The college football season is in full swing, but much like Week 2, the Week 3 slate isn’t exactly overflowing with great matchups. We are still not to full conference play, and as a result most of the top teams are in tune-up mode, just looking to get right and into a rhythm before the schedule ramps up. That said, as we learned last week, nothing is assured in college football, with Notre Dame learning that lesson in a shocking loss to NIU at home.
This week, we’ll have to wait to see what Playoff contender finds itself on the ropes, but in the meantime, we’re going to take a look at the best matchups on paper, the game that will set message boards a blaze, and find a best bet for Week 3.
The Game Of The Year (Of The Week): No. 20 Arizona vs. No. 14 Kansas State (8:00 p.m. ET, FOX)
My hunch is The Wildcat Bowl (not an official nickname, but I’m going with it) is going to be a terrific game if you are someone who likes to watch teams getting into the end zone. Arizona has perhaps the best 1-2 QB and WR punch in the nation in Noah Fifita and Tetairoa McMillan. Kansas State’s defense is 126th nationally in allowing 11.8 yards per attempt. Kansas State can run the damn ball as their top-4 ball carriers (QB Avery Johnson, RBs DJ Giddens, Dylan Edwards, Joe Jackson) have combined for 59 carries and 460 yards, good for 7.8 yards per carry. Arizona’s defense is 100th nationally in 5.6 yards per carry allowed.
So, basically, both offenses are extremely good at something that both defenses are extremely bad at preventing. This is a recipe for an absolutely ridiculous football game, one that I am going to watch every second of, and I highly recommend you watch it all, because this is going to be an early season banger, one that now doubles as a game with real stakes in the Big 12 championship race.
Lock Into This One: West Virginia vs. Pitt (3:30 p.m. ET, ESPN2)
Here’s the thing: Both of these teams could stink, and I would recommend that you sit yourself down and watch every single second of the Backyard Brawl. It is one of the nastiest rivalries in the sport, with two programs and fan bases that flat-out do not like one another. Last year’s game totally sucked — WVU won, 17-6, neither team eclipsed 100 passing yards, and they combined to run the ball 87 times for 3.2 yards per attempt.
This game shouldn’t be nearly as hideous, in large part because Pitt’s QB is former top-100 recruit Eli Holstein and has gotten off to a good start under center. Keep an eye on the running backs in this one: Pitt’s Desmond Reid is fifth in the nation in rushing yards, while WVU’s 1-2 punch of CJ Donaldson and Jaheim White is a nightmare to deal with. Both of these teams are going to want to establish it on the ground, and I expect this one to come down to whichever team is able to keep the opposing defense on the field longer.
Under-The-Radar Banger: Appalachian State vs. East Carolina (4:00 p.m. ET, ESPNU)
There’s a lot of reasons to want to keep an eye on this one. For one, I love the aesthetics of this one, as the purple Pirates have an elite game day look at home, while App State’s classic white unis and black helmets should complement that well. Beyond that, the boys from Boone need a bounceback in a big way after getting absolutely worked by Clemson last week, while ECU comes in feeling pretty good after a 2-0 start to the season. This will be a nice measuring stick game for both teams before they embark on Sun Belt and American play, respectively, and a lot of these boys have played each other for a long time going back to high school, so there should be plenty of intensity.
Message Board Meltdown Game Of The Week: Texas A+M vs. Florida (3:30 p.m. ET, ABC)
We may need to establish a no Florida rule going forward, because they can be thrown in here ever single week with how tense things are in Gainesville. They are coming off a blowout win over Samford where 5-star true freshman quarterback DJ Lagway looked like a future superstar … only for Billy Napier to announce that he’s going to rotate Lagway with Graham Mertz. Whoops!
Anyway, Florida is a potential tinderbox, and while A+M bounced back from a season-opening loss to Notre Dame by blowing out McNeese, well, losing to the Gators to move to 1-2 on the year would probably lead to some explosive threads over on TexAgs.
Who Won The Heisman Last Week?: Ashton Jeanty, RB, Boise State
Ashton Jeanty is the first running back since Ricky Williams (!!) to have nine rushing touchdowns in his first two games. Most impressively, Jeanty hasn’t been feasting on FCS opponents to get there, as he ran it up on Georgia Southern in Week 1 and then kept it going with another 25 carries for 192 yards and three touchdowns on the road at Oregon as the Broncos nearly pulled off the stunning upset. We’ll have to see how long Jeanty can keep up his outrageous output, but Boise State knows how their bread is buttered and they will give him the rock as many times as he can carry it.
Best Bet (1-1): San Diego State at Cal UNDER 48 (10:30 p.m. ET, ESPN)
We are going late night for our Best Bet this week and heading to the longtime ACC stronghold of Berkley, California. San Diego State is not an explosive offense — they had a grand total of 179 total yards in a 21-0 loss to Oregon State last week — and Cal is coming off of an impressive 21-14 win at Auburn where they flexed their defensive muscles. I expect this game to move quickly, with two teams that like to run the ball, and Cal will likely keep their star running back Jadyn Ott, who’s still not 100 percent, from heavy usage if they can avoid it. I love this to cruise in Under the number for a little “Wake up to winner” on the East coast for those who aren’t looking to stay up til 1 a.m. to watch.
