College Football's Biggest Rivalries Could Decide More Than Conference Championships in Week 10

Big games? Moreso than ever, a trio of rivalries reach to the national stage in Week 10.

LSU and Sam Leavitt have even more than usual on the line when they face Alabama in Week 10. (John Reed-Imagn Images) | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

Rivalries matter-- you could put Ohio State and Michigan both at 0-11 and their fans would still be red-hot to battle in the regular season finale. But when both teams are rolling and there's more on the line that just pride... that's when rivalries go to the next level. Basically, that's Week 10-- a trio of rivalry matchups will echo across the College Football Playoff picture as well as each team's individual bragging rights slate. Here's three that mean even more this time around.

Alabama/LSU

This one decided the top of the SEC for years and with Lane Kiffin's arrival in Baton Rouge, it's back this year. Between 2005 and 2019, seven meetings of the two teams occurred with each ranked in the top 5 of the AP poll. We're not there now, but each 6-2 team has CFP hopes that are tangible but in jeopardy.

Alabama's 67.3% CFP chances per ESPN's FPI are second best in the conference. But home LSU is already at 51.7% and those odds would likely flip if the Tigers can take down Alabama. Three losses isn't a death sentence but it will make a CFP climb much harder for whoever loses this game.

BYU/Utah

One of two top-10 battle this weekend, No. 3 Utah is a surprising 8-0, but No. 7 BYU's 7-1 mark still carries plenty of mojo. The underlying question is whether the Big 12 will claim a pair of CFP bids. Of course, a one-loss Texas Tech team would also be very interested in that.

As things stand, Utah (78% Playoff shot) is in the driver's seat, but BYU (44% Playoff chance) gets a valuable shot to climb back into the thick of the Playoff hunt-- and likely to send Utah back toward the waiting room of hopefuls.

Kentucky/Tennessee

For a competition this one-sided (Tennessee bested Kentucky 27 times in a row from 1984 to 2011), it's unusual to see it be so significant. But it's unusual to see Kentucky ranked No. 8 as well, and Will Stein's plucky group have climbed into the Playoff picture.

Tennessee is off a difficult loss to South Carolina, and they're the team that might need a win more, with a 24.9% Playoff chance. Kentucky is still an outsider at 7-1, carrying a 44.4% chance, but another surprise win by Stein's team will make it harder for anyone not to believe in Kentucky's dream season.