FIW staff picks Notre Dame vs. Stanford and top Week 6 games
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It’s almost halfway through the season for many teams across college football, as Notre Dame will play its sixth game of the year, hosting Stanford in the Legends Trophy game.
The Irish enter Saturday’s contest 5-0, ranked No. 3 in the US LBM Coaches Poll and in a great spot to make the College Football Playoff. The Cardinal haven’t been as fortunate, a 2-3 record with some pretty bad losses.
Week 6 of college football should be another fun filled weekend of action, and the staff here of Tim Healey, Sunny Verma, Kevin Smith and Michael Chen predict the outcome of Notre Dame vs. Stanford and the top games of the weekend below.
No. 7 Indiana Hoosiers (5-0) at Nebraska Cornhuskers (5-0)
Game data: Sat., Oct. 10 at 11 a.m. CDT on FOX
Healey – Nebraska is 5-0 and yet not ranked. That suggests to me that they aren't on the same level as the Indiana Hoosiers. I suspect Indiana will roll in this one.
Verma – This is just about the time where Nebraska fans are overly hyped by early season success, and then they run into a monster like Curt Cignetti to provide a humbling. Indiana wins easily.
Smith – I'm loving the resurgence of the Huskers this season. That being said, I think Indiana will take this game without a problem.
Chen – Hard to bet against Curt Cignetti, and I won’t here. The Cornhuskers put up a battle, but the Hoosiers find a way to win.
No. 1 Texas Longhorns (4-0) vs. Oklahoma Sooners (2-2)
Game data: Sat., Oct. 10 at 2:30 p.m. CDT on ABC
Healey – Oklahoma can, in just about any year, beat its Red River rival. But I don't think it will this year. Texas might tumble before the year ends, but not this week.
Verma – If Texas can't win the Red River rivalry this weekend, then all talk about being National Title contenders goes out the window. Texas wins.
Smith – The Longhorns will run with this one without a problem in another edition of the Red River rivalry. The Sooners just don't have it this season.
Chen – The SEC has been a much different outcome for the former Big 12 rivals, as the Longhorns haven’t skipped a beat while the Sooners have struggles. Those continue as Texas stays undefeated.
No. 21 UCLA Bruins (4-0) at No. 13 Oregon Ducks (3-1)
Game data: Sat., Oct. 10 at 2:30 p.m. CDT on CBS
Healey – UCLA is frisky, but the Ducks are at home and seem to have recovered from their early-season stumble. I imagine Oregon will win, but it might be close.
Verma – UCLA is one of the best stories in college football thus far, Oregon is going to be a real test and Dan Lanning knows he will have to keep his west coast rival in check. Ducks and their new quarterback win.
Smith – The Bruins have been a pleasant surprise so far, but with it being big game implications, I think the Ducks will edge out UCLA enough to win it.
Chen – There’s an interesting there going in college football, and it’s the success of former James Madison coaches. Bob Chesney has the Bruins rolling, and this is their toughest test to date. They’ll pass, as the Ducks tailspin continues.
No. 2 Georgia Bulldogs (5-0) at No. 6 Alabama Crimson Tide (5-0)
Game data: Sat., Oct. 10 at 6:30 p.m. CDT on ABC
Healey – An Alabama win wouldn't surprise me, especially since the Tide are at home, but the Tide have also looked off at times in recent years. I think Georgia wins a squeaker.
Verma – This is the win for Alabama that they launch themselves into the National Title picture with.
Smith – I'd like to think the Bulldogs have what it takes to squeeze past the Crimson Tide. But…Alabama has been sneaky good this season, and a Tide squad led by Kalen DeBoer has found ways to beat Georgia these past few years. I have to take Alabama in this one because I think they are a hotter, slightly more motivated team than Georgia right now.
Chen – The best game of the week will be a very fun watch. The question for me is if Georgia has enough offensive firepower to hand with Alabama. I think they do, and make just a few more stops and win a close one.
Tim Healey
Notre Dame is at home against a not-very-good Stanford team. Aside from the middle eight against North Carolina, the Fighting Irish have had no trouble with big underdogs so far, and I don't expect that to change this week. Notre Dame should roll.
Notre Dame 59, Stanford 10
Sunny Verma
Week in and week out it looks like this Notre Dame team is focused on not letting the shortcomings of last season rear its' head into this year. Stanford is not in a very good place right now.
Notre Dame 49, Stanford 7
Kevin Smith
There's no question that Stanford has improved since former Cardinal QB Tavita Pritchard took over the team this season. On the other hand…Stanford is still a mediocre team, and that's reflected in a pretty bad 57-3 loss to Wake Forest last weekend. Notre Dame will coast in this one and continue to bulk its undefeated record.
Notre Dame 52, Stanford 6
Michael Chen
Stanford is bad, they’re not really close to the same talent level as the Irish. While there are things that could go wrong for Notre Dame, there have to be more than a few for this game to sway the way of the Cardinal. This is a perfect game for the Irish to work on some things, like the run game and getting younger players experience, and they should get at least a quarter to do so.
Notre Dame 48, Stanford 3
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This article originally appeared on Fighting Irish Wire: FIW staff picks Notre Dame vs. Stanford and top Week 6 games
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