RADIO
Brant's bold predictions for Week 3 of the 2026 college football season, including picks for Ole Miss-LSU, Florida-Auburn, and more.
Heading into Week 3, we finally get to see some conference action. A handful of Big Ten and SEC teams will play their conference openers this week, and it should be a fun one headlined by none other than the Lane Kiffin Bowl that was circled on college football fanatics' calendars months ago when Kiffin departed Ole Miss for LSU.
We've already seen a ton of excitement on the field through just two weeks this season, and there is more of it in store this week.
Read on to see this week's bold predictions for the upcoming Saturday slate.
Mississippi State Handles South Carolina in SEC Opener
Kamario Taylor lived up to the hype in Week 2 and legitimately did put himself on the Heisman radar, as I predicted last week.
NEW: Week 3 On3 College Football Heisman Poll🏆
Do you agree?🤔https://t.co/YpZFYWgLgn pic.twitter.com/KtIBkLfD5s
— On3 (@On3) September 14, 2026
The sophomore is a special talent and is well on his way to putting Mississippi State on the national radar. Despite the Bulldogs’ dominant road win against Minnesota last week, Mississippi State remains an underdog on the road this week against South Carolina.
The Gamecocks have not been tested yet, with wins over Kent State and Towson, but LaNorris Sellers looked more like his 2025 self than his 2024 self last week when he only completed 10-of-23 passes with an interception against an FCS opponent.
South Carolina struggled last season, winning just four games, and has not shown any indication of returning to 2024 form on either side of the ball.
Mississippi State, meanwhile, is fully hitting its stride behind Taylor and Jeff Lebby. The Bulldogs’ 38-13 win over Minnesota has not been talked about nearly enough in national media.
This game feels a lot like South Carolina’s SEC opener last season, a game in which it fell flat on its face at home as favorites against Vanderbilt, a rising opponent. Give me Taylor and the Bulldogs to continue the Heisman campaign.
Bill Belichick Starts 3-0
This take would have been real bold before the season started, but here we are entering Week 3 with Belichick’s Tar Heels in position to potentially start 3-0. North Carolina will be on the road at Clemson this week in what profiles as a must-win game for Dabo Swinney’s Tigers.
Clemson was blown out in the opener, as we all know, and then struggled last week to get anything going against Georgia Southern in an ugly 22-7 win. Now in the ACC opener, Swinney has officially pivoted to true freshman Tait Reynolds under center.
Bill Belichick is turning back the clock in Chapel Hill 👀
UNC handled East Tennessee State 35-3 and has allowed just 13 points through two games. pic.twitter.com/WpXgvJblbd
— Yahoo Sports (@YahooSports) September 12, 2026
As for North Carolina, Belichick’s squad won a gritty game in Week 0 over TCU. Having a veteran presence in Billy Edwards Jr. under center will be a huge boost in this one, and I genuinely believe that the Tar Heels can knock off Clemson this week, leaving Swinney’s seat scorching hot.
USC/Rutgers Track Meet Shatters Some Sort of Offensive Record
USC and Rutgers have been among some of the most fun teams to watch through two weeks, and it is not because of either team’s defense. The Trojans surrendered 26 points to San Jose State in Week 0 and 30 points to Louisiana last week.
Rutgers, meanwhile, couldn’t stop a nosebleed. It gave up 37 to UMass in Week 1, and 28 to Boston College in Week 2, both losses in which the defense folded time and time again.
Rutgers has had abysmal quarterback play, but wide receiver KJ Duff has been appointment television with 17 catches for 333 yards and five touchdowns through just two games.
KJ Duff through 2 games:
17 REC
333 YDS
5 TDThe first player to reach those numbers in the first two games of a season since 2001. pic.twitter.com/QaoKAQOo2H
— Real App (@realapp) September 12, 2026
As for USC, the Trojans have been firing on all cylinders against poor opponents. The way Rutgers has looked, this likely won’t be much more of a test than what it has already faced, especially defensively. Jayden Maiava and the offense should easily clear 40 points yet again on their first road trip of the year.
The all-time single-game yardage record sits at 858 yards, achieved by Florida State in 1992. Could we possibly see Lincoln Riley light up Rutgers to the tune of 859+ yards? Or could Duff obliterate the single-game receiving yards record set by Louisiana Tech’s Troy Edwards in 1998 (405 yards)?
This game may not be on your radar, but if you like offense, tune in for this track meet of a Big Ten opener at 3:30 p.m. ET on Saturday.
Is Florida Back?
Florida travels to play Auburn in one of the weekend’s biggest SEC openers. Two undefeated programs entering Year 1 under new coaches will meet under the lights in Jordan-Hare Stadium, and only one will emerge unscathed.
Both of these programs have been longing for relevance for seasons, and both fan bases feel like they hired the right guy. Whoever comes out of this one on top will have even more of a confidence boost in the relevance of their program moving forward.
This will be a hard-fought game, and I am having a hard time seeing it be anything other than a tightly contested, low-scoring battle of chess. Byrum Brown and the Auburn offense don’t quite have an SEC-caliber group of weapons, but the defense surely is SEC-level. As for Florida, running back Jadan Baugh is a star, but how does quarterback Aaron Philo fare in a big-game environment?
At the end of the day, this one is going to come down to which team can make a play. I am putting my trust in Florida’s weapons over Auburn’s, and I like the Gators to pull off an upset on the road for the biggest win of Jon Sumrall’s tenure thus far.
No “Revenge” for Lane Kiffin
In what is one of the biggest regular-season games in recent memory, LSU head coach Lane Kiffin returns to Oxford for the first time since abandoning his Ole Miss team mid-playoff run. With him, Kiffin brings four Rebels transfers: EDGE Princewill Umanmielen, linebacker TJ Dottery, lineman Devin Harper, and receiver Winston Watkins Jr.
Kiffin can call this a revenge game against the program that “didn’t allow him to coach” in the playoffs, but this is a true revenge game for Ole Miss and new head coach Pete Golding.
NEW: Oxford police chief Jeff McCutchen says they’re working with law enforcement elsewhere to add extra horse-mounted patrols ahead of Lane Kiffin’s return to Ole Miss, @wtva9news reports.
The National Guard will not be present.https://t.co/s48wGjcYHx pic.twitter.com/6BYWO81s7y
— On3 (@On3) September 15, 2026
Security is already set to be beefed up, if that tells you anything about the environment Kiffin is walking into this coming Saturday night. There is the potential for this to be the most hostile environment in the history of college football.
On the field, the Tigers are favored despite being on the road. LSU has looked the part this season, dominating Clemson 51-10 in the season opener and beating Louisiana Tech 45-14 after a slow start.
Ole Miss won a thrilling Week 1 game 41-38 over Louisville, and took care of Charlotte 41-9 in Week 2. Quarterback Trinidad Chambliss has picked up where he left off last season as one of the stars of the sport.
Make no mistake, the fireworks will be flying in this one. Ole Miss has an electrifying offense and did not have much to show defensively against Louisville in Week 1. LSU’s offense is a step up from what Jeff Brohm has to work with in Louisville.
The Tigers should be able to score at will, but that is if Sam Leavitt is on. The junior quarterback has already thrown four interceptions this season in just two games. While he is the engine of the machine, he sometimes tries to do more than he needs to.
With the environment that the Tigers are walking into, paired with the playmaking ability of Chambliss, Ole Miss has enough on its side to topple its former coach’s new team. I like the Rebels to knock off the Tigers in Oxford on Saturday night.
