With Ohio State kicking off at noon, let's take a look at a host of college football matchups from around the country we’ll have our eyes on this Saturday.
Nooners
Photo: Alicia Devine | Tallahassee Democrat, USA TODAY Network
#14 Syracuse vs. #5 Clemson, 12 p.m. on ABC
The noon window stands thankfully slim alongside Ohio State's game with Iowa today, so Buckeye fans will not have to worry about missing much whether or not the Hawkeyes put out a competitive effort. That said, there is a meeting between two undefeated teams coinciding with kickoff in Columbus that could make for an intriguing channel-flip option should Brian Ferentz' offense fail to keep matters interesting.
Clemson and Syracuse will meet in South Carolina today for what could be a defining game in the race for the ACC Atlantic. This is the final ranked opponent the Tigers have on their schedule at the moment, which means the Orange could be the most difficult hurdle remaining in the regular season for Dabo Swinney's squad on their quest to return to the College Football Playoff.
'Cuse has quietly crept into the AP Top 15 with solid performances on both sides of the football, although their strength of schedule to this point ranks among the bottom 20 nationwide. Prior to a 24-9 upset over North Carolina State last weekend, their best win arguably was a victory over Purdue in Week 3 (the Viewing Guide's Wildcard of the Week) that required a go-ahead touchdown pass from 25 yards out with seven seconds remaining.
However, Clemson has had their own moments of terror as well recently. The Tigers went on a 34-7 run against Florida State last week after allowing the Seminoles to score the opening touchdown, but then nearly allowed FSU to pull off a fourth quarter comeback after failing to record any points in the final 22½ minutes of the game. Even so, D.J. Uiagalelei continues to operate the offense in a much more impressive fashion than what he demonstrated a year ago.
Well, this is just a beautiful play by D.J. Uiagalelei--
— Clemson Sports (@ClemsonSports) October 16, 2022
Maneuver in the pocket
Drop a dime#CollegeFootball #CFB #Clemson pic.twitter.com/QYqaTRyjjn
Syracuse head coach Dino Babers currently projects as one of the favorites for the Eddie Robinson Coach of the Year award. A win on the road today would go a long way towards not only securing that honor, but also the Orange's first appearance ever in the ACC Championship game.
Afternooners
Photo: Kiyoshi Mio | USA TODAY Sports
Two Ranked Showdowns and Two Battles in the Bayou
After the Ohio State faithful finish singing Carmen Ohio, the rest of the day in college football includes a variety of contests across the country worthy of observation. A matchup between two AP Top 10 teams, the first of two clashes today featuring top-25 schools in the Big 12, and a couple of kickoffs in Louisiana all plan to commence after the victory bell sounds in the southeast tower of Ohio Stadium this afternoon.
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#9 UCLA vs. #10 Oregon, 3:30 p.m. on FOX
Chip Kelly left Oregon in 2013, but in his two trips back to his old stomping grounds since returning to the college ranks from the NFL, the Ducks' former head coach has emerged unsuccessful each time. The last two seasons in particular, UCLA has fallen short to Oregon by only a field goal. Now operating with arguably the best team of his Bruins tenure and coming off a bye week, Kelly enters the familiar territory of Eugene more eager than ever to exact revenge on his former employer and firmly establish UCLA's run for a College Football Playoff.
For those that have not had the pleasure of watching Bruins quarterback Dorian Thompson-Robinson yet, today serves as the perfect opportunity. DTR has completed nearly 75% of his passes this season while scoring 21 total touchdowns, which has helped UCLA towards owning the top success rate on passing plays at 58.3% across all FBS teams.
The Ducks' passing defense is one of only 20 giving up at least 275 yards through the air per game across the first half of the season, which means Bo Nix and the rest of Oregon's offense will have to bring their A-game in what figures to be a high-scoring affair.OOOHH MY, TAKE A BOW LOYA
— FOX College Football (@CFBONFOX) October 8, 2022
cc: @UCLAFootball pic.twitter.com/qWpXeE1vJf
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#20 Texas vs. #11 Oklahoma State, 3:30 p.m. on ABC
Could Quinn Ewers have Texas on the path to a Big 12 title? Love him or hate him, the former mangiest mullet in Columbus may very well have the Longhorns on a trajectory towards a conference championship with the team's three most important games remaining set to take place in the next four weeks. Ewers will lead off Texas' late run for postseason glory with a trip to Stillwater today to take on Oklahoma State.
The Cowboys are coming off a heartbreaking double-overtime loss to TCU last weekend that included them blowing a two-touchdown lead entering the fourth quarter. Horned Frogs star Max Duggan only threw two scores through the air in the winning effort, but Texas will likely need to lean on Ewers much more heavily against an Oklahoma State defense that has faced the fourth-most passing plays per game this season from its opponents.
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#7 Ole Miss vs. LSU, 3:30 p.m. on CBS
☣ H A Z A R D ☣ W A R N I N G ☣
To the surprise of many, Lane Kiffin currently boasts an undefeated team late into October of the college football season. Perhaps more surprisingly, LSU enters this game as the betting favorites on the strength of home field advantage and zero losses in divisional play thus far.
