It’s not every week that we have two instant classics and they both come from the same conference. Big shoutouts to Colorado/Stanford and Washington/Oregon for providing two of the best games of the year so far. The Top 25 is all over the place right now and it’s been fun to watch some old powerhouses rise to the top again. Looking at you Florida State. This week features four Top 25 matchups. Here are our Top 3 2023 College Football Games Week 8.
No. 7 Penn State vs No. 3 Ohio State
The Big 10 hasn’t been overly impressive to me this season. However, this is still a Top 10 matchup despite many being upset that Ohio State is ranked where they are. That’s because the Buckeyes have played a total cupcake schedule outside of Notre Dame up until this point and they barely walked out of that game with a win. Here is a true test to cement themselves in the top three with a game against Penn State. The Nittany Lions also haven’t been overly challenged but did have a shutout win against Iowa. This will be a game that doesn’t feel like it will feature a ton of points and should be a good ole fashioned Big 10 slugfest. I have a feeling an upset is brewing in Columbus. Prediction: Penn State 21 Ohio State 17
No. 16 Duke vs No. 4 Florida State
FSU is back. I am ready to say it. This team has firepower on offense and their defense plays with tenacity. But this is a classic trap game, and they can’t get caught in it. Duke has been impressive this year with a win over Clemson and a hard-fought game against Notre Dame. If there is a team that can give the Noles some serious trouble, it is the Blue Devils. They have a stellar defense, holding Notre Dame to 21 and Clemson to 7. Outside of Notre Dame, no offense has scored more than two touchdowns on this team. FSU is playing at home and has one of the best offenses in the country, but I think this game is closer than we think. Prediction: Duke 21 Florida State 28
No. 14 Utah vs No. 18 USC
I am happy to see USC fall well outside of the Top 10 after a massive loss to Notre Dame. USC barely scraped by Colorado and struggled against Arizona State, so it was clear that a big shock was coming, and the Fighting Irish delivered the blow at home. Now the Trojans must face Utah, a school that they lost to twice last season. Caleb Williams really struggled last week, and it will be interesting to see if teams have figured out a weakness that they can expose for the rest of the year. Utah has been great outside of a loss to a really good Oregon State team, and I think they handle business here too. Prediction: Utah 35 USC 31