Predictions against the spread, odds, betting lines for top 25 games in Week 8

It’s a big Texas weekend. There are only two ranked games featuring top-25 teams in Week 8, and each involves a Texas school.

No. 7 Ole Miss travels to No. 19 Texas (7:30 p.m. ET) in what feels like a referendum game for both Texas head coach Steve Sarkisian and starting quarterback Arch Manning. The narratives have gone into overdrive this week as Texas has lost its last two games, both to unranked opponents, as the Manning-led Texas offense has struggled mightily. To get back on track, Arch will have to beat the program that means so much to his family. Arch’s father (Cooper), uncle (Eli) and grandfather (Archie) all played football at Ole Miss.

Later in the night, No. 14 Houston takes on No. 10 Utah in a game that has both Big 12 championship and College Football Playoff implications. The Utes didn’t look great in a win against Colorado last week but remain one of the five last unbeaten Power Four teams. Houston’s lone loss is a two-point defeat to Texas Tech, and the Cougars could take a big step toward being a CFP contender with a road win over Utah.

Other intriguing games include No. 6 Indiana at Michigan, No. 18 LSU at Auburn and No. 11 Tennessee at South Carolina. The Hoosiers are coming off a tough loss to Ohio State, while the Wolverines may have found something with true freshman quarterback Tommy Carr. In the battle of the Tigers, LSU will need a win to keep its playoff hopes alive. Tennessee catapulted itself up the SEC hierarchy with a win over Alabama last weekend and yet still is a 2.5-point underdog to the Gamecocks.

After a historic weekend that saw five top eight-ranked teams go down on a single day, the Week 8 slate isn’t quite as promising, but there’s plenty to get excited about.

Michigan vs. No. 6 Indiana

12 p.m. on Fox, Fubo (try free): We’ve got two elite run defenses, one inconsistent passing attack and one freshman making his first start. That is a recipe for a low-scoring battle. Michigan has played five games against teams not named UTEP, and all five games have finished with fewer than 40 points. Indiana’s last two games have finished in the 30s as well, as they’ve faced the two best defenses on their schedule thus far, and it’s hard to see a game flow here leading to anything approaching a shootout. The fear here is the potential for defensive scores, but even so, give me the under in Ann Arbor for the second straight week. Pick: Under 41.5 — Robby Kalland

IU -7.5
Indiana
Indiana
Michigan
Indiana
Michigan
Indiana
Michigan

Michigan
SU
Indiana
Indiana
Indiana
Indiana
Indiana
Indiana
Indiana
Indiana
Indiana

No. 18 LSU vs. Auburn

12 p.m. on ABC, Fubo (try free): What Auburn did last week will be commendable — and fans will remember it forever — but it was also extremely improbable. Georgia out-gained Auburn by 74 yards, and the Tigers barely pulled out a win despite a plus-3 turnover margin. LSU’s defense is athletic enough to contain Byrum Brown, and the offense is capable of putting up big numbers. It’s possible the crowd and Auburn defense give Sam Leavitt trouble, but LSU is capable of winning this game by double digits. Pick: LSU -9.5 — Austin Nivison

LSU -7.5
LSU
Auburn
LSU
LSU
LSU
Auburn
Auburn
LSU
LSU
SU
LSU
LSU
LSU
LSU
LSU
LSU
LSU
LSU
LSU

No. 9 UCLA vs. Michigan State

3:30 p.m. on CBS CBSSports.com, CBS Sports App Paramount+ Premium: Michigan State has allowed only one team this season to average Pick: Michigan State +14 — David Cobb

UCLA -14
UCLA
Michigan St.
Michigan St.
Michigan St.
UCLA
UCLA
Michigan St.
UCLA
Michigan St.
SU
UCLA
UCLA
UCLA
UCLA
UCLA
UCLA
UCLA
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UCLA