After a seven-game stretch, the No. 19 USC Trojans will be among four Big Ten teams that will have a bye in week 7, and the timing couldn’t have been righter. The team is coming off a big 31-23 road win in Happy Valley against Penn State.
Following their loss to Oregon in week 4, the Trojans fell from the top 15 teams in the AP Poll down as far as 19. And even with the win against the Nittany Lions, the Trojans remained at 19 in the rankings.
This weekend’s game outcomes, however, can greatly impact the Trojans despite them not playing. Here’s a look at five games and possible outcomes that can move the Trojans up.
Florida Upsetting No. 7 Texas
Texas and coach Steve Sarkisian are 1-1 against Florida as members of the SEC. The Longhorns are coming off a sloppy loss to rivals Oklahoma in the Red River Rivalry, where quarterback Arch Manning and his team looked anything but the number one team in the nation. While he enjoyed two big touchdown passes, his turnovers were costly to the Horns.
Florida, meanwhile, are desperate to find a win after dropping two straight games. The hype that began after upsetting No. 4 Ole Miss quickly turned into doubt. The Gators also suffered a blow with the injury of starting quarterback Aaron Philo. Backup Tramell Jones is expected to start on Saturday, but a final decision will be made before kickoff, according to On3’s Pete Nakos.
Should the Gators find a way to pull the upset in Austin, the Longhorns will likely fall below the top 15 teams with two losses to unraked teams.
Wisconsin Upsetting No. 12 UCLA
In another injury plagued scenario, the Bruins won’t have starting quarterback Nico Iamaleava for the rest of season after an injury sustained in their win against Oregon. Ty Dieffenbach, who went in for Iamaleava after his struggles, will take over against the Badgers.
This game is extra important to the Trojans as these are two opponents who are left on their schedule.
Wisconsin has slowly been climbing back up on their feet after their season opening loss to No. 2 Notre Dame. Since then, coach Luke Fickell and his team have enjoyed a four-game winning streak, including a big road win against Penn State. If the Badgers can get to Dieffenbach and halt the Bruins powerful rushing attack, they can manage to scrape by a big upset.
No. 6 Alabama Defeats No. 14 Tennessee
Tennessee has managed to bounce back with two-straight wins after a close loss to Texas. In comes the third Saturday in October against the always tough Alabama side. The Crimson Tide lost a close one against No. 1 Georgia a week ago but showcased their talents. An Alabama win could see Tennessee tumble down with two losses, making the way for USC to rise in the rankings.
No. 22 LSU Defeats No. 16 Mississippi State
Yet another quarterback injury plagued game. Mississippi State quarterback Kamario Taylor was downgraded to doubtful ahead of Saturday’s matchup with the Tigers. This will likely give an impact to coach Lane Kiffin and his team who are looking to bounce back from an overtime loss to No. 15 Kentucky. With the Bulldogs loss, they will likely fall out of the rankings.
No. 9 Ole Miss Defeats No. 13 Missouri
Ole Miss bounced back with a big win over a struggling Vanderbilt team. That’s exactly what they needed after major a slip up in Gainesville against the Gators. If the Rebels can dominate the Tigers on Saturday, Missouri will likely slip out of the top 20. Don’t count the Tigers out though, they’ve had a few surprises this year already.
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