College football Week 9 predictions: Four big-name teams in survival mode
College Football Week 9 Prediction: Missouri will upset No. 25 South Carolina
The Missouri Tigers have had a rough year in 2022, starting off the season by losing four of their first six games—that’s the bad news. The good news, is they have been competitive in all of those losses except for one, a non-conference game at Kansas State.
Mizzou held their own and took Auburn to overtime in Week 4, losing by three. They hosted Georgia the following week and gave them quite the scare, leading for all but the final four minutes of the game. And, they lost to Florida in The Swamp by just one score.
The Tigers have a little momentum after holding off Vanderbilt 17-14 in their most recent game when they take on No. 25 South Carolina. This is exactly the kind of win Head Coach Eli Drinkwitz needs to lower the temperature on his hot seat. It’s a very winnable game for a Gamecocks team that hasn’t really been all that intimidating, save for a win at No. 13 Kentucky.
The Tigers are just four-point underdogs heading into this game and have a chance to get a rare win against a ranked opponent. Drinkwitz is 1-8 against nationally ranked opponents while at the helm at Missouri, according to the St. Louis Post-Dispatch.
College Football Week 9 Prediction: Only one of Penn State, Oklahoma State, Syracuse, and Cincinnati will win this week
A handful of big-name teams are playing this week with their backs against the wall. These are all teams who are still in the mix to win their conference and work their way up and into the CFB Playoffs or a New Year’s Six bowl game, despite having one loss on their resume already. If any of Penn State, Oklahoma State, Syracuse, and/or Cincinnati lose this week, those end-of-season aspirations are all but snuffed out.
No. 13 Penn State is up against No. 2 Ohio State and the chances of them pulling off the upset this week seem grim as they’re 15.5-point underdogs at home.
No. 9 Oklahoma State heads to Manhattan, Kansas to face two-loss No. 22 Kansas State. These two teams are jockeying for second place in the Big 12 to No. 7 TCU. The Cowboys are 1.5-point underdogs on the road.
No. 16 Syracuse, fresh off a tough loss to No. 5 Clemson, will have to face a Notre Dame football team that’s finally finding its footing after starting the season 0-2 and losing starting QB Tyler Buckner. Still, the Orange are 2.5-point favorites— the only team in this group of four favored to win this weekend.
And finally, No. 20 Cincinnati heads to The Bounce House in Orlando to face a dangerous UCF football team. Cincinnati lost their season opener at Arkansas and has won six games in a row since then, but they look more vulnerable than ever having won their previous two games by a combined six points.
This pivotal AAC matchup may determine who faces the red-hot No. 23 Tulane Green Wave for the conference title at the end of the season. The Bearcats are 1-point underdogs heading into the game.
Prediction: Syracuse, the only team in this group playing at home this week, will win.