Three previews for the Week 10 college football games and our picks based on spreads for 10 games on the slate.
(13) Auburn vs (14) Texas A&M
Auburn and Texas A&M is the only college football game in week ten featuring two top-25 ranked teams squaring off together. While it’s an important game for Texas A&M, Auburn must keep pace with Alabama in the SEC West.
For visiting Auburn, quarterback Bo Nix has been steady so far in 2021. He’s completing 62 percent of his passes and totaling 13 touchdowns. He spreads the ball around to a variety of receivers, including Kobe Hudson, Demetris Robertson, and Shedrick Jackson.
The Auburn offense runs through their ground game. They have a star running back in Sophomore Tank Bigsby, and surprise Freshman phenom, Jarquez Hunter. Bigsby leads the team with 666 yards rushing and seven touchdowns. Hunter leads Auburn averaging an impressive 7.7 yards per carry.
For Texas A&M, quarterback Zach Calzada has had his ups and downs. Calzada’s primary weapons are tight end Jalen Wydermyer and swiss army knife Ainias Smith. The Aggies run game, like Auburn, may be their greatest strength, led by Isaiah Spiller and Devon Achane. Spiller leads the team in rushing with 778 yards on 6.3 yards per carry. Achane has been uber-efficient, averaging 7.1 yards per carry.
Whoever can get their ground game going the most will have the early edge. Keeping it turnover-free will be essential for both teams. The 12th man will be rocking in this high-stakes, NCAAF SEC West matchup.
Devy Players to Watch
- Tank Bigsby- RB- Auburn: Tank Bigsby got back on track versus Ole Miss after a few sub-par performances with a massive 140-yard effort. Bigsby is one of the premier running backs in the 2023 class.
- Ainias Smith – WR- Texas A&M: Isaiah Spiller is one of the top running backs in the 2022 class, but I wanted to touch on another weapon Texas A&M has in Ainias Smith. Smith is a versatile weapon that has played both RB and WR. He projects to be a slot receiver in the NFL. Smith could be in line for solid draft capital in the draft and in turn, translate to dynasty rosters.
Texas A&M-4.5
- Brandon @hayeb3: Texas A&M-4.5
- Brian @vandygrad92: Texas A&M-4.5
- Joe @TheHQNerd: Texas A&M-4.5
Liberty vs (16) Ole Miss
Per VegasInsider, Ole Miss is currently a ten-point favorite in this college football game. Ole Miss star quarterback Matt Corral sat out practice Monday with an ankle injury that he re-aggravated in last week’s 31-20 loss to Auburn.
This game serves as Liberty quarterback Malik Willis‘ biggest opportunity to showcase his talent on a national scene. On the season, Willis has completed 140 of 210 pass attempts for 21 touchdowns and 1986 yards. In addition, Willis has rushed 126 times for 684 yards and nine TD’s.
Along with the do-everything Willis (who leads the team in rushing by 369 yards), Liberty has a pair of wide receivers that have amassed at least 26 receptions and 456 receiving yards apiece. These two wide receivers are:
- Freshman Demario Douglas (37 catches for 567 yards and five touchdowns)
- Freshman CJ Daniels (26 catches for 456 yards and seven touchdowns)
Just like Willis, Corral leads Ole Miss in both passing and rushing. On the season, Corral has completed 161 of 244 passes for 15 touchdowns and 2202 yards. On the ground, Corral has amassed 110 rushes for 519 yards and ten scores.
In addition to Corral, three running backs have accumulated at least 323 rushing yards. These three are:
- Sophomore Henry Parrish Jr. – 86 carries for 462 yards and two touchdowns
- Junior Snoop Conner – 77 rushes for 434 yards and 10 TD’s
- Junior Jerrion Ealy – 62 rushes for 323 yards and two scores
Senior Dontario Drummond leads the team in receiving with 40 catches for 658 yards and six touchdowns. Despite Drummond’s outstanding year, the most highly coveted NFL prospect is Junior Jonathan Mingo. In spite of only playing in three games due to a foot injury, Mingo has recorded 15 catches for 290 yards and three touchdowns.
