With Ohio State kicking off early today, here are a host of other college football matchups from around the country we have our eyes on this Saturday.
Nooners
Photo: Bryan Terry | The Oklahoman
#6 Oklahoma vs. #21 Texas, 12 p.m. on ABC
Oklahoma has played the survive and advance game all season going back to their opener a month ago that saw them barely hold off an 18-point 4th quarter comeback attempt from Tulane. The Sooners remain undefeated at the moment, but their College Football Playoff hopes remain on shaky ground as they face a Texas team today thirsty for its first Red River Shootout win in three years.
The Longhorns enter this game on a three game winning streak (all over in-state schools) after they were upset by an at-the-time unranked Arkansas squad in Week 2. Their offense goes through arguably the most talented running back in the country in Bijan Robinson — a preseason All-American with over 800 total yards of offense to his name already and nine touchdowns to match. Most recently versus TCU last weekend, Robinson carried the ball 35 times for over 200 yards and two scores.
Bijan Robinson is explosive w/ quick cod!
— Damian Parson (@DP_NFL) October 8, 2021
Slow too, fast through.
He presses the gap before a quick jump-cut. He drops weight & leans forward to lessen the strike zone.
He has an innate ability to string together cuts. Changes directions w/ ease! pic.twitter.com/PRjD1vr3TY
Oklahoma's run defense currently grades out very well as a top 20 unit for both opponent rushing yards per attempt and game. Their defensive line ranks among the top 40 in four of the six rushing statistics that Football Outsiders tracks for linemen. Robinson did find a bit of resistance from Arkansas in his team's sole loss this season, so the talented sophomore will no doubt have an uphill battle to fight in Dallas.
The key to the Longhorns taking down the Sooners will likely be their passing game. Since switching to quarterback Casey Thompson, Texas' offense has looked far more dynamic and presents much more of an aerial threat than it did a few weeks ago. Oklahoma's passing defense ranks outside the top 100 for opponent completion percentage, passing yards, and passing first downs per game; which means Thompson presents the best path to victory for the folks in burnt orange.
Considering that Oklahoma went on to beat Texas in the Big 12 Championship in 2018, the Longhorns haven't truly gotten one over on their rival since 2015. Facing a Sooners squad today that has won four games over unranked FBS opponents by single digits, this could be a ripe opportunity for Steve Sarkisian to steal the heart of Austin early on in his tenure.
#13 Arkansas vs. #17 Ole Miss, 12 p.m. on ESPN
The two latest teams to serve as cannon fodder to the two top teams in the nation will face each other this week to decide which gets to deal with a two game losing streak. There may have been two too many twos and to's in that last sentence. That one, too.
The Razorbacks were riding a wave of momentum into their meeting with Georgia last week, then got bulldozed and shutout to the tune of a 37-0 road loss. Lane Kiffin and Ole Miss fared slightly better against Alabama, but fell behind 28-0 in the first half to effectively put the game out of reach early on. Kiffin probably regrets telling the home viewers to get their popcorn ready.
This feels.. purposeful? pic.twitter.com/DfI1HVEgCc
— Jamie Erdahl Buckman (@JamieErdahl) October 2, 2021
The Rebels' resume this season includes FBS wins over Louisville and Tulane. Their garbage time performance against the Crimson Tide last weekend hardly inspires confidence such as that of their opponents after impressive Razorback wins over Texas and Texas A&M.
Because Georgia rushed the ball 56 times last weekend and only attempted 11 passes the entire game, Arkansas' already elite pass defense improved their rankings to an even greater level despite the loss. Woo Pig Sooie wants to get their season back on track heading into an SEC West showdown with Alabama next month, so don't expect any mic drops from Kiffin this week.
Afternooners
Photo: Scott Taetsch | USA TODAY Sports
#4 Penn State vs. #3 Iowa, 4 p.m. on FOX
I went into detail about this game a bit already in the Eleven Warriors Roundtable this week with Andy, Chris, and Kevin. This will likely end up being the highest-profile matchup between Big Ten teams in 2021 unless Michigan and Ohio State run the table into the end of November.
With the Nittany Lions and Hawkeyes both featuring exceptional defense, the points figure to come at a premium in this one. Penn State seems to have the slightly more dynamic offense, but their two leaders in rushing attempts are each averaging only 3.3 yards per carry or less.
Iowa leads the country in turnover ratio and has a passing defense that boasts a top 20 surrendered-completion percentage to opponents (54.82%). If Sean Clifford has trouble connecting with Jahan Dotson and his other skill players, it's unlikely that he and running back Noah Cain will be able to find momentum for their offense on the ground.
