Iowa State. A re-tooled Cyclones team is riding high off a win over in-state rival Iowa, and a new-look offense under coordinator Mark Mangino featuring Sam Richardson (above) is hoping to at least keep pace for a while and avoid last year's scoreline.
Game picks:
Brandt: Baylor, 48-24
Brooks: Baylor, 45-31
Jeremiah: Baylor, 52-28
Fischer: Baylor, 45-17
Goodbread: Baylor, 52-17
Huguenin: Baylor, 56-28

Details: Saturday, 7:30 p.m. ET, ESPN2
The skinny: Duke is the defending ACC Coastal champ, and given the parity in the conference after Florida State, any league win is going to be important. Duke senior WR Jamison Crowder (above) hasn't caught a TD pass since the opener, and he needs to make some big plays against a sketchy 'Canes secondary. Then again, Duke has run well and Miami's run defense again is a big problem. Miami could use a big game from junior TB Duke Johnson (above), still seeking his first 100-yard game of the season. Will either defense hold up?
Game picks:
Brandt: Miami (Fla.), 35-28
Brooks: Duke, 27-24
Jeremiah: Duke, 28-24
Fischer: Duke, 28-21
Goodbread: Miami (Fla.), 24-17
Huguenin: Duke, 37-35

Details: Red Raiders QB Webb injured in shootout
The skinny: One of the better Big 12 games of this week, Texas Tech is hoping to bounce back behind Davis Webb (above) and a high-powered offense while the defense makes some changes after getting run over by Arkansas. Oklahoma State impressed observers in the opener with how it played Florida State, but things are different as conference play begins with new quarterback Daxx Garman (above). Texas Tech's last win at Oklahoma State was in 2001 -- when Kliff Kingsbury was quarterbacking the Red Raiders.
Game picks:
Brandt: Oklahoma State, 43-27
Brooks: Oklahoma State, 35-31
Jeremiah: Oklahoma State, 31-24
Fischer: Oklahoma State, 31-28
Goodbread: Texas Tech, 38-31
Huguenin: Oklahoma State, 35-31

Details: Saturday, 10:30 p.m. ET, ESPN
The skinny: Sean Mannion (above) continues his assault on the Pac-12 record book in Los Angeles as Oregon State looks to get a key victory in league play. USC was off last week as it recovered from a cross-country beatdown at the hands of Boston College. Expect Leonard Williams (above) and company to come out fired up for a big night game at the historic Coliseum.
Game picks:
Brandt: USC, 30-17
Brooks: USC, 27-20
Jeremiah: USC, 28-21
Fischer: USC, 37-21
Goodbread: Oregon State, 30-20
Huguenin: USC, 34-27

Details: Saturday, 12 p.m. ET, ESPN
The skinny: Vols senior linebacker A.J. Johnson (above) gets his last shot at stopping Georgia running back Todd Gurley (above), who dominated the Tennessee defense as a freshman in 2012 (135 yards, three TDs) but missed last year's game with an injury. Problems in the UT offensive line could lead to a lot of heat on quarterback Justin Worley, led by pass-rushing linebacker Leonard Floyd. Keep an eye on the matchup between Bulldogs cornerback Damian Swann and Volunteers receiver Marquez North, as well. If the aforementioned Vols offensive front outplays expectations to give Worley adequate time, North could give Swann fits in coverage.
Game picks:
Brandt: Georgia, 41-17
Brooks: Georgia, 28-20
Jeremiah: Georgia, 27-17
Fischer: Georgia, 34-17
Goodbread: Georgia, 28-14
Huguenin: Georgia, 38-24

Details: Saturday, 6 p.m. ET, Big Ten Network
The skinny: Cincy sophomore Gunner Kiel (above) was the nation's top quarterback prospect in the 2012 signing class, and he has thrown for 689 yards and 10 TDs in two games. Ohio State's secondary is questionable, and Cincy has a puncher's chance because of its passing attack. The flipside: Ohio State should be able to run on Cincinnati, which surrendered 240 rushing yards to Toledo in its opener. Ohio State sophomore DE Joey Bosa (above) is a star, and given how often Kiel will be back to pass, Bosa can make his presence felt. Ohio State has won 10 in a row against Cincinnati.
Game picks:
Brandt: Ohio State, 41-20
Brooks: Ohio State, 31-30
Jeremiah: Ohio State, 34-27
Fischer: Ohio State, 24-21
Goodbread: Ohio State, 20-14
Huguenin: Ohio State, 42-31

Details: Saturday, 7 p.m. ET, ESPN
The skinny: Gamecocks coach Steve Spurrier deadpanned his way through the week, lamenting how bad his team is. But he's not just sand-bagging. South Carolina has major questions on defense and Missouri could expose some of them with talented sophomore quarterback Maty Mauk. The fun in watching this one will come with the Tigers' pass rush. South Carolina tackles Corey Robinson (above) and Brandon Shell weigh about 680 pounds between them, and Mizzou pass rushers Markus Golden and Shane Ray (above) -- who are undersized -- will try to fly by them with superior quickness.
Game picks:
Brandt: South Carolina, 37-34
Brooks: Missouri, 33-30
Jeremiah: South Carolina, 24-23
Fischer: South Carolina, 31-30
Goodbread: Missouri, 31-27
Huguenin: South Carolina, 27-24

Details: Saturday, 3:30 p.m. ET, CBS
The skinny: Old school meets new school in this clash of SEC West foes that will test the Texas A&M run defense almost as much as it will the Arkansas pass defense. Key matchups include Razorbacks defensive end Trey Flowers (above) operating against Aggies left tackle Cedric Ogbuehi (above), and the Arkansas rushing tandem of Alex Collins and Jonathan Williams fighting for first downs against the Texas A&M linebackers. Watch for Aggies freshman safety Armani Watts to be heavily involved in run support, as well. Finally, keep an eye on Arkansas defensive tackle Darius Philon working against a stout interior TAMU line, led by center Mike Matthews.
Game picks:
Brandt: Arkansas, 35-31
Brooks: Texas A&M, 35-21
Jeremiah: Texas A&M, 38-31
Fischer: Texas A&M, 34-20
Goodbread: Texas A&M, 45-28
Huguenin: Texas A&M, 41-35

Details: Saturday, 4:15 p.m. ET, FOX
The skinny: Things didn't go as planned for Stanford the last time it was in Seattle (a 17-13 loss). Ty Montgomery (above) is hoping that won't be the case this season, as the team tries to even up it's league record on Saturday. Chris Petersen makes his Pac-12 debut with the Huskies, who have not looked all that sharp despite starting the season 4-0. Keep an eye out for Stanford's massive offensive line trying to block Danny Shelton (above), who leads the nation in sacks.
Game picks:
Brandt: Washington, 27-24
Brooks: Stanford, 28-24
Jeremiah: Stanford, 28-17
Fischer: Stanford, 24-20
Goodbread: Stanford, 27-20
Huguenin: Stanford, 27-21

Details: Hundley looks healthy in UCLA blowout
The skinny: The best game of the week comes on Thursday night, as UCLA begins conference play at Pac-12 South rival Arizona State. The Sun Devils will be without Taylor Kelly at quarterback, so expect a healthy dose of all-purpose threat D.J. Foster (above). Brett Hundley's (above) status is still unknown for the game, but UCLA still has plenty of talent across the board to pull out a road win even if he's limited.
Game picks:
Brandt: UCLA, 27-23
Brooks: UCLA, 31-24
Jeremiah: UCLA, 35-31
Fischer: UCLA, 28-24
Goodbread: UCLA, 40-28
Huguenin: UCLA, 23-17