The college football season is heating up, and Week 4 brought some thrilling matchups that gave us a glimpse into the top teams in their new conferences. The USC Trojans kicked off their Big Ten journey on the road against the Michigan Wolverines, while the Oklahoma Sooners began their inaugural season in the SEC with a visit from the Tennessee Volunteers. These teams are expected to be major players in the College Football Playoff race.
One of the most exciting games of the week saw the Wolverines edge out the Trojans 27-24 in a hard-hitting contest. Michigan’s rushing game was the key to their victory, with quarterback Alex Orji attempting only 12 passes for 32 yards, the fewest passing yards the team has had in a game since 1987. However, the Wolverines racked up 290 yards on the ground, including scoring runs of 53 and 41 yards, and another long run to set up the winning touchdown.
In another highly anticipated matchup, the Volunteers took down the Sooners 25-15, thanks to a stellar defensive performance. Tennessee’s defense held Oklahoma to just 222 total yards and forced three turnovers, limiting the Sooners to a mere 36 yards rushing, their lowest total since 2012.
Elsewhere, the No. 7 Missouri Tigers survived an overtime scare from the Vanderbilt Commodores, while the No. 1 Texas, No. 3 Ohio State Buckeyes, and No. 5 Ole Miss Rebels all cruised to victories against overmatched opponents.
Our experts have weighed in with their top 12 College Football Playoff picks, and here’s how they see the landscape shaping up:
**Top 12 Picks:**
* Andrea Adelson: 1. Tennessee, 2. Ohio State, 3. Miami, 4. Utah, 5. Texas, 6. Alabama, 7. Georgia, 8. Ole Miss, 9. Oregon, 10. Penn State, 11. Clemson, 12. Boise State
* Bill Connelly: 1. Texas, 2. Ohio State, 3. Miami, 4. Utah, 5. Tennessee, 6. Georgia, 7. Alabama, 8. Ole Miss, 9. Penn State, 10. Louisville, 11. Indiana, 12. UNLV
* David Hale: 1. Georgia, 2. Ohio State, 3. Miami, 4. Iowa State, 5. Tennessee, 6. Texas, 7. Alabama, 8. Ole Miss, 9. Clemson, 10. Oregon, 11. Penn State, 12. UNLV
* Eli Lederman: 1. Texas, 2. Ohio State, 3. Miami, 4. Utah, 5. Georgia, 6. Oregon, 7. Ole Miss, 8. Alabama, 9. Tennessee, 10. Penn State, 11. Clemson, 12. Boise State
* Chris Low: 1. Texas, 2. Ohio State, 3. Miami, 4. Utah, 5. Georgia, 6. Tennessee, 7. Alabama, 8. Ole Miss, 9. Penn State, 10. Oregon, 11. Clemson, 12. UNLV
* Harry Lyles Jr.: 1. Texas, 2. Ohio State, 3. Miami, 4. Utah, 5. Tennessee, 6. Georgia, 7. Alabama, 8. Penn State, 9. Ole Miss, 10. Louisville, 11. Indiana, 12. UNLV
* Max Olson: 1. Georgia, 2. Ohio State, 3. Miami, 4. Iowa State, 5. Texas, 6. Alabama, 7. Tennessee, 8. Oregon, 9. Penn State, 10. Ole Miss, 11. Clemson, 12. Boise State
* Adam Rittenberg: 1. Texas, 2. Ohio State, 3. Miami, 4. Utah, 5. Georgia, 6. Tennessee, 7. Alabama, 8. Ole Miss, 9. Penn State, 10. Oregon, 11. Clemson, 12. UNLV
* Jake Trotter: 1. Georgia, 2. Ohio State, 3. Miami, 4. Utah, 5. Texas, 6. Tennessee, 7. Alabama, 8. Oregon, 9. Penn State, 10. Ole Miss, 11. Louisville, 12. Boise State
* Paolo Uggetti: 1. Ohio State, 2. Georgia, 3. Miami, 4. Utah, 5. Tennessee, 6. Texas, 7. Oregon, 8. Alabama, 9. Ole Miss, 10. Penn State, 11. Clemson, 12. Boise State
* Dave Wilson: 1. Texas, 2. Ohio State, 3. Miami, 4. Utah, 5. Georgia, 6. Tennessee, 7. Alabama, 8. Ole Miss, 9. Penn State, 10. Oregon, 11. Clemson, 12. UNLV
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