MY COLLEGE GAMEDAY PICKS COLUMN TOMORROW LEAKED EARLY

Sports Editor Brad Carroll takes a look at the top college football games of the day

LAST WEEK: 4-3 (spread); 6-1 (overall); 1-0 (upset picks)

THIS SEASON: 14-13-1 (spread); 21-7 (overall); 2-1 (upset picks)

No. 24 TCU at No. 2 Oklahoma; 7 p.m.; FSN

The Skinny: USC’s loss to Oregon State Thursday night opened the door for a wild several weeks of college football play, as the Trojans were thought to be a lock for one of the national title game spots. Now, teams like Oklahoma, Georgia, Florida, LSU and a host of others can play their way in. By the way, why in the world is USC playing during the week? That’s a spot reserved for desperate-for-attention schools like UConn. The Pick: Oklahoma (-18.5) wins it 41-20.

No. 8 Alabama at No. 3 Georgia; 7:45 p.m.; ESPN

The Skinny: First off, how does CBS (the home of the SEC) not have this game on their schedule at 3:30? It’s the biggest game of the season thus far and it’s buried at a start time close to 8 p.m. on a Saturday night. Oh well. The winner of this game takes the biggest step toward that No. 1 spot in the rankings. Yes, even Alabama, who has had a tremendous start to the season. I don’t trust Georgia at all, so this should come down to the end. The Pick: Georgia (-6.5) wins it 27-23.

Mississippi State at No. 5 LSU; 7:30 p.m.; ESPN2

The Skinny: LSU rallied past Auburn on the road last week to remain alive in the BCS hunt. Tonight, the only thing they will have to rally against is a letdown, as this game represents the perfect trap. After the win over Auburn, LSU has games on the horizon against Florida, Georgia and Alabama to look forward to. Mississippi State is 1-3 and should not pose a problem here. No matter what, the Tigers will win the game, but by how much? The Pick: LSU (-25) wins it 49-14.

Arkansas at No. 7 Texas; 3:30 p.m.; ABC

The Skinny: Arkansas – and its quitter coach Bobby Petrino – lost its SEC opener at home to Alabama, 49-14, causing this game to lose its luster. Texas could be the biggest beneficiary of the USC loss, as it had a lot of teams to jump just to get into the BCS title discussion. Now they have just as good a shot as anybody, even with their current No. 7 ranking. Colt McCoy will lead the Longhorns to an easy win today. But giving 27 points is a whole lot. The Pick: Texas (-27) wins it 44-10.

No. 9 Wisconsin at Michigan; 3:30 p.m.; ESPN

The Skinny: Wisconsin opens its Big Ten schedule with games at Michigan and then home to both Ohio State and Penn State. Talk about a daunting start. But, luckily for the Badgers, Michigan is a shell of its former self. The Wolverines are downright awful, hitting a new low with their humiliating, 35-17 loss to Notre Dame. Any other year, I would be 100 percent against Wisconsin here, but Michigan simply has no juice this season. The Pick: Wisconsin (-6) wins it 28-14.

No. 22 Illinois at No. 12 Penn State; 8 p.m.; ABC

The Skinny: We’ve talked a lot about USC’s loss to Oregon State Thursday night and its ramifications, but perhaps the biggest confidence booster from that fallout belongs to Penn State. The Nittany Lions actually defeated Oregon State at home this season, 45-14. The venue wasn’t the same, but Penn State has to be feeling real good about itself right now. The Pick: Penn State (-15.5) wins it 35-21.

Tennessee at No. 15 Auburn; 3:30 p.m.; CBS

The Pick: Auburn (-6.5) wins it 24-13.

Brad’s brother, Craig Carroll, is back to defend his championship from a year ago. He finished with a 3-4 record last week, and is 11-16-1 for the season. Here are his picks for the week: TCU, Georgia, LSU, Texas, Wisconsin, Penn State, Auburn.

(AP photo, top, LSU coach Les Miles celebrates his team's victory over Auburn last Saturday night.)