Week 6 college football viewer's guide: Georgia heads to Alabama as Texas and Oklahoma renew their annual rivalry

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We could see some early separation in the SEC title race in Week 6.

Not only does No. 6 Alabama host No. 2 Georgia in a massive game with conference championship implications, but No. 1 Texas plays against Oklahoma in Dallas in a rivalry game that can be very unpredictable.

Here are this week's games to watch.

The reckoning is here for Nebraska. The Cornhuskers look like they have turned a corner in Matt Rhule's third season. Nebraska has won all five of its games by double figures. But the best opponent it's played is … Michigan State? Maryland?

Enter Indiana, a team that should give us a great idea of where Nebraska stands in the Big Ten.

Huskers QB Anthony Colandrea has shown that his season at UNLV in 2025 wasn't a fluke. Colandrea has thrown for 1,142 yards and 13 TDs with just two interceptions so far this season. The run game is averaging nearly 6 yards a carry and should have leading rusher Jamal Rule back too. Rule missed the Week 5 win over Maryland and has 333 yards and five touchdowns on just 42 carries.

Indiana got leapfrogged by Alabama in Sunday's AP poll despite a 47-15 win over Rutgers. You can argue that Indiana's schedule hasn't been very tough either — but a 29-23 win over Northwestern in Week 4 may continue to look better and better if what the Wildcats did to Penn State last week is real.

Hoosiers QB Josh Hoover has thrown 15 touchdowns with no interceptions, while Turbo Richard returned from injury to rush 13 times for 204 yards and a TD against the Scarlet Knights. Richard and Lee Beebe Jr. have already combined to rush for 1,107 yards. Only 16 entire teams have rushed for more so far this season.

Can we count on the wonkiness of recent Red River games to produce another odd rivalry result? Oklahoma sure needs one to keep its College Football Playoff hopes alive.

Over the past 13 matchups, the team ranked lower in the AP Top 25 has won six times. Last year, it was an unranked Texas squad knocking off No. 6 Oklahoma 23-6 in John Mateer's first game back from a thumb injury.

Before that thumb injury, Mateer was the early-season Heisman favorite. He's still looking to recapture that form.

The Sooners' offense is in a funk. OU has scored 14 or fewer points in each of its last three games and Mateer produced one of the bloopers of the season in Week 4 against Georgia when he dropped the ball and the Bulldogs returned it for a touchdown. Part of those struggles have been due to a banged-up offensive line that has struggled. Texas had 10 sacks in its last game against Tennessee.

Texas will be wanting to unlock a run game that added Raleek Brown and Hollywood Smothers ahead of the 2026 season. The two transfers have split time through the first four games, but Texas rushed 41 times for 141 yards against Ohio State and 36 times for just 61 yards in that win over Tennessee.

Dante Moore won’t make his return to the field this week following his scary concussion against USC in Week 4. Moore returned to practice but was ruled out for the game on Wednesday's injury report. You can understand if Oregon is playing it safe for at least another week and letting Dylan Raiola make his first start in an Ducks uniform.

Oregon's offensive line showed growth in its win over USC in Week 4. Granted, the usual caveats apply about the USC defense. But Oregon averaged 7.4 yards a play even as Raiola played most of the game. That's an elite number with a potential No. 1 draft pick, let alone your backup quarterback.

Like Nebraska, UCLA gets its first measuring-stick game of the season after going 4-0 against limited competition. Cal has proven to be a massive disappointment so far, and Purdue and Maryland might be two of the worst programs in the Big Ten.

The opponent quality doesn't take away from the immediate improvement former James Madison coach Bob Chesney has made, however. The run game has been dominant; Wayne Knight has 445 yards and nine touchdowns and is averaging over 9 yards a carry, while Anthony Woods has rushed for 269 yards on just 36 attempts. That's taken a lot of pressure off QB Nico Iamaleava after the Tennessee transfer had to do nearly everything for the UCLA offense in 2025.

The odds of this game being played in the pouring rain appear to be getting slimmer. Hopefully all of those who plan on making the trip to Tuscaloosa can get there safely as Hurricane Isaias makes landfall this weekend.

