The Sunday Slate’s Week 5 Preview for Saturday, October 17
No. 4 Ohio State at No. 5 Indiana | noon ET, Fox
It’s the game of the weekend and the biggest home game in Indiana history. The Hoosiers are chasing 23 straight wins, which would match the longest Big Ten streak since Ohio State’s 23 in 2013-14. The Buckeyes are favored again, but Indiana now plays with a champion’s swagger. The board matchup is WR1 Jeremiah Smith (No. 1) against WR2 Charlie Becker (No. 6), plus Ohio State QB Julian Sayin (QB6, No. 16), Ohio State S Jaylen McClain (No. 46) and Indiana OG Carter Smith (No. 47).
No. 2 Notre Dame at No. 8 BYU | 7:30 ET, ABC
Prospect Matchup of the Week. This is the first top-10 meeting in LaVell Edwards Stadium, and College GameDay is in Provo for the first time since 2009. The Irish (6-0) face the biggest test on their schedule so far, and this is their only ‘big’ road game, with Miami and SMU coming to South Bend. A loss would feed the “soft schedule”, “pretender” talk. BYU (5-0) goes without RB LJ Martin, and a win would give them real CFP juice and earn the Big 12 some respect. The Irish are 10.5-point favorites. Notre Dame brings four board names on defense: CB Leonard Moore (CB1, No. 2), LB Kyngstonn Viliamu-Asa (LB2, No. 34), S Tae Johnson / Luke Talich (S2 and 10, No. 41 and 118) and S Adon Shuler (No. 54). QB CJ Carr (QB3, No. 11) leads this offense with an array of developing playmakers.
No. 6 Alabama at No. 14 Tennessee | 3:30 ET, ABC
It’s the 109th meeting and the fourth top-15 matchup in five years, and both teams need to flush their last game. Alabama is coming off the missed-call and penalty meltdown against Georgia, and Josh Heupel still hasn’t named a Tennessee QB. Bama has ED Yhonzae Pierre (ED3, No. 27) and S Bray Hubbard (No. 57), and Tennessee has IDL Xavier Gilliam (IDL2, No. 30).
No. 13 Missouri at No. 9 Ole Miss | 3:30 ET, SEC Network
It’s only the third meeting since Mizzou joined the SEC, and it’s a reunion game. QB Austin Simmons (QB7, No. 21) returns to face the team he left, carrying a 14:1 TD-to-INT ratio. He’ll see Trinidad Chambliss (QB4, No. 12), who took over for an injured Simmons last year and never gave the job back. Ole Miss also brings IDL Will Echoles (IDL1, No. 5) and RB Kewan Lacy (RB2, No. 31), who is facing his former school.
Florida at No. 7 Texas | noon ET, ABC
Texas is trying to steady itself after the Oklahoma loss, with Sark and Arch Manning (QB8, No. 26) at the center of the discourse. Florida faceplanted twice after stomping Ole Miss, but the Gators took down a top-10 Texas team in Gainesville last year. This is our best prospect game outside the top three. Texas has ED Colin Simmons (ED1, No. 3), WR Cam Coleman (WR3, No. 7) and OT Trevor Goosby (OT3, No. 17), and Florida has RB Jadan Baugh (RB1, No. 19). Florida QB Aaron Philo and WR Vernell Brown III may be sidelined.
No. 16 Mississippi State at No. 22 LSU | noon ET, ESPN
The Bulldogs were September’s darlings, but the Alabama loss and a bye knocked them off the radar, and QB Kamario Taylor is questionable with a foot injury. LSU is in desperation mode after its second loss, and Lane Kiffin’s debut season hasn’t met the hype. Prospect-wise, CB Kelley Jones (CB4, No. 23) of Mississippi State faces LSU’s Jordan Seaton (OT1, No. 13) and Trey’Dez Green (TE2, No. 35).
5. No. 18 Oklahoma State at No. 20 Houston | 7:30 ET, Fox
It’s the first ever meeting between these two ranked teams, and both are putting up roughly 40 a game. Houston already has a conference loss to Texas Tech and could use this one. Oklahoma State QB Drew Mestemaker (QB2, No. 10) takes the field against Houston CB Jalen Mayo (No. 52). Houston TE Patrick Overmyer just tied the NCAA single-game record for tight end receiving TDs with four against Kansas State.
No. 15 Kentucky at Oklahoma | 7:30 ET, SEC Network
Both fan bases are riding a top-10 upset. Oklahoma beat Texas in the Red River game, and Kentucky has two straight overtime walk-offs under Will Stein. The board matchup is in the trenches, with Oklahoma’s David Stone (IDL5, No. 38) facing Kentucky’s Tavion Gadson (IDL6, No. 40). Kenny Minchey and the Wildcats have to win in Norman as touchdown underdogs.
Wisconsin at No. 12 UCLA | 7:30 ET, NBC
The Bruins are the newest flavor of the week after the win at Oregon, and Bob Chesney’s team is giving 2024 Indiana vibes. They’ll try to keep it going without QB Nico Iamaleava, who is expected to miss significant time. Cal Poly transfer Ty Dieffenbach steps in against a Wisconsin defense allowing just 4.1 yards per play, one of the top five in FBS. Wisconsin C Austin Kawecki is the board name to watch.
Virginia at No. 24 SMU | noon ET, The CW
SMU hasn’t looked sharp since the Louisville loss, with unremarkable wins over Missouri State and Boston College before the bye. The Mustangs are still ACC contenders with Kevin Jennings posting a top-10 QB rating, but the easy part of the schedule is behind them. Virginia had to rally from 10 down at the half against Syracuse, and Beau Pribula has completed just 49% of his passes over the last two games. Funny enough, this game and the next game we preview (UW v. UCLA) have strength-of-schedule implications for Notre Dame, as they face SMU later in the season and beat Wisconsin earlier in the season.
Head to The Sunday Slate Patreon to subscribe for more draft content throughout the year!
Leave a Reply