Category Archives: On TV This Weekend

This Weekend in College Football: Week 2

This is going to be quick, as I’ve spent most the past eighteen hours traveling.

As usual, all times Eastern and all predictions wrong.

Noon:

  • Oklahoma @ Tulsa (ABC/ESPN2): Oklahoma.
  • Akron @ Pennsylvania State (ABC/ESPN2): Penn State.
  • Missouri @ Toledo (ESPN): Mizzou.
  • Kansas State @ Iowa State (FS1): Kansas State.
  • Central Michigan @ Purdue (ESPNEWS): Central Michigan?
  • Southern Methodist @ North Texas (FSN): SMU.
  • Buffalo @ Army (CBSS): Buffalo.
  • Western Kentucky @ Illinois (BTN): Illinois?
  • Florida Atlantic @ Alabama (SEC): Alabama.
  • Arkansas State @ Tennessee (SEC): Tennessee.

2:00: Alabama-Birmingham @ Mississippi State (SEC/FSN): Miss State.

3:00: Fresno State @ Utah (Pac12): Utah?

3:30:

  • Southern California @ Stanford (ABC): Stanford?
  • Ball State @ Iowa (ESPN2): Iowa.
  • Ohio @ Kentucky (ESPNU): Kentucky.
  • Maryland @ South Florida (CBSS): Maryland?

4:00:

  • Georgia Tech @ Tulane (ESPNEWS): This is a bit of a tough call. It’s the first home game in over three decades for the Green Wave, who are moving out of the cavernous Superdome and back into a proper stadium. It’s also tough because we didn’t exactly cover ourselves in glory last week against Wofford, with a sluggish start that lasted for the entire first half. There’s some questions for this team, and I suspect there will be some answers from this game.
  • Eastern Michigan @ Florida (SEC): Florida.

4:30: Mississippi @ Vanderbilt (@Nashville, TN; ESPN): I figured all week there was some Cinderella metaphor where, with James Franklin leaving representing the clock hitting midnight and turning back into a pumpkin and stuff, but I’m super exhausted so I’m not sure how I was going to really tie it together. Either way, Ole Miss.

6:30: Michigan State @ Oregon (FOX): Oregon?

7:00:

  • San Jose State @ Auburn (ESPN2): Auburn.
  • East Carolina @ South Carolina (ESPNU): South Carolina?
  • Arizona State @ New Mexico (CBSS): Arizona State.

7:30:

  • Michigan @ Notre Dame (NBC): Notre Dame?
  • Brigham Young @ Texas (FS1): Texas.

8:00:

  • Virginia Tech @ Ohio State (ESPN): Ohio State?
  • San Diego State @ North Carolina (ESPNEWS): North Carolina.

10:00: Memphis @ California-Los Angeles (Pac12): UCLA.

10:15:

  • Colorado State @ Boise State (ESPN2): Boise State.
  • Air Force @ Wyoming (ESPNU): Air Force?

10:30: Oregon State @ Hawaii (CBSS): Oregon State.

11:00: Texas Tech @ Texas-El Paso (FS1): Texas Tech?

This Weekend in College Football: Week 1

As usual, all times Eastern and all predictions wrong.

Saturday
8:30: Pennsylvania State vs. Central Florida (@Dublin, Ireland; ESPN2):

 INT.  TWO COLLEGE FOOTBALL FANS ARE SITTING ON OPPOSITE ENDS OF A COUCH. THEY ARE STILL WEARING BATHROBES. BOWLS OF CEREAL AND OTHER QUICK BREAKFAST FOOD SIT IN FRONT THEM.
 
FAN #1
Oh hey, wasn’t UCF actually kind of good last year?
FAN #2
Yeah, but they had Blake Bortles.
FAN #1
Do they still have Blake Bortles?
FAN #2
No, he got drafted.
FAN #1 
Wait, the peacetime draft is back? Thanks, Ob—
FAN #2
No. The NFL Draft. He was the third overall pick.
FAN #1
Behind Teddy Bridgewater and Johnny Manziel?
FAN #2
Nope.
FAN #1
Oh. So I guess he was probably pretty good then.
FAN #2
Yeah, pretty much.
FAN #1
 I guess I’m going with Penn State in this one, then.

