Last week, college football TV viewers were treated to a few exciting matchups (LSU’s last-minute win over Auburn), some big performances (Javon Ringer’s 200-yard day against Notre Dame), and a dud or two (Florida putting Tennessee over their knee in Knoxville).
This week, there are quite a few intriguing matchups. We’re starting to really get into conference play around the country, and there are some great conference games on tap this week, but there are also some interesting non-conference tilts that could require your attention at some point over the next few days.
What should you be watching this week? Here’s the rundown.
Thursday
Oregon State vs. USC, 9:00 p.m. ET, ESPN: This week’s major upset alert game, folks. Remember the last time the Trojans went to Corvallis? Oregon St. enters this one 1-2, but they have the offensive firepower to put up a lot of points again, and there are several playmakers on defense. USC knows not to look past them, despite the record and even with Oregon and Arizona St. coming up, but will their play back it up?
Friday
Louisville vs. Connecticut, 8:00 p.m. ET, ESPN2: Last Friday, we were treated to a great game in Storrs, as UConn outlasted Baylor 31-28 in a back-and-forth thriller. The Huskies will be on the deuce for consecutive Fridays, this time making the trip to face a Louisville team that has rebounded from an ugly opening loss to Kentucky with wins over Tennessee Tech and a good Kansas St. team. If the Huskies want to be a major player in the Big East and finally move into the top 25, this is a must-win.
Saturday
Georgia vs. Alabama, 7:45 p.m. ET, ESPN: Last season’s matchup in Tuscaloosa, the team’s first matchup since 2003, was an OT thriller that saw Alabama come back from a 20-10 fourth-quarter deficit to force overtime, only for Georgia to win it 26-23 and give Nick Saban his first loss at ‘Bama. This time around in Athens, both teams come in unbeaten and ranked in the top 10, and with both looking to be in the national title hunt and to fend off top-5 five teams in their respective divisions, this a must-win game for both.
Regional Game That Should Be National: Oklahoma vs. TCU, 7 p.m. ET, FSN – BYU and Utah have gotten the glut of the attention in what has been an excellent start by the Mountain West, but 4-0 TCU jumped into the rankings this week, ahead of their game in Norman. The last time the Horned Frogs were there, they left with a 17-10 victory in the 2005 season opener. This year’s bunch of Sooners is a little more put together, and looks to be an offensive juggernaut, but a close game could be in store.
National Game That Should Be Regional: I have a tie here between two SEC matchups. First up is Tennessee’s trip to Auburn (3:30 p.m. ET, CBS). The Vols don’t look like much right now, and even though Auburn is coming off of a loss to LSU, I don’t think this’ll be much of a game.
Then, there’s LSU-Mississippi St. (7:30 p.m. ET, ESPN2). I hope that my Bulldogs can step up in Baton Rouge this weekend and somehow pull out a win (which would be their first in BR since 1991), but if anything, I just hope to see them play better than they have overall in starting 1-3. However, the way they’re coming in + recent history (eight straight wins for LSU, three shutouts in seven years, outscored 295-43 in those seven, with the closest margin being 31-13 in 2002) + LSU being pretty good = tempered hopes, as sad as it is.
Time Slot Worth Getting Picture-in-Picture For: Saturday night – Yep, Saturday night wins again. There’s Georgia-Bama on the worldwide leader, Oklahoma-TCU on FSN, and either Nebraska-Virginia Tech or Penn St.-Illinois on ABC.
Late Game Worth Staying Up For: That’s easy – Oregon St.-USC. It could very well be a blowout by USC, but I feel good about the Beavers’ chances to give the nation’s #1 team a stiff test.
Keep An Eye On: There are several other games that you should watch with interest for one reason or another.
Michigan St. opens Big Ten play at Indiana in the Pam Ward Game of the Week, otherwise known as ESPN’s noon game. Don’t worry, you can mute her while you watch Javon Ringer try to get his third straight 200-yard game.
UCLA has gotten whipped in their last two games post-Tennessee, but they have a chance to get back on the radar as they host Fresno St. (3:30 p.m. ET, ABC). I’m going to go out on a limb and say that if Fresno St. even scores half as much as they did in Saturday’s double-OT win at Toledo (55 in a 55-54 win), it doesn’t bode well for UCLA’s chances.
For the nostalgic folks, old Southwest Conference rivals renew their hate, albeit two weeks later than originally scheduled (thanks Ike!), as Texas hosts Arkansas. Any chance the Razorbacks can slow down Colt McCoy (63 of 81, 833 yards, 11 TD, INT passing, 25 carries, 194 yards, 2 TD rushing)? I hope not, because I’m starting him in my fantasy team.
In Ann Arbor, Michigan’s 1-2 start can be forgotten, at least a little, if they can knock off Wisconsin in their Big Ten opener. Hopefully Rich Rodriguez has been making his players (the running backs especially) sleep with a football in their arms at night so that they don’t have the dropsies against the Badgers.
And in Jacksonville, Colorado will try to follow up their upset of West Virginia and continue their quest to prove their worth as a Big 12 contender, and all the while looking to inflict a little more misery on Florida St., who can’t possibly look any worse than they did against Wake Forest. Right? Right.
If you’d like the complete college football broadcast schedule for this week, Matt’s College Sports on TV site is an excellent resource for you. And, if you’d like to see the previous editions of Channel Cruisin’, here they are in one nice, neat place.
