With Ohio State kicking off in primetime, let's take a look at a host of other college football matchups from around the country we’ll have our eyes on this Saturday.
Nooners
Photo: Noe Padilla | Journal and Courier / USA TODAY NETWORK
Purdue vs. Syracuse, 12 p.m. on ESPN2
W I L D C A R D of the W E E K
The noon windows have hardly featured any compelling high-profile games on paper through the first handful of weekends, and that trend unfortunately continues into Week 3. Even so, of the roughly dozen kickoffs at the day's start, the only one featuring two unranked Power 5 teams should contain some competitive football to tide audiences over until the first of only two top-25 pairings today.
Despite losing to Penn State on a touchdown in the final minute of the team's opener, Purdue appears to be a contender in the Big Ten West in the wake of many early-season shortcomings throughout the division. The Boilermakers currently stand as a top-15 passing team across the FBS through two weeks on the backs of returning quarterback Aidan O'Connell and a breakout campaign from transfer receiver Charlie Jones. Jones already has 21 catches for 286 yards and four touchdowns through two contests, which are as many receptions and only 37 yards less than what he totaled in 13 games last season at Iowa.
Charlie Jones, ladies and gentlemen!
— Purdue On BTN (@PurdueOnBTN) September 10, 2022
The new @BoilerFootball WR is flat-out dominating to open the season. pic.twitter.com/YuEmfZFnEk
Syracuse will be an interesting test for Purdue in that the Orange have limited their two opponents to the 17th-fewest passing yards per game in the FBS so far this season. Cuse held electric Louisville quarterback Malik Cunningham to one of his worst career performances in the ACC Atlantic opener with just 182 total yards of offense, no touchdowns and three turnovers. While the Boilermakers and Orange each played layup opponents last week, this meeting figures to play out in much more exciting fashion.
#6 Oklahoma vs. Nebraska, 12 p.m. on FOX
☣ H A Z A R D ☣ W A R N I N G ☣
The corn begins to thaw in Nebraska this weekend as the Huskers attempt to de-Frost themselves in the wake of firing their head coach just three games into the season. Mickey Joseph will serve as his replacement in an interim capacity, becoming the first African-American head coach across all of Nebraska’s athletic teams in the school’s history.
Meanwhile, in a Week 2 full of sloppy performances from top-10 schools, Oklahoma quietly had a horrible first half at home against Kent State that saw neither team score until 21½ minutes into the game.
.@ClassyGlassy4 has the Flashes on the board! A 37-yard boot splits the uprights and the Flashes have a 3-0 lead in Norman!#TheHUNT | #BeTheAlpha pic.twitter.com/u56Z8sNBRS
— Kent State Football (@KentStFootball) September 10, 2022
The Sooners ultimately won 33-3, but nearly went into the halftime locker room trailing after failing to score any points until the final 20 seconds of the second quarter.
Brent Venables’ Oklahoma squad presumably should take care of business on the road against a team attempting to steer out of a downward spiral, yet curiously find themselves as only 11-point favorites according to oddsmakers. A reinvigorated Cornhusker group behind fresh leadership and the quarterback play of a former Texas starter in Casey Thompson could make this an ugly game for the Sooners. A win for Joseph in his debut would give him more victories over ranked teams than what his predecessor accomplished throughout a half-decade in Lincoln.
Afternooners
Photo: Gabriel Mayberry | USA TODAY Sports
#12 BYU vs. #25 Oregon, 3:30 p.m. on FOX
Readers that followed the Viewing Guide's advice to the end of last Saturday got to stay up past 2 a.m. watching BYU knock Baylor out of the top 10 in a double-overtime upset at home.
While star quarterback Jaren Hall usually shines brightest in the Cougars' late-night spotlight, it was BYU’s defense that performed most impressively last week, with eight players each recording at least four tackles on the evening. Linebackers Max Tooley and Ben Bywater in particular combined for 24 tackles, and the Cougars ended the game early Sunday morning with a goal-line stand that preceded students rushing the field in celebration of a home-opener win.
ANOTHER TOP 10 TEAM FALLS
— ESPN (@espn) September 11, 2022
NO. 21 BYU DEFEATS NO. 9 BAYLOR pic.twitter.com/2hPa7KRLeK
Now, BYU seeks its second victory over a ranked opponent in as many weeks as the team travels west for a daytime showdown with Oregon. The Ducks returned to Eugene last weekend for a tune-up against Eastern Washington after failing to reach the end zone once in their opening game with Georgia. Former Auburn quarterback Bo Nix capitalized by throwing five touchdown passes before sitting out most of the second half, as Oregon went on to win 70-14 while easily covering a spread of 24.5 points.
The Cougars' only regular season loss away from home a season ago came under similar circumstances in an afternoon road game against a ranked opponent: Baylor. After revenge last weekend, another win would likely vault BYU further up the polls ahead of a potential top-10 showdown with Arkansas next month.
Primetime
Photo: Annie Rice | Avalanche-Journal / USA TODAY NETWORK
Three Channel-Flip Options to the Toledo Game
The primetime college football slate has a suite of intriguing offerings this week, tragically during the same time frame the Buckeyes will aim to ground the Rockets in Columbus. Fortunately, all three games start at different hours of the evening, which means glimpses of the later pairings should at least be available during halftime and after the final whistle at The Shoe for those less inclined to change stations amid commercial breaks.
