Sep 24, 2026 · 34 min
Week 4 tests playoff paths across college football
College Football Week 4 Picks: Texas-Tennessee, Michigan-Iowa, Oregon-USC & more
With six ranked matchups and several teams’ playoff hopes at stake, Klatt’s picks turn a crowded schedule into a map of consequences.
- 1Texas–Tennessee and Iowa–Michigan carry outsized playoff implications, with wins potentially clarifying each program’s postseason path.
- 2Klatt weighs team form, matchup dynamics, stakes, and betting lines across Ohio State–Illinois, Oregon–USC, and other major games.
- 3Arch Manning’s performance and the broader Week 4 slate frame a weekend where individual results could reshape the playoff picture.
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Klatt’s discussion of Iowa–Michigan highlights how a single win could create a clearer College Football Playoff path.
The brief
Joel Klatt opens with a broad Week 4 preview, using Arch Manning’s performance and the weekend’s playoff implications to set the stakes for his picks.
The slate includes Ohio State–Illinois, Texas–Tennessee, Iowa–Michigan, Ole Miss–Florida, Oregon–USC, Oklahoma–Georgia, Texas A&M–LSU, and Missouri–Mississippi State.
Klatt treats Texas–Tennessee and Iowa–Michigan as especially consequential, arguing that victories could create a clearer route toward the College Football Playoff.
Across the matchups, he balances team form, specific matchup questions, postseason stakes, and betting lines before recapping his selections.
The standout tension is whether Iowa–Michigan and Texas–Tennessee produce the kind of decisive wins that separate playoff contenders from the crowded field.