Separation Saturday made the College Football Playoff outlook at least a little clearer but there is still a long way to go before the selection committee releases its final rankings in December. A lot can and will change before then. A wild season filled with improbably twists and turns continues with a handful of intriguing matchups this weekend. Here is a look at the can’t miss games for Week 11 of the college football season.
No. 11 Florida Gators @ South Carolina Gamecocks
Saturday, 12:00 PM ET
The Gators control their own destiny in the SEC East but they followed up a big win over Georgia by barely scraping past Vanderbilt in a 9-7 win last weekend. The pressure will remain on them when they host South Carolina on Saturday afternoon. Florida has to figure out what went wrong for them on offense last week and turn things around in order to take some pressure off their defense.
There’s no question that they excel on that side of the ball but they’ll need a lot more help from their offense in a potential meeting with Alabama in the SEC Championship game. Florida is talented enough to win this game but they are coming off a close win over an inferior opponent and their first SEC title in a while. If they’re showing any signs of a letdown, the Gamecocks could surprise them in this meeting.
No. 2 Alabama Crimson Tide @ No. 17 Mississippi State Bulldogs
Saturday, 3:30 PM ET
There was a lot of chatter about whether Alabama even deserved to be in the top four when the initial College Football Playoff rankings were released but their critics were silenced following a dominant 30-16 win over LSU last weekend. Now they control their own destiny both in the SEC and on the national stage. The biggest question mark is whether or not the Tide can avoid a letdown as they have to travel to Mississippi State this week. They are coming off an emotional high following their big win over the Tigers. Dak Prescott and the Bulldogs have been very quiet this season but they subtly crept back into the Top 25. They have two losses on the year (Texas A&M and LSU) but make a massive statement and shake up the outlook in both the SEC and CFP with a win this weekend. This is one of the biggest games in Starkville this decade.
No. 21 Memphis Tigers @ No. 24 Houston Cougars
Saturday, 7:00 PM ET
Memphis finally lost a game and they are no longer considered a dark horse playoff contender. However, they’ve been a very strong team this season and are still in the Top 25. And as it turns out, they lost to a Top 25 team last week as Navy climbed into the rankings, so that softens some of the blow.
The Tigers will be in tough as they try to bounce back from that 45-20 loss as they face another Top 25 team in 9-0 Houston. The Cougars have staked their claim as the best team in their conference and will have home-field advantage for their showdown. Memphis has been digging themselves early deficits in a number of games this season but if they do so again, they might have a tough time coming back against such an explosive offense. We’ll see if Memphis’ loss was just a one-off or the start of a trend.
No. 12 Oklahoma Sooners @ No. 6 Baylor Bears
Saturday, 8:00 PM ET
Any question marks about Baylor’s offense following the loss of Seth Russell were answered when freshman Jarrett Stidham threw for 419 passing yards and three touchdowns in last week’s win over Kansas State. TCU lost to Oklahoma State to make things that much more complicated in the Big 12. It’s also given the Sooners life. They’ll do their best to shake things up again when they visit the Bears.
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Oklahoma needs a win to keep its conference title hopes alive and while they might not win this game, they should be able to at the very least keep this contest close and possibly cover the spread.
