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Legendary former New England Patriots head coach Bill Belichick’s second year at the University of North Carolina is showing signs of improvement.
His 4-3 Tar Heels were at home on Saturday night to play the unbeaten and #1-ranked Miami Hurricanes. Miami was an overwhelming 14-point road favorite.
The Hurricanes were fortunate to escape Chapel Hill with a 38-35 victory on Saturday night. Miami apparently forgot to pack their defense for the trip to Carolina.
North Carolina only had to punt once in this high-scoring back-and-forth game. Tar Heels quarterback Billy Edwards, Jr. tossed four touchdown passes and 341 yards to keep Carolina within one touchdown for much of this game.
Miami improved to 8-0 and will travel to South Bend, Indiana for this Saturday night’s showdown with 7-1 Notre Dame. Bill Belichick’s North Carolina Tar Heels dropped to 4-4.
Utah Utes rise to #2 under their rookie head coach
Long-time Utah head football coach Kyle Whittingham told his former employer that he was retiring following the 2025 season. The legendary coach took the Utes to 17 post-season appearances during his 21 years at the Salt Lake City university.
The 66-year old former NFL linebacker surprised the college football world in December, 2025 by signing a 5-year contract to coach the Michigan Wolverines.
Utah quickly tapped long-time defensive coordinator Morgan Scalley to take the head coaching position. Scalley played defensive back for the Utes 20 years ago.
His very unusual coaching resume shows professional experience at only one school – his alma mater.
Morgan Scalley began working at Utah as a graduate assistant. He continued to move up the ladder under Coach Whittingham.
The 47-year old Scalley was the team’s defensive coordinator for the past ten seasons.
Utah’s defense is quite stingy again in 2026 under their rookie head coach. The Utes rank #15 out of 138 FBS teams by allowing just under 16 points per game.
Utah is 8-0 heading into Saturday morning’s 11AM CST kick-off on ABC against Big 12 and long-time rival 7-1 Brigham Young. The so-called “Holy War” game between the state of Utah’s two largest universities began in 1896.
A win by the visiting BYU Cougars could send the Big 12 title race into a three-way tie for first place (along with Texas Tech) as each team would have one conference loss.
Time to say good-bye to the annual Alabama vs. LSU football game
The SEC’s growth into a 16-team conference has caused a number of changes with traditional rivalry games.
LSU and Alabama have played football against each other in consecutive years since 1964. Bama leads the all-time series with LSU with a 58-27-5 record. The Crimson Tide has won three games in a row.
Recent Southeastern Conference scheduling changes will pair these two long-time rivals only once every four years beginning next season.
That is only one aspect which makes this Saturday afternoon’s 2:30PM game (ABC) in Baton Rouge so intriguing.
Both teams enter the game at 6-2. The loser is likely eliminated from the College Football Playoffs in December due to the large number of two-loss teams still available.
Coach Lane Kiffin’s Tigers have been on a roll recently. LSU obliterated Auburn 38-17 on the Plains a little more than a week ago. The Tigers shut-out Mississippi State 31-0 the week prior to that.
LSU’s offense (#7 nationally) and defense (ranked #16 nationally) are peaking at the right time.
Alabama Coach Kalen DeBoer’s detractors want nothing less than for his Crimson Tide football team to walk into Tiger Stadium and quickly K-O LSU on Saturday.
Good luck with that, Bama fan!
Sunshine and 75 degrees in Baton Rouge plus several hours of pregame tailgating should have 102,000 LSU fans very much primed for Saturday’s kick-off.
Indiana vs. Minnesota – What were the chances of seeing two 60-yard field goals in the final minute of a college football game?
The Minnesota Golden Gophers trotted out their field goal kicker to try a 60-yarder with about 25 seconds left in the final quarter against defending national champion Indiana. It cleared the uprights as the Gophers jumped with excitement in taking a 16-13 lead with just 19 seconds to go on Indiana’s home field.
IU then quickly completed a long pass to reach the mid-field area with almost no time left on the clock. Seldom-used senior placekicker Paddy McAteer (yes, he is from Ireland) came onto the field and blasted a game-tying 60-yard field goal of his own to send the game into overtime at 16-16.
Indiana scored a touchdown on the first play of overtime. Minnesota then failed to convert on fourth and goal during its overtime possession. Indiana (now 8-1) prevailed 23-16.
It was one of the most improbable finishes I have ever seen.
Afterwards, Indiana coach Curt Cignetti cracked a rare smile and said, “This is entertainment, so I thought we’d bring some entertainment to this game!”
Get your TV remote ready for big college football games this weekend!
How about this line-up of early November key games on Friday and Saturday? Check your batteries in your TV remote!
Friday night warm-ups for Saturday’s all-day event include:
6:00 PM CST
6-2 Virginia Tech at 6-2 SMU (ESPN) – Let’s find out whether the Hokies or the Mustangs are for real!
7:00 PM
5-3 Nebraska at 5-3 Illinois (FOX) – Can the Huskers win a big road game?
8:00 PM
7-1 New Mexico at 3-5 Nevada (CBS Sports Network) – Just because I haven’t seen New Mexico play this year!
9:15 PM
4-4 TCU at 6-2 Arizona (ESPN) – TCU coach Sonny Dyke’s job is on the line. Arizona must win to have any playoff chances.
Saturday’s impressive line-up of games with meaningful playoff implications include:
11AM CST
7-1 BYU at 8-0 Utah (ABC) – Get ready for battle in the “Holy War” game!
8-0 UCLA at 5-3 Minnesota (FOX) – Will Minnesota bounce back after a tough loss at Indiana?
6-2 Texas at 6-2 Missouri (ESPN) – The loser can forget about the playoffs.
2:30 PM
6-2 Alabama at 6-2 LSU (ABC) – The team which makes the fewest mistakes wins this game.
5-3 Cincinnati at 6-2 Houston (FOX) – Cougars must win and run the table to make the playoffs.
5:15 PM
7-1 Kentucky at 6-2 Tennessee (ESPN) – It will be VERY loud Saturday at good ol’ Rocky Top!
6:30 PM
8-0 Miami (FL) at 7-1 Notre Dame (NBC) – Is Notre Dame for real or just media hype?
7-1 Georgia at 6-2 Ole Miss (ABC) – Will the Ole Miss defense rise to the occasion?
6-2 Iowa at 6-2 Northwestern (FOX) – The loser in this game has no playoff chances.
6-2 Air Force at 5-3 Army (CBS) – This is a treat for families with ties to either of these military branches.
8:30 PM
5-3 West Virginia at 7-1 Texas Tech (ESPN) – Watch out, Red Raiders! Those Mountaineers have been sneaky good in a few games.
Now, it’s time to unveil the SwampSwamiSports.com College Football Top 25 teams for the week ending Saturday, October 31, 2026:
