Week Seven NATIONAL College Football Previews:
#4 Ohio State-#5 Indiana, #2 Notre Dame-#8 BYU,
#6 Alabama-#14 Tennessee Among Elite Matchups
(DG’s Weekly CFB YouTube Show = Below)
By David Glenn
North Carolina Sports Network
(last updated Oct. 14, 2026)
The 2026 college football campaign continues Tuesday through Saturday with a compelling Week Seven schedule, highlighted by #4 Ohio State’s trip to #5 Indiana and a “battle of the unbeatens” as 6-0 Notre Dame visits 5-0 BYU.
The three most prominent games nationally — each previewed below — include the mighty Buckeyes (5-1) taking on the surging Hoosiers (6-0) in an early game Saturday (noon, FOX), another Southeastern Conference showdown between #6 Alabama (5-1) and #14 Tennessee (5-1) in Knoxville on Saturday afternoon (3:30 p.m., ABC), and #2 Notre Dame and #8 BYU putting their perfect records on the line in a head-to-head clash in prime time on Saturday night (7:30 p.m., ABC).
Meanwhile, six of North Carolina’s seven Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) teams are in action this week, with East Carolina (Thursday) and Appalachian State (Friday) enjoying prime-time television windows during the week, then Duke hosting UNC in Durham on Saturday afternoon and #21 Wake Forest traveling more than 2,300 miles to take on Cal in a late-night Saturday affair.
Here are more details on our “Three To See” selections from this week’s national schedule:
National “Three To See,” Game One
#4 Ohio State (5-1) at #5 Indiana (6-0), Sat., noon (FOX)
As their rankings suggest, these two schools again have produced teams that rank among the very best in college football.
Ohio State and Indiana are both prolific offensively, dominant defensively and absolutely overflowing with confidence, as you might expect from the programs that have claimed the past two national championships — the Buckeyes in 2024 and the Hoosiers last year.
Historically speaking, the word “rivalry” barely applies here, because Ohio State can boast a stunning 31-1-1 record against Indiana on the gridiron since 1989, including a 14-0-1 mark in Bloomington.
However, that one and only loss came in the programs’ most recent meeting, last year’s Big Ten championship game, which matched a 12-0 Buckeyes bunch against a 12-0 Hoosiers squad. OSU understandably was the favorite in that one, too, but IU claimed a hard-fought 13-10 victory, continuing its stunning march under coach Curt Cignetti toward what became the program’s first-ever national championship.
The Buckeyes, who claim nine all-time national titles, ultimately settled last season for a 14-2 campaign, yet another College Football Playoff appearance, and their seventh straight top-10 finish under head coach Ryan Day.
With the exception of its 24-23 loss at Texas last month, Ohio State has absolutely manhandled everything in its way this season.
Indiana has the better record, at 6-0, but the Hoosiers have played one-possession games against both Northwestern and Nebraska, and their offense understandably hasn’t been quite as productive with Heisman Trophy-winning quarterback Fernando Mendoza now in the NFL.
New IU quarterback Josh Hoover, a TCU transfer, has been incredibly efficient, with a 68 percent completion rate, 17 touchdown passes and zero interceptions, but the Hoosiers have relied much more on their running game, where tailback Turbo Richard is averaging more than eight yards per carry and about 100 yards per game.
Ohio State is playing brilliant defense this season, with a yield of only 247 yards per game, but the Buckeyes’ best player and top NFL prospect is junior wide receiver Jeremiah Smith, a three-year starter who may be the top candidate for this year’s Heisman Trophy, an award that typically goes to a quarterback or running back. A 6-foot-4, 222-pounder, Smith leads all Power Four wideouts with 153 receiving yards per game and 11 receiving touchdowns.
Indiana will attempt to counter Ohio State’s offense with the Big Ten’s most productive pash rush and its top scoring defense, at only 12 points per game, although there are serious questions about whether the Hoosiers’ cornerbacks can keep up with Smith, who definitely ranks as the #1 reason the Buckeyes are the slight (three-point) road favorite in this one.
National “Three To See,” Game Two
#6 Alabama (5-1) at #14 Tennessee (5-1), Sat., 3:30 p.m. (ABC)
This rivalry game was known for a long time as simply “The Third Saturday In October,” because for decades that’s when the matchup was played, and indeed this year it has fallen back into that spot on the calendar once again.
As you’d probably guess, Alabama has a significant advantage in this rivalry historically; in the last 19 head-to-head matchups, Alabama has won 17 times.
However, almost all of that recent dominance came under legendary coach Nick Saban, one of the greatest coaches in college football history, and at least for now it’s still not clear that Alabama has a current coaching advantage over Tennessee.
Coach Kalen DeBoer is in just his third year at Alabama, after having short but successful tenures at Fresno State and Washington, although he did take the Tide to an 11-4 campaign and a College Football Playoff appearance last season.
Coach Josh Heupel is in his sixth year at Tennessee, after a short but successful tenure at Central Florida, and he’s averaged exactly nine wins per season so far during his time leading the Volunteers.
These two coaches split their only two head-to-head matchups, played over these past two seasons, with each winning a ranked-versus-ranked contest on his home field.
In this game at Neyland Stadium, the biggest question mark for either team connects directly to the biggest North Carolina-related angle that’s in play.
Whereas Alabama sophomore Keelon Russell has settled in nicely in his first season as the Crimson Tide’s starting quarterback, ranking third in the SEC in total offense, passing yards per game and pass efficiency, Tennessee’s true freshman quarterback Faizon Brandon — from Grimsley High in Greensboro — hasn’t yet established himself as a true dual threat at the college level.
In fact, Huepel benched Brandon in favor of 6-foot-6 sophomore backup George MacIntyre, a pocket passer, during Tennessee’s 24-14 victory two weeks ago over Auburn, after Brandon threw the ball very poorly in the first half.
Brandon also has been battling a shoulder injury, and MacIntyre wasn’t great in the Volunteers’ 24-17 win last week at Arkansas, so the QBs may be considered co-starters until further notice. During practice this week, Brandon reportedly was healthy enough to get far more repetitions than he did a week ago.
Tennessee may have a defense capable of going toe-to-toe with Alabama on Saturday afternoon. Tackle Xavier Gilliam (a Penn State transfer), senior linebacker and team captain Arion Carter, and sophomore cornerback Ty Redmond are among the Volunteers’ many NFL prospects, and there’s a good chance the Crimson Tide will be missing star wideout Ryan Coleman-Williams, who has been battling head and knee injuries.
However, the Vols will need high-level quarterback play and another strong performance from star tailback DeSean Bishop, who’s averaging an SEC-best 6.3 yards per carry and ranks second in the league with 113 rushing yards per game, if they’re going to have a serious chance at springing an upset (as an eight-point underdog) on a very balanced and talented Crimson Tide squad.
National “Three To See,” Game Three
#2 Notre Dame (6-0) at #8 BYU (5-0), Sat., 7:30 p.m. (ABC)
Although most nonconference games on a college football team’s schedule are agreed to years in advance, this game represents a meaningful exception to that rule of thumb.
Notre Dame and BYU didn’t come to terms on this two-game series — this year in Provo, next year in South Bend — until late December of last year, or just 10 months ago.
Earlier in December, remember, the 10-2 Fighting Irish and the 11-2 Cougars both had been left out of the College Football Playoff. Notre Dame’s only losses had been to highly regarded Miami and Texas A&M squads, and BYU’s only defeats — both by wide margins — had come at the hands of Big 12 champion Texas Tech, another team that made the CFP.
For both the Fighting Irish and the Cougars, nondescript nonconference schedules had been among the only negatives on their resumes, and this game is a direct byproduct of and reaction to those very specific circumstances.
Notre Dame has a 7-2 all-time advantage in this rivalry, including four consecutive victories, and BYU will be missing its best offensive player, running back LJ Martin, who is out for at least a month with a lower-body injury.
That will put a lot of pressure on the Cougars’ crafty sophomore quarterback, dual-threat Bear Bachmeier, who is a very impressive 17-2 as the Cougars’ starter, against a Notre Dame defense with a bunch of NFL prospects, including cornerback Leonard Moore, end Boubacar Traore and linebacker Kyngstonn Viliamu-Asa.
The Fighting Irish should expect some tough sledding offensively, too, against a stout BYU defense — giving up only 13 points per game — led by fifth-year tackle Keanu Tanuvasa, senior linebacker Cade Uluave (a Cal transfer), junior safey Faletau Satuala and fifth-year cornerback Evan Johnson.
Notre Dame seems better-equipped to meet the challenge offensively, though, with redshirt sophomore quarterback CJ Carr, freshman running back Jonaz Walton, senior wide receiver Jordan Faison and junior guard Anthonie Knapp leading the way.
Exactly as the schedule-makers here originally intended, the winner of this one will have a high-quality victory over a previously unbeaten opponent, while the loser may take some comfort in the fact that the defeat will come at the hands of a foe with a top-10 national ranking and a still-perfect 2026 record.
NOTE: For the in-state edition of our Week Seven college football preview, including analysis on the highest-profile games, plus schedules and TV/streaming options for all 32 teams (FBS, FCS, Division Two, Division Three) in the Bold North State, please click HERE.
