Don’t look now, college football fans, but this weekend will officially mark the halfway point of the 2026 regular season.
It’s hard to believe we are already six games into this thing but time flies when you’re having fun, I suppose.
While this coming weekend won’t exactly be a “separation Saturday” situation, several questions will be answered in part because of the circumstances surrounding the games as well as the quantity of data points we now have at our disposal.
Half a season is usually about when you start to find out who teams really are for the year.
Frauds get exposed and championship contenders start to rise to the top and prove their worth, and 2026 is no different.
So, indulge me, as I look at five important questions from the college football season that will be answered after the clock strikes midnight on Saturday.
When Kalen DeBoer arrived in Tuscaloosa by way of Seattle to take the Crimson Tide head coaching position, the general consensus was that the good times would continue to roll at Bama.
While the Tide have been a really good program under DeBoer, averaging ten wins and recruiting at an elite level in his two seasons at the helm, they’ve failed to reach the same heights they did the previous decade and a half during Saban’s reign.
Alabama is off to a 5-0 start, their best since 2022, but questions are still lingering about the ceiling of this team.
They have an impressive road win over a top-25 Mississippi State team and their offense looks night unstoppable, however they also survived a scare at home against an average-at-best Florida State team in a game where their defense was a bit leaky.
If the Tide can knock off second-ranked Georgia this weekend in Bryant Denny Stadium, it will go a long way in signifying the program is trending back towards the elite status it held when Saban roamed the sidelines.
A loss would probably mean the big crimson machine still needs a tune up.
College football can be such a fickle mistress sometimes.
Last weekend, the Florida Gators carried a top-ten ranking as well as a top-five offense into Columbia, Missouri.
They left the Show Me State licking their wounds and taking a tumble, both in the national rankings and the offensive metrics.
FLORIDA DROPS IMPRESSIVE OFFENSIVE PERFORMANCE TO PULL OFF MASSIVE WIN OVER NO. 4 OLE MISS
Jadan Baugh, Florida’s Heisman hopeful running back, was held under 100 yards for the first time this season, as the Gators could only muster a measly 42 yards on the ground for the day.
Did the Tigers crack the code to stopping Florida’s high-powered offense?
The Gators welcome South Carolina to The Swamp this weekend, and while no one will mistake the Gamecocks for the ’85 Bears, they have the talent along the defensive line of scrimmage to cause Florida some headaches.
If Florida comes out and struggles to move the football against an average South Carolina defense, it could mean the book is out on how to contain offensive coordinator Buster Faulkner’s scheme.
Speaking of those Gamecocks, there might not be a coach in America with a hotter seat than South Carolina head man Shane Beamer.
I spoke to multiple people who are fairly plugged into the football program who told me a loss at home against Kentucky might have sealed Beamer’s fate.
However, I was shocked to wake up Sunday morning and still see him employed, but I don’t think it was because I was fed bad intel.
A loss in The Swamp to Florida would drop the Gamecocks to 2-4 on the season, and a particularly ugly loss might send Beamer to the nearest executive airport to find his own way home.
There’s too much talent on this South Carolina roster for Beamer to keep his job at 2-4, and if the wheels were already turning in terms of replacing him, I don’t see a world where he survives this weekend.
The Gamecocks will likely get potential first-round pick Dylan Stewart back to bolster their pass rush, and while that might help things on the field, I doubt it does anything for the embattled head coach’s chances off the field.
Saturday in The Swamp might be Beamer’s swan song, win or lose.
The Indiana Hoosiers had a historic season in 2025, compiling a 16-0 record and absolutely buzzsawing their way through a loaded College Football Playoff field en route to the school’s first ever national championship.
Unfortunately, that was last year, and the 2026 version of the Hoosiers looks nothing like their 2025 counterparts.
In fairness, Indiana has played virtually no one of note, save for a nail-biter against a better-than-we-thought Northwestern squad.
Saturday’s game against Nebraska should help us answer the question of whether the Hoosiers are really deserving of that number next to their name, or if they’re ranked where they are solely due to last year’s success.
Laugh all you want, but the Huskers should offer a stiff test to Indiana, particularly their defense.
Nebraska’s offense looks as good as it has in a while, and they steamrolled a pair of conference opponents prior to their upcoming matchup with the defending champs.
If the Hoosiers struggle in Lincoln on Saturday, it might mean coach Curt Cignetti’s squad just isn’t ready to repeat as national champions this year.
THE CRAIG CARTON SHOW–UNFILTERED, UNAPOLOGETIC AND UNMISSABLE. DOWNLOAD HIS DAILY PODCAST NOW!
The UCLA Bruins are ranked in the top-25 of the AP Poll.
Just let that sink in for a little bit, because in today’s day and age, the Bruins being anywhere close to the top-25 in football is a rarity.
That all seems to be changing under first year coach Bob Chesney, who I told you all to keep an eye on before the season even started.
The Bruins are fresh off a dismantling of Maryland on the road, and while the Terrapins aren’t exactly a juggernaut, hanging 54 points on a conference opponent on the road is an impressive feat regardless.
Sure, UCLA hasn’t played a particularly noteworthy schedule so far this season, that will all change when the Bruins travel to Autzen Stadium this weekend to take on Oregon.
The Ducks stumbled to start the season, but have rebounded quite nicely and look to be back on track towards winning the Big Ten.
SIGN UP FOR THE DAILY OUTKICK NEWSLETTER
If Chesney and the Bruins can win this game or even keep it close on Saturday, it will go a long way in showing everyone that this hot start to 2026 isn’t all smoke and mirrors.
A signature win in Eugene would do wonders for UCLA’s recruiting class, which is already in a great spot just a few months out from signing day, and it could put the Bruins in the driver’s seat to win the Big Ten title.
