Week 4 of college football brings some of the most exciting matchups yet, with conference and playoff implications on the line. One of the headliners is USC making their Big Ten debut in a heavyweight clash against Michigan in The Big House.
Meanwhile, Tennessee looks to continue its offensive dominance in a primetime showdown against Oklahoma in Norman. I will break down the key storylines, provide my betting picks, highlight top devy prospects to keep an eye on this week and provide an update on the Heisman Trophy race.
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Games of The Week
No. 11 USC (-5.5) @ No. 18 Michigan | Total 46.5 | Saturday, 3:30 p.m. ET on CBS
USC makes its Big Ten debut against defending National Champion Michigan in The Big House. Even with those circumstances, USC opens as 5.5-point favorites. The trip to The Big House looks less daunting than before the season kicked off. Michigan’s starting QB Davis Warren was benched in the second half vs. Arkansas State in favor of Alex Orji, making this situation one to monitor up until game time on Saturday. They also lost star TE Colston Loveland to a shoulder injury; as of this writing, his status is unknown for the game. They are already a very limited passing offense with Loveland, without him they do not have a pass catcher for USC to focus on.
USC’s defense is much improved and the best it has been under Lincoln Riley, only allowing 20 points through two games. Miller Moss has been better than advertised by completing over 72% of his passes and zero interceptions. The emergence of Mississippi State transfer Woody Marks gives them a legitimate running attack to lean on to go with their plethora of pass-catching weapons. With Will Johnson having the ability to shut down half of the field, I am looking forward to seeing how Zachariah Branch is utilized. I expect this game to be a slow-paced defensive battle with USC being in control most of the game.
My picks:
- Moneyline: USC
- Spread: Michigan +5.5
- Total: Under 46.5
No. 6 Tennessee (-7.5) @ No. 15 Oklahoma | Total 58.5 | Saturday, 7:30 p.m. ET on ABC
This was one of the most anticipated matchups coming into the season but has lost some of its luster with Oklahoma struggling the past two games against inferior opponents. Jackson Arnold has not lived up to the hype of being the potential QB1 in the 2026 class with his play to this point. He has not passed for more than 175 yards in a single game, had an interception in each of the last two games and has been sacked three times each game. Arnold is the leading rusher. In some form, Oklahoma has been without three of their top WRs — Andrel Anthony, Nic Anderson and Jalil Farooq. Purdue transfer Deion Burks has been relied on as the top target in the offense.
Tennessee has been the complete opposite with an offense that looks like one of the elites led by my 2026 QB1, Nico Iamaleava. Iamaleava has completed 71.6% of his passes and done an excellent job of spreading the ball around as six players have at least five receptions, leaving opposing defenses without one target to key in on. Dylan Sampson has been the featured running back with 45 rushes for 357 yards and a whopping nine touchdowns. The defense has been equally as impressive led by potential 2025 first overall pick James Pearce. Allowing only 13 points through three games and shutting down one of the best ACC offenses in NC State. The way Oklahoma has played so far doesn’t give much confidence in thinking this game will be very close for long. Tennessee’s offense should continue to chug along. If the defense can apply pressure on Arnold it could get out of hand in the first half.
My picks:
- Moneyline: Tennessee
- Spread: Tennessee -7.5
- Total: Under 58.5
Devy Spotlight
Omarion Hampton (RB – North Carolina) | 2025
What a day Omarion Hampton had vs. NC Central. After getting pulled early with only 77 yards, he put up a massive line with 25 rushes for 210 yards and three touchdowns. UNC welcomes James Madison, who has allowed 220 rush yards to RBs through two games. Hampton has shown he has 200+ rushing yards upside every week. The 2025 RB class is loaded but he is gaining steam and making a compelling case to be in one of the top tiers with the likes of Ashton Jeanty, Quinshon Judkins, TreVeyon Henderson and Ollie Gordon. Having another big game against a step up in competition could catapult his value to the next level in the season’s early stages.
Darius Taylor (RB – Minnesota) | 2026
Darius Taylor has to be the best 2026 RB who isn’t talked about much. His durability has been the big question mark so far in his career. When healthy and on the field, though, he is borderline dominant. A bruiser between the tackles but has shown he can be a plus in the receiving game as well. Through two games, he has nine receptions for 85 yards and one touchdown. Now comes a showdown with a stout Iowa rushing defense that has allowed 180 yards to RBs through three games. In last season’s matchup, Taylor had 59 rush yards and 25 receiving yards on 19 touches with zero touchdowns. Taylor is coming into this game fully healthy (no reported injuries) making this a potential old-school Big Ten slugfest in the trenches.
Dylan Raiola (QB – Nebraska) | 2027
Raiola has been impressive, to say the least, in his young career. He out-dueled Shedeur Sanders and then followed it up with a good performance against one of the top FCS teams in Nothern Iowa. He comes into his first Big Ten game with a perfect 3-0 record and only one interception so far. Illinois has only allowed 151.7 passing yards per game while Railoa has averaged 223.3 per game. This will be his first true test of the season. I expect him to continue to do what he’s done to this point — stay calm under pressure and play efficient football with minimal mistakes.
Heisman Trophy Race
Per FanDuel Sportsbook, the top-five Heisman favorites are:
- Cameron Ward (QB – Miami) | +450
- Jalen Milroe (QB – Alabama) | +600
- Jaxson Dart (QB – Ole Miss) | +600
- Dillon Gabriel (QB – Oregon) | +900
- Nico Iamaleava (QB – Tennessee) | +900
Compared to last week’s odds, we saw Quinn Ewers and Carson Beck drop out of the top five while Dillon Gabriel re-entered and Nico Iamaleava made the jump up. Unfortunately, Ewers was injured and did not return to the game. He currently does not have any odds listed. Arch Manning stepped in early in the second quarter and had himself a ball game — 223 passing yards for four touchdowns and 53 rush yards for one touchdown, rocketing his odds up to +1600. Ashton Jeanty had a well-deserved bye week but still increased his odds from +2500 to +2000.
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