The playoff picture is beginning to take shape. UCLA looks done. Perhaps the entire Pac-12 is. Florida State should coast to another undefeated season before the playoff, barring something finally landing on Jameis Winston. The Big XII should land its conference champion in the playoff if that team has no more than one loss.
The SEC may send two teams into the playoff since that's why the playoff was created in the first place.
This week's viewing guide feature will again provide wishful thinking for the optimistic Ohio State fan hoping the Buckeyes get a playoff berth. The honorary cover will be the most successful Rutgers alumnus in television from your parents' generation. Ozzie Nelson, of the pioneering The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet, was in Rutgers' class of 1927. He graduated from law school three years later at a Rutgers branch campus.
Our apologies before we begin to Texas State and Louisiana-Lafayette, which played Tuesday on ESPN2 before this feature could be penned. Louisiana-Lafayette won, 34-10.
Thursday
Virginia Tech at Pittsburgh (ESPN, 7:30 p.m.). Ohio State fans are accustomed to national media slamming the quality of the Big Ten. The hyperbole may be a bit much sometimes but it's not worth debating. The Big Ten is not just "not good"; many of its member programs are deliberately underachieving.
What is worth debating is why the Big Ten is an easy target for ridicule when the ACC is arguably worse. If not for Florida State being the defending national champion, the poor quality of the ACC should preclude an undefeated Seminoles team from the playoff. Florida State is not that great this year and it's the only good team in the entire 14-team conference.
Basically, there's a plausible path for all teams in the ACC Coastal (Virginia Tech and Pittsburgh's division) to finish 4-4 in conference play. The most plausible scenario for Coastalpocalypse would require a Hokies win tonight.
Utah at Oregon State (Pac-12 Network, 10 p.m.). Just a few weeks ago, Utah was a 3-1 team with three wins against awful teams (Michigan being one of them) and an inexplicable home loss to Washington State. An upset of a UCLA team in freefall and a bye later, it's the no. 20 team in the country. It visits perennial conference also-ran Oregon State on the Pac-12 Network tonight.
Friday
Fresno State at Boise State (ESPN, 8 p.m.). Friday night football will be two ignorable games that will best be used as white noise in your living room or at the bar. It starts with 4-2 Boise State hosting 3-4 Fresno State.
Temple at Houston (ESPNU, 9 p.m.). Temple's lone loss on the season was at home to Navy by a touchdown. I had to remind myself that this is a conference game now because of conference realignment. The American is less a conference and more of an orphanage.
Saturday
Baylor at West Virginia (FOX Sports 1, 12 p.m.). A week after being on death's doorstep against Texas Christian, a 24-point rally in the final 11 minutes of the game gave Baylor a win.
This will be used to support claims that Baylor is "tested" and "seasoned", but no one falls flatter in road games than the Bears. It may not against WVU, but it would be beneficial if it happened. The contest in Norman in a few weeks looms large.
Heisman finalist Collin Klein quarterbacked K-State to a 24-19 win in Norman in 2012.
Kansas State at Oklahoma (ESPN, 12 p.m.). This is a subtle gem of a Top 25 matchup. Kansas State is no. 14 and Oklahoma is no. 11. Kansas State's lone loss on the season was against Auburn.
The outcome of this game is largely inconsequential for the optimistic Ohio State fan thinking about the playoff. A loss does effectively eliminate Oklahoma, reducing them to a chaos team that could take down Baylor, though.
Still, Kansas State would become an issue for the Buckeyes should it win.
Iowa at Maryland (ESPN2, 12 p.m.). Maryland is coming off a bye while Iowa just played possibly the most anti-B1G game of the year last Saturday. Indiana tends to have that effect on teams.
Purdue at Minnesota (BTN, 12 p.m.). If the season ended today, Minnesota would be in the Big Ten Championship Game. Minnesota's dreams of Indianapolis may hit a wall later in the season. The Gophers' regular season ends with Senior Day against Ohio State and two road trips to Nebraska and Wisconsin.
For now, though, the schedule is inviting. Minnesota hosts Purdue, travels to lowly Illinois, and hosts Iowa. All three are winnable.
Furman at South Carolina (SEC Network, 12 p.m.). This is why ESPN thinks it's imperative for your cable provider to carry SEC Network. No SEC game against an FCS cupcake should be left behind on national television.
Texas A&M at Alabama (CBS, 3:30 p.m.). I don't think clarifying a rooting interest is necessary. Ohio State (and Michigan State, for that matter) need Alabama to lose at least one of its next six games. Alabama doesn't control its own destiny for the SEC Championship Game but, curiously, no team controls its destiny for a playoff berth quite like the Tide right now.
However, Texas A&M is young and was never the team we thought it was after a season-opening win at South Carolina. Ohio State fans should pray that Kenny Hill can channel the ghost of Johnny Football, who was phenomenal in that now legendary 2012 game between both programs.
Indiana and Michigan State play for something in which you spit tobacco (#B1G). Indiana last won it in 2006.
Michigan State at Indiana (ESPN, 3:30 p.m.). Michigan State's defense breaks every bad offense it encounters and Indiana's breaking in a new quarterback. No one would confuse Indiana for having a solid defense and Michigan State's offense may be the strength of the team.
