College Football Week 3 Preview: Will Bad Blood Boil Over in Oxford?

Welp, folks, it happened. I guess I called it by not calling it?

I teased a couple of potential upsets in my write-up last week and ended by saying that there would likely be something even crazier than what I could predict and lo and behold here we sit.

The Ducks’ road trip last week felt more like rough seas than Stillwater. Oregon put up the stinker of the year so far in a game that was not as close as the final score indicates. Drew Mestemaker carved the Ducks’ defense for 317 through the air and 109 on the ground en route to a yardage margin of 554-281. Part of that difference can be chalked up to Mestemaker’s 2 interceptions, but that’s about all the good you can say about Oregon’s defense. What many people, including myself, thought would be the best defensive line in the country registered 0 sacks against Oklahoma State. Truly astonishing.

So where do the Ducks go from here? Hopefully, for them, a quick bounce against Portland State tonight in preparation for next week’s matchup against the Trojans in what looks like a loaded Week 4 slate.

Unfortunately, unlike Week 4, the schedule this week looks a little… well, weak. In all honesty, I had a hard time finding 5 games to put in the preview this week, but like last Saturday, there’s a clear standout matchup.

Lane Kiffin’s new look LSU Tigers travel to Oxford to take on his old DC Pete Golding and the spurned Rebels. With all the drama off the field and the precautions the Ole Miss athletic department is taking to prevent calamity from ensuing, I can’t recall a higher tension regular season college football game in recent memory. Hopefully you’re not stuck at a wedding without access to a TV for this one…

We’ve still previewed the usual 5 games below even though it’s not the strongest lineup. Let us know what additional games you’re looking forward to this weekend in the comments below!

Games of the Week

Houston at Texas Tech

We kick off the weekend with an absolute treat of a Friday night game. Coach Willie Fritz and the Cougars head into Lubbock looking to dethrone the 2025 conference champs. Both teams feature at least one quarterback that can serviceably navigate their respective offenses; Texas Tech might have 2 with Thomas Castellanos (Red Raiders fans should be thankful Brendan Sorsby is not their starting quarterback because he is bad). However, I think this matchup features two of the top defenses in the conference, and that side of the ball should dictate how this game is played. Inevitably, I think the tortilla-tossers hang on at home and hold onto their Big XII crown for a little while longer.

Predictions

David Tomlinson: Texas Tech 24 – Houston 21

Cheech Jones: Texas Tech 28 – Houston 20

NC State at Vanderbilt

Similarly to the Mississippi State-Minnesota game last weekend, this will be a good gauge of conference depth between a projected middling ACC team and a bottom third SEC squad. After getting embarrassed by Virginia in week 0, NC State rebounded with a dominant performance over cupcake FCS-side Richmond. Vanderbilt, however, has struggled against their lesser competition, not looking particularly good against Austin Peay nor Delaware. 5-star quarterback Jared Curtis now has to face a legit defense for the first time in his college career after uninspiring efforts. I think NC State’s experience with veteran QB CJ Bailey is the difference in this one and Dave Doreen’s team rights the ship and puts on display the depth of the ACC this season.

Predictions

David Tomlinson: NC State 21 – Vanderbilt 17

Cheech Jones: Vanderbilt 24 – NC State 18

SMU at Louisville

This is a big, big showdown in the ACC. A lot bigger than some may realize. SMU and Louisville, both dark horse playoff contenders coming into the year, meet in this early season ACC clash. If Miami does what we all think they will this year, there’s only 1 additional spot for grabs in the conference championship game, and the loser of this one is likely out. The Mustangs come in unscathed on the season but looked incredibly mediocre in their only real test so far against Florida State, coughing up the ball to the Noles 4 times. The Cardinals, on the other hand, have a 1 in the loss column at the hands of top 10 Ole Miss but looked quite good in that week 1 game, only falling to the Rebels by 3 points. This one has shootout in the making, but I trust Louisville to manage this game better while SMU has more of a chance to make critical errors that could cost them, especially on the road.

Predictions

David Tomlinson: Louisville 38 – SMU 30

Cheech Jones: Louisville 45 – SMU 38

Florida at Auburn

I teased this one in the preseason in my 2026 sleeper games article and here we are in week 3 with both teams sitting at 2-0 with high hopes for the rest of the season. The Gators have started off the season by drubbing inferior opponents, Florida Atlantic and Campbell, with QB Aaron Philo posting a 2 to 1 incompletion to touchdown ratio while RB Jadan Baugh has been running wild to the tune of 10.6 yards per carry. On the other hand, Auburn struggled in week 1 against Baylor winning at the last moment on a failed Bears’ 2-point conversion before a dominant 35-point win over Southern Miss in week 2. While the offenses have been beating up on cupcakes, I think at the end of the day whoever has the best defense in this one will come out the winner. Byrum Brown may struggle in his first start against an SEC defense, but I think Aaron Philo will have an even tougher time in a hostile Jordan-Hare Stadium against an underrated DJ Durkin unit.

Predictions

David Tomlinson: Auburn 20 – Florida 16

Cheech Jones: Florida 21 – Auburn 20

LSU at Ole Miss

Oh boy. Buckle up for this one ladies and gentlemen and get your popcorn ready! This matchup has been hyped for 9 months now, and I’m sincerely hoping it delivers. We all know the drama surrounding this one. Your grandma probably knows who Lane Kiffin is and his slew of sins at this point. So instead, let’s focus on the football. Both teams have shown they can score and in bunches. LSU is averaging 48 points so far behind QB Sam Leavitt, in a dominant win against Clemson and a “closer than it should have been” against Louisiana Tech. And yes, Leavitt is playing, let’s not fool ourselves. On the other side, Ole Miss has tallied 41 points in each of their first 2 contests, scoring an impressive week 1 victory against a good Louisville squad. Where LSU likely has the advantage, at least talent-wise, is Blake Baker’s defense. Which means I should be picking the Tigers, right? I just refuse to believe it until I see it. This should be the biggest home field advantage in recent memory and post-Lane holdovers Trinidad Chambliss, Kewan Lacy, and Deuce Alexander score in bunches and refuse to lose against their old coach.

Predictions

David Tomlinson: Ole Miss 41 – LSU 37

Cheech Jones: LSU 42 – Ole Miss 17

David’s Underdog of the Week

Ohio 24 – South Alabama 21

The Bobcats pulled out a miraculous 4OT victory at home in Athens against a respectable Jacksonville State side in week 2. Most of that winning effort was built on the defensive side of the ball as the Gamecocks could only muster 7 points in the second half… and as we established last week, defense travels. I think the Ohio defense frustrates Bishop Davenport and the Jaguar offense, and the Bobcats complete their season sweep of Alabama schools.

Cheech’s Underdog of the Week

Mississippi St 34 – South Carolina 27

I’m picking Mississippi State to pull the upset over the Cocks. The Bulldogs are averaging 50 points, 620.5 yards per game, and Kamario Taylor has been impressive. Through two games, he’s thrown for 581 yards, 7 TDs and 0 INTs while also making plays with his legs. South Carolina’s defense has been good so far, but Mississippi State’s explosive offense will be its toughest test yet.