The Oct. 24 schedule doesn't offer the same high-level matchups as last weekend. Nov. 7 is shaping up to rival last weekend, with two top-10 matchups, four top-20 meetings, five ranked matchups, plus Oregon playing for its season against Ohio State led by a true freshman quarterback.
That's okay.
Week 8 will allow us to dig into some teams that haven't been the focus thus far, including one that may slide into the Playoff without being the focus all season long.
1. No. 14 Houston at No. 10 Utah (10:15 p.m. ET, ESPN): Okay, Utes. BYU did their thing. Now it's your turn.
And before BYU fan chimes in: No, No. 14 and once-beaten Houston doesn't carry the same cachet as undefeated and No. 2-ranked Notre Dame. But it is time for Utah to add a skin to the wall. The Utes' strength of schedule thus far ranks 102nd in ESPN's FPI, with wins over Idaho, Arkansas, Utah State, Iowa State, Kansas and Colorado. The remaining schedule, though, is the toughest of the Big 12 contenders, in large part because of who comes to town on Nov. 7.
The Big 12 is the only conference left with three teams still undefeated, and the folks in that league are envisioning a way four of its teams could get to Selection Sunday with one loss. The only way for Houston to do so is to win out, and that's largely dependent upon winning this game. Willie Fritz's team has five double-digit wins (including a 13-pointer over sensation and possible MW champion and CFP participant Oregon State) with two close calls: a 2-point loss at No. 8 Texas Tech, and a 3-point win over then-No. 18 Oklahoma State.
This one's gonna be close.
2. No. 7 Ole Miss at No. 19 Texas (7:30 p.m. ET, ABC): While it isn't official yet, the wheels are in motion for the College Football Playoff to expand to 24 teams beginning with the 2027 season. And while this isn't official yet, the widely held belief is that conference championship games will become extinct when the bracket doubles to 24. When that comes to pass, it means the 2026 SEC Championship will be the last. The first, biggest and best conference title game -- last year's "meaningless" Alabama-Georgia rematch out-drew a CFP quarterfinal -- will have been played 35 times. And as of right now, only two of the 12 SEC members when the game was born back in 1992 have yet to find themselves in Atlanta on the first Saturday of December: Vanderbilt and Ole Miss.
At 0-4, we can safely say Vandy is out of the hunt. But Pete Golding's Rebels are right there at 3-1. One of four 1-loss teams the It Just Means More Conference, Ole Miss is in complete control of its destiny: 4-1 Kentucky visits 3-1 Tennessee on Nov. 7, the same day 4-1 Georgia comes to Oxford.
Saturday's trip to No. 19 Texas isn't technically more meaningful than any other SEC game -- and both Auburn and Florida showed the dangers last week of counting your wins before they're hatched -- but, c'mon. Ole Miss has won nine straight SEC home games, but is just 6-4 on the road in that span. Auburn, No. 5 Georgia, and Mississippi State come to Vaught-Hemmingway next month, leaving just Saturday and a Nov. 14 trip to Oklahoma as the final road hurdles before a potential trip to Atlanta (which, for now, means just as much as a CFP berth).
For Texas, the stakes are crystal clear. The Longhorns wouldn't technically be eliminated at 9-3 -- per AP voters, the Ohio State and Tennessee wins are the first- and sixth-most impressive wins of the season thus far, and Texas is also the only team this season to beat UTSA. The stakes are much more immediate, however. This isn't about playing meaningful football in December, it's about surviving the post-game press conference. Going from No. 1 to a 3-game losing streak (two at home) would a crash-and-burn unseen since... Penn State went from No. 3 to 3-6 last season. Steve Sarkisian shed the "next James Franklin" whispers with the win over Ohio State. Bringing those comparisons back within the same season would be, well, it would be the opposite of fun for all involved in Longhorns football.
(For the record, Archie and Eli's alma mater went 0-2 against Peyton, losing 41-3 in Memphis and 31-17 in Knoxville. For all we know, this is their only shot at Arch.)
3. No. 15 Iowa at Minnesota (3:30 p.m. ET, FS1): This spot isn't about this game particularly, but about what Iowa's trip to play 4-2 Minnesota represents. Iowa is 5-1 and ranked 15th by the AP with no wins over currently ranked teams (Michigan was ranked at the time of the Hawkeyes' miracle Big House rally, but is unranked and 4-2 and has three top-10 teams plus Oregon still on the schedule, starting with No. 6 Indiana on Saturday). Their other wins: 0-6 Northern Illinois, 3-3 Iowa State, FCS Northern Iowa, and 4-3 Washington.
Minnesota, Wisconsin, Northwestern and Nebraska are still ahead. All decent teams, none great, and it's possible an 11-1 Iowa reaches Selection Sunday with zero Top 25 wins.
Is that enough to get Iowa into the CFP? Let's look at it this way: 2024 Indiana made the CFP by defeating the following teams:
-- 4-8 FIU
-- 4-8 Western Illinois
-- 5-7 UCLA
-- 5-7 Charlotte
-- 4-8 Maryland
-- 4-8 Northwestern
-- 7-5 Nebraska
-- 6-6 Washington
-- 5-7 Michigan State
-- 7-5 Michigan
-- 1-11 Purdue
Over a course of a season, those Hoosiers defeated zero ranked opponents, two above .500 teams, three bowl-bound opponents, and their loss came by 23 points. Those Hoosiers not only made the Playoff but, under 2026 rules, they would've been the No. 8 seed.
In a world where the SEC is trying to rack up as many quality wins as possible to appease the committee, the Big Ten has smartly judged that loss avoidance is the first and most important criteria. (It's also why I'm skeptical toward Tony Pettiti's claim his league will voluntarily beef up its schedule.) Ten Power 4 teams have reached Selection Sunday with zero or one loss in the 12-team era, and all 10 heard their name called. Of the 14 teams currently ranked ahead of Iowa in the AP poll, 10 are set to play against each other in the regular season -- and that doesn't include Big Ten, SEC and Big 12 championship games likely to dole out an additional loss to one of the teams currently ahead of Iowa.
So, the proper question isn't, Can 11-1 Iowa make the CFP with perhaps zero Top 25 wins? It's, What seed will they be?