But of the afternoon games already mentioned, this matchup is probably the one most worth skipping. Neither of these teams offer the blistering passing offenses both schools have built their reputations upon in recent seasons, instead leaning on efficient rushing attacks to generate most of their scoring success. However, the Rebels average nearly 100 more yards on the ground per game than the Tigers, so in a battle between two teams that favor running the football, an uneventful underdog victory seems more than likely.
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Memphis vs. #25 Tulane, 3:30 p.m. on ESPN2
For those that absolutely need to watch a game in the Pelican State today, give the Green Wave a chance rather than lending any eyeballs to Brian Kelly. Tulane broke into the AP Top 25 last Sunday for the first time since 1998 and currently sits at first place in the American Athletic Conference. The Green Wave so far own road wins over likes of Houston and Kansas State while operating a dynamic offense led by the efforts of running back Tyjae Spears — already posting over 650 total yards and nine touchdowns this season.
Meanwhile, Memphis has scored at least 30 points in five of its last six games, most recently losing 47-45 in a shootout to East Carolina last weekend. The Tigers have done relatively well defending the run thus far in 2022, so Spears will need to play his best game yet if Tulane wants to enjoy its return to the polls for longer than just one week.Shoutout #75 on Tulane, after clearing the rushing lane, he celebrates 6 with Tyjae Spears still 60 yards out. pic.twitter.com/YUBesYO5vV
— Cam Mellor (@CamMellor) October 15, 2022
Primetime
Photo: Randy Sartin | USA TODAY Sports
Another Pair of Top-25 Matchups and the Wildcard of the Week
Round out Saturday with an evening slate of college football, which includes the final two of five meetings today between ranked schools and another intriguing game in the AAC.
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#24 Mississippi State vs. #6 Alabama, 7:00 p.m. on ESPN
Hell hath no fury like a Saban scorned. The Crimson Tide may have lost to an SEC East opponent last week for the first time in the regular season since 2010, but Alabama remains very much alive in the pursuit for another divisional crown and appearance in the conference championship game. A first loss to Tennessee in over a decade and a half may be exactly what the Tide needed to light a fire under them.
Of course, Bama's not the only team looking to bounce back. Mike Leech and Mississippi State came up short against Kentucky on the road a week ago, and now the Bulldogs will need an even bigger win away from home if they want to avoid dropping out of the AP Top 25 entirely. Should Leech's team desire to do so, his run defense will need to step up after allowing UK's lead halfback to rush for nearly 200 yards. That will be easier said than done against the Crimson Tide given not only do they have six players with at least 140 yards on the ground this season, but rushing leader Jahmyr Gibbs is also closing in on a thousand total yards of offense.
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UCF vs. East Carolina, 7:30 p.m. on ESPNU
W I L D C A R D of the W E E K
Those that spurned the Power 5 contests earlier in the afternoon in favor of Memphis and Tulane may enjoy doubling down with a second dose of AAC football. UCF sits at second in the conference just behind the Green Wave at the moment, largely due to the efforts of former Ole Miss quarterback John Rhys Plumlee, who currently leads the team in both passing and rushing yards. He also as a penchant for hurdling defenders that would make Josh Allen blush.
The Golden Knights travel to East Carolina as favorites, which makes the Pirates surprising home underdogs coming off their aforementioned thrilling win over Memphis last week. These two teams are both excellent at defending each other's offensive strengths while more conciliatory towards corresponding weaknesses, lending to what should be a competitive night along with the current over/under projection of 63½ points.JOHN RHYS PLUMLEE MY GOODNESS @UCF_Football pic.twitter.com/YuGQ98Xt7B
— CBS Sports Network (@CBSSportsNet) September 18, 2022
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#17 Kansas State vs. #8 TCU, 8 p.m. on FS1
Speaking of run-friendly quarterbacks, Adrian Martinez and Kansas State have had a bye week to prepare for what has suddenly become a key game in the race to the Big 12 Championship. The former Nebraska quarterback still has more than twice as many touchdowns on the ground as he does through the air this season. However, Martinez is coming off his most productive passing game of the year so far against Iowa State and already knocked off one top-10 team on the road within the last five weeks when Kansas State upset Oklahoma in Norman.
As for TCU, the Horned Frogs recently managed to scrape out a win over Oklahoma State in overtime last Saturday to stay undefeated. This will be their fourth straight game against a ranked opponent going back to their own win over the Sooners on the first day of October. While Max Duggan has served admirably at quarterback throughout the 2022 campaign, his team's ability to stop the run has proven far more exploitable to this point than the Wildcats' pass defense. Given the Horned Frogs gave up over six yards per carry and two rushing scores to a quarterback last weekend, Martinez should have ample opportunities to keep Kansas State in this game and TCU on its toes.
On the Radar for Next Week
- Buckeyes: #2 Ohio State vs. #16 Penn State, 12 p.m. on FOX
- Afternoon: Florida vs. #1 Georgia, 3:30 p.m. on CBS
- Primetime: #19 Kentucky vs. #3 Tennessee, 7 p.m. on ESPN
