Week 6 is headlined by a few big-time showdowns, including a potential SEC Championship Game preview. Alabama and Georgia will meet in Tuscaloosa, while the Red River Rivalry will write another chapter as Texas and Oklahoma face off in Dallas. Through the first five weeks of the season, Georgia and Alabama have looked a cut above the rest of the conference, except for Texas.
The Bulldogs have mauled a relatively soft schedule, and the Crimson Tide have been putting up huge numbers against middling defenses. On Saturday, the debates will end, and we'll determine which team is better on the field. In the Cotton Bowl, Oklahoma will be looking for revenge against Texas after losing two straight games in the rivalry series.
The question is whether the Sooners have enough offense to do that. John Mateer has struggled mightily at quarterback, and Oklahoma has an open date to make some corrections. Brent Venables' defense will have to keep the team in the game against Arch Manning, who is off to an uneven start for the second straight season.
This week also brings key showdowns in the Big Ten as undefeated Indiana visits undefeated Nebraska, and UCLA gets its first major test of the Bob Chesney era against Oregon. Week 6 lines are out, so let's take a look at how the oddsmakers view these matchups. Indiana (-9.5) at Nebraska: Don't look now, but Anthony Colandrea and the Cornhuskers are undefeated in October.
Matt Rhule is still looking for the first top-25 win of his Nebraska tenure. Could this be the moment he finally comes through against top competition? Indiana is a comfortable road favorite, and for good reason, but this will be far and away the Hoosiers' toughest test to this point in the season.
Oklahoma: These two border rivals will meet in the Cotton Bowl on Saturday, and Vegas clearly views Texas as the better team on a neutral field. That's not a surprise given how much Oklahoma has struggled on offense. Coming out of an open date, it'll be interesting to see what changes the Sooners have made on that side of the ball.
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