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Separation Saturday hasn’t quite arrived across the Power Four, but Week 3 in college football still gives us a couple of appetizers. Two matchups, one in the SEC and one in the ACC, pit ranked teams against each other and will shape the early playoff conversation.
Ole Miss hosts LSU this weekend, and Oxford is going to be loud. The eighth-ranked Rebels come in as home underdogs against seventh-ranked LSU and Lane Kiffin. This game has been circled on calendars since the offseason, and both teams show up unbeaten after knocking off solid nonconference opponents to open the year.
Kiffin knows what a hostile crowd feels like. Remember his return to Tennessee back in 2021? The reception wasn’t friendly. He should expect something similar Saturday, maybe worse, since Ole Miss fans still haven’t forgiven him for leaving.
The other ranked matchup this week sends 16th-ranked SMU on the road to face No. 23 Louisville, with the Cardinals favored by a small margin. SMU has beaten Louisville both times they’ve met since joining the ACC two years ago, despite the progress Jeff Brohm has made with the Cardinals program. Both offenses have looked sharp so far, so this one has shootout written all over it.
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The Week 3 lines are out for the entire AP Top 25, so let’s see what the oddsmakers are thinking heading into the weekend.
The big games
No. 7 LSU (-3.5) at No. 8 Ole Miss: Kiffin’s return to Oxford is finally here, and it’s the only top-10 matchup on the Week 3 schedule. Both rosters are loaded with transfers, and whoever wins this one moves closer to a top-5 spot in the SEC. LSU comes in as a slight road favorite after beating Clemson and Louisiana Tech. Ole Miss is unbeaten too, but Pete Golding’s secondary still has some issues to clean up.
No. 16 SMU at No. 23 Louisville (-2.5): Win this one, and you’re tied with Miami atop the ACC standings; that’s a real early boost toward playoff contention. Kevin Jennings and Lincoln Kienholz, the starting quarterbacks on each side, have both been productive so far this season. This also happens to be the last ranked opponent left on Louisville’s schedule.
Kentucky at No. 9 Texas A&M (-16.5): The Aggies scored 24 unanswered points in the fourth quarter last week against Arizona State, and now they’re opening SEC play. This is only the second meeting between these two programs since Texas A&M joined the conference back in 2012. Texas A&M put up two defensive touchdowns in its last outing, while Kentucky turned the ball over three straight times in a 45-17 loss to Alabama.
Takeaways are going to decide this game.
Florida State at No. 10 Alabama (-20.5): Alabama gets a shot at payback here after losing to the Seminoles last season, a program that’s still trying to find its footing under Mike Norvell. Florida State nearly upset a ranked SMU team on Labor Day, thanks in part to Ousmane Kromah’s second consecutive 100-yard rushing game. Alabama’s offense, meanwhile, has looked good with Keelon Russell running things at quarterback. He turned the ball over a couple times in the first half last week but still helped the Crimson Tide pull away from Kentucky.
West Virginia at No. 25 Virginia (-9.5): Two surprise unbeatens meet in Charlottesville Saturday night, the first time these two have played each other since 2002. West Virginia wants to lean on its ground game, led by transfers Michael Hawkins Jr. and Cam Cook, and keep Virginia’s offense on the sideline as much as possible. Tony Elliott started 11-23 in his first three seasons as Virginia’s coach; since then, he’s won 13 of his last 16 games.
Best of the rest
- UTSA at No. 1 Texas (-30.5)
- No. 2 Georgia (-24.5) at Arkansas
- Michigan State at No. 3 Notre Dame (-29.5)
- WKU at No. 4 Indiana (-44.5)
- No. 5 Miami (-22.5) at Wake Forest (Friday)
- Kent State at No. 6 Ohio State (-52.5)
- No. 11 BYU (-17.5) at Colorado State
- No. 12 USC (-24.5) at Rutgers
- Buffalo at No. 14 Penn State (-39.5)
- Kennesaw State at No. 15 Tennessee (-35.5)
- Utah State at No. 17 Utah (-28.5)
- Northern Iowa at No. 18 Iowa (-41.5)
- UTEP at No. 19 Michigan (-35.5)
- Troy at No. 20 Missouri (-27.5)
- Portland State at No. 21 Oregon (-58.5)
- New Mexico at No. 24 Oklahoma (-22.5)