The Old Brass Spittoon should stay in East Lansing after this one.
Rutgers at Ohio State (ABC/ESPN2, 3:30 p.m.). This is Ohio State's Homecoming game and your personal game of the week. Stay tuned to Eleven Warriors for more comprehensive coverage of this game.
UCLA at California (ABC/ESPN2, 3:30 p.m.). Long story short, this game will be on ABC if you live on the West Coast and I'm sure ABC has a whole heap of buyer's remorse right now in having this game on the schedule, given UCLA's past two games.
Clemson at Boston College (ESPNU, 3:30 p.m.). Clemson's freshman phenom quarterback will be out the next several weeks with a broken finger. The offense sputters without him. In fact, Clemson didn't score an offensive touchdown last week against Louisville.
Georgia at Arkansas (SEC Network, 4 p.m.). All aboard the Bertwagon. I mentioned this earlier this week, but Arkansas is your designated chaos team in the SEC and needs all your good wishes to realize its potential for mayhem in the SEC.
Oklahoma State at Texas Christian (FOX Sports 1, 4 p.m.). But for an epic fourth quarter collapse against Baylor, conceding 24 points in the final 11 minutes of the game, this becomes another vested rooting interest. Texas Christian already had a win over Oklahoma and hosts everyone else of consequence in the conference.
By the way, good for the Big XII to have two Top 25 games this week hidden on FOX Sports 1 this week.
Tennessee at Ole Miss (ESPN, 7 p.m.). Ole Miss, the no. 3 team in the country, should be considered presumptive favorites in every game it plays through the rest of the season. It also hosts Mississippi State in the Egg Bowl.
An upset for Butch Jones would be mighty swell, but it doesn't seem likely. The Vols' offense is 109th in the country. The Vols are also 0-2 in SEC play.
Georgia Tech at North Carolina (ESPNU, 7 p.m.). If you want Coastalpocalypse in the ACC, root for a North Carolina win.
Missouri at Florida (ESPN2, 7 p.m.). On ESPN2, it's the SEC team that lost to Indiana at home on the SEC Network against the team that needed three overtimes to beat Kentucky in Gainesville.
Nebraska at Northwestern (BTN, 7:30 p.m.). 5-1 Nebraska heads to resurgent Northwestern after a bye. Nebraska's last game was that weird loss in East Lansing.
For whatever reason, this series has been the most exciting for Nebraska since it joined the Big Ten in 2011. All games between the two since Nebraska joined the Big Ten have been decided by three points or less. The last one was won on a Hail Mary.
Kentucky at LSU (SEC Network, 7:30 p.m.). Kentucky has the better SEC record and overall record to this point. I'm sure everyone anticipated that.
That said, LSU is a tentative 11.5-point favorite. Vegas has no faith in #BBN.
Notre Dame at Florida State (ABC, 8 p.m.). The national game of the week has been in the cards for the past few weeks. Gameday will return to Tallahassee for this matchup between the no. 5 Irish and no. 2 Seminoles.
FSU last played Notre Dame in the 2011 Champs Sports Bowl, an 18-14 win for the Seminoles. Both teams were BCS bowl teams the next year.
I've said before that an undefeated Notre Dame team absolutely belongs in the playoff if that's the way it unfolds. The Irish schedule is formidable and a win in Tallahassee would be one of several signature wins for Brian Kelly in his fifth year at Notre Dame.
I don't think Notre Dame is a threat to Ohio State or Michigan State's playoff berths. If anything, this is an elimination game for the ACC. Notre Dame is an affiliate member of the conference and plays five ACC teams a year. Given the poor quality of the league, a loss is fatal for Florida State's playoff hopes.
Florida State has not looked the part of the reigning national champion who, in the preseason, was a double-digit favorite in all of its games this season. Leapfrogged in past weeks by Alabama and now Mississippi State, the Seminoles' secondary is not the smothering unit it was last year and the Noles can't run the ball effectively either (98th nationally).
This says nothing of Jameis Winston, whose status is an open question this game for a multitude of reasons. I've privately believed it was unlikely he would survive the season, for one reason or the other. Vegas seems to agree, taking the line for this game off the boards.
Having watched Florida State in person for that Clemson game, it was apparent to me that there is no way Florida State beats Notre Dame without him. With him, it's still a tall order. The Irish are talented.
Florida State is 5-2 all-time against Notre Dame with the first game coming in 1981. The two last played in the 2011 Champs Sports Bowl.
Iowa State at Texas (Longhorn Network, 8 p.m.). You can watch this game if you have like a $200 cable package from your provider.
Nevada at BYU (ESPN2, 10:15 p.m.). BYU went from undefeated season to hopeless in two weeks without Taysom Hill.
Stanford at Arizona State (ESPN, 10:30 p.m.). This is a Top 25 game that only the night owls on the East Coast will be awake to watch. Stanford still needs to find an offense, sitting at 85th nationally in total offense. Its defense (no. 2 in the country in total defense) will be challenged by the no. 7 total offense.
