1 Week Until Beavers Football: 10 Games To Watch On Your College Football Saturday

1. #7 Cincinnati Bearcats vs. Memphis Tigers (9:00 AM PT, ESPN)

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One of college football’s most underappreciated teams, Memphis is three points away from still being unbeaten and entering this match-up as a battle of two ranked squads. Tigers quarterback Brady White is a true best kept secret, having thrown for 1,375 yards and 17 touchdowns already this season and spurring the Tigers to one of the country’s elite offenses. But this Bearcats group is really special. Memphis is averaging 38.8 points per game on offense, while Cincinnati is giving up just 12.5 points per outing to opponents. Something’s gotta give.

2. Kentucky Wildcats vs. #5 Georgia Bulldogs (9:00 AM PT, SECN)

Could the start time of this contest really play a role in a possible upset? Well, the folks over at Dawg Nation noted that Georgia is 2-3 in noon kick-off games under head coach Kirby Smart and concerns about another slow Bulldogs start might be legitimate. The Wildcats potential sleeper season was hampered by two early losses and fell apart in their recent defeat at Missouri.

3. Houston Cougars vs. UCF Knights (11:00 AM PT, ESPN+)

After finally starting their season on October 8th, Houston has played in a trio of exciting games, which have featured enjoyable back-and-forth portions. The same could be said for UCF, who are already a loss away from tying last season’s defeat total through five games. Besides Cincinnati and Navy, the rest of the American Conference wants to play wide-open football. Sign me up.

4. Rutgers Scarlet Knights vs. #17 Indiana Hoosiers (12:30 PM PT, BTN)

Head coach Greg Schiano’s first game back on the Rutgers sideline resulted in the program snapping a 21-game Big Ten losing skid and in Week 2 of their conference match-ups, they draw Indiana. The Hoosiers clipped Penn State in their opener with a ridiculously gutsy call that every armchair coach agreed with and Tom Allen has pride restored in the Hoosier State. Game on.

5. Auburn Tigers vs LSU Tigers (12:30 PM PT, CBS)

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If you picked both Auburn and LSU being unranked before November even rolled in, then you probably knew something about the college football season that most didn’t see coming. LSU has followed up their title season with an ugly 2-2 mark thus far, while Auburn has shown no consistency through five weeks at all. One of these Tigers will head towards the West Division cellar after this one. One will stay afloat. Let’s just hope it’s a sequel to 2019’s thrilling clash.

6. #6 Oklahoma State Cowboys vs. Texas Longhorns (1:00 PM PT, FOX)

Ah, the chaos of the Big 12. We were all told that this was finally Texas’ year and if the Longhorns fall in Stillwater to Oklahoma State on Saturday, Tom Herman and company will be 3-3 on the year with wins over only UTEP, Texas Tech and Baylor. Herman will be coaching for his job, while Mike Gundy will be trying to keep the Cowboys on pace for their first College Football Playoff birth.

7. Louisville Cardinals vs. Virginia Tech Hokies (1:00 PM PT, ACCN)

As you’re flipping through the channels on Saturday, make sure to stop by this one at least for a bit. This has all the makings of one of those ACC clashes where it’s like shooting socks in the laundry bin. Louisville just blasted Florida State to end a four-game losing streak. Virginia Tech just fell to Wake Forest in a complete meltdown. Two total enigmas doing some real soul-searching.

8. #18 Penn State Nittany Lions vs. #3 Ohio State Buckeyes (4:30 PM PT, ABC)

Oh yes folks, the game of the day. Penn State has to make some serious improvements in a week’s time, especially on the defensive side of the ball to figure out some way to slow down a play-maker like Ohio State’s Justin Fields. The Buckeyes don’t lack for speed or talent at any spot on the field. They’re definitely as good as advertised. Can the Nittany Lions shock the world?

9. #22 SMU Mustangs vs. Navy Midshipmen (4:30 PM PT, ESPN2)

I caught quite a bit of SMU last week against Cincinnati and while the scoreline won’t do them much good now, there’s parts of this Mustangs team that are better than advertised. However, here comes the neutralizer in Navy, whose option-based approach put up 35 points on SMU a season ago. Both teams sit with one league loss to their name in a tight American Conference.

10. Texas Tech Red Raiders vs. #24 Oklahoma Sooners (5:00 PM PT, FOX)

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With no Khabib Nurmagomedov fight to distract you this week, you should be glued to college football action all day. Oklahoma rounds out the list before the Mountain West nightcaps kick-off with their battle against Texas Tech, which should feature a lot of points and maybe another step in the right direction for the Sooners. Lincoln Riley’s group needed a confidence boost after single-digit slip-ups versus Kansas State and Iowa State and they did it by beating rival Texas. I doubt the Red Raiders go quiet into the night.