Welcome the Hotline’s weekly picks against the point spread, published Thursdays throughout the regular season with a focus on the top games nationally and the most intriguing matchups across the West. Last week, we were 6-4. Lines are courtesy of vegasinsider.com. Picks are for entertainment purposes only … unless they aren’t.

If there was ever a week to ignore the Hotline’s picks, cast point spreads aside and simply enjoy the games, this is it.

Week 5 of the 2025 season is unlike any week of any season we can remember.

And yes, that includes rivalry weekends at the end of the season.

It’s fully loaded from start to finish, with ranked teams in perilous spots and epic, concurrent showdowns on NBC and ABC in the late afternoon broadcast window.

There are four matchups of ranked teams,

See Full Page