Ranked Big Ten Matchups Headline Saturday: USC Hosts Oregon, Michigan Meets Iowa
The short version
- No. 12 USC hosts No. 20 Oregon at the Coliseum; Oregon has won four straight in the series
- No. 17 Iowa visits No. 18 Michigan with both teams undefeated
- First pick: over 61.5 points in USC-Oregon, based on Oregon scoring 31-plus every game and USC's defensive struggles
- Oregon beat Portland State 84-0 the previous week; USC allowed 35 points to Rutgers
- Second pick: Iowa +5.5, with Michigan's inconsistent run game and Iowa's 4-0-1 ATS record vs. ranked teams
No. 12 USC welcomes No. 20 Oregon to the Coliseum, while No. 17 Iowa visits No. 18 Michigan in a pair of ranked conference showdowns.
The college football schedule for Saturday, September 26, 2026, is anchored by a pair of ranked Big Ten matchups. The featured game pits No. 12 USC against No. 20 Oregon at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum, with kickoff set for Saturday in the conference rivalry meeting.
Oregon carries a four-game winning streak in the head-to-head series into the contest. USC, however, has an opportunity to snap that drought while also bolstering its position in the race for the College Football Playoff.
The second ranked showdown of the day takes place in Ann Arbor, where No. 17 Iowa visits No. 18 Michigan. Both the Hawkeyes and the Wolverines enter the game without a loss, meaning one undefeated record will fall at Michigan Stadium.
According to the original TST Best Bets analysis from Yahoo Sports, the styles of the two teams in that game point toward a low-scoring affair. Iowa and Michigan each rely on run-heavy offenses and rank among the stronger defensive units in the country, which could suppress scoring at the Big House.
The first recommended pick in the analysis is the over of 61.5 points in the USC-Oregon game. The rationale centers on Oregon's offensive output: the Ducks eclipsed 31 points in every game this season and rolled to an 84-0 win over Portland State a week earlier, a game that cleared a 71.5-point total on its own.
USC's defense adds to the case for a high-scoring game. The Trojans surrendered 35 points to a struggling Rutgers squad in their previous outing and have been unreliable defensively through the early part of the season. Three of USC's four games have gone over the total, and Oregon enters looking to respond after a difficult loss to Oklahoma State.
The second selection is Iowa getting 5.5 points against Michigan. The analysis notes that Michigan favors the run but has not run the ball efficiently, a shortcoming that left the Wolverines in a narrow, disputed 13-12 win over Western Michigan on September 5, decided on a JJ Buchanan touchdown catch as time expired. Run-game inconsistency also kept UTEP within three points at halftime last week before Michigan pulled away.
That type of struggle may be harder to overcome against Iowa, which is 4-0-1 against the spread over its last five games versus ranked opponents. The projection anticipates a Michigan win by fewer than seven points, leading to the recommendation of Iowa to cover the spread.
Games to watch
