Ranking the 10 best college football games of week four: From NC State-Clemson to Tennessee-Oklahoma

College Football Conference games are (mostly) underway, and the stakes are raised accordingly. The sport dips its toes this weekend with ranked games in the Big Ten, Big 12 and SEC, featuring the College Football Playoff favorites and a few remaining question marks.

Let's rank the top 10 games of week four, starting with some honorable mentions and then counting down.

Honorable Mention: JMU at North Carolina, Rutgers at Virginia Tech, Memphis at Navy, TCU at SMU, Iowa at Minnesota

(All point spreads are from BetMGM; click here for live odds. All kickoff times are Eastern Time and Saturday unless otherwise noted.)

10. San Jose State (3-0) at Washington State (3-0), Friday, 10 p.m., The CW

What a win for Wazzu last week. They beat Washington in a new, strange version of the Apple Cup rivalry, secured by a dramatic goal-line defense by the Cougars. Quarterback John Mateer is a dual-threat firecracker, head coach Jake Dickert brought a victory cigar to the postgame press conference and Washington State is one of the first feel-good teams. Now the Cougars have a revenge game of a different kind against San Jose State, which might feel scorned by WSU for helping the Pac-12 poach the Mountain West. The Spartans haven't played anyone as good as Wazzu, but former Navy coach Ken Niumatalolo has abandoned the triple option and SJSU is off to an undefeated start, including a road win against Air Force.

Line: Washington State -11.5

Tough start for NC State. After losing 51-10 to Tennessee, the Wolfpack also lost starting quarterback Grayson McCall to injury in a 30-20 win over Louisiana Tech. True freshman backup CJ Bailey will start against Clemson and led the comeback against Louisiana Tech, but NC State didn't look at all like a team deserving of its preseason Top 25 ranking. This will be an interesting test for Clemson as well, after they came back from a pause in play following the loss to Georgia and win against App State. Are the Tigers still a real threat in the race for the ACC and the playoffs? The margin in this game suggests so. Either way, Saturday's result should get us a little closer to those answers.

Line: Clemson-20.5

Clemson QB Cade Klubnik threw for a career-high 378 yards against App State, with a 92.3 percent completion rate. (Alex Hicks Jr. / USA Today Sports via Imagn Images)

8. Arkansas (2-1) at Auburn (2-1), 3:30 p.m., ESPN

It's hard to put it into words, but this game just feels like college football in the fall, with the leaves changing. The game is now on ESPN instead of CBS, neither team is expected to compete for the SEC title or the CFP, Arkansas' Sam Pittman is on the hot seat – but this matchup has an indescribable nostalgia effect. It should be an interesting quarterback battle between Arkansas' Taylen Green and Auburn's redshirt freshman Hank Brown, who threw four touchdowns in his first game against New Mexico last week. Both teams have a tough schedule ahead of them and could really use a win to keep fans from getting restless.

Line: Auburn-3

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And what about Kenny Dillingham and the Sun Devils? The second-year head coach has led ASU — which finished last in the Big 12 preseason poll — to an undefeated start with three solid wins, including a cracker over Texas State last Thursday. Quarterback Sam Leavitt has put up a valiant fight, running back Cam Skattebo is a wrecking ball and Dillingham's commitment to recruiting players from Texas is already paying off. Whether ASU can make a splash in the race for the Big 12 remains to be seen, but it could start against an enigmatic Texas Tech team that escaped in overtime against Abilene Christian, got beat by Wazzu and then scored 66 against North Texas.

Line: Texas Tech-3

6. Georgia Tech (3-1) at No. 19 Louisville (2-0), 3:30 p.m., ESPN2

Georgia Tech followed up its narrow loss to Syracuse with a thrashing of VMI, and with a brief stay in the top 25, it's clear the Yellow Jackets are better than most expected this season. But Louisville is the team I'm more curious about. The Cardinals almost automatically climbed into the top 20 thanks to their easy wins over Austin Peay and Jacksonville State. Transfer quarterback Tyler Shough has impressed against weaker competition, but with a road game at Notre Dame next week, this game should give a much better idea of ​​how strong Louisville can be as an ACC and playoff contender this season.

