College football 2017 Week 3 predictions

Saturday, 8 p.m. ET

Lamar Jackson had a very Lamar Jackson day en route to Louisville’s 47-35 win against North Carolina. The reigning Heisman Trophy winner accounted for 525 yards and six touchdowns in a blistering day for the Cardinals' offense. Now he faces the Clemson, who survived a war of attrition against the Auburn, 14-6. Clemson’s defense looked dominant against Auburn, notching 11 sacks and 14 tackles for loss. It’s a classic battle of an unstoppable force meeting an immovable object. 

Pick: Clemson

Saturday, 8:30 p.m. ET

USC looked sharp against bitter conference rival Stanford last week, disposing of the Cardinal, 42-24. The Trojans look to continue building their momentum against the Texas Longhorns, who came back from a stunning loss against Maryland to crush San Jose State, 56-0. The last time these two teams met was the 2006 Rose Bowl in what may be the greatest college football game ever played. Could that same magic happen this year?

Pick: USC

Saturday, 3:30 p.m. ET

Despite the devastation of Hurricane Irma, Florida is still scheduled to host the Tennessee Volunteers this week. Florida canceled its game against North Colorado last week, so there may be some rust for the Gators. But for a state that needs some healing, Florida could be the team the region rallies around for comfort and distraction as the team takes on its conference rival.

Pick: Florida

Saturday, 7 p.m. ET

Starkville is a special place for many Mississippi State fans, but it is LSU head coach Ed Orgeron’s personal hell. Orgeron was coaching the Ole Miss Rebels in 2007 with a 14-0 lead against the Bulldogs. A failed fourth-and-1 in the fourth quarter was the catalyst of 17 unanswered points from Mississippi State that resulted in Orgeron’s final loss as Ole Miss head coach, and his firing. Coach O returns to the site of his greatest failure with an undefeated LSU team with a seemingly unstoppable running back in Derrius Guice. Will Orgeron exorcise his demons in Davis Wade Stadium?

Pick: LSU

Saturday, 7 p.m. ET

Coveted NFL quarterback prospect Josh Allen has had a far-from-perfect start to his season with Wyoming, but now seems to be back on track after a 300-yard, two-touchdown performance against Gardner-Webb. If he can have a big game against an upstart Oregon team that has been on fire offensively, he'll enhance his draft stock even more.

Pick: Wyoming

Saturday, 12 p.m. ET

UCLA QB Josh Rosen put on a show in Week 2 at home against Hawaii, notching five touchdowns against the helpless Rainbow Warriors. Now, UCLA goes on the road for the first time this season against the Memphis Tigers, a team that had their game against UCF canceled last week due to Hurricane Irma. The last time these two teams met up in 2014, Memphis nearly pulled off the upset at the Rose Bowl. Maybe a push from the Memphis faithful can help the team pull off the upset this year.

Pick: UCLA

Saturday, 3:30 p.m. ET

If you like old school, tough running football, look no further than Wisconsin’s battle against BYU. In its first two games, Wisconsin running back Jonathan Taylor gained 310 yards, and four touchdowns. Taylor and the Badgers face off against a BYU team that is licking its wounds after losing the Holy War against Utah last week. This season hasn’t gone well for the Cougars, but they should never be overlooked with their methodic running game, and stout defense.

Pick: Wisconsin

Saturday, 3:30 p.m. ET

The Iron Skillet is on the line again when SMU pays a visit down the road to TCU. This historic rivalry's most recent matchup ended in a 33-3 romp in favor of the Horned Frogs last year. TCU has held the Iron Skillet for five straight years. SMU appears to be up to the task, scoring 112 points the last two games.

Pick: TCU

Saturday, 5:30 p.m. ET

The Washington State Cougars erased a 21-point deficit with eight minutes left in the game to top Boise State in a triple overtime thriller last week. Washington State hosts Oregon State, who is struggling to find its identity after a 48-14 loss against Minnesota. The Cougars will have quarterback Luke Falk on the field after he was knocked out of the game against Boise State. They may not need any comeback magic against Oregon State.

Pick: Washington State

Saturday, 6 p.m. ET

Oklahoma is riding high after knocking off Ohio State at the Horseshoe in a statement win. Sooners quarterback Baker Mayfield, fresh off planting the Oklahoma flag in the middle of Ohio Stadium, is now 10-0 in true road games. He will get some home cooking when Oklahoma hosts Tulane this week. Just sit back and watch the show.

Pick: Oklahoma

Saturday, 4:30 p.m. ET

The Ohio State Buckeyes hit a speed bump in their journey to return to the College Football Playoff by losing to Oklahoma last week. The Buckeyes' defense looked slow against the high-flying attack of the Sooners. Now they face a tricky Army run game that can surprise the Buckeyes if they are not careful. If any hangover exists for Ohio State from last week’s loss, the team could be in big trouble against the Black Knights.

Pick: Ohio State

Saturday, 4 p.m. ET

Missouri Tigers head coach Barry Odom’s reign just got unstable in Columbia. Odom fired defensive coordinator DeMontie Cross for “philosophical differences” right before Missouri hosts Purdue, who gave Louisville a scare two weeks ago with its surprising offense. The Tigers have had some success on offense on their own with Damarea Crockett gaining just under 300 yards in two games. Drew Lock looks solid to start the season with 766 yards and eight touchdowns to start the year. If Odom doesn’t want his seat to warm up, he needs to win this game.

