There are two games I actually care about. Miami @ Florida - only because of what this series once was. Florida should roll over the Hurricanes. If they don't, maybe you will need to forget about an SEC team making the BCS title game, because LSU and Georgia have tough schedules, and Florida is the conference's best contender. Oregon State @ Penn State. If the Beavers take this one in Happy Valley, it will mean that USC will indeed have one tough road game this season, in Corvallis.
Miami (FL) @ Florida Gators - Still interesting. I do not often root for the Hurricanes, and I think they will get pounded, but they might beat the spread or better. I'm not following my usual NFL rooting pattern of cheering for the former Trojans. I'd be happy to see Emmanuel Moody get a yard a carry like last week.
Oregon State @ Penn St. - Less interesting, because the Beavers lost to Stanford last week. But if last year is any guide, that means they must be good, right? Maybe they prove it with a win at Penn State. Or maybe the Nittany Lions can put their coach back in the all-time lead for career wins with a victory. Who does Florida State play?
Games that weren't on my preseason radar, but now look somewhat interesting:
San Diego State @ Notre Dame - San Diego State is the perfect cupcake for Notre Dame to start with to build confidence. If the Irish can't beat a team who lost to Cal Poly SLO last week, Charlie Weis should be fired on the spot.
Ohio @ the Ohio State University - This was a big yawner until Beanie Wells got hurt. Now I'm interested in seeing how the Buckeyes do without him. Will they hold back to avoid showing USC anything before next week's big showdown? That can't possibly backfire, can it? The Buckeyes lost to an unranked opponent at the 'Shoe last year, but Ohio is no Illinois. I'll be watching nonetheless.
Central Michigan @ Georgia - I wonder if any voters are hoping that this game will give them an excuse to bump Ohio State up into the number two spot to create 1 v. 2 showdown next Saturday. I'd love to see Central Michigan win this, but it's not very likely.
West Virginia @ East Carolina - Until the Pirates knocked off Virginia Tech, this game looked really boring. Now, it looks like the first of two or three decent challenges (Auburn, South Florida) West Virginia will face on the road to Miami.
Texas A&M @ New Mexico - This also looked really uninteresting until the Aggies lost to a lower division foe last week. Those Aggies trolling the USC boards last week have been nowhere to be seen all week.
Miami (Ohio) @ Michigan. This game has the potential to answer the question "Just how bad is Michigan?" I kind of like the Wolverines and their fans, so I'm hoping that UM wins and that question remains unanswered.
Stanford @ Arizona State - There is a decent chance someone is going to be exposed as a very underrated team or a very overrated team today. Or the Universe will remain right.
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