Weekend Primer
What to Watch for in Week 3
1. Major Road Test pt. 1
Florida St., on the heels of losing their best defensive player, travels to Louisville, to try to take down the hottest player in the country in Lamar Jackson.
The ‘Noles have their own budding superstar at quarterback and will certainly put some points on the board. But the FSU defense will have its work cut out.
The line: FSU -2. The pick: I have no idea, but since I’m forcing myself to do this, I’ll say there’s probably a better chance that the Noles pull it out.
2. Major Road Test pt. 2
THE Ohio State University, with all those new starters, gets its first real test (sincerest apologies to Bowling Green and Tulsa) with a trip to Norman, Oklahoma.
Oklahoma already has a blemish on its record with the season-opening loss to Houston, so this game is a must-win for the Sooners.
I have so many questions about OU’s offensive line. And receivers. And defense.
When I try to analyze it, The Buckeyes look much better. But I just have a gut feeling that the Sooners will find a way to avoid a 1-2 start.
The line: OSU -1.5. The pick: Another toss-up, but I’ll take the home team Sooners to play better as an underdog and topple the Bucks.
3. Major Road Test pt. 3
Sandwiched between the noon ACC battle and the primetime Big Ten-Big 12 showdown is a huge SEC game that’s been circled as a must-watch since the Rebels insane upset of Alabama last September.
Both squads lost a lot of talent from 2015, but still remain among the SEC’s and national elite. Ole Miss has already done the unthinkable, beating Nick Saban two years in a row and gets the Tide at The Grove this year.
But the Rebels have struggled on the offensive line and in the defensive secondary, both of which could spell big trouble against the Crimson.
The line: Alabama -11. The pick: 11 seems like a lot considering recent history and the location, but Bama looks like a much better team right now. Count on Saban and crew having the Tide ready to roll.
4. The U hits the road
I may be paying too much attention to this one since I have family in Boone, but this is an unusual matchup.
The glitz and glamour of South Beach travels up to a little North Carolina mountain town (population: just over 17,000; elevation: over 3,000, making Boone the highest elevation of any town over 10,000 people east of the Mississippi).
Geography lesson aside, the Mountaineers are in just their third year as an FBS program after winning three straight FCS championship from 2005-2007. And of course, they outplayed Tennessee in an overtime loss to the Vols two weeks ago.
Wonder if the ‘Canes know what they’re getting themselves into.
5. More Road Tests!
Georgia (at Missouri), Michigan St. (at Notre Dame), Oregon (at Nebraska), Texas (at Cal), and Texas A&M (at Auburn) are all ranked teams facing dangerous lower-ranked or unranked teams on the road.
I wouldn’t count on them all going home with Ws. Although maybe that’s an easy call, considering the Spartans are a 7.5-point underdog in South Bend.
6. On thin ice
LSU and Oklahoma St. have both suffered early losses this season and will look to get back on track this weekend.
LSU was dreadful in its season-opening loss to Wisconsin and continued to struggle against Jacksonville St. last Saturday before a quarterback chance sparked the offense. As bad as they looked early, the Tigers could still make a run at a playoff berth by winning out. They start conference play with Mississippi St. this weekend.
OSU’s loss was a little more controversial (note: very controversial), which the CFP committee would surely take into account should the Cowboys win out and claim the Big 12 title. The Pokes don’t start conference play until next Saturday, but they’ll first have to get past a very good 2-0 Pittsburgh team.
7. Upset Watch (FBS)
Most of the underdogs I’d pick wouldn’t really be considered huge upsets.
But as far as the ones that haven’t already been discussed here, look for USC (at Stanford) and Colorado (at Michigan) to make things more interesting than many expect.
8. Upset Watch (FCS)
Lower-echelon programs like Ball St. and Colorado St. could struggle against FCS teams this weekend, but the big one to watch is North Dakota St. at Iowa.
The Bison are the toast of FCS, having won five straight championships. They’ve also beaten their last five FBS opponents.
The Hawkeyes should be by far the best team the Bison have faced in that time, but NDSU is no cupcake.
