College football predictions: JD PicKell gives picks for biggest Week 3 games

Get ready for more college football predictions for the biggest games of Week 3 of the 2024 season.

There are some big headliners but some absurd lines. Still here at On3, no one will shy away from making picks even with lines that might make you look twice.

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On3’s JD PicKell broke down the biggest games of the weekend and made his predictions Let’s dive in.

Alabama (-15.5) over Wisconsin

PicKell: “This is an interesting game … Luke Fickell kind of said this in his press conference at the start the week. He’s like, listen, like Alabama is the standard in college football. They have been for the last 20 years. If we want to see where we are as a football team, if we want to see how far we’ve come since me and my staff have gotten here, we need to figure out where we stand against the standard. 

“Now I understand Nick Saban is no longer the head coach in Tuscaloosa, but like, if you’re Wisconsin man, cut it loose. Like, if this is that standard, leave nothing up to question as to, you know, how much you were able to cut it loose against Alabama, if that makes sense. Like, if I’m Wisconsin I lay my head on the pillow at night, regardless of the final score, knowing that hey, we emptied the clip.”

Alabama is a huge favorite with the Badgers coming to town. Now, can Wisconsin be competitive? Sure. But as PicKell noted, Wisconsin’s best chance is get the ball downfield, pushing it forward in the passing game to alleviate pressure on the offense line. But even if there’s one mistake on offense, it can avalanche and Alabama can run away with it.

PicKell concluded Wiscnosin will have its opportunities, but the Badgers won’t be able to keep pace with the Crimson Tide. As far as prediction, take Alabama with the points.

South Carolina (+6.5) vs. LSU

PicKell: “You don’t think Shane Beamer is going to find a way to manufacture and kind of utilize some of that juice? South Carolina, now they have a chance, speaking of juice to really, I mean, recapture momentum … Because remember, in 2022 they finished that year with two top 10 wins. They beat Tennessee, they beat Clemson, and we’re all like, Shane Beamer’s that guy. South Carolina could be a force in the SEC but it felt like they were really on this upward climb. Last year happens. They underachieve relative to expectations.

“Now, a lot of people are like, oh, man, is he the right guy with South Carolina? It’s so funny, how fickle momentum is. Well, if you beat LSU … with College GameDay there. A lot of people, I mean I think this is arguably the game of the weekend for a lot of folks. That’d be massive.”

PicKell said this game is going to come down to defense. He noted both teams don’t want to play zone coverage because it’ll allow each offense to get into rhythm. The key matchup is LSU DC Blake Baker and South Carolina QB LaNorris Sellers.

Ultimately, LSU’s defense will step up, feed the ball to Kyren Lacy and get it done. But, South Carolina covers, according to PicKell’s prediction.

Florida (+4.5) over Texas A&M

PicKell: “So Florida, little home dog right now, to me, this is the gut check ball. This is the gut check ball. There’s no way around it. Florida looked just bad against Miami. Call a spade a spade, you got a rebound here, you got to rebound. And in some sense, like this is the game where you can tell everyone to calm the heck down.

“Okay, if we beat Texas A&M at the crib, re-stabilize the momentum a little bit, the conversation around Billy Napier and his job probably dies down a bit as well. (It would) be massive. It would be an absolutely massive chance to kind of also tweak the optics around that Miami game, I think, because, let’s be real here, so far, Miami looks like a College Football Playoff team.”

The way PicKell breaks it down, this could be a make or break game for both teams. Florida has a chance to get back on track following a win over Samford. For Texas A&M, it was a tough loss to Notre Dame to open the season, but a win or loss could be the difference between Mike Elko totally rebuilding or competing a bit in 2024.

But the Florida QB situation is wild. DJ Lagway started in place of an injured Graham Mertz last week and looked fantastic. But A&M is a different animal compared to Samford. PicKell went under the assumption Mertz would go back under center Saturday. 

With Florida, if not now, when? PicKell put the eggs in the Gators’ basket and made his prediction: Florida outright.

Georgia (-24.5) over Kentucky

PicKell: “Georgia is a 24.5 point favorite. Alright, now it’s worth noting here, Georgia teams have not always been very Georgia-like against Kentucky, whatever that means. Like even go back to those national title teams, Kentucky gave Georgia the best game, I believe they had, like in the rain, and Stetson Bennett was the quarterback, and Kentucky is just finding a way to make it close. It was a gross football game. But all I’m saying here, even those Georgia teams that went on to be dominant and hoist the hardware at the end of the season showed themselves having some issues with Kentucky. 

“Now, when Kentucky came to Athens last year, that Georgia team did not struggle with Kentucky. So let that be known, Kentucky is a home dog. They are limping into this one after South Carolina. That’s obviously a massive reason why the number is what the number is. I’m excited to see how Mark Stoops gets his team to respond here.”

Georgia is a huge favorite for a reason. It’s the best team in the country. But a favorite by over three touchdowns? Man that’s brutal.

The Bulldogs also face a familiar QB in Brock Vandagriff, who transferred from UGA to Kentucky this offseason. PicKell has a problem with Kentucky having a chance in this game. He noted Georgia can win in any way possible, whatever game you want to play. If PicKell had to make a prediction with the points, he’s taking Georgia with the points in this one.