College Football Week 5 Picks: Alabama, Ohio State Favored — SkimNews
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- Alabama (No. 7) visits No. 16 Mississippi State in a noon ET kickoff, with both QBs climbing Heisman odds: Mississippi State's Kamario Taylor (2-0 in SEC, beat top-25 Missouri, two road wins) and Alabama's Keelon Russell, whose offense scores 48 points per game (fourth nationally)
- Ohio State (No. 5) plays its first Big Ten road game at No. 14 Iowa, which is coming off Hank Brown's last-second TD upset of Michigan; Iowa coach Kirk Ferentz called Buckeyes receiver Jeremiah Smith one of the best players of the last 20 years
- Auburn travels to No. 17 Tennessee amid an off-field controversy, after a staff member was arrested for allegedly leaking recruiting materials to rival programs; coach Alex Golesh faces his former mentor, Josh Heupel
- South Carolina's Shane Beamer hosts No. 24 Kentucky in what the article calls the biggest game of his career, but will be without pass rusher Dylan Stewart, suspended for insubordination
- Bill Belichick's North Carolina hosts No. 3 Notre Dame at noon Saturday, seeking to build on early-season progress in the first matchup between the programs since Belichick became head coach
- The picks from CBS Sports experts: Alabama -6, Under 46.5 in the Navy-Air Force service academy matchup (the under is 56-15-4 in such games since 2001), Ohio State -13.5, and Under 47.5 in Miami-Clemson, where Clemson is its largest underdog in Dabo Swinney's tenure
Why it matters: Week 5's slate features a Heisman-defining QB duel (Taylor vs. Russell), Auburn playing through a recruiting scandal at Tennessee, and a Belichick litmus test against No. 3 Notre Dame — meaning three or four top-15 teams could exit the day with very different national title trajectories depending on outcomes.
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