Week Two College Football 2021 Preview

Week two of the College Football season is upon us. This week will show us who were one hit wonders, who will make adjustments and be better than they looked last week, and to see what players continue to stand out.

We don’t have as many exciting matchups as last week, but I think we have some good solid matchups that could help determine the playoff picture later this year.

Here is your Week Two College Football 2021 preview.

Week Two College Football Top 25 Matchups

Oregon at Ohio State

• Game Info: Saturday, 12:00 p.m. ET (Fox)
• Prediction: Ohio State 45, Oregon 31

Both teams are coming off of a Week 1 victory, but in two entirely different ways.

While Ohio State struggled at the beginning of last week’s game, it picked things up in the second half and pulled away pretty easily. Whereas Oregon struggled to beat Fresno state by only seven points.

I think Oregon will be looking to make adjustments and show everyone that they are a better team than they showed last week. But it will be a tough test on the raod against a Buckeye team loaded with talent and a a quarterback improving on every drive.

I see Ohio State turning to Miyan Williams and TreVeyon Henderson and just run the ball a lot and pull away easily in this one.

Iowa at Iowa State

• Game Info: Saturday, 4:30 p.m. ET (ABC)
• Prediction: Iowa State 20, Iowa 17

This has the chance to be the show stopper of week two. All of the momentum is with Iowa after their dominating win in week one over Indiana. The Hawkeye defense swarmed all of the Hoosier, shutting down their running game and picking off Michael Penix Jr. three times. The Iowa offense stepped up as well, being led by Tyler Goodson.

On the other side, Iowa State did struggle in the UNI game. But, I wouldn’t get to hung up on that performance. That’s how Iowa State starts every season, the good thing is this season they actually won instead of a bad loss.

I suspect Brock Purdy to be able to pass against Iowa which will open up the running game. This will be a close game but that Iowa State pulls it out in the end.

Utah at BYU

• Game Info: Saturday, 12:00 p.m. ET (Fox)
• Prediction: Utah 34, BYU 28

Both teams are coming off decent performances. Utah has a nice 40-17 win over Weber State, where Charlie Brewer looked good. But they did have their struggles with their defense, but I think that can be chalked up to It being a 1st game.

On the BYU side, Cougar QB Jaren Hall played well against Arizona, but the offense did take a step back from Zach Wilson.

This game is always fun, and always a battle. But I’m predicting a Utah win. They have won 10 out of the last 11 against BYU and I think they have the better quarterback.

Stanford at USC

• Game Info: Saturday, 2:00 p.m. ET (ACCN)
• Prediction: USC 28, Stanford 24

Stanford really struggled in their first game and got blown out 24-7 by Kansas State. They benched Jack West and are now moving to Tanner McKee. Will it spark the offense? We will have to see.

As for USC, they looked decent against the Spartans and Kedon Slovis had a great connection with Drake London and the defense held up pretty well.

This was a tough game to call as Stanford usually starts off badly and picks it up. But Stanford has also struggled the last couple of years. I’m wondering if they will be able to get back to their prime of tough running, having a good defense, and having a start at QB.

I’ve seen enough from USC to think they will pull this game out in what could be a clunker of a conference opener.

Washington at Michigan

• Game Info: Saturday, 8:00 p.m. ET (ABC)
• Prediction: Michigan 42, Washington 17

Is Washington better than it showed last week? What an ugly loss to Montana last week. You just don’t lose to a FCS team 13-7. I really think they need to do a quarterback change, but it appears they won’t be doing that.

Michigan on the other hand, came out firing on all cylinders. Cade McNamara really impressed as he managed the game well and got it to the right playmakers. I am a bit worried as Michigan’s top WR Ronnie Bell is out for the season now, but they have been recruiting that position well over the last couple of years.

My prediction is a blow out in Michigan’s favor as I feel that there is a lot to fix on Washington’s side.

Other Week Two College Football Contests

Kansas at Coastal Carolina

• Game Info: Friday, 7:30 p.m. ET (ESPN2)
• Prediction: Coastal Carolina 35, Kansas 24

Coastal Carolina is coming off back-to-back victories over Kansas (12-7 in 2019 and 38-23 in 2020). And now the Chanticleers have emerged as an up-and-coming program under Jamey Chadwell. While the Jayhawks are in the rebuild mode, I think Coastal Carolina blows them out again.

