College football Week 2 odds: Texas, Ohio State meet again as Michigan looks to bounce back against Oklahoma

After electric endings to Sunday’s ranked battle and Monday’s ACC feature, the elite matchups don’t stop in Week 2.

Without a doubt, the headliner is a matchup of top-five schools as #1 Ohio State visits #5 Texas. After last week’s controversial ending, unranked Michigan hosts #11 Oklahoma. Plus, SEC conference play opens for #12 Alabama as they head to Lexington to face Kentucky.

Who has the inside track to win Saturday’s top showdowns?

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Michigan’s wild and controversial comeback in Week 1 was still disappointing enough that they dropped out of the AP Rankings, but they’re looking to turn it around with a marquee home matchup in the 12 p.m. Eastern window.

The Wolverines are sticking with Bryce Underwood at quarterback despite his 37.1 QBR (103rd in FBS) a week ago. Underwood and Oklahoma’s John Mateer were the signal-callers in last year’s showdown in Norman that Oklahoma won by a score of 24-13.

Flipping things to “The Big House” is a big change, and it’s not the only big change. Oklahoma, a playoff team a year ago, sent seven picks to the NFL Draft in April. We weren’t going to learn much about their adjustment in last week’s 51-0 drubbing of Texas-El Paso.

Mateer dropped back just 17 times last week, leaving a lot to be seen about his ability to shoulder the load against a Michigan D that was strong against the run a year ago (2.9 yards per attempt allowed) and bottled Western Michigan to just 3.3 YPA last week.

With plenty of bulletin board material from a week of many stipulating Michigan should have lost to their interstate MAC rivals, Kyle Whittingham’s bunch might put on a much sharper performance. I just can’t help but doubt Underwood’s ability to deliver accurate passes in clutch moments.

Swami's Crystal Ball Says: Oklahoma 20, Michigan 17

As most top schools are still getting tuned up, we’ve got a competitive, interconference showdown between the SEC and Big Ten on deck in Minneapolis.

Seeking a fifth winning season in six years, P.J. Fleck and the Golden Gophers got off to the start they needed with a 59-7 win over FCS Eastern Illinois. As many schools experience plenty of change in the transfer portal, Minnesota returns both quarterback Drake Lindsey and running back Darius Taylor, who posted 670 rushing yards in just 10 games last year.

Mississippi State is looking to regain its winning ways under Jeff Lebby. He’s posted a 9-16 record in two seasons with the school. Without a doubt, their room for improvement is their defense, which allowed 6.0 yards per play (111th in FBS) in 2025.

Scoring 23.0 PPG last year, it’s not like Minnesota is a juggernaut offensively. But, a healthy Taylor gives them a viable running game in a place that has been kind to them. They’ve won eight in a row at TCF Bank Stadium dating back to the end of 2024.

Swami's Crystal Ball Says: Minnesota 27, Mississippi State 24

After a season-opening loss in 2025, there’s no doubt that Alabama is off to a better start with a 1-0 record this year.

It goes much deeper than that, though. Freshman quarterback Keelon Russell showed off the arm (75.4 QBR) and the legs (86 rushing yards) in a 48-10 win over East Carolina. Ryan Coleman-Williams also put a disastrous campaign behind him with 5 catches for 130 yards.

Their SEC schedule begins in Lexington against Will Stein’s Kentucky Wildcats. Stein is hoping to bring some of his magic elixir from Oregon’s offense last season to the school, and a 45-13 win over Youngstown State was a predictable start.

Russell’s second collegiate start will come on the road in a national television spotlight. That’s not ideal. At the same time, for Kentucky, new transfer quarterback Kenny Minchey wasn’t really tested in an 18-for-27 effort that resulted in 301 yards and 4 touchdowns.

Which passer handles the step-up in competition better? It’s probably the question that decides this one.

Swami's Crystal Ball Says: Alabama 23, Kentucky 13

We save the best for last. There’s a decent chance we’ll be talking about Ohio State and Texas’ latest battle in relation to College Football Playoff seeding come December.

Last year’s 14-7 Ohio State win didn’t really end up affecting anything. The Buckeyes’ fate was sealed with a Big Ten Championship loss to Indiana, and Texas’s 9-3 record left them on the outside looking in.

When surveying last year’s top contributors, it’s Ohio State that was gutted, especially defensively. That’s going to happen when you lose six top-40 picks in the draft. If there’s any program and coaching staff that is equipped to replace them, like with EDGE Kenyatta Jackson Jr. and corner Devin Sanchez, it’s the Buckeyes, but it’s still no small task.

However, most will be quick to note that superstar wide receiver Jeremiah Smith can clear up a lot of issues getting stops. His Heisman Trophy odds are already surging after 151 receiving yards and 2 touchdowns in just a half of action last week.

Texas’ key defensive star, EDGE Collin Simmons, returns, and the team loaded up Arch Manning’s cabinet of weapons with running back Hollywood Smothers from N.C. State and wide receiver Cam Coleman from Auburn. It seems like this is Steve Sarkisian’s most experienced, coherent unit to make a legitimate title run.

The Longhorns have so famously come up small in ranked matchups with Sark at the helm, but they’re slowly relying on their home crowd to get over it. They won consecutive ranked matchups against Vanderbilt and Texas A&M to end 2025. Can the most notable win yet come Saturday?

Swami's Crystal Ball Says: Texas 28, Ohio State 21

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