Noon:

  • California-Los Angeles @ Virginia (ESPN): And so begins the “Mike London is So Fired” watch. This should give the hands a good shove toward “so very, very fired”, but not quite all the way there.
  • Appalachian State @ Michigan (ESPN2): Would it absolutely wonderful if Appalachian State won again? Yes, yes it would be. Will it happen? No, probably not.
  • North Dakota State @ Iowa State (FS1): Iowa State. Er, wait, didn’t NDSU beat Kansas State last year en route to a 15-0 season and the FCS national title? In that case, well, I like NDSU odds better than Appy State’s.
  • Western Michigan @ Purdue (ESPNU): I’d like to think that even Purdue could win this game, but life is full of uncertainty. (These two teams combined to go 2-22 last year.)
  • Indiana State @ Indiana (ESPNEWS): Hoosiers. (Did you know Indiana State are the Sycamores, though? And did you know Larry Bird went there? Just saying.)
  • Ohio State vs. Navy (@Baltimore, MD; CBSS): As fun as it would be to see Navy do their thing to the Buckeyes, it just doesn’t seem in the cards, Braxton Miller or no.
  • Tennessee-Martin @ Kentucky (SEC): Kentucky.
  • Northern Iowa @ Iowa (BTN): Iowa. Well, probably. They’ve messed this up before.
  • Youngstown State @ Illinois (BTN): Illinois.
  • Troy @ Alabama-Birmingham (FCS): It’s the Little Iron Bowl! I’m pretty sure no one calls it that, but hey, you take what you can get from these sorts of games. I’ll go with Troy.

12:30:

  • Georgia Southern @ North Carolina State (ACC): NC State… probably.
  • Wofford @ Georgia Tech (ACC): It’s been a bit of a rough offseason for Tech. Attrition, injuries, etc. This game, if nothing else, will serve as a useful yardstick for how the offseason might have affected the team, and what we might see going forward this year.

3:30:

  • Rice @ Notre Dame (NBC): Wait, isn’t Notre Dame the team that’s always going to Ireland to play American Football games? Why is it Penn State this year? Well, Penn State and UCF, but that doesn’t really help it make any more sense.
  • West Virginia vs. Alabama (@Atlanta, GA; ABC/ESPN2): It’s hard to see how the Mountaineers have much of a shot in this. Even calling it “much of a shot” might be a bit generous.
  • California @ Northwestern (ABC/ESPN2): No team seemed to be as affected by one loss as last year’s Northwestern. Rising to #16 and playing at home, they lost by 10 at home to Ohio State. From there, they lost seven straight games, including wrenchingly close losses to teams like Minnesota and Iowa that cost them bowl eligibility. Of course, the question is whether this Northwestern team is still mostly okay, and more importantly, whether they’re still better than Cal. My guess is yes.
  • South Dakota State @ Missouri (ESPNU): Missouri.
  • Florida Atlantic @ Nebraska (BTN): Nebraska.
  • James Madison @ Maryland (BTN): Maryland.

4:00:

  • William and Mary @ Virginia Tech (ESPNEWS): Virginia Tech (but see the Iowa caveat above).
  • Arkansas @ Auburn (SEC): More stupidly early conference games to satisfy TV, ahoy! Hopefully Arkansas is the entertaining sort of terrible they’re capable of being and not the more milquetoast sort of terrible they’re currently more poised to be.
  • Portland State @ Oregon State (Pac12): Oregon State.
  • California-Davis @ Stanford (Pac12): Stanford.

5:30: Clemson @ Georgia (ESPN): Both these teams have lost a key players on the offensive side of the ball, with both starting quarterbacks gone. However, Georgia still returns a large chunk of their offensive production while Clemson replaces almost all their skill players. I reluctantly have to go with UGA in this one.

7:00:

  • Idaho @ Florida (ESPNU): Florida.
  • Northern Arizona @ San Diego State (CBSS): San Diego State.

