Before we start, I would like to make an appeal to the NCAA in the hopes that it will consider something very silly: promotion and relegation. Yes, I know, the likelihood of the NCAA ever adopting a system used most notably by soccer leagues in other countries is completely absurd, but college football is the most absurd sport on Earth, so I submit that it should be considered. SB Nation’s Bill Connelly has been at the forefront of this movement for some time. CBS Sports’ Tom Fornelli joined him on the pro/rel concept this year. Plenty of other folks have voiced their support. Now, the humble folks at UPROXX Sports are joining in.
What led to us deciding that we want promotion and relegation? Look no further than last week’s game between Iowa and North Dakota State game, in which the Bison went into Iowa City and beat the defending Big Ten West champs, 23-21. North Dakota State is not just a good FCS team, they’re a good football team, period.
And yet the Bison are forced to more or less toil away in FCS, where they have won five national titles in a row. One of those national title games was a one-possession contest (2014, where they beat Illinois State 29-27). Their other four featured margins of victory of 11, 26, 28, and 27. Additionally, the Bison have taken down six FBS teams since 2010. Again, this is a good football team, and if there was a program in FBS with the sustained dominance of NDSU, we’d be talking about it as one of the best dynasties in all of sports. Oh, and there is no place in the sport quite like the Fargodome.
So yeah, give us promotion and relegation, NCAA. Let North Dakota State, at the end of the season when it probably wins national title number six, replace the worst team in FBS. Let programs like Sam Houston State and Eastern Washington and some of the other great teams in FCS show what they can do against the “big boys.” I’m not saying throw them into the Big Ten or the SEC, but there are a bunch of Group of 5 conferences that can use some new blood.
What better place to find said new blood than the FCS?
Oh, and let Bob Stitt and his Montana Grizzlies in, too. We need Coach Internet and his delightful brand of offense in FBS as soon as possible. Heck, they can have a play-in game. All of these teams’ promotions can be contingent on play-in games. It give us an opportunity to watch more football, which is always good.
Hey, speaking of watching football, let’s get to the viewing guide.
Early Slate
FRONT AND CENTER
Noon: Georgia at Ole Miss, ESPN
Noon: Wisconsin at Michigan State, BTN
The day starts off with Ole Miss’ high-octane offense going up against a talented and well-coached Georgia defense. That’s the matchup to watch at least, especially because the Rebels offensive line will have to block noted eater of worlds Trent Thompson and a good Bulldogs linebacking corps.
On the other side of the ball, an Ole Miss defense that is looking for its first interception of the year will try to confuse true freshman signal caller Jacob Eason, but more importantly, it will try to stop Nick Chubb. Last week, the Rebs allowed 334 rushing yards to Alabama. Chubb is one of the best running backs in America. If Ole Miss can’t figure out whatever went wrong last week, Chubb could be in for a huge afternoon.
In Big Ten country, we have a matchup between two teams that want to play #hardnosed football in Wisconsin and Michigan State. Both of these squads are stout defensively and will try to run the ball – Michigan State with L.J. Scott, and the Badgers with a four-man rotation of Corey Clement, Dare Ogunbowale, Bradrick Shaw, and Taiwan Deal – so the winning team could end up being the one who gets better play out of its relatively green quarterback.
Michigan State redshirt senior Tyler O’Connor has played a little in the past, but for the most part, he has backed up Connor Cook for the last few years. Wisconsin’s redshirt freshman Alex Hornibrook will make his first career start after playing well in relief of Bart Houston last week. Both have been efficient while simultaneously being asked to not do too much – Hornibrook is 13-for-17 on the season (76.5 percent), while O’Connor is 32-for-44 (72.7 percent). Look for both defenses to key on in the opposing running game and try to make the quarterbacks win this one.
SECOND SCREEN SPECIAL
Noon: Kent State at Alabama, SEC Network
Kent State has a really good defense (it shouldn’t slow Alabama down too much, but still, it’s a solid defense). The fun part comes on the other side of the ball. By S&P+, Kent State has the worst offense in FBS. Alabama’s defense is awesome. Watching the worst offense in FBS play Alabama’s defense in Tuscaloosa will be fun, if you’re into that sort of thing.
Dog Day Afternoon
FRONT AND CENTER
3:30 p.m.: Florida at Tennessee, CBS
This is a matchup between two teams that might actually be really good, and of course, any time Florida and Tennessee play, it’s a big deal. Both sides are 3-0 on the season. Tennessee has the best win (a 45-24 win over Virginia Tech), but Florida has consistently looked better. Florida is also going into this game without its starting quarterback, Luke Del Rio, so the reigns are getting turned over to Purdue transfer Austin Appleby.
Honestly, this could be the game that decides the SEC East, even though it’s still September. Georgia might have something to say about that, but the SEC East is a three-way race at this point, and there’s a good chance that it becomes a two-way race once this one ends. There’s also the added subplots of “Florida has beaten Tennessee each of the last 11 times they’ve played” and “if UT loses, its coach could spend the next few weeks coaching for his job and there’s a non-zero chance the Vols would enter November 3-5.”
Neyland Stadium is going to be rocking. Both of these teams are really good. You should watch this game while flipping between one of, well, these:
SECOND SCREEN SPECIAL
3:30 p.m.: Pitt at North Carolina, ESPNU
3:30 p.m.: Penn State at Michigan, ABC
3:30 p.m.: BYU at West Virginia, ESPN2
Pat Narduzzi is a defensive coach, but Pitt’s defense has underwhelmed this year. Its offense, however, looks really good under Matt Canada. Speaking of “really good offense and underwhelming defense,” say hello to North Carolina! If the Panthers’ defense can lock down Mitch Trubisky and Co., they probably win. If the Tar Heels are able to move the ball on Pitt, take them. Either way, this one will be fun.
