College football TV viewers’ guide
Need some help deciding which college football games to watch? Look no further. Each Friday, Times contributor Chuck Schilken handicaps what’s worth watching, and skipping, on the weekend’s menu of games:
FRIDAY
No. 14 Miami (2-0) at Duke (4-0), 4 p.m., ESPN
Miami running back Mark Walton, the No. 3 rusher in the Football Bowl Subdivision (176.0 yards a game), takes on Duke and the nation’s second-best defense against the run (65.3 yards a game). The Blue Devils’ offense isn’t bad either, averaging 40.5 points and 470 yards a game.
No. 5 USC (4-0) at No. 16 Washington State (4-0), 7:30 p.m., ESPN
Washington State quarterback Luke Falk is one of the top passers in the nation, with 1,378 yards and 14 touchdowns with one interception. USC’s Sam Darnold also has passed for a lot of yards (1,225) and touchdowns (nine), but those have been overshadowed by the seven passes he’s had intercepted.
5 p.m.: Nebraska at Illinois, FS1; Brigham Young at Utah State, CBS Sports Network (CBSSN).
SATURDAY MORNING
Maryland (2-1) at Minnesota (3-0), 9 a.m., FS1
Maryland has lost two starting quarterbacks to knee ligament tears this season. Sophomore Max Bortenschlager will be under center for the Terrapins against a Minnesota team that looks like it’s buying into the famous “Row the Boat” philosophy new coach P.J. Fleck brought with him from Western Michigan.
9 a.m.: Northwestern at No. 10 Wisconsin, Channel 7; No. 18 South Florida at East Carolina, CBSSN; Vanderbilt at No. 21 Florida, ESPN; Houston at Temple, ESPNU; New Mexico State at Arkansas, SEC Network (SEC); North Carolina at Georgia Tech, ESPN2; Rice at Pittsburgh, FS West; Syracuse at North Carolina State, KDOC.
SATURDAY AFTERNOON
Florida State (0-2) at Wake Forest (4-0), 12:30 p.m., Channel 7
Off to its worst start in 28 years, Florida State is last in the Atlantic Coast Conference in points per game (14.0), rushing yards (72) and total yards per game (316). Wake Forest has started the season with four wins for the second year in a row, averaging nearly 38 points a game and giving up 11.5.
Arizona State (2-2) at Stanford (2-2), 1 p.m., Pac-12 Networks (Pac-12)
Backup quarterback K.J. Costello provided a spark for Stanford in a win over UCLA last week and may be needed again if starter Keller Chryst remains out with an injury. Arizona State quarterback Manny Wilkins accounted for nearly 400 yards and three touchdowns last week in an upset win over Oregon.
Memphis (3-0) at Central Florida (2-0), 4 p.m., ESPN2
Both teams canceled previously scheduled games to play this one, which was moved from Week 2 because of Hurricane Irma. UCLA fans surely will remember Memphis quarterback Riley Ferguson and the six touchdown passes he threw in a win over the Bruins two weeks ago.
No. 2 Clemson (4-0) at No. 12 Virginia Tech (4-0), 5 p.m., Channel 7
After finally pulling away from Boston College in the fourth quarter last week, Clemson is still the team to beat in the Atlantic Coast Conference. Virginia Tech has a shot at doing just that, with quarterback Josh Jackson (1,127 yards, 11 touchdowns) and the nation’s top receiver Cam Phillips (523 yards).
No. 15 Oklahoma State (3-1) at Texas Tech (3-0), 5 p.m., Channel 11
This game features two of the top three offenses in the nation, with Oklahoma State quarterback Mason Rudolph (1,533 yards, 13 touchdowns, three interceptions) looking to out-duel Texas Tech’s Nic Shimonek (1,248 yards, 11 touchdowns, one interception).
12:30 p.m.: Indiana at No. 4 Penn State, Big Ten Network (Big Ten); No. 7 Georgia at Tennessee, Channel 2; Murray State at No. 17 Louisville, FS West; Baylor at Kansas State, ESPN2; Texas El Paso at Army, CBSSN; Navy at Tulsa, ESPNU.
1 p.m.: Connecticut at Southern Methodist, ESPNews; Eastern Michigan at Kentucky, SEC; Iowa at Michigan State, Channel 11.
2 p.m.: Miami (Ohio) at No. 22 Notre Dame, NBC Sports Network.
3 p.m.: No. 24 Mississippi State at No. 13 Auburn, ESPN.
4 p.m.: Troy at No. 25 Louisiana State, ESPNU; Air Force at New Mexico, CBSSN; Charlotte at Florida International, beIN1.
4:30 p.m.: No. 11 Ohio State at Rutgers, Big Ten; South Carolina at Texas A&M, SEC.
5 p.m.: No. 6 Washington at Oregon State, Pac-12.
SATURDAY EVENING
Northern Illinois (2-1) at No. 19 San Diego State (4-0), 7:30 p.m., CBSSN
San Diego State’s Rashaad Penny is rushing for 179 yards a game, second best in the nation. But he ran for a season-low 128 yards against Air Force last week in the driving rain and faces a Northern Illinois defense that allows 97.7 yards a game on the ground. San Diego State is looking for its first 5-0 start since 1975.
California (3-1) at Oregon (3-1), 7:30 p.m., FS1
Both teams suffered their first losses of the season last week and are looking to avoid starting at 0-2 in Pac-12 play. Oregon has the conference’s top scoring offense (50.8 points a game) and faces a California defense (24.0 points a game) led by the Pac-12’s top tackler, Devante Downs (11.5 a game).
6 p.m.: Mississippi at No. 1 Alabama, ESPN.
7:30 p.m.: San Jose State at Nevada Las Vegas, ESPNU; Colorado at UCLA, ESPN2.
Twitter: @chewkiii
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