The third full weekend of college football in 2017 does not have heavyweight matchups, but it does have important matchups. Remember that the game between No. 17 Miami and No. 11 Florida State – one of the most anticipated games of the week – has been postponed due to Hurricane Irma. However, one game truly packs a punch, but the other games are merely significant for the teams involved and are not likely to affect the College Football Playoff.
Clemson at Louisville, Saturday at 8:10 Eastern, ABC
This is the one very large game of the week. It will go a long way toward deciding the ACC Atlantic Division championship, and while that might not seem like much, the ACC Atlantic champion has won the ACC Championship Game every year since 2011. The last time the ACC Coastal champion won the ACC outright was in 2010. The ACC has become the top conference in college football. It clearly surpassed the SEC last season in the bowl games, and then when Clemson beat Alabama in the national championship game. Clemson doesn’t have Deshaun Watson at quarterback anymore, but it does have what is probably the best front four in the country, on par with Alabama. The Tigers will be challenged by Lamar Jackson, Louisville’s Heisman Trophy winner, which is the matchup everyone wants to see. However, the game might very well be decided by the other matchup between Clemson’s offense and Louisville’s defense. Clemson scored just 14 points against a strong Auburn defense this past Saturday, while Louisville allowed 35 points to an average North Carolina offense in Week 2. Clemson’s defense versus Louisville’s offense is strength versus strength. Early in the season, though, minimizing weaknesses is a more urgent task for coaches, so that’s why Clemson’s offense versus Louisville’s defense carries more weight.
Tennessee at Florida, Saturday at 3:35 Eastern, CBS
This game is not officially on, but it is likely to be played. The main hangup is where the game will be held. Gainesville, Florida, got pounded by Hurricane Irma, and local officials are weighing whether the resources can be devoted to staffing, security, parking, and the other services which are needed to stage a college football game in front of roughly 90,000 people. If people in Gainesville feel they have to devote resources to Irma recovery efforts, this game won’t be played on the University of Florida campus. It would probably be played in Atlanta, in a neutral-site domed stadium where Tennessee played Georgia Tech on Labor Day. If Tennessee gets this game in Atlanta, it will have a better chance. If Florida hosts, it is more likely to win.
Texas at USC, Saturday at 8:40 Eastern, FOX
The teams are sexy. They are two of the most famous schools in college football, and a lot of people think that they played in the best college football game of all time, the 2006 Rose Bowl in which Texas stopped USC on a touchdown by Vince Young in the final minute of regulation. However, as this 2017 game approaches, only USC is on top of the college football world. The Trojans are rolling and feeling very good about themselves after handling Stanford relatively easily on Saturday. USC displayed a physical and balanced offense, embarrassing a Stanford defense which prides itself on its toughness.
Texas, on the other hand, is a mess. The Longhorns beat San Jose State, but that hardly inspires confidence after a home loss to Maryland to start the season. Texas is a huge underdog here and will have to play reasonably well just to avoid a blowout.
UCLA at Memphis, Saturday at Noon Eastern, ABC
The UCLA Bruins overcame a 34-point deficit against Texas A&M. They need to be sharp from the start if they want to beat Memphis – they are not likely to come back if they face a big deficit again. Memphis coach Mike Norvell coached against UCLA when he was offensive coordinator at Arizona State. Memphis will try to take the early lead in the Group of Five’s race for a New Year’s Six bowl bid.
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