Ohio State and Georgia lead Week 9 college football slate

College football enters the October 31 slate with only three unbeaten teams remaining in the Power Four conferences. The first College Football Playoff rankings are due in less than a week, following two weeks of major movement in the top 25. CBS Sports analysts Brad Crawford and Chris Hummer provided their picks for the upcoming weekend.

The featured game is No. 3 Georgia hosting No. 17 Florida in Atlanta. Georgia is a 10.5 point favorite. Hummer projects a 34 to 27 Georgia victory but expects Florida to cover the spread. Crawford picks a 30 to 14 Georgia win and takes the Bulldogs to cover. He noted that Florida had not named a starting quarterback as of Tuesday.

In Los Angeles, No. 2 Ohio State visits USC as a 6.5 point favorite. The Buckeyes will be without their starting quarterback, with freshman Luke Fahey expected to take the snaps. Both analysts pick Ohio State to win. Hummer predicts a 31 to 20 result, while Crawford calls it the favorite play of the week and projects a 28 to 20 victory. Crawford pointed out that USC coach Lincoln Riley has a 5 to 15 record against ranked opponents.

In the Big 12, both writers favor No. 13 Texas Tech by 5.5 points over No. 22 Arizona. Hummer sees a 27 to 20 win, and Crawford projects a 31 to 24 result. Elsewhere, top ranked Miami is a 15.5 point favorite at North Carolina. Hummer picks a 38 to 20 Miami win, noting the Hurricanes have scored at least 33 points in every game this season. Crawford projects a 41 to 17 victory.

Both analysts expect underdogs to cover in several games. They take Minnesota with 20.5 points against No. 4 Indiana, though each picks Indiana to win. They also like Auburn with 12.5 points at No. 12 Ole Miss, where both pick the Rebels to win. Both back Utah to cover against Cincinnati, where the No. 6 Utes are favored by 6.5 points.

The analysts see outright upsets in two spots. Both pick No. 20 Northwestern to win at Oregon. Hummer projects a 21 to 20 win, while Crawford predicts a 24 to 20 result. Crawford also takes No. 25 Wisconsin to win 23 to 20 at Iowa. Hummer has Iowa winning 20 to 17 with the Badgers covering the 3.5 point spread.

In the ACC, both writers pick Florida State to beat Clemson. They split on the spread, however. Hummer likes Clemson to cover in a 27 to 21 game. Crawford predicts a 24 to 17 win for the Seminoles and backs the 6.5 point favorite.