Joel Klatt reveals Week 2 picks for top college football games

FOX Sports analyst Joel Klatt had trouble containing his excitement for Colorado-Nebraska during his show Thursday. Klatt, after all, is a former Buffaloes quarterback, and the rivalry has even more juice than it did last year now that Nebraska has an exciting quarterback of its own, true freshman Dylan Raiola.

That’s one of four games Klatt predicted Thursday. On3 is breaking down his picks one-by-one.

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Colorado at Nebraska

Klatt’s pick — Colorado 34, Nebraska 31: While Colorado doesn’t have the depth of the sport’s contenders, it has arguably the best quarterback (Shedeur Sanders) and the best non-quarterback (cornerback/wide receiver Travis Hunter). Klatt believes in those superstars, and he thinks they will put the Buffs over the top in Lincoln. That said, Klatt acknowledges that if Nebraska wins this game, it could very well cruise to a 7-0 start. In that scenario, the Cornhuskers would enter Ohio Stadium undefeated and almost certainly ranked for an entertaining showdown with Ohio State.

“With Shedeur on the field and Travis on the field, I just cannot in good conscience say that those two elite players — maybe the best quarterback in the game and the best non-quarterback in the game — are going to get beat by 7.5 in a game that they are clearly going to be circling all offseason,” Klatt said. “I like Colorado in an outright win.”

Boise State at No. 7 Oregon

Klatt’s pick — Oregon 42, Boise State 17: Now-No. 7 Oregon escaped Week 1 with a 24-14 win against FCS Idaho. The Ducks’ offensive line was shaky despite returning three starters up front. That group gave up three sacks after Oregon allowed five sacks all last season. Plus, the Ducks rushed for only 107 yards, averaging 2.9 yards per carry. Head coach Dan Lanning’s group has to get back on track Saturday versus Boise State. The Broncos are 3-0 all-time against Oregon, and running back Ashton Jeanty is coming off a school-record-breaking, six-touchdown performance against Georgia Southern.

“Here is where I’m going to pound the table and say, ‘I believe in Dan Lanning,'” Klatt said. “You know what those practices must have been like in Eugene, Oregon? You know what that film session must have been like in Eugene, Oregon? … “They’re favored by 18.5. Guess what? I think Oregon comes out, and they’re highly motivated. They were just treated like losers for the entire week. I think that they play exceptional football on Saturday. And I actually think that they run Boise out of here.”

No. 14 Tennessee at No. 24 NC State

Klatt’s pick — Tennessee 45, NC State 21: No. 14 Tennessee and No. 24 North Carolina State are both AP-ranked teams. Except, the Volunteers and Wolfpack had very different season openers. On one hand, Tennessee rolled past its FCS opponent, Chattanooga, 69-3. The Vols piled up a whopping 718 total yards of offense, led by quarterback Nico Iamaleava, who hit on 22-of-28 attempts for 314 yards and a trio of touchdowns. On the other hand, NC State allowed 21 points to its FCS foe, Western Carolina, before turning a 21-17 deficit into a 38-21 victory in the fourth quarter. The Wolfpack hardly looked like the ACC contender they were considered in the preseason. Klatt took note.

“If one half, [Iamaleava] looked like the real deal,” Klatt said. “If he’s that type of guy, they will revert back to 2022 Tennessee, and then all of a sudden they’re a contender. Meanwhile, NC State struggled mightily. They were trailing entering the fourth quarter against FCS Western Carolina. I mean, I don’t love it. I don’t love their matchup. And I really, really like Tennessee.”

Iowa State at No. 21 Iowa

Klatt’s pick — Iowa 14, Iowa State 10: After serving a one-game suspension, Iowa head coach Kirk Ferentz is back just in time for the Cy-Hawk game. Iowa State’s making the trip from Ames to Iowa City, and the No. 21 Hawkeyes are looking to build on their second-half outburst against FCS Illinois State last weekend. Time will tell how explosive the Tim Lester offense can really be — remember, Iowa had only six points at halftime in Week 1 but ended with a 40-0 shutout. The Cyclones took care of FCS North Dakota in its season opener, 21-3. Klatt thinks both Iowa and Iowa State will have a hard time stacking points against each other in Week 2.

“I just think it’s going to be a lower-scoring game,” Klatt said. “I like Iowa State [and] their quarterback Rocco Becht. He was the Big 12 Offensive Freshman of the Year last year. … Iowa State’s got some good talent. I like Iowa’s team. I like their defense. Iowa’s defense is just like — they’re so good at what they do. Phil Parker, the defensive coordinator, he’s not going to let teams get loose. … Kirk Ferentz doesn’t lose these games. Iowa is at home. They’re favored by 2.5. I like Matt Campbell and Iowa State in the Big 12, I don’t love them in this game.”