Devy Players to Watch
- Malik Willis- QB – Liberty: Despite this game not being littered with Devy prospects, both Willis and Corral were taken in the first round in CBS’s most recent 2022 mock draft.
- Matt Corral- QB – Ole Miss: I am hoping that Corral is able to play in this one, setting up one of the best one-on-one quarterback battles of the season. In preseason college football Devy rankings, Corral was the QB7 and Willis was the QB8.
- Jonathan Mingo – WR – Ole Miss: although Mingo is unlikely to play in this one, he was the preseason WR62. He has good size (6’2” and 215 pounds) and is considered a deep threat at the next level.
Ole Miss -9.5
- Brandon @hayeb3: Ole Miss -9.5
- Brian @vandygrad92: Ole Miss -9.5
- Joe @TheHQNerd: Ole Miss -9.5
(9) Wake Forest vs North Carolina
This has been a crazy year in the ACC, in that there are some good college football teams, but not who we thought it would be. Wake Forest and NC State are competing for the Atlantic Division. Meanwhile, Clemson is two games back in the division. North Carolina was thought to compete with Clemson, but is just 3-3 and two games behind Pittsburgh in the Coastal division.
Wake Forest is undefeated and has scored over 35 points in every game this year. They have scored over 150 points in their last three games. While they have been very good on offense, the Deamon Deacons have struggled in defense. The team has the 94th ranked defense in total yards, but is better in scoring defense only allowing 25 points a game. This offense is run by Sam Hartman who is having a great season. He is able to use the RPO in this offense to make it very hard to defend.
North Carolina has been up and down all year. They are trending down right now, losing two of the last three games; and almost losing a lead in a 45 to 42 win vs Miami. While Sam Howell is not having as dominant as season this year, he has put up good numbers and is leading the offense to 36.5 points per game. On the other hand, the defense has struggled giving up 31 points per game and putting the offense in a situation where they have to score to keep up.
This game is one that I want to tune in to for the offensive firepower. These are two very good QBs dueling, and should be a lot of points scored. The team that wins might just be the one with the ball last. This starts a much tougher stretch for Wake Forest to end the season, and could show if they are real or not.
Players to Watch
- Sam Hartman- QB- Wake Forest: Hartman is a 4th-year Sophomore and this year he seems to really have put it all together. He has career-highs in completion %, yards, TDs, and rating. He is controlling the offense and only has thrown three interceptions. Hartman will have the next few weeks to get a chance to continue to showcase his skills and people are starting to notice.
- Sam Howell- QB- North Carolina: Howell coming into this college football season was one of the top QB prospects for 2022. He has struggled at times this year, and the team seems to be missing the talented players that have left for the NFL. Even though his numbers are down a little, he is still producing. This year, he has shown that he is a dual-threat, with five games of over 90 rushing yards. I still think he will be one of the first QBs to be taken in 2022.
- Josh Downs – WR – North Carolina: Downs has been excellent all year and is the main receiving option for Howell. He has been so dominant in the offense with at least 8 catches in all of his games. In five of eight games, he’s had 100 yards receiving or more. He looks to be one of the top returning WRs in college football next year, and one of the top WR prospects in 2023.
North Carolina -2.5
- Brandon @hayeb3: Wake Forest +2.5
- Brian @vandygrad92: Wake Forest +2.5
- Joe @TheHQNerd: North Carolina -2.5
Other College Football Game Picks Based on the Spread
Brandon Haye
Brandon grew up in Jacksonville, Florida and works as a health insurance data analyst. He has no children, but two fur babies - Squirt and Brownie. He and his wife, Katie, spend their time playing poker and enjoying time with their pups. Brandon is a huge Michigan Wolverine and Jacksonville Jaguars fan. He at one time was in 77 fantasy leagues and loves the game of football. Brandon started writing for The Leauge Winners in 2021.