7:30:

  • Fresno State @ Southern California (FOX): It’s a rematch of literally the last game these two teams played. Helpfully, USC won easily, which makes this one also easy.
  • Southern Mississippi @ Mississippi State (SEC): Miss State.

8:00:

  • Oklahoma State vs. Florida State (@Arlington, TX; ABC): It’s the game of the year of the week! That said, how do you pick against the defending national champs that still have their dynamic, Heisman winning quarterback?
  • North Carolina Central @ East Carolina (ESPNEWS): ECU. (There’s a reason why I don’t ordinarily list these games.)

9:00: Louisiana State vs. Wisconsin (@Houston, TX; ESPN): I already used this in my OOC schedule preview, but dammit I really need to wrap this up, so: it’s hard to imagine two fanbases more broadly similar yet utterly different than Wisconsin and LSU. Obviously, every college football tailgater likes drinking (well, except maybe BYU fans), that’s not in dispute. Many of them also like eating. But I really feel like there could be some good inter-sectional bonding in the parking lots of Reliant Stadium (well, provided they don’t ban tailgating like at Levi’s Stadium), or at least some Midwesterners discovering the wonders of andouille. Also, LSU is probably going to win.

10:30:

  • Washington @ Hawaii (CBSS): Washington.
  • South Dakota @ Oregon (Pac12): Oregon.

Sunday
7:00: Utah State @ Tennessee (SEC): Sunday college football, for what I’m going to assume is the only time this year. I’m going to wearily pick the Vols here.

7:30: Southern Methodist @ Baylor (FS1): As noted in my OOC schedule previews, I am enthusiastic about the continued Southwest Conference rematches. I’m somewhat less enthusiastic about the Mustangs’ chances, though.

Monday
8:00: Miami @ Louisville (ESPN): Frankly, it’s hard to give Louisville much of a shot here in their ACC debut. They did not exactly excel in the depleted remnants of the Big East last year, and Miami returns a singular talent in Duke Johnson. It’s difficult to see how the Cardinals will keep up.

This Weekend in College Football: Week 16

Yep, it’s week 16. Why 16? Well, there was an extra week due to the calendar this year, which why teams had two bye weeks during the season.

Quick note: I won’t cover them here, but several more FCS playoff games are available online, including Eastern Washington’s blood-red field.

As usual, all times Eastern and all predictions wrong.

Noon: Coastal Carolina @ North Dakota State (NCAA Division I Quarterfinal; ESPN): North Dakota State is undefeated on the season, and it hasn’t really been close. Of the two games decided by less than a touchdown, one was the win over Kansas State and the other to fellow FCS power (though they had a down year this year) Northern Iowa. The Chanticleers of Coastal Carolina were also pretty dominant, but they did lose a game to a non-FCS opponent (South Carolina) and well I’m going with the Bison.

3:00: Army vs. Navy (@Philadelphia, PA; CBS): The 2nd and 3rd ranked rushing attacks in the country meet again, so don’t expect a lot of passing. That said, Navy was simply the better team on the year. Army struggled against other teams with strong rushing attacks (Boston College and Air Force) and in general their three wins were over some really lousy teams. It’s hard to see the USMA’s losing streak ending this year.

This Weekend in College Football: Week 15

It’s championship week!

As usual, all times Eastern and all predictions wrong.

Thursday
7:30: Louisville @ Cincinnati (ESPN): A season of “what-ifs” for the Cardinals should wrap up with a win over Cincinnati.

Friday
8:00: Northern Illinois vs. Bowling Green (Mid-American Conference Championship @ Detroit, MI; ESPN2): Bowling Green currently sports the country’s 5th ranked scoring defense. However, it will take a Herculean effort on their part to stand-up to darkhorse Heisman candidate QB Jordan Lynch and his Huskies. (In their last game against Western Michigan, Lynch ran for 321 yards on 27 carries. That’s 11.9 yards/carry. Yeah.) NIU should be able to secure a second consecutive trip to the promised land.

