2026 Week 9 College Football Predictions for Every Game

Two straight wild Saturdays have turned the 2026 college football season into a grand ol', unpredictable mess.

Yet the trick is to predict those very games every week! What a treat.

During the last two slates, 15 ranked teams have fallen—including seven losses to unranked opponents. There are a whole lot of those matchups on the Week 9 docket, so more chaos may be looming.

Georgia's annual clash with Florida and Arizona's trip to Texas Tech are the headliners of October's final weekend.

No. 22 Arizona (6-1) at No. 13 Texas Tech (6-1), Noon ET

Utah is the lone unbeaten team atop the Big 12 standings, but four others hold one-loss records in conference play. Two of them, Arizona and Texas Tech, are poised for a key game in Lubbock. Bailing on Tech after a setback at Cincinnati may be an overreaction, especially since Arizona's defense has been vulnerable on the road. Simultaneously, this feels like a matchup where one turnover will swing the result.

No. 17 Florida (5-2) vs. No. 3 Georgia (6-1), 3:30 p.m. (in Atlanta)

Florida has become a bit of a roller coaster, wrecking Ole Miss before two lopsided losses to Missouri and South Carolina, then storming back at Texas. Box of chocolates and all that. Georgia is the safe option, but UF clearly is dangerous enough to make it interesting—if the right version of the Gators shows up.

No. 20 Northwestern (6-1) at Oregon (4-3), 3:30 p.m.

Ah, yes, the uncomfortable context of a surprising Top 25 team against a once-popular, now-flailing preseason favorite. Northwestern's run-first offense is a serious threat. Oregon just yielded 225 yards on the ground in a loss at Illinois. NU's path to a victory is clear. However, the Ducks—despite their unexpected flaws—have played well defensively at home. Ugly, yet a win for Oregon.

No. 1 Miami (7-0) at North Carolina (4-3), 7:30 p.m.

Never underestimate a conference road game, especially at night. Underdogs love little more than a prime-time upset. Miami, which has surrendered too many explosive plays lately, must avoid mental lapses in a loud stadium. North Carolina is last in the nation with four 30-plus-yard gains. There's not much reason for that to change. But if UNC threatens to stun Miami, check that category first.

No. 2 Ohio State (6-1) at USC (6-2), 7:30 p.m.

Same underdog qualifier here. The bigger challenge for Ohio State, though, is that the offense will play its first game without QB Julian Sayin. USC's general inconsistency prevents a pick in the Trojans' favor, but we're all simply guessing how OSU's new QB—whether it's Luke Fahey as expected or Tavien St. Clair—will perform on a cross-country trip in his starting debut.

Virginia (4-4) at No. 14 Wake Forest (6-1), 3:45 p.m. ET

Since a 3-1 start to the campaign, Virginia has stumbled out of ACC contention. The main problem is a slumping offense, particularly a passing attack that has failed to reach 200 yards in four straight games. Wake Forest, which has ceded only 6.1 yards per pass attempt, should be able to capitalize on that trend.

No. 19 SMU (6-1) at Syracuse (3-4), Noon Prediction: SMU 31, Syracuse 23

Cal (3-5) at North Carolina State (3-4), Noon Prediction: NC State 28, Cal 20

Boston College (4-3) at Duke (5-2), Noon Prediction: Duke 29, BC 24

Stanford (4-4) at Louisville (4-3), 3:15 p.m . Prediction: Louisville 38, Stanford 17

Clemson (4-3) at Florida State (3-4), 7 p.m. Prediction: FSU 24, Clemson 19

No. 1 Miami (7-0) at North Carolina (4-3), 7:30 p.m. Prediction: Miami 34, UNC 24 (Top Matchups)

Georgia Tech (2-5) at Pitt (5-3), 7:30 p.m. Prediction: Pitt 27, Georgia Tech 23

No. 25 Wisconsin (5-2) at Iowa (5-2), Noon ET

First to 20? Expect two stout defenses and a barrage of punts in this rivalry tilt. As USC just learned, Wisconsin is fully capable of winning on the strength of takeaways and favorable field position. Iowa also committed four turnovers in its recent loss at Minnesota. At home, though, Iowa holds a slight edge.

Illinois (4-3) at Maryland (2-5), Noon Prediction: Maryland 27, Illinois 24

Michigan (4-3) at Rutgers (2-5), 12:30 p.m. Prediction: Michigan 28, Rutgers 10

Minnesota (5-2) at No. 4 Indiana (6-1), 3:30 p.m. Prediction: Indiana 31, Minnesota 13

No. 20 Northwestern (6-1) at Oregon (4-3), 3:30 p.m. Prediction: Oregon 21, Northwestern 19 (Top Matchups)

Nevada (3-4) at No. 7 UCLA (7-0), 4:15 p.m. Prediction: UCLA 33, Nevada 10

Purdue (3-4) at Penn State (3-4), 4:15 p.m. Prediction: Penn State 31, Purdue 20

No. 2 Ohio State (6-1) at USC (6-2), 7:30 p.m. Prediction: Ohio State 27, USC 22 (Top Matchups)

Washington (4-3) at Nebraska (5-2), 8 p.m. Prediction: Nebraska 29, Washington 24

No. 6 Utah (7-0) at Cincinnati (5-2), 3:45 p.m. ET

On the heels of ending Texas Tech's perfect record, Cincinnati gets a crack at undefeated Utah. To spring the upset, the Bearcats need their defense to make timely stops again. The unit had been mediocre all season but snatched three takeaways and yielded one red-zone touchdown in four tries against Tech. While impressive, it's also probably not sustainable for this unit.