Penn State is heading into the Big House, in all likelihood, without all three of its starting linebackers, which is problematic against any team, let alone one as good and physical as Michigan. As you know, Jim Harbaugh’s team is awesome (the Wolverines are the best team in the country, according to S&P+). While the Wolverines should win this one, the Nittany Lions offense is so loaded with skill position talent that they can maybe make this one interesting. Still, while I really hope I’m wrong, don’t expect this one to be too close.
BYU has specialized in Close Ugly Football™ to start the season, as the average score in its first three games has been Opponents 17.6, BYU 17. WVU does not play anything even close to that, but BYU has a tendency to dictate games. Can Skyler Howard and the Mountaineers offense move the ball on BYU’s stout defense? Can Taysom Hill overcome his early season struggles to move the ball through the air on a suspect back seven that hasn’t really been tested yet?
Under the Lights
FRONT AND CENTER
7:30 p.m.: Oklahoma State at Baylor, FOX
8:00 p.m.: Stanford at UCLA, ABC
The Big XII is, in all likelihood, not going to have a team in the College Football Playoff. Oklahoma lost twice and would need total chaos and to start beating the hell out of teams to get in. TCU fell to Arkansas at home. The team that has the best shot right now may be undefeated Baylor. No, seriously.
The Bears are 3-0 despite not really playing anyone. If they’re for real, they will beat Oklahoma State this weekend. Not only are the Cowboys a really good team, but if they manage to win out, there’s a chance they can be the ones who make it to the Playoff (this assumes that the committee will acknowledge that they should have beaten Central Michigan, which is a stretch, but still).
Baylor’s offense should be able to put up some points behind wide receiver KD Cannon and a group of talented running backs, but the more interesting matchup is on the other side of the ball. Playing Northwestern State, SMU, and Rice can make any defense look good, so we’re going to find out if the Bears’ defense is legit when it goes against Mason Rudolph and the Cowboys (pay special attention to the battle in the trenches – the nine sacks Rudolph has taken are tied for the 11th-most in America).
The Pac-12 is in a similar situation to the Big XII when it comes to playoff hopes, but its situation is less dire. Still, when people discuss Playoff teams, squads out west like Stanford don’t get the love they deserve. Even a team like UCLA, which lost a heartbreaker on the road in overtime in Week 1 to an SEC team, can make a case by running through the conference slate unscathed.
These two teams meet up in Los Angeles this weekend. Stanford is going to try to grind out an ugly win behind the all-around brilliance of Christian McCaffrey, a stout defense, and one of the best special teams units in the country. UCLA, on the other hand, will rely on the 1-2 punch of Josh Rosen and Soso Jamabo to outscore the Cardinal, plus its defense only allowed 23 rushing yards to BYU last week, so you know that the Bears’ run defense will come into its toughest test yet with a little more swagger than usual.
SECOND SCREEN SPECIAL
6:00 p.m.: LSU at Auburn, ESPN
9:00 p.m.: Texas A&M vs. Arkansas, ESPN (in Arlington, TX)
This Tiger Bowl won’t be the easiest one to watch, but there is a fun subplot here. The two hottest seats in the country are, arguably, the ones upon which Les Miles and Gus Malzahn sit. If Auburn loses and falls to 1-3, he may need to convincingly beat Louisiana-Monroe and Mississippi State over the next two weeks to keep his job after the Tigers’ bye week on October 15. If LSU loses, it falls to 2-2 with losses to Wisconsin and Auburn in a season where the team was supposed to compete for a national title. If anything, flip to this game for your weekly dose of Leonard Fournette, who may try to dribble a defender like he’s a basketball just because he can.
If you want something more aesthetically pleasing, definitely throw on Texas A&M against Arkansas in Jerry World. The Aggies have been carried by their defense this year, which isn’t a huge shock because Myles Garrett may be The Terminator, while Trevor Knight has gotten the job done at quarterback and the running game looks like it’s in good hands with Keith Ford and Trayveon Williams. The Razorbacks, meanwhile, have gotten by on a mix of stout defense and efficient offense. Look for A&M’s defense to make Austin Allen, Arkansas’ starting quarterback who has been good this year but hasn’t been asked to do much, try to beat them. And of course, watching Arkansas’ big ol’ offensive line try to handle Garrett is going to be wonderful.
The Late Show
FRONT AND CENTER
10:30 p.m.: Washington at Arizona, Pac-12 Network
We haven’t talked nearly enough about Washington. Part of this is because its schedule has been dreadful: three games, all at home, against Rutgers (bad), Idaho (really bad), and Portland State (FCS). But Jake Browning is really, really awesome, Myles Gaskin is a great running back, and the Huskies’ defense is nasty. Everyone knows that Chris Petersen is an outstanding coach, and if there were any doubts about whether he could get the job done at a school other than Boise State, he’s shot them all down.
Arizona is in a bit of a rough patch – its next six games are absolutely brutal. New quarterback Brandon Dawkins and running back Nick Wilson are a nice combo on the ground, but this defense has a long way to go. Going to Tucson at night is always tricky, but this game is mostly about watching and enjoying the Huskies. Oh, and next week, Washington hosts Stanford. Winner is the best team in the conference. I can’t wait.
SECOND SCREEN SPECIAL
10:00 p.m.: Cal at Arizona State, ESPN2
I think that, through four of these, you’ve learned that I love watching delightfully stupid football games that feature a boatload of points and enter the second quarter at 11:30 p.m. EST. Cal epitomizes this. Arizona State also epitomizes this. Cal has scored 50+ twice this year, while Arizona State put up 68 (!!!) on Texas Tech a few weeks back. The world is a beautiful place.
