Top 12 picks and expert predictions for Week 7 of the college football season

Top 12 picks and expert predictions for Week 7 of the college football season
Top 12 picks and expert predictions for Week 7 of the college football season

The 2025 college football season is six weeks into the game and the Big 12 appears to be establishing a four-team upper tier, with Texas Tech emerging as the team to beat. Those programs included Iowa State, Arizona State, BYU and Cincinnati. Utah, Kansas, TCU and Baylor are just below that upper echelon. The Week 7 Big 12 slate features a matchup that could decide who plays Texas Tech in the Big 12 title game.

Every week, our staff meets to pick every Big 12 football game. It’s a challenging task, especially considering the crowded nature of the conference. It remains to be seen if one of the aforementioned teams will pull away and become the team to beat, as is often the case in the Big 12; the title race is still up for grabs.

So how will Week 7 play out in the Big 12? We only have seven games on the schedule, one of the lightest weekends of the conference season. Our Buffaloes Wire staff picked all seven conference games directly.

Here are our expert picks for Week 7. But first, here are our writers’ rankings so far through five weeks.

All games are scheduled for Saturday, October 11, unless otherwise noted, and all times are mountain time.

Ranking so far

Charlie Star: 52-12

Jack Freeman: 48-17

Griffin Dreifaldt: 52-12

10:00 a.m., FS1

Tap: Cincinnati

Cincinnati takes care of business with a dominant win over UCF. The Bearcats continue to prove that they are a legitimate threat in the Big 12 and show no signs of slowing down.

Jacob: Cincinnati

Charlie: Cincinnati

Oklahoma State vs. Houston

10:00 a.m., TNT

Tap: houston

Jacob: houston

Charlie: houston

1:30 p.m., ESPN

We’ll share our Colorado-Iowa State predictions in a separate post, where each staff member will provide a final score prediction and offer some insights. Colorado hopes to bounce back after back-to-back tough losses.

1:30 p.m., Fox

Tap: TCU

Jacob: TCU

TCU looked unstoppable against Colorado, with Josh Hoover holding off the Buffaloes en route to a 35-21 victory, and I see a very similar result this week. Kansas State’s defense couldn’t stop a fly last week against Baylor, and the offense will be without its best player, running back Dylan Edwards, once again. The Wildcats can’t seem to catch a break in 2025 as they show flashes but ultimately fail to live up to their potential. Meanwhile, the Horned Frogs have Big 12 title ambitions and play like it.

Charlie: Kansas State

Kansas State without running back Dylan Edwards will definitely hurt, but the game is in Manhattan, Kansas, which is more important. The Wildcats are starting to turn a corner and I think they will complete that turn this weekend against TCU.

No. 10 Texas Tech vs. Kansas

17:30, Fox

Tap: Texas Tech

Texas Tech beats Kansas on the road. The Red Raiders become the first team to finally contain Jalon Daniels and the powerful Jayhawks offense, leaving Lawrence with an impressive victory.

Jacob: Texas Tech

Charlie: Texas Tech

I like Kansas to cover the two-touchdown spread, but the Red Raiders are a top-10 team for a reason, and I hope they continue to prove that, especially at home.

6:00 p.m., ESPN2

Tap: BYU

Jacob: BYU

Charlie: BYU

Arizona is a much-improved team, but BYU can compete for the Big 12 title, and the Wildcats aren’t at that level yet. I think this game is still close, but the Cougars have enough to pull away late.

8:15 p.m., ESPN

Tap: Arizona State

Arizona State achieves the surprise in Salt Lake City. We saw what happened when Utah faced a real offense at Texas Tech: They struggled mightily. The Sun Devils pick up where the Red Raiders left off, lighting up the scoreboard in a high-scoring Big 12 classic under the lights.

Jacob: Utah

Depending on which versions of these two teams appear, we could be looking at one of the Big 12 Conference’s best games of the season or a replay fest in which both offenses manage to snatch failure from the jaws of success. Arizona State hasn’t had the explosive offense one would expect from Sam Leavitt and Jordyn Tyson, however, they have notched several close wins over quality Big 12 opponents. Utah is a boom or bust team that relies on its quarterback, Devon Dampier, to get things going. As a notable admirer of Dampier’s game, I choose Utah because I think he has found his stride for the Utes.

Charlie: Utah

He could have initially gone with Arizona State on the road, but with Sun Devils quarterback Sam Leavitt listed as doubtful for Saturday night’s game, the picture changes dramatically. Utah has a prolific offense led by Devon Dampier, and Rice-Eccles will be fired up Saturday night. Give me the Utes.

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