James Franklin's team has exceeded expectations to start the season, and his team would probably be favored to win were this game in Happy Valley. But Iowa's environment is among the most challenging to play in for any visiting Big Ten team, and Kirk Ferentz will look to keep steadily guiding his best unit in nearly two decades to postseason glory.
I love Kirk Ferentz, man. #Hawkeyes pic.twitter.com/7SIjWbmWWg
— Cody Hills (@ByCodyHills) September 12, 2021
UConn vs. UMass, 3:30 p.m.
These two teams have already lost 11 times combined this season and have yet to record a win between the two of them. That makes this a game worth keeping an eye on, but there is no broadcast available for a reason.
Even so, one could say this event has had quite an amount of build-up. It remains to be seen how long the minutemen last in this one.
UConn's offense has rebounded a bit from their historically bad start that included a 136-0 FBS scoring drought, but their team overall remains supremely bad in the current landscape of college football. Today's game will likely be the Huskies' best remaining shot at a win against an FBS opponent this season — as their final three contests will see them face Clemson, UCF, and Houston.
Primetime
Photo: Scott Clause | USA TODAY Network
Wyoming vs. Air Force, 7 p.m. on CBSSN
W I L D C A R D of the W E E K
It would be cruel to recommend a game not available for viewing as the Eleven Warriors Wildcard of the Week™ two weeks in a row. Instead, here's a game that features a still-undefeated Wyoming team taking on an Air Force offense that runs one of the most sophisticated triple-option schemes in college football.
The Cowboys have a nicely balanced attack that averages roughly 180 yards through the air and ground each per game. They had an extremely underwhelming performance against UConn two weeks ago back when the Huskies were waddling in historically bad territory, but made use of a bye week to prepare for the Falcons and build off the successes of their first three out-of-conference wins.
Despite a close loss to Utah State a few weeks ago, Air Force have been running wild through the opening part of the college football season. The Falcons easily lead the FBS in both rushing attempts and yards per game, while their offense trots out five players with over 20 rushing attempts each so far that all average over 5.5 yards per carry. Five players on Air Force have already scored multiple rushing touchdowns this season.
All the way @DeAndreHughes21 with his first career touchdown! pic.twitter.com/NPb924E54y
— Air Force Football (@AF_Football) October 3, 2021
The primetime slate is unusually slim this week, so do not be afraid to give a chance to this showdown between two teams currently at the peak of the Mountain West.
LSU vs. #16 Kentucky, 7:30 p.m. on SECN
The wheels have come off in Baton Rouge. Perhaps Philly McCord or Kombucha Quinn will transfer to LSU and become the latest Buckeye to guide the Tigers back to the College Football Playoff, but the days of Joey Franchise are long gone down in Louisiana.
Ed Orgeron — already off a letdown campaign last season and swirling in Title IX controversy — is staring down a .500 record this evening opposite a Kentucky team that pulled off a terrific upset over Florida last week. For all the grief the Gators have gotten, they remain the only team to truly show Alabama any resistance this season. Not saying the Wildcats would give the Crimson Tide a thrill in the SEC Championship game, but transitive property as well as the eye test would indicate the Wildcats and recent Nebraska transfer Wandale Robinson are no joke.
'
— Football University (@FBUcamp) October 2, 2021
Wan'Dale sits multiple Gators down on the way to the endzone!
All tied up in Lexington.@FBU_NC pic.twitter.com/6SMoJrSnTI
LSU's pass defense currently gives up the 18th most yards through the air among FBS teams at 287 per game. Kentucky's new offensive coordinator Liam Coen — a former NFL assistant for wide receivers and quarterbacks under Sean McVay — will be looking to exploit that heavily when the Tigers are in town.
After an early loss to UCLA, LSU put together three straight wins before falling to a ranked Auburn team last week. If the Wildcats win tonight, the Tigers will be looking at a month-long stretch of opponents that includes Florida, Ole Miss, Alabama, and Arkansas. There is a highly likely chance that Orgeron will lose six consective games to ranked teams before the middle of November.
Current LSU athletic director Scott Woodward did not hire Orgeron. Woodward merely walked into the right place at the right time in 2019 and enjoyed a national championship in football his first year on the job.
Now that the Tiger Kings have fallen from grace, it would not be surprising if Orgeron's on-field shortcomings paired with his off-field distractions and issues bring about his removal.
On the Radar for Next Week
- Buckeyes: Bye Week
- Noon (probably): #12 Oklahoma State vs. #21 Texas, TBD on TBD
- Afternoon: #16 Kentucky vs. #2 Georgia, 3:30 p.m. on CBS
- Primetime: #23 NC State vs. Boston College on ACC Network
