College football odds, lines, schedule for Week 8: Texas, Alabama early favorites in marquee matchups

The last two weeks of the college football season have been chaotic and Week 8 is expected to be no different. There are only three games involving ranked matchups, but six others with one-score lines between unranked and ranked teams.

The headliner is in Austin, Texas , where No. 1 Texas hosts No. 5 Georgia . The Bulldogs are the highest-ranked opponent at Darrell K. Royal Stadium since No. 2 Ohio State in 2006. However, the more anxiety-inducing game comes at Neyland Stadium where either No. 7 Alabama or No. 11 Tennessee is set to take a devastating loss after weeks of poor performance.

Down the board, No. 22 Illinois hosts No. 24 Michigan in a key Big Ten battle. Additionally, No. 9 Iowa State and No. 13 BYU hope to strengthen their strangehold on the Big 12 with games against conference foes. Here's an early look at lines for the top battles of Week 8.

Odds via SportsLine consensus

The big games

No. 5 Georgia (+3.5) at No. 1 Texas: Texas follows its 31-point decimation of rival Oklahoma with one of the biggest home games in program history against Georgia. The Bulldogs sleepwalked through a game against Mississippi State , but it's easy to see why with a trip to play No. 1 on the docket. The last time these two teams played, Texas shocked Georgia in the Sugar Bowl. This time, the Longhorns will be no underdog, in either betting or ranking.

No. 7 Alabama (-3) at No. 11 Tennessee: What once looked like a marquee matchup could instead serve as a College Football Playoff elimination game as both Alabama and Tennessee have fallen apart in SEC play. The Tide followed up a loss to Vanderbilt with a miserable performance against South Carolina where they needed a 2-point conversion stop to survive. The Vols followed up a loss to Arkansas by needing overtime to survive a terrible Florida squad. The loser picks up a second loss and should be out of the CFP picture.

No. 6 Miami (-4.5) at Louisville : The Hurricanes' start to ACC play has been wildly mediocre as wins over California and Virginia Tech came down to the final seconds. With a road trip to Louisville on the slate, Miami doesn't have much time to get things together. Louisville has losses to SMU and Notre Dame , but both were by only one score. This game will have a major impact on the ACC title race.

No. 24 Michigan (-1.5) at No. 22 Illinois: These two teams are narrowly hanging onto their rankings after a string of poor performances. The Wolverines already have two losses, though dropping to No. 1 Texas was defensible. Illinois struggled in the trenches against Penn State and then needed overtime to survive Purdue in a lookahead spot.

Oklahoma State (+7.5) at No. 13 BYU: The Cougars are perhaps the most underranked team in America and they have a chance to prove it one again against Oklahoma State. BYU beat preseason Big 12 contenders Arizona and Kansas State by a combined 51 points and has been exceptional playing in the confines of LaVell Edwards Stadium. Oklahoma State has struggled on the road and has a tall task playing at 10:15 p.m. ET.

Best of the rest

• No. 2 Oregon (-28.5) at Purdue
• No. 8 LSU (-3.5) at Arkansas
• No. 9 Iowa State (-12.5) vs. UCF
• No. 10 Clemson (-21) vs. Virginia
• No. 12 Notre Dame (-8.5) at Georgia Tech
• No. 14 Texas A&M (-15.5) at Mississippi State
  
• No. 17 Kansas State (-2.5) at West Virginia
• No. 16 Indiana (-4.5) vs. Nebraska
• No. 19 Missouri (-7) vs. Auburn
• No. 21 SMU (-13) at Stanford