College football viewers’ guide: Road tests for Alabama and Georgia, and Chip Kelly’s homecoming highlight the weekend
It’s another weekend of college football, which means it’s time to cancel your other Saturday plans to binge-watch games from morning until late night. The Times’ Eduardo Gonzalez lets us know what will be on our televisions and computer screens this weekend:
FRIDAY
Colorado (5-3) at Arizona (4-5), 7:30 p.m., FS1
At this point it’s about bowl eligibility and positioning for these teams. Arizona stunned then-No. 19 Oregon 44-15 last week. Colorado has lost three in a row after a 5-0 start and last week blew a 28-point lead in an overtime loss against Oregon State.
4:30 p.m.: Pittsburgh at No. 25 Virginia, ESPN2.
5 p.m.: Western Kentucky at Middle Tennessee, CBS Sports Network (CBSSN).
SATURDAY MORNING
Nebraska (2-6) at No. 10 Ohio State (7-1), 9 a.m., Channel 11
Ohio State was exposed two weekends ago in a 49-20 loss to Purdue. The Buckeyes allowed the Boilermakers to gain more than 500 yards. The Cornhuskers have won two in a row after an 0-6 start. Adrian Martinez passed for 213 yards and two touchdowns in a 45-9 win over Bethune-Cookman last week.
9 a.m.: Louisville at No. 2 Clemson, Channel 7; No. 19 Syracuse at Wake Forest, Prime Ticket; No. 20 Texas A&M at Auburn, ESPN; No. 24 Iowa State at Kansas, FS West; South Carolina at Mississippi, SEC Network (SEC); Rutgers at Wisconsin, Big Ten Network (Big Ten); Michigan State at Maryland, ESPN2; Oklahoma State at Baylor, FS1; Air Force at Army, CBSSN; Memphis at East Carolina, ESPNU.
9:15 a.m.: Georgia Tech at North Carolina, KDOC.
SATURDAY AFTERNOON
No. 6 Georgia (7-1) at No. 9 Kentucky (7-1), 12:30 p.m., Channel 2
Not many would have expected that this matchup could determine the Southeastern Conference East Division winner. Georgia bounced back from its only loss with a solid 36-17 win over Florida last week, as Jake Fromm passed for 240 yards and three touchdowns. Kentucky, one of the surprise teams in college football this season, beat Missouri 15-14 last week, scoring a touchdown on the final play of the game.
No. 13 West Virginia (6-1) at No. 17 Texas (6-2), 12:30 p.m., Channel 11
West Virginia, Texas and Oklahoma are tied for the top spot in the Big 12 Conference at 4-1. The Mountaineers looked unstoppable last week in a 58-14 win over Baylor. Will Grier passed for 353 yards and three touchdowns. Texas quarterback Sam Ehlinger passed for 283 yards and two touchdowns against Oklahoma State, but the Longhorns lost 38-35 to end their winning streak at six games.
No. 14 Penn State (6-2) at No. 5 Michigan (7-1), 12:45 p.m., ESPN
Penn State could create chaos in the Big Ten East with a win. The Nittany Lions held off Iowa 30-24 last week, sealing the win with a late interception. Michigan hasn’t played since beating Michigan State 21-7 on Oct. 20.
No. 4 Notre Dame (8-0) at Northwestern (5-3), 4:15 p.m., ESPN
The Fighting Irish look to continue their push for a College Football Playoff spot. Ian Book passed for 330 yards and two scores in a 44-22 victory over Navy in San Diego last week. Northwestern surprised Wisconsin, forcing three turnovers in a 31-17 win over the Badgers.
UCLA (2-6) at Oregon (5-3), 4:30 p.m., Channel 11
This will be UCLA coach Chip Kelly’s first visit to Oregon since his highly successful four-year run as coach of the Ducks. Both teams are coming off blowout losses. One more loss would make the Bruins ineligible for a bowl game.
No. 1 Alabama (8-0) at No. 3 Louisiana State (7-1), 5 p.m., Channel 2
Louisiana State will try to be the first team to actually give Alabama a game. First place in the Southeastern Conference West is at stake. The Crimson Tide is averaging 54.1 points a game while giving up only 15.9 a game.
12:30 p.m.: No. 16 Iowa at Purdue, ESPN2; Florida State at No. 21 North Carolina State, Channel 7; Tulane at South Florida, CBSSN; Navy at Cincinnati, ESPNU; Kansas State at Texas Christian, FS1; Minnesota at Illinois, Big Ten.
1 p.m.: Missouri at No. 11 Florida, SEC; No. 15 Utah at Arizona State, Pac-12 Networks (Pac-12); Charlotte at Tennessee, SEC; Alcorn State at New Mexico State, Fox Sports Atlantic.
4 p.m.: Connecticut at Tulsa, CBSSN; Houston at Southern Methodist, ESPNU; Duke at Miami, ESPN2.
4:30 p.m.: Louisiana Tech at No. 18 Mississippi State, SEC; Texas San Antonio at Alabama Birmingham, beIN.
5 p.m.: No. 7 Oklahoma at Texas Tech, Channel 7.
SATURDAY EVENING
USC (4-4) at Oregon State (2-6), 7 p.m., FS1
The Trojans, who have lost two in a row, make their first trip to Corvallis since 2013. Quarterback JT Daniels and linebacker Cameron Smith are expected to play for USC after missing a 38-35 loss against Arizona State last week. The Beavers ended a road losing streak at 22 games with their overtime win at Colorado last week.
6 p.m.: Stanford at Washington, Pac-12.
7:15 p.m.: Brigham Young at Boise State, ESPN2; San Diego State at New Mexico, ESPNU.
7:30 p.m.: No. 23 Fresno State at Nevada Las Vegas, CBSSN.
7:45 p.m.: California at No. 8 Washington State, ESPN.
Twitter: @edmgonzalez
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