Welcome to Week 9, a collection of games leading up to the first release of the College Football Playoff Selection Committee’s rankings for the 2023 season.
It’s the time of year when the top teams are on alarm alert as the season can change radically with just one result. Surprises can pop up where we least expect them, so we’ll be keeping an eye on the biggest upsets as well as watching the big matches listed below.
Here’s what we’re watching soon early Saturday (scroll for live updates):
Time: 3:30 PM ET | TV: CBS| Font: UGA -14.5 | Total: 47
Coming out of the bye week 7-0, Georgia’s quest for a third straight national title is about to intensify, starting with a rivalry game against Florida (5-2, 3-1 SEC) in Jacksonville. The Bulldogs haven’t faced many challenges but will face a Florida team that has won five of its last six games before a three-game stretch versus ranked opponents. This will be UGA’s first game without star tight end Brock Bowers (ankle). On Florida’s offensive end, how will Graham Mertz and company fare against Georgia’s vaunted defense?
Time: 3:30 PM | TV: Fox | Font: Oregon -6.5 | Total: 47.5
Oregon and Utah are two of the four one-loss teams in the Pac-12 competing for the spot behind undefeated Washington. Oregon State lost its showdown with UW a few weeks ago but has since rebounded. Utah is the two-time defending Pac-12 champion and is in strong contention to win the three-peat despite a barrage of injuries. The Utes will be without starting QB Cam Rising for the rest of the season. His replacement, Bryson Barnes, led the Utes to a last-minute victory over USC in Week 8.
Time: 3:30 PM | TV: ESPN | Font: UL-4 | Total: 46
Louisville has traditionally been a mediocre team in the ACC, but Jeff Brohm is challenging UL for the conference title midway through his senior season. The Cardinals started out 6-0 which included a blowout win over Notre Dame, but followed that up with a loss to Pitt. Meanwhile, Duke is coming off a tough loss to FSU and QB Riley Leonard suffered an ankle injury. This is a big game in the ACC race, so Duke needs Leonard on the court.
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