College football Week 2 picks, predictions by computer model

Locking in our game predictions as the Week 2 college football schedule kicks off with the aid of the Football Power Index computer analytic models

What a difference a week makes. Going into the opener, all the experts thought that Colorado would lose and Clemson would win, and now after the opposite happened, it's time to take a new look at what the college football landscape looks like as we move into making our Week 2 picks and predictions.

Polls: AP | Coaches | ESPN

What can we expect from the Week 2 slate of games? This week, we turn to FPI to guide us in making our own predictions for the biggest matchups.

Football Power Index (FPI) college football rankings and computer prediction model are a measure of team strength that predicts a team’s future performance.

Devised by ESPN analysts, its rankings and scores predictions are based on 20,000 simulations of a team’s season, using a combination of analytics, including scores to date, quality of opponents, and a team’s schedule.

College football Week 2 picks, predictions by computer model

Week 2 college football picks / USA Today Images

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Early Saturday college football picks

Vanderbilt at Wake Forest pick: These quarterbacks combined for over 750 yards last week, but Wake is the computer's preference by a wide 75.9 percent margin against the visitors from the SEC.

Ball State at Georgia pick: No surprises here as the Bulldogs are strong 98.7 percent favorites over the Cardinals, and 42 point favorites at home, too.

Youngstown State at Ohio State pick: Kyle McCord gets the nod again at QB hoping he can bring some more life to this offense, as the Buckeyes are favored by 99 percent against the Penguins.

Delaware at Penn State pick: Fresh off the big win over the Mountaineers, Drew Allar and the Nittany Lions are 98.9 percent favorites against the Blue Hens this week.

Notre Dame at NC State pick: Sam Hartman leads a potent Irish offense into a matchup against Brennan Armstrong and a new-look Wolfpack attack, as the index sides with ND with a 78.5 percent chance to win.

Utah at Baylor pick: We'll see if Cam Rising steps in under center, but whoever does play quarterback, the Utes have the 73.6 percent edge against a Baylor team that lost at home to Texas State last week.

Nebraska at Colorado pick: The index prefers the Cornhuskers to beat Prime in his home opener by a narrow 58.6 percent margin despite the Buffs pulling off that upset a week ago.

Purdue at Virginia Tech pick: After losing at home to Fresno State in the opener, the Boilermakers are 'dogs going against Tech, which has the 55.8 percent edge at home.

Afternoon college football picks

Week 2 college football picks / USA Today Images

UNLV at Michigan pick: As expected, the Wolverines are the obvious selection here, with the 98.5 percent chance to take down the Rebels sans Jim Harbaugh on the field.

Ole Miss at Tulane pick: An intriguing road trip for the SEC hopefuls against the Cotton Bowl champs, but the index likes the Rebels by a wide 77.3 percent margin.

Texas A&M at Miami pick: Oddsmakers like the Aggies in a close one, but the computers are going with the Hurricanes, who have the 53.2 percent chance to win, compared with A&M at 46.8 percent.

Iowa at Iowa State pick: Cade McNamara has already given the Hawkeye offense a boost, but the index is predicting the Cyclones to win with 57.4 percent likelihood, compared with visiting Iowa at 42.6 percent in the Cy-Hawk game.

Tulsa at Washington pick: After pasting a good Boise State team in the opener, the Huskies are favored by 94.8 percent to take down Tulsa at home.

App State at North Carolina pick: This was a 63-61 win for the Heels a year ago, but this time around Carolina has the more convincing 91.5 percent chance to win.

SMU at Oklahoma pick: OU has an 89.9 percent shot to take down the Mustangs, who want to make a good impression as they head to the ACC next year.

Primetime college football picks

Week 2 college football game predictions / USA Today Images

Texas at Alabama pick: This was a 1-point game in Austin a year ago, but this time the Tide has the home field edge, and an 80.9 percent chance to win the game.

Oregon at Texas Tech pick: Fresh off scoring 81 points in the opener, the Ducks are favored by a 67.4 percent margin against a Red Raider team that lost at Wyoming last weekend.

UCF at Boise State pick: First-year Big 12 member UCF put up 723 yards over Kent State and now have a 77.6 percent shot against the Broncos on the blue turf.

Houston at Rice pick: After taking down UTSA in the opener, the Cougars have the 68.7 percent edge against the Owls, who ran for 27 yards against Texas last week.

Wisconsin at Washington State pick: Both these teams put up over 500 yards in their openers, but the Badgers are still the better running option by far, and have the 63.5 percent edge in this Big Ten vs. Pac-12 matchup.

Stanford at USC pick: Caleb Williams and the Trojan offense have scored 112 points so far, but can the D tighten things up? USC has the 94.3 percent edge at home against the Cardinal in their last meeting before these teams go to the Big Ten and ACC, respectively.

Auburn at Cal pick: The index is going with the home side in this SEC vs. Pac-12 tilt, as the Golden Bears have the 54.9 percent edge over Hugh Freeze and the Tigers, who come in with a 45.1 percent chance.

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