Saturday
12:00:

  • Oklahoma @ Oklahoma State (ABC): Against any team that has a pulse on defense, Oklahoma’s offense has struggled, leading directly to their two losses (the disaster against Texas and the debacle against Baylor). Oklahoma State shredded the two teams Oklahoma lost to, putting up an average 43.5 points while giving up 30 (or an average of 15). Frankly, Oklahoma State looks like the better team at this point.
  • Central Florida @ Southern Methodist (ESPN): UCF has sealed the deal, so this is just the cherry on top. It would also deny SMU a bowl bid.
  • Marshall @ Rice (Conference USA Championship Game; ESPN2): Marshall appears to be a good team, in all honestly. I’m going with the Thundering Herd here. Will be interesting to see how many show up at the Rice Bowl, though.

3:30: Texas @ Baylor (FOX): Baylor’s struggled in recent weeks with injuries and depth made me pause for a moment, but just for a moment. Going with the Bears here, in what will be the Big 12 championship if Oklahoma State loses.

4:00: Auburn vs. Missouri (Southeastern Conference Championship @ Atlanta, GA; CBS): Both of these teams bring dynamic offenses into the table. Missouri is slightly better on defense, and also James Franklin is a vastly better passer than Nick Marshall. Overall, I think Mizzou is a more well-rounded team and can pull this one out in the end.

7:30: South Florida @ Rutgers (ESPN2): Neither of these teams is very good, but Rutgers should be able to make it to 6-6 with a win against a slightly more awful USF.

7:45: Stanford @ Arizona State (Pac-12 Championship; ESPN): One on hand, this is easy, given that Stanford already trounced the Sun Devils back in September. But on the other, Arizona State is awesome at home and they haven’t lost since October 5th. Both of these teams are very good and this could very well be the best game of the day. But, in the end, I’ve got the Cardinal here. If they lose, though, one could definitely see the Pac-12 pushing of a neutral site title game.

8:00:

  • Michigan State vs. Ohio State (Big Ten Championship @ Indianapolis, IN; FOX): Michigan is the first team all year that came within 10 points of beating the Buckeyes, and while I agree that going for two was probably the right call, they were potentially an overtime away from taking their first loss. Meanwhile, the Spartans have a loss, and due to their style of play, several more close games. Their defense should provide the stiffest test for the Buckeyes so far, but unclear that even if Sparty holds the Buckeyes to 21 points that it’ll be enough.
  • Florida State vs. Duke (Atlantic Coast Conference Championship @ Charlotte, NC; ABC): I would be shocked if this ends in anything other than a rout.

10:00: Utah State @ Fresno State (Mountain West Conference Championship; CBS): Fresno gets a week to try to pick up the pieces of a broken season after their shocking loss to San Jose State. Their defense let them down, but still the unit on the field with the highest potential to carry the day is David Carr and the Fresno State offense.

This Weekend in College Football: Week 14

As usual, all times Eastern and predictions wrong.

Noon:

  • Ohio State @ Michigan (ABC): Michigan isn’t disaster at this point simply because Florida still makes them look good. Ohio State should win easily.
  • Florida State @ Florida (ESPN): Whoops!

    So … Georgia Southern’s passing downs success rate was higher than Florida’s. GS didn’t complete a pass.
    — Bill Connelly (@SBN_BillC) November 26, 2013

    So yeah, not feeling good about UF’s chances here.

  • Duke @ North Carolina (ESPN2): I hate Duke so much. I also hate all the teams that managed to lose to Duke for no apparent reason after Georgia Tech went and dismantled them. I don’t have a very good idea who is going to win this game because I don’t think Duke is that good, but Carolina has been pretty not… great this year. I’m begrudgingly picking Duke.
  • Kansas State @ Kansas (FS1): Kansas is still awful, K-State rolls.
  • Temple @ Memphis (ESPNEWS): I’ll take Memphis’s three wins over Temple’s one.
  • Rutgers @ Connecticut (ESPNU): Again, I’ll take the five win team (Rutgers) over the one win team.
  • Minnesota @ Michigan State (BTN): It’s hard to see how things get any easier for Minnesota’s 70th-ranked offense against Michigan State’s defense of death.
  • Wake Forest @ Vanderbilt (SEC): Vandy is the superior team here.

