The games of the week

West Virginia (7-2) at No. 5 Cincinnati (9-0)

Friday, 5 p.m., ESPN2

Maybe Cincinnati was looking ahead to this game when the Bearcats struggled to beat Connecticut by only two points. Cincinnati is three wins from a perfect regular season but its work is not done: After this, the Bearcats have Illinois and Pittsburgh.

The pick: Cincinnati.

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No. 15 Iowa (9-1) at No. 10 Ohio State (8-2)

Saturday, 12:30 p.m., Channel 7

This battle for the Big Ten title and a Rose Bowl berth features an Iowa team that lost at home to Northwestern and an Ohio State team that lost at Purdue. Oh well, at least Pasadena will get a fresh face Jan. 1. Ohio State hasn’t played in the Rose Bowl since Jan. 1, 1997 while Iowa’s last visit was in 1991.

The pick: Ohio State.

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No. 16 Utah (8-1) at No. 4 Texas Christian (9-0)

Saturday, 4:30 p.m., CBS College Sports

There’s nothing at stake here for TCU except staying alive for a Bowl Championship Series bowl berth and a shot at playing in the national title game at the Rose Bowl. Utah is a grizzled BCS veteran, having earned two at-large bids and capping last year’s perfect season with a win over Alabama in the Sugar Bowl.

The pick: TCU.

-- Chris Dufresne