Last week I only included 5 games in my picks (we’ll get to that in a minute) and this upcoming week is going to be the exact opposite with a whole bevy of juicy games to consider. With just a few weeks to go in the regular season we are getting close to the post-season. Although we don’t feature the Notre Dame game in the weekly picks it’s the last big test for the Irish coming up at Pittsburgh with ESPN GameDay in town, too.

2025 Betting Record

Against the Spread: 44-43
Straight Up: 58-29

A perfect 5-0 week 11 straight up, let’s go! I was also 4-1 against the spread which moves the season total one game over .500 in 2025. The lone miss was predicting Texas Tech to win not cover their 10.5 points. They did that very easily.

Week 12 Games to Watch

All times are Eastern. Rankings are from the CFP Committee. 

Clemson [+2.5] at #20 Louisville
Friday, November 14, 7:30 PM, ESPN

A quick look at this game for Clemson to try and save more of its 2025 dignity following their win over Florida State last week and to see if Louisville can keep itself in the playoff discussion within a muddled ACC. A reminder that the Cardinals won at Clemson last year (their first victory in the series). We’ll go with a bounce back win for ‘Ville after last week’s disappointment.

Louisville 34
Clemson 31

Minnesota [+25.5] at #8 Oregon
Friday, November 14, 9:00 PM, Fox

Another quick look at this Friday night game from Autzen. This is a short turn around for the Ducks coming back from a physical game at Iowa, and while Minnesota’s offense is a rough watch, the Gophers at least have a solid defense. If that defense travels this could be closer than Oregon fans would like.

Oregon 28
Minnesota 13

South Carolina [+18.5] at #3 Texas A&M
Saturday, November 15, 12:00 PM, ESPN

It’s been a rough season for South Carolina based off expectations (120th nationally in scoring!) and they’ve lost 4 straight plus 6 out of their last 7 games. It’s been a huge downer. BUT, they’ve been nibbling at an upset in several games this year. The Aggies need to be careful with this potentially sleepy Noon start!

Could the Gamecocks pull off an upset at least once?

Texas A&M 30
South Carolina 16

#24 USF [-10.5] at Navy
Saturday, November 15, 12:00 PM, ESPN2

Many are projecting USF to pick up that G5 playoff bid and a win in Annapolis would greatly increase those chances. The Bulls close out 2025 with a road trip to UAB and a home finale with Rice. They’re in a good position to potentially knock Navy out of the AAC race and have great odds of making it to the league championship game. Navy probably made a business decision to rest an ailing Blake Horvath last week against Notre Dame to prepare for this important AAC contest, but I think they’ll come up short against this explosive USF offense.

USF 41
Navy 35

#11 Oklahoma [+6.5] at #4 Alabama
Saturday, November 15, 3:30 PM, ABC

If we assume Alabama won’t encounter any voodoo inside Jordan-Hare in a couple weeks (an assumption I don’t think many Tide fans would agree with!) they can check an awful lot of boxes this weekend. A date in the SEC Championship Game and playoff spot (because we don’t punish championship game loser most of the time) awaits. Oklahoma has had a nice season but I don’t think they’re in this tier to win in Tuscaloosa.

The Tide are on track for a first round bye. 

Alabama 27
Oklahoma 17

#19 Virginia [+6.5] at Duke
Saturday, November 15, 3:30 PM, ESPN2

Duke coming off a loss to UConn and being favored against ranked Virginia is part of what makes college football so great. Most of the advanced stats say these teams are pretty evenly matched and now the Hoos quarterback situation is a question mark following Chandler Morris leaving last week’s game with an injury. I haven’t seen an update on his status as of this writing. It does feel like the great vibes for UVA this season are starting to crumble.

Duke 34
Virginia 20

#21 Iowa [+6.5] at #17 USC
Saturday, November 15, 3:30 PM, Big Ten Network

Iowa needs some of the biggest chaos nationally to get into the playoffs and it’s probably a lost cause anyway. Notre Dame fans will want USC to keep winning for those sweet, sweet resume points. I think the Hawkeyes have a hard time traveling west and staying competitive following last week’s soul crushing loss.

USC 35
Iowa 17

Florida [+15.5] at #7 Ole Miss
Saturday, November 15, 7:00 PM, ESPN

Ole Miss is sitting pretty and needs to take care of business over their final 2 games of the regular season. The Egg Bowl after a bye is maybe more of an upset worry as that one tends to always be a one-score game in the end or into the 4th quarter, particularly in Starkville. Florida is long past their dead cat bounce and is coming off a horrendous loss (even for them!) by 31 points at Kentucky. Still, the Lane Kiffin rumors persist as Florida’s next head coach and losing to the Gators would genuinely be hilarious.

Distractions abound!

Ole Miss 21
Florida 12

#10 Texas [+6.5] at #5 Georgia 
Saturday, November 15, 7:30 PM, ABC

Man, this is a huge game and yet both of these teams (Texas vs. A&M and Georgia vs. Georgia Tech) have big games to come, too. A loss this weekend and Texas is likely out of the playoff chase, barring major help, and perhaps a huge victory over the Aggies in the finale. This is interesting for Georgia who has the chance to stack up quite the collection of wins this year but still isn’t in line to make the SEC Championship. It’s quite possible they will move up into position for a first round bye as the committee’s favorite non-league championship game participant.

Georgia 24
Texas 16

TCU [+5.5] at #12 BYU
Saturday, November 15, 10:15 PM, ESPN

I remember hyping up quarterback Josh Hoover and TCU early in the season following their 3-0 start after beating rival SMU. They’ve since lost 3 games in the Big 12 and Hoover has thrown 2 interceptions in each of those defeats. Not great! BYU showed some serious flaws last week and will have to bounce back against a Horned Frogs offense that can be explosive if Hoover brings his A-game. Still, BYU is one of the best home game at night teams in the country. How about some overtime craziness?

BYU 47
TCU 41