12:30: Maryland @ North Carolina State (ACC): Maryland isn’t very good, but NC State is worse, so…

2:00: Colorado @ Utah (Pac12): Utah has lost five straight games since beating Stanford, making that game even more inexplicable. Despite this, they still appear to be more solid than Colorado.

2:30: North Texas @ Tulsa (FSN): North Texas should put an end to one of college football’s most disappointing outfits this season.

3:00: Brigham Young @ Nevada (CBSS): Nevada struggled much of the year before their upset last week over San Jose State. BYU had a wrenching loss to Notre Dame, but despite these factors, BYU is the better team.

3:30:

  • Georgia @ Georgia Tech (ABC): Once again, we need play basically flawlessly. Everything has to go right for us and bad for them. But, above all: To Hell With Georgia.
  • Alabama @ Auburn (CBS): This should be a great time, for a time. Alabama, though, is just too good, too efficient. Auburn’s strides since last season are nearly amazing, but I think this game will show how far they still have to go.
  • Pennsylvania State @ Wisconsin (ESPN): Wisconsin should roll as per usual.
  • Baylor @ Texas Christian (ESPN2): Baylor should be able to regain their mojo against a struggling TCU team.
  • Virginia Tech @ Virginia (ESPNU): UVA is awful, but that hasn’t stopped VPI from taking bad losses so far this season. That said, UVA is one of the few teams with a worse offense statistically than VPI’s, so they should be okay in this one.
  • Purdue @ Indiana (BTN): Once again, I’ll take Indiana’s four wins against Purdue’s single win.
  • Boston College @ Syracuse (ACC/FSN): Syracuse needs this win for bowl eligibility, but I just don’t think they’ll get it.

4:00: Iowa State @ West Virginia (FS1): These teams are evenly matched. That’s not really a good thing for WVU, who probably did not hire Dana Holgersen to run the nation’s 90th ranked scoring offense. Does Holgo still have the mojo to beat Iowa State? It’s probably going to be closer than many WVU fans would like.

7:00:

  • Notre Dame @ Stanford (FOX): The nation’s 75th ranked offense will be getting no favors from Stanford’s defense. The Tree should roll, much like a log rolling downhill.
  • Clemson @ South Carolina (ESPN2): I think Clemson is the better team here. However, that doesn’t mean I feel great about their chances. The ACC will almost certainly get two teams into the BCS first for the time ever if Clemson and Florida State win. More importantly for Clemson fans, they’ve lost four straight in this one. This is their best chance to overturn it so far.
  • Tennessee @ Kentucky (ESPNU): Tennessee’s motto at this point could well be “well, at least we’re not Kentucky”.

7:45: Texas Agricultural and Mechanical @ Missouri (ESPN): TAMU has lost three games this year, and I think it’s about to become four, and it’s almost entirely because of their awful defense.

8:00: California-Los Angeles @ Southern California (ABC): Call me crazy, but I’m actually calling this for USC. Southern Cal and DACOACHO have started to play like, well, Southern Cal. Meanwhile, after failing to upset either of the Pac-12’s top two teams, losing to Arizona State last week killed any chance for the preseason Pac-12 South favorites.

9:30: Arizona @ Arizona State (Pac12): Arizona’s out-of-nowhere upset followed losses to UCLA and Wazzou. I like the Sun Devils, but these teams actually look pretty evenly matched. This one could be interesting.

10:15: New Mexico @ Boise State (ESPN2): This one, less so. Boise should roll.

10:30: San Diego State @ Nevada-Las Vegas (ESPNU): And finally, a day that is bound to be gut-wrenching for many wraps up with a little affair out in Vegas. At stake in this Mountain West clash? Not much, due to the Aztech’s overtime loss to Fresno back in October. This should be close, at least for a bit, but SDSU should prevail.