South Florida at Florida

• Game Info: Saturday, 1:00 p.m. ET (ABC)
• Prediction: Florida 34, South Florida 7

South Florida is coming off a 45-0 loss to N.C. State where Florida won going away but had some QB controversy. I think South Florida just needs a lot of work to get back to where they were to be competitive again and Florida will just out talent them here.

Middle Tennessee State at Virginia Tech

• Game Info: Saturday, 2:00 p.m. ET (ACCN)
• Prediction: Virginia Tech 48, MTSU 10

The Hokies looked good in the upset over North Carolina last week. They need to avoid a possible letdown against the Blue Raiders, but I think they will in blowout fashion.

Toledo at Notre Dame

• Game Info: Saturday, 2:30 p.m. ET (Peacock)
• Prediction: Notre Dame 52, Toledo 28

The Irish are working on a short week after playing the Seminoles on Sunday. They are also dealing with injuries with their Oline and their LB core being hit particularly hard. Toledo is also one of the most experienced teams coming back this year so this could be a lot tougher than many think. I would say that the offense fire power that Notre Dame has should be enough to pull away in this game.

UAB at Georgia

• Game Info: Saturday, 3:30 p.m. ET (ESPN2)
• Prediction: Georgia 49, UAB 7

I believe Georgia’s defense is the best in College Football and that shouldn’t be challenged here against the Blazers. I think the Bulldogs cruse, but UAB slips through a touchdown.

Colorado at Texas A&M

• Game Info: Saturday, 4:30 p.m. ET (Fox)
• Prediction: Texas A&M 24, Colorado 13

This is an interesting matchup of old rivals. In essence this should be a blow out by Texas A&M but I think its closer than many might think. But again the talent should pull through here.

Ball State at Penn State

• Game Info: Saturday, 5:00 p.m. ET (Pac-12 Network)
• Prediction: Penn State 28, Ball State 9

I’m still not bought into Penn State as I think their offense is still underwhelming. But that shouldn’t be a problem here as Penn State shouldn’t have any trouble with Ball State and should win this one comfortably.

Eastern Michigan at Wisconsin

• Game Info: Saturday, 7:30 p.m. ET (SEC Network)
• Prediction: Wisconsin 28, Eastern Michigan 6

Wisconsin struggled with their offense last week against Penn State but they should be able to work through all of their issues with Eastern Michigan. I think Graham Mertz gets back on track and the defense should be dominate.

App State at Miami

• Game Info: Saturday, 7:00 p.m. ET (TBD)
• Prediction: Miami 34, App State 24

Chase Brice will get the stat for App State against the Hurricanes after looking pretty good last week. While Miami is coming off the blowout loss to Alabama. I think the Hurricane’s will bounce back and look much better in this one and pull off a tough one.

Georgia State at North Carolina

• Game Info: Saturday, 7:30 p.m. ET (ESPN3)
• Prediction: North Carolina 45, Georgia State 17

The Tar Heels should come out firing in this matchup and should have an easy time with Georgia State who are coming off a large 43-10 loss to Army in week one. I want to see Sam Howell play much better, if he doesn’t it may be a long season for the Tar Heels.

UNLV at Arizona State

• Game Info: Saturday, 10:30 p.m. ET (ESPN2)
• Prediction: Arizona State 33, UNLV 23

I’m expecting a dominant performance by Arizona State here. UNLV is coming off a double-overtime loss against Eastern Washington where Arizona is coming off a nice victory. The offense should carry the day for Arizona State in this one.

College Football – Upset Alert

Texas at Arkansas

• Game Info: Saturday, 7:00 p.m. ET (ESPN)
• Prediction: Arkansas 34, Texas 31

When deciding which game had the opportunity for an upset I decided to go with Arkansas over Texas. I was really impressed with Arkansas last year. I know they struggled last week but I’m thinking that was just the case of it being the first week.

But Texas is better than expected this year and I could look foolish in this one. Either way I expect a great game.

Should be another excellent week of College Football!

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