College football picks: Surging SEC club selected for Week 4 motivational play
SportsLine's Josh Nagel provides his top 2025 CFB situational play for Week 4
We lost our top college football situational play last week when the Clemson Tigers (-3) fell 24-21 at Georgia Tech amid two critical turnovers and lack of late-game execution. Now, the Yellow Jackets have a clear path to the ACC title game and a potential playoff berth, while the Tigers have a long road ahead for both.
We might usually consider Georgia Tech as a letdown candidate this week, but unfortunately have little confidence in a lower-tier Temple (+23) club to hold up for all four quarters. The top motivational fade candidate that comes to mind is Texas A&M off its 41-40 upset of Notre Dame, but the Aggies have a bye week before hosting Auburn.
Although it's a thin slate for motivation-based plays, we'll turn our attention to the SEC and give out an angle that might be going under the radar. Here is our motivation-based play or Week 4:
Auburn +7
Auburn quarterback Jackson Arnold left Oklahoma after producing mixed results as the Sooners' signal-caller, and their fanbase didn't seem terribly said to see him go. But Arnold has thrived in his new home, throwing for 501 yards with four TDs and no interceptions while leading the Tigers to a 3-0 start. Oklahoma appears to have one of the top defensive units in the country, but this is a step up in competition, and we believe the Tigers can keep it a one-score game.
