College Football TV-Watching Guide – Week 7
The marquee game of the week moves away from the south and into the Pacific Northwest this week as two playoff contenders look to move into the driver’s seat in the Pac-12. Outside of that, a lot of top teams stay away from each other, so instead of continuing to run through this intro, we’re gonna take a knee and end it. Apparently not a given! Let’s dive in.
MUST WATCH GAMES
12:00 PM: N/A
There’s truly nothing in the early window worth watching. The previous sentence will definitely not come back to make me look dumb.
3:30 PM: #8 Oregon Ducks vs #7 Washington Huskies (-3) – ABC
LET’S. GO. What an awesome game this is going to be. The two best offenses in the nation by yards per game. Two up and coming young coaches. Two quarterbacks capable of winning the Heisman Trophy. Legitimate hate for the other sideline. Oregon and Washington are shaping up for a game of the year type of contest this Saturday in Seattle.
Neither team has had a true test so far and a lot will be taken out of this matchup in terms of measuring up as a national title contender. Sure these two teams might meet up again at the end of the season, but you can’t let that take away from the monumental stakes this game has.
The winner will stay undefeated in conference play, and with USC looking more and more vulnerable by the week should be the betting favorite to win the conference. Additionally, a victory here would give the winner a CFP ‘get out of jail free’ card and the opportunity to lose a game (assuming it’s to a competent team) and stay in the race for the playoff.
This game will come down to the defenses. We know what each offense is capable of, and we’ve seen Oregon’s QB Bo Nix and Washington’s QB Michael Penix Jr. take it out on lesser secondaries all season long. I truly have no pick in this game, I could see it go either way, but if you made me pick I’d take Washington at home.
7:00 PM: #25 Miami Hurricanes vs #12 North Carolina Tar Heels (-3.5) – ABC
All jokes aside, Miami’s loss to Georgia Tech was as close to a season-derailing disaster as you can get. We’ll find out how derailed the season is when the Hurricanes travel to Chapel Hill to take on the undefeated Heels.
North Carolina has been continually flying under the radar in the ACC despite being undefeated and ranked inside the top fifteen in the nation. In fact, UNC’s toughest test came against the only non-Power 5 team it faced in Appalachian State. QB Drake Maye has been a little reckless with the football with four interceptions this season, but has faced immense pressure behind a rocky offensive line.
I am fascinated to see how Miami responds after last week’s loss to the Yellow Jackets. How a team is supposed to go back to trusting a coach just days after giving away a win for some unknown prideful reason to not kneel the ball, I have no idea. I’ll take UNC to win and firmly place itself in the ACC title game race with the other undefeated teams in the league.
BACKGROUND NOISE
3:30 PM: Texas A&M Aggies vs #19 Tennessee Volunteers (-3.5) – CBS
- The Aggies will look to bounce back from a home loss against Alabama in one of the toughest places to play in the SEC at Neyland Stadium. QB Max Johnson’s unit won’t face as stout a defense in the Volunteers as last week, but will be wary of getting into a shootout with the rapid-fire Tennessee offense. Defense shows up on the road, the Aggies win the game.
7:00 PM: #10 USC Trojans vs #21 Notre Dame Fighting Irish – NBC
- The fourth and final week of Notre Dame’s brutal stretch arrives with a home game against Caleb Williams and the Trojans. The Irish got dominated at the line of scrimmage against Louisville and looked plain worn out last Saturday, and if they aren’t rested up it could be a long night keeping pace with the USC offense.
8:00 PM: #18 UCLA Bruins vs #15 Oregon State Beavers – FOX
- The Pac-12 undercard matchup to Oregon/Washington. UCLA freshman QB Dante Moore has been thrown in the deep end and is starting to figure out how to swim, getting the Bruins to a 4-1 start and the lone loss coming from a tough Utah team. The Beavers beat that same Utes squad two weeks ago, and would love to stay in the thick of the Pac-12 race.
THE ‘TOP TEAM-EXCLUSIVE BRUNCH PARTY’ GAMES OF THE WEEK
12:00 PM: #1 Georgia Bulldogs vs Vanderbilt Commodores (+31.5) – CBS
12:00 PM: Indiana Hoosiers vs #2 Michigan Wolverines (-33.5) – FOX
12:00 PM: #3 Ohio State Buckeyes vs Purdue Boilermakers (+19.5) – Peacock
12:00 PM: Syracuse Orange vs #4 Florida State Seminoles (-17.5) – ABC
