After another wild weekend of college football action that exceeded all expectations, the college football schedule is set to ramp up again with a number of marquee matchups for week three. USC visiting No. 7 Stanford and No. 20 LSU’s clash with Mississippi State should both garner plenty of attention but with four marquee matchups between ranked teams on the schedule neither of those games made the cut on this list. Here is a look at the top televised games on the schedule for week three of the college football season.
#2 Florida State @ #10 Louisville
Saturday, 12:00 PM ET – ABC
Is Louisville for real? We’re about to find out.
Louisville’s dual-threat quarterback Lamar Jackson followed up his record-eight touchdowns in a week one win over Charlotte by setting another record in a week two win over Syracuse when he became the first FBS player to throw for at least 400 passing yards and rush for at least 175 rushing yards in the same game. Jackson has completed 60-percent of his passes while throwing for 697 yards and seven touchdowns and rushing for another 318 yards and six scores. Now he and the Cardinals will get the opportunity to prove they are for real in a massive showdown with the Seminoles. The Cardinals are the No. 10 team in the country but they don’t have pedigree. We don’t know if they’re actually this good or if they only look good on paper.
Meanwhile, Florida State opened the season with a convincing win over Mississippi and could take another major step towards an ACC championship and playoff appearance with another win over a top-25 opponent this week. They field the better defense and running game, but they’re on the road, so all bets are off.
#1 Alabama @ #19 Ole Miss
Saturday, 3:30 PM ET – CBS
The Rebels have knocked off Alabama in each of the last two seasons and now they get a chance to extend their streak at home in one of the marquee matchups for week three. Ole Miss rebounded from a tough opening loss to Florida State with a blowout win over Wofford, setting the stage for this crucial showdown that will have major implications both in the SEC and on the national stage. The Crimson Tide can’t afford another early season loss to the Rebels but they will have their work cut out for them on the road in hostile territory this week.
#12 Michigan State @ #18 Notre Dame
Saturday, 7:30 PM ET – NBC
The defending Big 12 champions opened the season with an unconvincing win over Furman and now after a week off they will have to prove their merit in a tough matchup against Notre Dame. The Fighting Irish already suffered a loss to Texas in week one so their margin for error is that much smaller heading in to a home date versus the Spartans. DeShone Kizer impressed in a 39-10 win over Nevada last week while the Notre Dame defense should have an easier time against this Michigan State offense than they did on the road at Texas in week one.
#3 Ohio State @ #14 Oklahoma
Saturday, 7:30 PM ET – FOX
After a pair of convincing wins over inferior opponents, Ohio State gets its first true challenge of the season on the road against No. 14 Oklahoma. Like the Fighting Irish, the Sooners opened the season with a tough loss to Houston and therefore don’t have much room for error moving forward. Oklahoma bounced back with a blowout win over Louisiana Monroe but that’s a cupcake. The real concern is how they’ll fare against another quality opponent. To the naked eye, it doesn’t make sense that they’d beat a team like Ohio State.
Oklahoma simply can’t afford another loss to a top-25 team if they are going to contend for a spot in the College Football Playoff. The good news is that they’re at home for this showdown where they typically play pretty well. The Sooners are 117-26 in their last 143 home games, which is quite a stellar winning percentage.
This is a marquee matchup for both the Big Ten and the Big 12 and with every game being so important to who gets in and who is left out this matchup will certainly have major playoff implications.
