College Football TV-Watching Guide – Week 10
We now finally have a ranking that matters, but also not really. The only ranking that truly MATTERS is the one that comes at the end of the season. As we enter the last month of the regular season, there are only a few more games for teams to make their case to the committee and drive up the rankings. Let’s dive in.
MUST WATCHES
12:00 PM: #23 Kansas State Wildcats vs. #7 Texas Longhorns (-4) – FOX
Texas eased into its game against BYU last Saturday with backup QB Maalik Murphy, taking early lead and relying on a stout defense in a 35-6 win. Now it stays at home against a pesky Kansas State team that has blown out each of its last two opponents in Houston and TCU.
The Wildcats pound the rock with the best of them, holding the fifth best rushing offense in the nation. RB DJ Giddens averages over six yards per rush and seven touchdowns on the season. The two losses K-State has taken this year were on a last second field goal at Missouri and an at-the-time brutal loss to Oklahoma State (who has turned that win into the first of four straight).
Texas flexed its defensive muscle against an overmatched BYU team, and Maalik Murphy showed enough poise to convince Longhorns fans that he can keep the offense afloat without injured-Quinn Ewers. If Kansas State can make this game a shootout, it will be the first true test of Murphy’s skills running the Texas offense. If the Longhorns defense wins in the trenches like they have all year, Texas should win this game handily again.
3:30 PM: #12 Missouri Tigers vs. #2 Georgia Bulldogs (-15.5) – CBS
Ah yes. The good ol’ world beating Georgia Bulldogs are here to remind the country that they are still here. Even without All-American TE Brock Bowers, the offense didn’t skip a beat with Oscar Delp playing well in his absence and veteran WR Ladd McConkey leading the way through the air in a win over Florida last week.
Missouri has been one of the biggest surprise teams in the country, arriving in this game at 7-1 and ranked 12th in the nation. The Tigers only loss came against LSU, and is restedafter their bye. Mizzou doesn’t really do anything in particular exceptional or better than anyone in the SEC, they just do everything pretty well. Brady Cook is an accurate quarterback with plenty of yards, Cody Schrader passes the run game, and Luther Burden III leads a stable of solid receivers.
Georgia will be the best opponent Missouri will have faced this year, and going on the road to do it will be a massive challenge for the Tigers. I expect the Bulldogs to grind down the Missouri offense and stay undefeated.
7:45 PM: #14 LSU Tigers vs. #8 Alabama Crimson Tide (-3) – CBS
Picking the must watch game between this game and the Washington game against USC was incredibly challenging. The contest in the Pac-12 might be the more entertaining game, but this game will be an elimination game for Alabama when it comes to the playoff.
Despite flying under the radar on a two-loss team, Jayden Daniels has been putting up massive numbers for LSU this season. With 25 touchdowns and only three interceptions, Daniels has the ability to shred the Tide defense like no one has done since Quinn Ewers and Texas. The question for the Tigers will be do they have the weapons on the outsides to force Alabama to respect the pass game and not sell out on the run.
The Crimson Tide defense against Daniels will be the matchup of the game. Alabama is coming off of a bye and put the choke on Tennessee in the second half of its last game for its sixth straight win.
Similar to the Kansas State and Texas game, the direction of this game scoring-wise will go a long way into determining the outcome. Alabama’s offense will not be able to keep up with Daniels and LSU if it comes to that. But I see the Tide’s defense putting the clamps on again, and while Daniels might stack his numbers it won’t be enough to do damage on Alabama.
BACKGROUND NOISE
12:00 PM: Texas A&M Aggies vs. #10 Ole Miss Rebels (-3) – ESPN
– Ole Miss brings its top ten ranking back to Oxford, having won four straight. Jaxon Dart will have to face a stout Texas A&M defense who is the backbone of its team. The Rebels stay in the SEC West race with a win on Saturday.
3:30 PM: #9 Oklahoma Sooners vs. #22 Oklahoma State Cowboys (+5.5) – ABC
– The last game in this rivalry for a long time, and the Cowboys will be licking their chops to ruin their rival’s playoff chances. The Sooners let their last game slip away against Kansas, with its typically strong defense letting them down in the second half. Expect a physical and scrappy game between two teams looking to leave an impact on Bedlam.
7:30 PM: #5 Washington Huskies vs. #20 USC Trojans (+3.5) – ABC
– The Huskies badly need to get back on track after two close calls against Stanford and Arizona State. Enter, the tissue-soft Trojan defense. Again, a USC game will come down to its defenses ability to stop something (ANYTHING!). Washington should get back on track with a win on the road.
THE UNDEFEATED GROUP OF 5 CHECK-IN GAMES OF THE WEEK
2:30 PM: Army Golden Knights vs. #25 Air Force Falcons (-18.5) – CBS Sports Network
3:30 PM: James Madison Dukes vs. Georgia State Panthers (+5.5) – ESPN2
6:00 PM: Louisiana Tech Bulldogs vs. Liberty Flames (-17) – CBS Sports Network