Pick: Missouri

Saturday, 10:30 p.m. ET

Stanford has had so much success against USC, it looked like the Cardinal just walked into the Los Angeles Coliseum expecting to handle whatever the Trojans threw at them. What  Stanford got was a loss and a fall five spots to No. 19 in the AP Poll. The school goes back on the road against a San Diego State team who defeated a Pac-12 opponent last week in Arizona State. If Stanford isn’t careful, it may end up on the Aztec’s Pac-12 hit list as well.

Pick: Stanford

Saturday, 10:30 p.m. ET

With a decision looming in Ole Miss’ infractions case, the Rebels have done their best to distract their fan base with two runaway wins. However, they go on the road for the first time this season to Berkeley, where the Cal offense suffered a huge loss with starting running back Tre Watson out for the season. Patrick Laird finished the game last week against Weber State, ending the game with 191 yards rushing and three touchdowns. Both teams come in with offenses that are trending up., but only one will continue to climb.

Pick: Ole Miss

Saturday, 12 p.m. ET

Pittsburgh returns home after dropping a game to Penn State, but nothing cures the soul like a little revenge. Mason Rudolph and James Washington burned the Panthers last year constantly, and Pitt would love nothing more than to stop that pair this year. It will be a tough task with Rudolph coming in hot, completing 72.6 percent of his passes, and Washington snatching 8 passes for 243 yards and three touchdowns.

Pick: Oklahoma State

Saturday, 8 p.m. ET

It’s starting to look like another shaky start to the season for Todd Graham and Arizona State. The Sun Devils have been anything but impressive this season, and now they face an aerial attack at Texas Tech led by quarterback Nic Shimonek. Last year, both teams lit up the scoreboard with a 68-55 high-octane game won by ASU. With both teams sporting fast offenses and poor defenses, we may be in for another shootout.

Pick: Texas Tech

Saturday, 12:30 p.m. ET

How far down can Baylor go? After losing to FCS opponent Liberty, the Bears only managed to score 10 points in a loss against UT-San Antonio representing Conference USA. Head coach Matt Rhule has shaken up the roster, naming nine new starters for the Baylor's game against Duke. It heads into Durham, where the Blue Devils hung 41 points on Northwestern. Duke is anything but an easy out, and Baylor may find itself 0-3 to start the season.

Pick: Duke

Saturday, 3:30 p.m. ET

Minnesota appears to have no hangover from its Holiday Bowl victory last year, reeling off two wins with good defense, and a killer running game. The Golden Gophers welcome Middle Tennessee, who took a game from Syracuse last week, into TCF Bank Stadium. Minnesota is looking like an early dark horse to take the Big Ten West, but Middle Tennessee can stop its march if quarterback Brent Stockstill can have another big game.

Pick: Minnesota

Saturday, 3:30 p.m. ET

The Fighting Irish failed another big-game test as they lost a close one at home against the Georgia Bulldogs. Head coach Brian Kelly can’t be too comfortable after a losing campaign last season. He can improve his stock if he manages to handily beat Boston College on the road. Lose, and his seat may be warming up.

Pick: Notre Dame

Saturday, 2 p.m. ET

For the first time in 83 years, the Northern Colorado Bears and the Colorado Buffaloes will face off in an intrastate battle. The game itself is historic, and so is the Colorado defense so far. In two games, the Buffaloes have only allowed six points. Northern Colorado isn’t exactly a school known for its prolific offense, so the Buffs could continue their historic pace on Saturday.

Pick: Colorado

Saturday, 7 p.m. ET

Alabama looks to ride a wave of momentum going into SEC play the following week. The Crimson Tide's last opponent before conference play is Colorado State, who has already beaten a Power Five opponent in Oregon State. This is a kind of trap game that can lull players into a false sense of security. Anything can happen in college football.

Pick: Alabama

Saturday, 7:30 p.m. ET

Penn State is on the outside looking into the College Football Playoffs at No. 5, but it has done well using it as motivation. Saquon Barkley continues to destroy defenses with 260 yards in two games, and looks like the centerpiece head coach James Franklin hoped he would be. The Nittany Lions now play host to Georgia State where Barkley can continue his assault on college football and Penn State quarterback Trace McSorley can improve before Big Ten play begins.

Pick: Penn State

Saturday, 7:30 p.m. ET

Kansas State can hardly contain itself with SEC opponent Vanderbilt next on the schedule. The Wildcats are No. 18 in the country, and would love to test their ranking against an opponent from a conference that is widely considered the best in the nation. Vanderbilt is no cupcake, neither. The Commodores are undefeated coming into the matchup, and would love to show the Wildcats what the SEC is about.

Pick: Kansas State

Saturday, 8 p.m. ET

The battle for the Bayou Bucket is back, and Rice can’t wait to travel those long five miles from campus to TDECU Stadium to face crosstown rival Houston. Rice is coming in with some momentum beating UTEP last week. Houston, on the other hand, got a narrow victory over Arizona to get its season started after Hurricane Harvey canceled their opening game versus UT-San Antonio. Houston has won the last three buckets. Can Rice snatch it away this year?

Pick: Rice

Saturday, 9:30 p.m. ET

While USC has been the talk of the Pac-12, Washington has been lurking closely in shadows. The Huskies are ranked No. 6 in the AP Poll, but no one seems to notice Washington wide receiver and punt returner Dante Pettis is still one of the most exciting players in the college football. Fresno State lit Incarnate Word for 66 points, but then lost against Alabama, 41-10. If the Bulldogs get their offense right, they could give the Huskies a lot of trouble.

Pick: Washington