Alabama-Tennessee, Ohio State-Wisconsin, Stanford-Notre Dame & Other Big Matchups
By Kevin Wilkerson, PubClub.com College Football Blogger
We’re coming off a week in which one game should have been played and wasn’t and when a game that was played should not have been and now the SEC is looking like fools.
Two schools are feuding (in good ‘ol Southern tradition between rivals) while the commish sits back and says “gee, it would be nice if we could reschedule the game.” Florida and LSU may have footballs but the commissioner apparently has none because he needs to step in, take charge and make the Gators and Tigers reschedule the game that should not have been canceled in the first place.
By Friday, it was obvious Hurricane Matthew would not come close to making The Swamp look like a swamp and indeed on Saturday, there was not a cloud or raindrop in the sky in Gainesville.
Meanwhile, Notre Dame and North Carolina State played in the Slide Bowl, which was at the same time both entertaining and agonizing to watch. But what was more agonizing for those with webbed feet was watching the Webfoots – er, the Ducks – get 70 hung on them by U-Dub. Whoa, Oregon is quickly headed back to its five-win season days.
This week, we’ve got two big games, one in the SEC and another in the Big 10, and one that a few months ago seemed to be a major mid-season clash but is now almost a ineptitude laugher.
ALABAMA at TENNESSEE (12:30 p.m., CBS)
“That Red Team,” as Butch Jones recently referred to Alabama, rolls into K-town for the “Third Saturday in October” rivalry game. Lame Kiffin returns to Neyland Stadium and if he doesn’t try and get too cute with endless jet sweeps and wide receiver screens, the Bama offense should knock over the injury-depleted Tennessee defense like bowling pins.
And that Bama defense, well, it will give up some big plays because it’s so aggressive it misses things on occasion, but its pass rush pounds quarterbacks and the whole unit is masters at turning turnovers into touchdowns.
This is one of the South’s greatest rivalries, going back to General Neyland whipping the Tide in the 30s and 40s. Bear Bryant never beat Neyland and it gnawed at him so much that when he became Bama’s head coach, wins over UT were so treasured he would celebrate by passing out cigars to his players and coaches in the locker room.
That tradition continues today and the smell of those cigars will be filling up the visitor’s locker room below the north end zone seats of Neyland Stadium again this Saturday. Winner: Alabama
USC at ARIZONA (12:30 p.m., Fox)
Suddenly, things look manageable for Troy, but don’t let a couple of wins fool you. It’s being rescued by a few players – most notably freshman QB San Darnold, who has invigorated receiver JuJu Smith-Schuster – but there’s still a lot of water that’s flooded the hull of the Trojan horse. Still, take what you’ve got and run with it; certainly Notre Dame and UCLA look quite beatable and the season overall forecast now shows more sunshine than stormy weather.
Predicting what either of the Arizona teams will do on any give week is like trying to guess what uniforms they will wear, and this one could be a blowout for either team. The difference here is Darnold and his ability to make the Trojans believe they can win, despite the rising water surrounding them. Winner: USC
NORTHWESTERN at MICHIGAN STATE (12:30 p.m., BTN)
The Prognosticator is putting this game in here because it’s now impossible to ignore Michigan State’s sudden fall. After several remarkable seasons, Sparty has fallen through a hole in the ice. There’s been three straight losses and the team has finally run out of quarterbacks with the name Connor. With Michigan on the rise and the real possibility that Sparty might go back to “little brother” status, perhaps this is a good time for Head Coach Mark Dantonio to leave the once-mean green.
The LSU job is open and it wouldn’t be the first time a coach left East Lansing for Baton Rouge. Just sayin’ folks. Winner: Michigan State
NEBRASKA at INDIANA (12:30 p.m., ABC/ESPN2)
The Shuckers are making people say “well shucks, Nebraska is undefeated and back in the Top 10!” Is this a program on the rise or is it the product of playing Wyoming, Illinois, Fresno State and, well, Oregon? Frankly, a combination of both. So don’t get too excited Nebraska fans, but enjoy this ride for the moment. You are getting better. And your coach doesn’t explode like transformer in an electrical storm. Winner: Nebraska
OLE MISS at ARKANSAS (4 p.m., ESPN)
Remember the game last year, the one in which the Hogs had “divine intervention” according to their coach, when a receiver threw the ball behind his head, a running back picked it up, fumbled, Arkansas recovered for a first down then used a facemask penalty on what would have been the last play to score a wild overtime victory? Well don’t expect that to happen this year.
The Hogs’ quarterback may be as tough as a 50-cent piece of pork but he can’t do it all and this year’s team doesn’t have the magic of last year’s squad. The Rebels are coming off an off week and if they pick up where they left off, this will be a rout by halftime. But keep watching because with these teams, strange things can and do happen from time to time. Winner: Ole Miss
STANFORD at NOTRE DAME (4:30 p.m., NBC)
The Cardinal is looking red this year after consecutive – and uncharacteristic – blowout losses. The Irish, meanwhile, are turning their fans green with their play. What before the season looked like it might be a College Football Playoff elimination game is now a “commercial break game,” that is one to turn to only during the commercial breaks of Ohio State-Wisconsin.
Both teams have collapsed like a freshman at his first rush party. But don’t worry Irish fans, if you lose Brian Kelly will find somebody to blame! The Red Trees are maybe without Christian McCaffrey and if that’s the case, this team is about as entertaining as, well, watching a tree grow. This could be countered, however by Notre Dame’s hilariously inept defense. Winner (in an ugly one): Notre Dame
OHIO STATE at WISCONSIN (5 p.m., ABC)
Finally! We’re halfway into October and Ohio State actually plays a team with a pulse. Will this give Brutus a heart attack when he realizes the opponent isn’t being delivered on a gurney attached to life support devices? The Badgers have already proven themselves and will be badgering the Buckeyes from start to finish.
With its schedule to date, it’s impossible to know if Brutus is a brute or just a bully, but its offense does have more punch than the hosts. Winner: Ohio State
COLORADO STATE at BOISE STATE (7:15 p.m, ESPN2)
The Broncos are quietly bucking toward an undefeated season. Really, who is going to stop them, certainly not these Rams who are more sheepish than hard-charging animals. Boise will be honoring its 2006 undefeated team on Saturday, including wearing the same uniforms it donned in the program’s defining moment, the Fiesta Bowl upset of Oklahoma.
So while the Blue Turfs will be looking back a bit, they will also be looking ahead – to potentially another undefeated season. Winner: Boise State
UCLA at WASHINGTON STATE (7:30 p.m., ESPN)
The Baby Bears are playing like little lambs. Against Arizona State they were baaaaddd. They can’t run the ball (1 yard rushing against ASU), can’t pass protect and have receivers who drop more balls than they catch. Perhaps #10 should spend more of his off time actually learning how to catch a football than putting those gold things in his hair. Oh, and Boy Wonder QB is hurt. Plus, they are playing a team that just thumped Stanford in a place so remote that an ambulance was once given a speeding ticket on the highway.
So of course this means the Trampolines will bounce back up and win this one. Winner: UCLA.
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