Baylor (4-3) at UCF (4-3), Friday, 7:30 p.m. ET Prediction: UCF 28, Baylor 20

No. 22 Arizona (6-1) at No. 13 Texas Tech (6-1), Noon Prediction: Texas Tech 30, Arizona 27 (Top Matchups)

Kansas State (4-3) at Colorado (2-5), 2 p.m. Prediction: Kansas State 27, Colorado 24

Arizona State (4-3) at No. 8 BYU (6-1), 3:30 p.m. Prediction: BYU 31, ASU 17

Kansas (3-4) at TCU (3-4), 3:30 p.m. Prediction: TCU 26, Kansas 14

No. 24 Oklahoma State (5-2) at Iowa State (3-4), 7 p.m. Prediction: Oklahoma State 37, Iowa State 24

Auburn (4-3) at No. 12 Ole Miss (5-2), 12:45 p.m. ET

Following a surprising win at Georgia, Auburn proceeded to lose 38-17 at home against LSU. Sure, of course. The variance of this Auburn team is striking—and makes the Tigers awfully difficult to trust. Ole Miss still hasn't had a turnover-free game, but the Rebels should be able to out-offense Auburn.

No. 17 Florida (5-2) vs. No. 3 Georgia (6-1), 3:30 p.m. Prediction: Georgia 31, Florida 23 (Top Matchups)

South Carolina (4-3) at Oklahoma (4-3), 4:15 p.m. Prediction: Oklahoma 23, South Carolina 20

Mississippi State (4-3) at No. 11 Texas (5-2), 7:30 p.m. Prediction: Texas 34, Mississippi State 17

No. 23 Missouri (5-2) at Arkansas (3-4), 7:45 p.m. Prediction: Missouri 27, Arkansas 21

Florida Atlantic (5-2) at North Texas (5-2), Thursday, 7:30 p.m. ET Prediction: North Texas 43, FAU 31

Tulane (3-4) at Charlotte (1-6), Friday, 7 p.m. Prediction: Tulane 27, Charlotte 16

No. 5 Notre Dame (6-1) at Navy (2-5), Noon Prediction: Notre Dame 45, Navy 10

UAB (4-3) at South Florida (5-2), Noon Prediction: USF 24, UAB 13

Temple (2-5) at East Carolina (3-4), 3 p.m. Prediction: East Carolina 31, Temple 23

Army (5-2) at Memphis (6-2), 8 p.m. Prediction: Memphis 32, Army 24

Delaware (3-4) at Western Kentucky (3-4), Tuesday, 7 p.m. ET Prediction: WKU 33, Delaware 27

Sam Houston (1-6) at Missouri State (2-5), Tuesday, 8 p.m. Prediction: Missouri State 31, Sam Houston 21

Kennesaw State (1-6) at Middle Tennessee (4-3), Wednesday, 7 p.m. Prediction: MTSU 27, Kennesaw State 20

Jacksonville State (5-2) at New Mexico State (3-4), Wednesday, 8 p.m. Prediction: Jax State 24, NMSU 23

Florida International (3-4) at Liberty (6-1), 3:30 p.m. Prediction: Liberty 30, FIU 17

Kent State (3-5) at Sacramento State (1-7), Friday, 10:30 p.m. ET Prediction: Kent State 24, Sac State 17

Bowling Green (2-6) at Western Michigan (5-3), Noon Prediction: WMU 31, BGSU 20

Connecticut (4-3) at Air Force (5-2), 3 p.m. ET Prediction: Air Force 28, UConn 27

UTEP (1-6) at North Dakota State (6-2), 3:30 p.m. Prediction: NDSU 34, UTEP 10

New Mexico (6-1) at San Jose State (4-4), 4 p.m. Prediction: New Mexico 31, SJSU 13

Northern Illinois (0-7) at UNLV (4-3), 10:30 p.m. Prediction: UNLV 35, NIU 7

Colorado State (3-4) at Utah State (2-5), 3:30 p.m. Prediction: Utah State 38, CSU 30

Washington State (1-7) at San Diego State (3-5), 7 p.m. Prediction: SDSU 27, Washington State 20

Texas State (4-3) at No. 20 Boise State (6-1), 10 p.m. Prediction: Boise State 37, Texas State 23

Oregon State (5-2) at Fresno State (4-3), 11 p.m. Prediction: Oregon State 30, Fresno State 26

Troy (3-4) at James Madison (7-1), Thursday, 7:30 p.m. ET Prediction: JMU 37, Troy 14

Marshall (4-3) at Old Dominion (2-6), 1 p.m. Prediction: ODU 24, Marshall 23

Coastal Carolina (2-5) at Georgia State (4-3), 2 p.m. Prediction: Georgia State 31, Coastal Carolina 24

Louisiana Tech (5-2) at South Alabama (4-3), 3 p.m. Prediction: LA Tech 34, South Alabama 27

Southern Miss (2-5) at Louisiana-Monroe (1-6), 3:30 p.m. Prediction: Southern Miss 28, ULM 23

Appalachian State (5-2) at Georgia Southern (3-4), 6:30 p.m. Prediction: App State 28, Georgia Southern 26