Line: Louisville -10.5

5. No. 8 Miami (3-0) at South Florida (2-1), 7 p.m., ESPN

Mario Cristobal's third-year warpath makes an interesting stop in Tampa. Quarterback Cam Ward has played spectacularly for the Hurricanes, ranking second in the FBS in passing yards, first in passing touchdowns, third in yards per attempt and fourth in QB rating, putting Miami in the top 10. But now it has to face a USF team that has given Alabama problems for 3 1/2 quarters. Bulls quarterback Byrum Brown ran the ball effectively but had trouble in the air, and USF's defense collapsed against the Tide late, allowing 21 points in the final six minutes. A decisive road win in prime time on ESPN would put the hype train into overdrive for Miami.

Line: Miami-16.5

Cam Ward transferred from Washington State to Miami in the offseason and leads the Hurricanes to their CFP hopes. (Sam Navarro / Imagn Images)

4. No. 24 Illinois (3-0) at No. 22 Nebraska (3-0), Friday 8 p.m., Fox

The Big Ten matchup you didn't know you needed in your life. Nebraska quarterback Dylan Raiola and his Patrick Mahomes cosplay will be in the spotlight again Friday night against the undefeated Illini. Raiola was impressive for a true freshman with high expectations and a fan base desperate to get back to playing winning football. The Cornhuskers haven't been to a bowl game in seven seasons, haven't beaten a ranked team since 2016 and haven't done so at home since 2011. Enter an Illinois team that is second in the FBS with an 8-plus turnover differential. The Illini haven't been elite in other areas so far, but are strong enough to keep optimism in Lincoln at a high.

Line: Nebraska-8.5

3. No. 11 USC (2-0) at No. 18 Michigan (2-1), 3:30 p.m., CBS

It's Alex Orji time for Michigan. The speedy junior takes over at quarterback for Davis Warren, who threw six interceptions in three games at the helm of a dismal offense. Can Orji bring enough momentum to turn things around? The Wolverines are underdogs at home for the second time in three weeks. They were thrashed by Texas in Week 2 and now face USC, which spent a week without a player. The Trojans are on the rise The athlete's playoff projector after the Week 1 win over LSU and with what appears to be a much improved defense under new coordinator D'Anton Lynn. A road win against Michigan would further boost those CFP hopes, especially given the favorable schedule for the rest of the game: no Ohio State, no Oregon, and Penn State, Nebraska and Notre Dame all at home.

Line: USC-6

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2. No. 12 Utah (3-0) at No. 14 Oklahoma State (3-0), 4:00 p.m., Fox

Utah quarterback Cam Rising is expected to play after suffering a throwing hand injury in a Week 2 win over Baylor. The Utes were expectedly strong on defense and remain the top-ranked team in the Big 12, but travel to the Thunderdome of Stillwater. The Pokes have been a bit of an enigma. Doak Walker-winning running back Ollie Gordon II has been mostly held in check, averaging just 3.5 yards per carry, but seventh-year quarterback Alan Bowman has picked that up. Bowman is sixth in the FBS in passing yards, along with eight touchdowns and two interceptions. This is a crucial stretch for Oklahoma State, which travels to Kansas State next week still without star linebacker Collin Oliver. With Utah heading to Arizona next week, we should have a better look at the top of the Big 12 by the end of the month.

Line: Utah-2.5

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1. No. 6 Tennessee (3-0) at No. 15 Oklahoma (3-0), 7:30 p.m., ABC

The big story is Tennessee head coach Josh Heupel's return to Oklahoma, where he led the team to a national championship as quarterback and was later fired as offensive coordinator. Joe Rexrode wrote a great look back at how the reunion played out for everyone involved (and paid off for Tennessee!), and what's at stake in a game Joe calls “an early College Football Playoff clearinghouse.” The Vols are a slam dunk, leading the FBS with 63.7 points per game. Quarterback Nico Iamaleava's 10.4 yards per attempt ranks eighth among all quarterbacks, and the offense is averaging 8.1 yards per game. The Sooners are on the other end of the scale, averaging just 4.9 yards per game under quarterback Jackson Arnold, who is averaging 5.6 yards per attempt and is still trying to find his rhythm. (The return of wide receivers Nic Anderson and Andrel Anthony from injuries could help here.) Brent Venables' defense has been solid, but Tennessee is allowing 3.1 yards per play and 4.3 points per game, both in the top three in the FBS. ESPN's “College GameDay” goes to Norman to see if the Sooners can slow Tennessee down in the first SEC showdown against Oklahoma.

Line: Tennessee-7

(Top photo of Jackson Arnold: Aaron M. Sprecher / Getty Images)