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After a couple of great appetizers on Thursday and Friday, the main course has arrived. We have a full Week 8 college football slate on Saturday.
Plenty of solid matchups will grace our television screens this week, and our college football staff came through with picks for five of them on Saturday's noon slate.
With so much action to get to, let's dive into our college football picks and NCAAF predictions for the Week 8 games on Saturday, Oct. 24.
College Football Picks, Predictions
The team logos in the table below represent each of the matchups that our college football betting staff is targeting from Saturday's slate of noon games. Click on the team logos for any of the matchups below to navigate to a specific bet discussed in this article.
| Game | Time (ET) | Pick |
|---|---|---|
  | 12 p.m. | |
  | 12 p.m. | |
  | 12 p.m. | |
  | 12 p.m. | |
  | 1 p.m. | |
Specific betting recommendations come from the sportsbook offering preferred odds as of writing. Always shop for the best price using our NCAAF Odds page, which automatically surfaces the best lines for every game. | ||
Michigan vs. Indiana Pick
Michigan head coach Kyle Whittingham will start freshman Tommy Carr at quarterback this week.
There's no denying the team's turnaround once Carr entered the game at Penn State. The bulk of the production from the defense, running back Jordan Marshall and the remainder of the team came in the second half.
Carr's presence could keep the momentum going, but it could be an enormous task for a freshman to make his first start against one of the best defenses in the nation.
The Wolverines use power and inside zone for an offense that elects to rush on 60% of snaps. Indiana's defense dominates both run concepts, particularly inside zone at a Success Rate of 68%.
Because the Hoosiers rank third in Rushing Success Rate allowed, Michigan could be forced to move the chains through the air.
Indiana struggled to run the ball against an Ohio State team considered vulnerable to the run. The Hoosiers were stuffed on 43% of attempts and averaged just three yards per play on 28 attempts.
Indiana uses a heavy amount of inside zone, a run concept the Michigan defense dominates. The Wolverines own a 55% Success Rate while producing a negative EPA for opponents that use inside zone.
The success of the Hoosiers' offense could come down to quarterback Josh Hoover against the man, Cover 1 and Cover 3 tendencies used by Michigan. Indiana has been mid-FBS in Success Rate against man and Cover 1, with more success against Cover 3.
Action Network's Betting Power Ratings list Indiana as a 10-point favorite on the road, with the touchdown spread reflecting the Ohio State hangover.
The better bet comes in the first-half under, where Indiana will look to regroup, and Michigan will look for offensive success with Carr under center.
Both defenses are well-suited to stop the bread and butter of the opposing offense, so downfield passing in the second half should determine the winner between Indiana and Michigan.
Check out Wilson's full Week 8 betting card below:
Pick: 1H Under 20.5 or Better
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Cincinnati vs. Texas Tech Pick
By Stuckey
Despite three straight covers following a shaky start to the season, I still maintain the Red Raiders are overrated in the market.
After a shaky start to the season, those three covers came against Sam Houston, Colorado (which outgained T,T 375-314) and Arizona State. That's not exactly a murderer's row of opponents.
Plus, almost all of those scores are a bit misleading due to some bounces that have gone Tech's way. Over that three-game stretch, the Red Raiders have benefited from nine takeaways and seven failed fourth-down attempts.
They also lead the nation in defensive touchdowns, which isn't really sustainable, especially against a quarterback like JC French IV, who has yet to throw an interception or have a turnover-worthy play.
This is just not the same caliber of team we saw run through the Big 12 with ease last season. The passing attack has regressed, and the defense is nowhere close to as dominant without a number of its best players along the front seven who now litter NFL rosters as primary contributors, including:
- LB Jacob Rodriguez
- DE David Bailey
- OLB Romello Height
- DT Lee Hunter
Last year, Tech's secondary never had to do much work since its defensive front generated such overwhelming quick pressure.
Well, with a decline in that department (particularly off the edge), the defensive backfield has started to get exposed a bit this season, especially without the steadying presence of safety Cole Wisniewski, who was the unheralded leader of the back end in 2025.
The Red Raiders can still generate interior pressure with the likes of A.J. Holmes Jr. and company, but Cincy's outstanding interior offensive line can neutralize that strength in the trenches.
That should give French enough time to find his receivers in the short passing game against a vulnerable secondary.
However, it all starts with the ground game for the Bearcats (top-30 rush rate nationally), who rank in the top 15 in both rushing yards per attempt and per game.
Cole Tabb is one of two running backs in the country (min. 25 attempts) who average over 9.0 yards per attempt, along with Colorado State's Mel Brown.
Cincy will utilize plenty of outside zone, which the Red Raiders have struggled to contain so far this season.
The Bearcats should have success on early downs and have plenty of manageable third-down situations to keep the chains moving while controlling time of possession.
