RADIO
Jackson's bold predictions for Week 7 of the 2025 college football season, including picks for Alabama, Tennessee, Arkansas, UCLA, Oregon, Michigan, and Oklahoma.
Last week's college football slate wasn't the prettiest on paper, yet it delivered some of the most surprising and exciting results of the year. It's funny how that always seems to work out in college football, as the set of games many viewed as one of the worst of the season saw two top-10 teams suffer defeats against unranked squads with losing records.
Week 7 features three ranked vs. ranked matchups, including two top-15 showdowns. In this article, we'll try to predict the headlines at the end of Week 7. As we have seen, anything can happen on any given Saturday, so let's take a look at some potential outcomes before they play out.
Below, read about the bold calls for Alabama, Arkansas, UCLA, Oregon, Michigan, and Oklahoma.
Alabama Totals 450+ Yards Against Missouri
All of a sudden, the Alabama offense is firing on all cylinders behind Ty Simpson and offensive coordinator Ryan Grubb. Simpson has completed over 70% of his passes for 1,478 yards and 13 touchdowns, and he threw his first interception of the year in last week's big win over Vanderbilt.
The wide receiver trio of Germie Bernard, Ryan Williams, and Isaiah Horton is finally coming alive and living up to the hype, making the Tide's passing attack one of the most dangerous in the country.
THE INFECTION!!!🦠@oti_germie
📺: ABC pic.twitter.com/9L2DdPfgGh
— Alabama Football (@AlabamaFTBL) October 4, 2025
Kalen DeBoer's struggles in Tuscaloosa have always come on the road, but the victory in Athens to snap Georgia's home winning streak should give us confidence in Alabama on the road moving forward.
Missouri has allowed the second-fewest total yards per game (203.8) in the country so far this year, but it's not a hot take to say Alabama's weapons are far superior to anything the Tigers have seen thus far.
A great offense often trumps a great defense. We're banking on Alabama's offensive attack to carry its momentum into Columbia this weekend ahead of the Third Saturday in October matchup next Saturday.
Joey Aguilar, Taylen Green Combine for 700+ Total Yards
Sam Pittman is out, and Bobby Petrino is back at the helm for the Razorbacks after a messy exit from the head-coaching job in 2011. Petrino's offense hasn't been the problem for Arkansas this season, and a matchup with Tennessee should result in another massive showing.
With Petrino and Josh Heupel both coming off a bye, it would be nothing short of a disappointment if this game in Knoxville doesn't produce major fireworks. Tennessee ranks last in the SEC in passing yards per game allowed (258.2), while Arkansas is right behind it at 15th in the league (257).
These are also the conference's worst defenses in points per game allowed, as Arkansas has surrendered 30.0 points per game and Tennessee has surrendered 29.0 points per game.
JOEY AGUILAR --> Braylon Staley TOUCHDOWN pic.twitter.com/VwJ56abwYq
— gmannVOLS (@gmannVOLS) August 30, 2025
On the flipside, these are the No. 2 and No. 4 total offenses in the league. Fantastic quarterbacks Joey Aguilar and Taylen Green have been the engines behind the offense, so 700+ combined yards is in the range of outcomes here. Both can pass for at least 300 yards, and Green can surpass 100 rushing yards on any given Saturday.
Michigan Rushes for 250+ Yards, Beats USC
USC has surrendered 108.4 yards per game on the ground through its first five contests, but that will be tested when Michigan rolls into the Coliseum on Saturday.
Like clockwork, the Wolvarines are built on having a strong ground game, controlling the clock, and grinding out a win. In a matchup with USC, the Big Ten's leading team in yards per game (565.0), the game plan should remain the same.
Behind tailbacks Justice Haynes and Jordan Marshall, Michigan is averaging 237.8 yards on the ground, and true freshman quarterback Bryce Underwood is perfectly capable of adding to the team's rushing total. The run game and defense travel on the road, so we're betting on Michigan continuing to find success there en route to a road victory.
Fastest 5 College Football Players of Week 6
2️⃣ 21.7 mph - Michigan RB Justice Haynes (@justicehaynes6) #ReelSpeed
🔗 https://t.co/wwII6ki7cm pic.twitter.com/ozA7W7MHQp
— Reel Analytics (@RAanalytics) October 6, 2025
This is one of the week's top matchups, and it could have sneaky Big Ten and College Football Playoff implications.
UCLA Earns Second Straight Upset Win
It's difficult to imagine any result being more surprising than UCLA upsetting Penn State in Los Angeles for the rest of the season. But it happened, and now the Bruins might not present an automatic win for any opponent.
Nico Iamaleava delivered the breakout game of his life in Week 6, completing 17 of his 24 passing attempts for 166 yards and two touchdowns while rushing for 128 yards and three more scores.
🐻 16 car
🐻 128 yds
🐻 3 TDWe just felt like reliving @UCLAFootball QB Nico Iamaleava's career day on the ground 👇 pic.twitter.com/AlGuICYc63
— UCLA on BTN (@UCLAOnBTN) October 7, 2025
It was the first time he's looked like a former Blue Chip recruit in a game against a ranked opponent, and the switch at head coach and offensive coordinator instantly brought new life to the UCLA program.
Don't get me wrong; the Bruins should still be viewed as one of the worst teams in the Big Ten, and it would be a surprise if they won six games and qualified for a bowl game. But the win against the Nittany Lions could create momentum heading into a game with an unimpressive Michigan State squad.
The Spartans have played somewhat close games against USC and Nebraska, but none of their three wins tells us they are clearly far better than UCLA. I expect this one to be tight, and it'll be interesting to see if Iamaleava and company can ride this feeling to at least one more upset victory.
Oregon Beats Indiana By Three Scores
Many would say you're not supposed to count Curt Cignetti out, but I am leaning toward doing that anyway this weekend. If this battle of Big Ten undefeated teams were played in Bloomington, it might be a different story. However, Oregon has lost just one game in Autzen Stadium since Dan Lanning took over the program, and it was during his first year at the helm in 2022.
This will be just the third time Cignetti's Indiana team has played away from home against a ranked opponent (0-2 so far), and a 2,300-mile trip against a squad with significantly more talent led by an elite coach spells bad news for the Hoosiers.
Indiana can keep the game tight in the first half, but the Ducks will take over eventually and collect at least a 17-point win to improve to 3-0 in the conference. The books list Oregon as just around a touchdown favorite. I don't see it that way. Many thought Oregon might take a small step back with an inexperienced Dante Moore taking over for Dillon Gabriel, but that has not been the case.
Oklahoma Sacks Arch Manning 8+ Times
Yes, saying Oklahoma's terrorizing front is going to sack Arch Manning isn't a hot take. But eight sacks against an SEC offensive line and a preseason darling quarterback is bold enough to qualify for this column.
The Sooners are tied with Tennessee for the most sacks per game in the country (4.2). After Manning was sacked six times in Gainesville last week, things are likely to get worse before they get better in this spot.
Wild things happen in the Red River Shootout, but Oklahoma's defense will need to continue to excel in case John Mateer (thumb) cannot play or is limited as a passer in Dallas. Given the stretch of ranked teams ahead of Oklahoma, this is not one it can likely afford to drop.
