College Football Playoff race 2025: Georgia vs. Ole Miss, Alabama vs. Tennessee take center stage in Week 8

Though rivalry weekend is often reserved for the final week of the regular season, we're getting an enticing preview in Week 8 as some of college football's most notable foes are set to face off against one another. It's one reason to be excited about a loaded slate of games. 

The other reason is the fact that five ranked teams will play against one another on Saturday alone. Considering that three of those ranked matchups are between the aforementioned rivals and this has the makings of a legendary weekend for college football. 

It's also a huge day for the SEC. No. 11 Tennessee's trip to No. 6 Alabama for the latest installment of the "Third Saturday in October" is the highlight. It's also one of three top-25 games between SEC opponents. 

There's plenty to pay attention to outside of the south, as well. Here's a look at the Week 8 games that matter in the playoff race, and what it means for both teams involved. 

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No. 10 LSU at No. 17 Vanderbilt 

LSU touts a lofty ranking but the Tigers haven't looked entirely convincing thus far. The defense is a lot better in its second year under coordinator Blake Baker. Surprisingly, the offense has held this team back thus far. Quarterback Garrett Nussmeier has far underperformed when considering the expectations for him entering the year. It's also clear that he's banged up after taking a lot of hits behind a poor offensive line. LSU's already got one loss. Another will completely eliminate its margin for error for the rest of the season, which is bad news when it still has No. 4 Texas A&M and No. 6 Alabama on the schedule. 

Vanderbilt is no slouch. In fact, this is shaping up to be one of the biggest seasons in university history -- certainly of the past century. The Commodores are favored against LSU for the first time since 1948. This also snaps a 176-game streak as a betting underdog against ranked opponents. That being said, Vanderbilt is still searching for a truly marquee win to boost its record. A top-10 SEC program would do that. 

No. 5 Ole Miss at No. 9 Georgia 

It seems like Lane Kiffin is good for one inexplicable loss per year, so Ole Miss fans probably breathed a heavy sigh of relief when the Rebels escaped Week 7 with a 24-21 win against Washington State. It's better to look back at an uninspiring victory than dwell on a defeat. They're going to have to play a lot better as they travel to Athens. The Bulldogs are one of just two currently ranked opponents remaining on Ole Miss' schedule. Being undefeated at this point means that a win isn't entirely necessary, but if Ole Miss is able to come out on top, it would be hard to see the Rebels missing the playoff -- barring some late-season meltdown. 

The story of Georgia's season, thus far, has been slow starts. The Bulldogs fell behind 21-7 against Tennessee earlier in the year before roaring back for a win. In Week 7, Auburn jumped out to a 10-0 lead, but Georgia was able to rally with 20 unanswered points to avoid a potentially disastrous upset. Georgia can't start slow against an explosive Ole Miss team. The Rebels can put enough points on the board that it may be hard to dig out of a potential hole. 

No. 11 Tennessee at No. 6 Alabama 

Tennessee is 2-1 against Alabama in the past three years. That one loss came on the road. The Vols haven't won in Tuscaloosa since 2003. On top of that, Josh Heupel's Tennessee teams tend to struggle in big road environments. Since 2022, the Vols are 5-7 in SEC away games. They also lost 42-17 on the road against Ohio State in the first round of the College Football Playoff last season. At some point, Tennessee has to log a truly signature road win if it wants to take that next step under Heupel. 

Alabama, on the other hand, currently has a 15-game home win streak, which is tied with Boise State for first among FBS programs. The Crimson Tide are a legitimate juggernaut in their second year under coach Kalen DeBoer. That season-opening loss against Florida State seems like years in the past, as they've dispatched three straight ranked opponents over the last three weeks, including Georgia. Alabama already has such an impressive record that a loss to Tennessee may not even drop it out of the top 10. 

No. 20 USC at No. 13 Notre Dame 

USC has flown under the radar a bit this year despite this being its second appearance in the AP Top 25 poll. The Trojans made their return with a dominant 31-13 win against Michigan. It was an impressive performance for coach Lincoln Riley's team who, in spite of leaning on a walk-on running back for a majority of the game, outgained Michigan 224 yards to 109 on the ground. The victory also vaulted USC back into fringe playoff status. It obviously still has work to do to become a true contender. 

Notre Dame has been on cruise control since it started the season 0-2. The caveat is that Notre Dame currently has the No. 28 strength of record, per ESPN's FPI metric, which is well outside of the range of expected playoff teams. As of right now, this is the Irish's last opportunity to get a quality win. They don't have another currently ranked opponent on their schedule and their top remaining opponent may just be a Group of Six program in Navy. 

No. 23 Utah at No. 15 BYU 

Utah isn't out of the conversation just yet. The Utes earned a much-needed statement win last week by beating preseason Big 12 favorite Arizona State 42-10. This writer doesn't personally put much stock into "quality losses" -- a patently absurd concept -- but Utah's lone setback against No. 7 Texas Tech isn't detrimental by any means. The Red Raiders are simply a buzzsaw. The path is still wide open for Utah to make it to the Big 12 Championship Game and beyond, but beating BYU is a necessity. 

BYU controls its own destiny. The Cougars remain undefeated and they're one of three Big 12 schools with a 3-0 mark in conference play. They survived a road scare against a solid Arizona team last week. This is their biggest test yet, though. Utah is the first AP-ranked team that BYU has faced all season. The Big 12 is very top-heavy this season. Every win and loss makes a major difference in the scramble for league supremacy. 

Dark Horse Game of the Week 

No. 12 Georgia Tech at Duke

This could also read as trap game of the week for Georgia Tech. It's not going to be easy to go on the road and win at Duke, especially since the Yellow Jackets haven't looked entirely convincing in conference play thus far. Given the ACC's lack of depth this year, any loss in that conference looks bad on a team's resume. 

Duke had a rough go of it in non-conference play, though a home loss to Illinois and a road loss to one of the Group of Six's best in Tulane aren't the worst blots on a record. The Blue Devils have been great since. They're 3-0 in ACC play with an average margin of victory of 23.7 points. Georgia Tech is, obviously, a step up in the level of competition, but a win here would put Duke in the driver's seat for one of two ACC Championship Game spots. From there, the playoff is possible.