Saturday of the college football slate hasn’t even started yet, but there’s already been a game played that impacted the playoff outlook this week. On Friday, #24 South Florida beat the undefeated North
Texas 63-36. Going into the game, North Texas had a 14.8 percent chance to make the playoff and a 7.7 percent chance of winning out, according to ESPN’s Football Power Index. That chance of winning out was the 15th-best in all of the FBS.
Fun fact: 0-6 Oregon State has an eight percent chance to win out, the 14th-best mark in the FBS, which goes to show you how weird of a place college football is in right now. The Beavers finish out the season against Wake Forest, Lafayette, Washington State twice, Sam Houston and Tulsa.
As of now, the Group of 5’s autobid appears to be down to South Florida, Memphis, Old Dominion, Tulane and UNLV.
Now, let’s get into Saturday’s top-25 matchups, along with the draft prospects who will play in those games that are ranked in the top 250 players of the consensus draft board.
#1 Ohio State @ #17 Illinois (11 am CT, FOX)
- Ohio State
- #5 S Caleb Downs
- #22 WR Carnell Tate
- #29 LB Arvell Reese
- #32 LB Sonny Styles
- #66 TE Max Klare
- #84 DL Kayden McDonald
- #96 CB Davison Igbinosun
- #120 CB Jermaine Mathews Jr.
- #127 ED Kenyatta Jackson
- Illinois
- #65 S Xavier Scott
- #104 ED Gabe Jacas
- #205 TE Tanner Arkin
Saturday will start off hot with FOX and ABC putting on two of the three top-25 matchups at the same time. Obviously, Ohio State has a little more gas in the tank than Illinois in this game.
If you want to watch some blue-chip football players, it’s hard to argue that there are two better defenders in college football right now than Caleb Downs and Avrell Reese. Downs was probably the best defender in college football last season, while Reese had his breakout in the win over Texas in the 2025 season opener.
The Packers had scouts to watch Ohio State versus Texas, so don’t be surprised if they pick a Buckeye in 2026.
#8 Alabama @ #14 Missouri (11 am CT, ABC)
- Alabama
- #13 OL Kadyn Proctor
- #34 ED L.T. Overton
- #61 CB Domani Jackson
- #68 QB Ty Simpson
- #81 OL Parker Brailsford
- #89 WR Germie Bernard
- #95 S Keon Sabb
- #106 LB Deontae Lawson
- #135 DL Tim Kennan III
- #150 OL Jaeden Roberts
- #188 RB Jamarion Miller
- #211 S Bray Hubbard
- #224 CB Cameron Calhoun
- Missouri
- #82 OL Cayden Green
- #109 ED Zion Young
- #146 ED Damon Wilson Jr.
- #178 TE Brett Norfleet
- #234 DL Chris McClellan
A player who is rising up draft boards right now is Alabama quarterback Ty Simpson, who has seemingly taken the next step in his game after looking iffy against the Florida State Seminoles in the season opener. From a Green Bay Packers perspective, keep an eye on center Parker Brailsford, one of just three true centers projected to be top-100 selections in this upcoming class. Brailsford is undersized, but he’s earned team captain status for the Crimson Tide since transferring from Washington.
I also like Alabama running back Jamarion “Jam” Miller, if the Packers want to add another player to the position group this offseason. Missouri tackle Cayden Green, an Oklahoma transfer, is PFF’s fourth-highest graded left tackle this year, too. He missed the last two games with a foot injury, but ESPN’s Pete Thamel is reporting that he will play against the Crimson Tide.
The undefeated Tigers need all hands on deck for their first big test of the season, after starting 2025 with a relatively soft slate of teams in Central Arkansas, Kansas, Louisiana, South Carolina and UMass. Missouri is also coming into this game off a bye, which should help.
#7 Indiana @ #3 Oregon (2:30 pm CT, CBS)
- Indiana
- #3 QB Fernando Mendoza
- #100 S Amare Ferrell
- #123 CB D’angelo Ponds
- #143 WR Elijah Sarratt
- #168 WR Omar Cooper Jr.
- #171 ED Mikail Kamara
- #196 RB Roman Hemby
- Oregon
- #4 QB Dante Moore
- #17 TE Kenyon Sadiq
- #23 ED Matayo Uiagalelei
- #27 OL Isaiah World
- #49 DL A’Mauri Washington
- #50 S Dillon Thieneman
- #102 OL Emmanuel Pregnon
- #125 OL Iapani Laloulu
- #149 DL Bear Alexander
You won’t find a better quarterback matchup this week than Indiana’s Fernando Mendoza versus Oregon’s Dante Moore, two quarterbacks who are currently projected to be top-four selections in the 2026 draft.
The Packers obviously won’t be picking a quarterback that high in April, so some later round prospects to consider are Oregon’s Iapani Laloulu, a true center, and Bear Alexander, a defensive tackle. You could argue that Alexander was the best Ducks defender in their last game, the win over Penn State. Alexander, a USC and Georgia transfer, has flashes of great play and seems to be able to take over games, as long as he’s motivated. Alexander plays alongside 2025 breakout A’Mauri Washington, a freak athlete 330-pounder who might end up being a first-round pick by the time things are all said and done.
Both of these teams are coming into the game off bye weeks.
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Feel free to drop in and share your thoughts on the college football slate in the comment section throughout Saturday.