If it's possible for the No. 2 team in the country to be overlooked, there's a potential case to be made for the Bulldogs. Especially when you consider that they've played just once on ABC so far this season.

Part of that is schedule driven; the Bulldogs' conference opponents so far this year have been Arkansas, Oklahoma and Vanderbilt. But this is an offense that's averaging almost 480 yards on just 60 plays per game. Gunner Stockton has been one of the most efficient quarterbacks in the country and could throw to any receiver on a given play. Just three players — including RB Chauncey Bowens — have at least 10 catches through Georgia's first five games.

Georgia's run defense has been elite so far and will be a massive test for an Alabama offense that has re-learned how to gain yards on the ground. The Tide might not have a star back like they've had under Nick Saban, but Daniel Hill, Trae'shawn Brown and EJ Crowell form a trio that's been as good as any in the country. Success from them will be a huge assist for QB Keelon Russell in what's the biggest game of his young career.

Turnovers — or the lack thereof — will also play a huge role. Alabama has forced 13 turnovers so far this season; East Carolina is the only team that hasn't had multiple against the Tide this season. Georgia has forced 10, but eight of those have come in wins against Western Kentucky and Oklahoma.

Who do you trust more? A Penn State team coming off back-to-back losses against Wisconsin and Northwestern, or a USC team on the road that is still trying to prove that it belongs at the top of the Big Ten?

Former USC defensive coordinator D'Anton Lynn joined Matt Campbell's Penn State staff after the 2025 season. Against Wisconsin, Penn State allowed a go-ahead 72-yard TD pass to TE Jacob Harris with 1:13 to go. Last week against Northwestern, the Wildcats rushed 55 times for 413 yards and four touchdowns as they had Penn State in a blender.

The Trojans needed a late defensive stand to hang on for a 25-21 win against Washington. The Huskies took an 11-point lead early in the second half on a 42-yard TD pass from Demond Williams Jr. to TE Decker DeGraaf that featured some absolutely abysmal tackling from the Trojans. Yet the 319 yards USC allowed were its fewest given up since stifling Fresno State in Week 2.

USC QB Jayden Maiava has thrown for at least one TD in each of the Trojans' first five games, while Penn State QB Rocco Becht had his first multi-interception game of the season against Northwestern with two picks.

No. 20 Iowa at Washington (-3.5) (9 p.m. ET Friday, Fox): The Huskies are home favorites despite being 0-2 in Big Ten play. If Iowa is going to be a real contender in the Big Ten, the Hawkeyes need to find improvements in the passing game. Yes, we realize that's been an evergreen sentence.

Texas A&M at No. 14 Missouri (-3.5) (Noon ET, ABC): Texas A&M can't afford another loss as its playoff hopes are already hanging on by a thread. And if the Aggies win, good luck trying to figure out the pecking order in the middle of the SEC. It's the third straight season these teams have met and the Aggies won the previous two by a combined score of 79-27.

North Carolina at No. 25 Pitt (-3.5) (Noon ET, ESPN): The Panthers are slight favorites because they're missing QB Mason Heintschel after his torn right ACL against Virginia Tech in Week 5. Expect Pitt to lean on a ground game that features Ja'Kyrian Turner and Damon Ferguson Jr. A loss drops UNC to an 0-2 hole in the ACC with games against Duke and Miami upcoming in October.

No. 22 Houston at Kansas State (-2.5) (3:30 p.m. ET, Fox): An early Big 12 title elimination game? The Wildcats are coming off a bye following a 31-26 road loss to a Cincinnati team that looks a lot better than people expected. Houston's only loss of the season came at No. 11 Texas Tech by two points.

No. 10 LSU (-8.5) at Kentucky (7 p.m. ET, ESPN): This spread could be giving LSU and Lane Kiffin a bit too much respect. Kentucky came back from a 17-0 first-half deficit on the road at South Carolina in Week 5 and somehow fell out of the AP Top 25. There will be no way the Wildcats will be left out of the poll again with a win. And an upset will put LSU in a perilous playoff position.

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