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Texas Tech vs. #16 N.C. State, 7 p.m. on ESPN2
The Red Raiders pulled off a double overtime upset of their own last weekend after taking down previously ranked Houston 33-30 at home – the Cougars' second game extending beyond regulation to start the season. Coincidentally, Texas Tech seeks a similar goal as BYU this week in hunting a second consecutive win over a ranked opponent in N.C. State.
The Wolfpack needed a missed field goal to survive East Carolina in the first game of their season before trouncing FCS Charleston Southern a week ago. Quarterback Donovan Smith and Texas Tech are one of only 13 FBS schools averaging over 350 passing yards per game through the first half of September, so N.C. State will have their work cut out for them at home.
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UTSA vs. #21 Texas, 8 p.m. on Longhorn Network
Whether or not “Texas is back” remains to be seen, but the Longhorns will need to find a way to win without Quinn Ewers for at least the next month after the Lone Star State's darling went down with a clavicle injury early in a controversial loss to Alabama last weekend. While the team’s performance still prompted a move into the rankings for Texas, remaining among the top 25 will be no easy task as the Longhorns prepare to take on a pesky in-state foe in the form of UTSA.
The Roadrunners lost their opening game in a triple overtime thriller with Houston, then needed additional OT last weekend to defeat Army on the road. Quarterback Frank Harris has thrown for nearly 700 yards through two games while also serving as the team's leading rusher, and three of the offense's receivers already boast at least 13 receptions each on the season. UTSA's defense has played in a below-average fashion so far, but Harris and the “Meep Meeps” are at least good for a few scoring highlights.QB Frank Harris threw this DIME to tie it up at 14 @UTSAFTBL pic.twitter.com/Ky36R7fLMH
— CBS Sports Network (@CBSSportsNet) September 10, 2022 -
#13 Miami vs. #24 Texas A&M, 9:00 p.m. on ESPN
Jimbo Fisher could be under even greater scrutiny following this week if the Aggies lose their ranked status entirely after starting the season sixth overall in the AP poll and fielding the top recruiting class of the 2022 cycle. The Church of Johnny Football watched on in horror last week as Texas A&M lost 17-14 at home to Appalachian State, with the Aggies' offense flailing from the sideline for nearly three-quarters of the game while the Mountaineers possessed the ball for almost 41½ minutes.
Meanwhile, Miami has hardly faced anything close to a true test so far this season, but the post-turnover chain era of Hurricane football under Mario Cristobal certainly seems off to a productive start. The U already registered over 1,000 yards of total offense through two games on their way to outscoring their opponents 100-20, but today marks both the first road game and meeting with a Power 5 team on the Hurricanes’ 2022 schedule. However, given Texas A&M's time of possession woes, the Aggies may struggle against Miami’s tandem of tailbacks in Harry Parrish Jr. and Thaddius Franklin Jr., who have combined for over 400 total yards and seven touchdowns so far.
Saturday Night Fever
Photo: Stan Szeto | USA TODAY Sports
Fresno State vs. #7 USC, 10:30 p.m. on FOX
Just two games into his first season in Los Angeles, Lincoln Riley already has USC on its first winning streak since December of 2020. Stanford kept its meeting with the Trojans last week close through the first few drives, but Southern Cal gradually pulled away by a score of 41-14 entering the final quarter prior to the Cardinal registering a pair of garbage-time touchdowns. Jordan Addison – last year's Power 5 leader in receiving TDs – had a mammoth performance on USC's behalf that included seven catches for 172 yards and two scores.
JORDAN ADDISON GOES THE DISTANCE pic.twitter.com/sh62Bcomdl
— ESPN College Football (@ESPNCFB) September 11, 2022
As good as Caleb Williams has looked in a new uniform and his second season under Riley, the Trojans cannot quite claim the title of best passing offense in California midway through September. That honor goes to Fresno State as of this writing, with the Bulldogs currently averaging 360 passing yards per game through their first two contests – good for 9th overall among FBS teams.
The Mountain West hopefuls lost to Oregon State last week after the Beavers scored a go-ahead touchdown as time expired, but Fresno State still produced nearly 500 yards of total offense in defeat. Five Bulldog players have already caught at least seven passes, with the team's two leading receivers in Nikko Remigio and Jalen Cropper accounting for 15 receptions apiece.
Despite the passing production, quarterback Jake Haener has thrown only three touchdowns so far. However, the team's willingness to distribute the football evenly and effectively through the air figures to increase that total considerably as the season continues.
USC enters this end-of-day matchup as a 12-point favorite, but the over/under point total currently sits at a whopping 74 between both teams. Regardless of how competitive this game remains, the scoring figures to keep Midwestern audiences alert and awake well into Sunday morning.
On the Radar for Next Week
- Noon: #5 Clemson vs. #19 Wake Forest, 12 p.m. on ABC
- Afternoon: #18 Florida vs. #15 Tennessee, 3:30 p.m. on CBS
- Buckeyes: Wisconsin vs. #3 Ohio State, 7:30 p.m. on ABC