Assuming Cincy can churn out yards with its heavy outside zone-based rushing attack, that should set up some easy completions off play-action (which Cincy uses at a top-15 rate nationally), where French has thrived with a nearly 80% adjusted completion percentage to go along with seven touchdowns and no interceptions.
Now, the Cincy defense has major warts, especially in the secondary.
Four of its five starters consist of G6 transfers (the Bearcats rank outside the top 100 in Pass EPA allowed and Success Rate allowed), but I just don't trust Will Hammond (who has just seven big-time throws to nine turnover-worthy plays in 2026) to consistently exploit those deficiencies.
Hammond is also basically just ignoring the left side of the field (only 11% of his attempts have gone that direction), which makes this offense easier to scout.
Following back-to-back Bearcat losses, I'm buying low on the home running 'dog catching 10.5 in a game I project at under 10, while selling a potentially fat-and-happy Tech team that I believe is still a tad overvalued.
Check out all of Stuckey's Week 8 situational spots below:
Pick: Cincinnati +10.5 or Better
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LSU vs. Auburn Pick
By Bet Labs
Saturday's LSU vs. Auburn SEC showdown fits a historically profitable betting system from our Bet Labs database.
Called "High Powered Unders," this is a college football system designed to take advantage of inflated totals when both teams have strong scoring averages.
Games where the home and visiting offenses average at least 24 points often lead oddsmakers and bettors to expect shootouts, especially when the closing total sits at 51 or higher.
However, these high expectations don't always match game reality, particularly in the regular season before postseason urgency changes play calling.
Added factors such as humidity above 40, wind speeds of at least eight miles per hour, and totals that don't move more than a few points from open to close create environments where offenses struggle more than anticipated.
With the home team playing within its first 11 games of the year, the season is still in progress and game plans remain conservative at times, leading to slower tempo and lower scoring than the market projects.
This combination of public perception, weather influence and modest line movement creates reliable value on the under.
This system boasts an all-time record of 507-364-9, good for a winning percentage of 58.2% and an ROI of 12.5%.
Pick: Under 51.5
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West Virginia vs. TCU Pick
By Doug Ziefel
Cam Cook has been the engine of West Virginia’s offense all year. He has 833 rushing yards through seven games, about 119 a game, which ranks fifth in the country.
He has cleared this number in five of seven starts, with games of 142, 123, 193, 142 and 141 yards.
Both misses came in unusual spots. One was the 52-7 blowout of UT Martin, where the starters sat early. The other was last week against Cincinnati, when West Virginia won a 45-42 shootout, and Cook managed 40 yards on 15 carries.
When the Mountaineers need him, he's a volume back who has handled 29, 30 and 34 carries in three of his last six outings.
West Virginia’s whole identity is the run. The Mountaineers average 295.5 rushing yards a game, fourth in the nation, in a quick, gashing attack built around Cook and quarterback Michael Hawkins Jr.
TCU’s strength is its pass rush and pass coverage, and a ground-based offense like West Virginia’s sidesteps much of that.
The Horned Frogs' rush defense is stingy at about 92 yards a game, but Cook is the kind of runner who produces against good fronts, as his 193 against Oklahoma State and 142 against Iowa State showed.
The game environment supports a heavy workload too. West Virginia’s defense is among the worst in the country, ranking 137th at roughly 484 yards allowed a game, and every Mountaineers game has gone over its total, which sits at about 56 here.
A team that can’t stop anyone has to keep the ball and sustain drives, and Cook is the way West Virginia does that.
He also played two seasons at TCU, so he knows this defense and its scheme. If he gets his usual 20-30 carries at roughly five yards each, he clears the number comfortably.
Pick: Cam Cook Over 89.5 Rushing Yards (-115)Â
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Baylor vs. Kansas Pick
By Kyle Hunter
The Baylor defense is on a completely different level than it was a year ago. There was a lot of talk about the new faces the Bears brought in during the offseason, and Dave Aranda has also been doing more work with the defense directly this season.
All of the changes are paying off in a big way. The Bears have yet to allow more than 19 points in a game this season while ranking 13th in the nation in Success Rate allowed and second in PPA/Rush allowed.
The defensive front is the strength of this Baylor defense.
Kansas relies heavily on the run game. Quarterback Isaiah Marshall makes some poor decisions in the passing game, and Lance Leipold and the Kansas offensive staff have increasingly leaned on the ground attack in recent weeks.
The Jayhawks rank 15th in Rushing Success Rate, but Baylor is 5th in Rushing Success Rate allowed. The Bears are giving up only 2.6 yards per carry on the season.
Kansas sits 79th in the nation in Points Per Opportunity. Well, Baylor’s defense has been elite in the red zone, ranking fifth in the nation in Points Per Opportunity allowed.
Baylor plays quickly, but its games have a tendency to be quite sloppy. These teams don’t like each other much, and I think this will be a physical battle.
Check out all of Hunter's Week 8 team totals below:
Pick: Kansas Team Total Under 25.5
