Super games in store this weekend in college football. The headliners in Alabama of course take place in Oxford, Mississippi at 2:30 PM CT/3:30 PM ET Saturday on CBS as the No.1 Crimson Tide faces No.19 Ole Miss. Alabama is trying to break a two game skid at the hands of the Rebels after losing 23-17 in 2014 in Oxford, and 41-37 last year at Bryant Denny. The Auburn Tigers host a major blockbuster versus the No. 17 Texas A&M Aggies @ 6 PM CT Saturday on ESPN. A&M is coming in as a pretty hot football team after defeating UCLA in week 1 in overtime, 31-24, then blasting Praire View A&M, 67-0, last week. Auburn is coming off an impressive victory over Arkansas State, 51-14, after losing a tough one at home in week 1 to Clemson, 19-13. Mississippi State goes to LSU Saturday Night for a 6 PM CT kickoff on ESPN2, and Georgia goes to Missouri for a 6:30 PM CT kickoff on the SEC Network. A couple of huge national tilts are on the docket as well as No.2 FSU and stud quarterback Deondre Francois heads to Louisville to face the Cardinals and their electric quarterback Lamar Jackson in a killer matchup at 11 AM CT on ABC, and the No.3 Ohio State heads to Norman to face the No.14 Oklahoma Sooners. 

Here’s a look at those games and the rest of the action in a classic week 3. 

Last week: 14-4

Overall: 26-11, 70%

Against the spread (of the games I posted the lines on

blogs)

Last week: 3-3

Overall: 7-5

Tonight:

No. 6 Houston (2-0) @ Cincinnati (2-0)

NIppert Stadium, Cincy, (40,000)

6:30 PM CT/7:30 PM ET

ESPN

Dave Flemming, Jess, Laura Rutledge

Weather; Clear, wind 5 MPH

Line: Houston by 7

Houston Coach Tom Herman has his team believing they can be in the playoffs this year. I believe him. Quarterback Greg Ward Jr. is back tonight after a minor injury kept him out of last week’s game. Really bullish on this Houston Cougars team.

Houston 42, Cincinnati 28

Saturday

No. 1 Alabama (2-0) @ No. 19 Ole Miss (1-1)

Vaught-Hemingway Stadium, Oxford (60,580)

2:30 PM CT/3:30 PM ET

CBS

Verne (I’ll have thirds on the lasagna, if you would….) Gary, Allie

Weather: 88 at kickoff, no rain, wind 5-7 MPH. Rain possible at 6 PM, the end of the game.

Line: Bama by 11

S was not too pleased with last week’s performance and said that was the most disappointed he’s ever been in a victory. This week brings on a greater challenge. Ole Miss has had the Tide’s number the last two years, so that has been brought up tirelessly by Saban and his coaches this week I’m sure. This may be one of those never again games like Auburn in 2010. Jalen Hurts has played pretty darn well in his first two games completing 29 of 47 passes for 405 yards, 4 touchdowns and one interception. The Tide has to run the ball some whether it’s Hurts on keepers around the edges or quick passes to Calvin Ridley and ArDarius Stewart. Maybe Bo Scarbrough and Damian Harris can get it going. They haven’t been overly effective so far. The Tide defense will get the job done as usual. Jonathan Allen, Reuben Foster, Eddie Jackson, Marlon Humphrey, Minkah Fitzpatrick and company could be another all time good Alabama defense. Certainly showing it so far. Ole Miss has good weapons in the passing game for sometimes head case quarterback Chad Kelly. Tight end Evan Engram and wide outs Damoroe’ea Stringfellow and Quincy Adeboyejo are dangerous targets for the Rebs. Ole Miss doesn’t have a super running game, yet, but Akeem Judd is pretty solid. Kelly can make good things happen with his wheels. The Ole Miss offense is best when they are in hurry up no huddle mode. Kelly operates best when he doesn’t have to think too much, just make plays. They can wear a defense down with their fast paced style. The Crimson Tide will have to be prepared for that. To me, the Alabama defense will get the job done, though holding Ole Miss totally in check at home is a difficult assignment, so Hurts and the offense will have to make plays to outlast the Rebels. I’m looking for Ridley and Stewart to be keys to this game. Hurts getting the ball to them in short passing and explosive play situations will be crucial in this game. O.J. Howard dropped a TD pass last week, which is unusual for him, but he can be a key player in the passing game as well. The Crimson Tide is tired of hearing that Ole Miss has beaten them two years in row. I don’t see them letting that happen again this time. Ole Miss is not as prolific on offense as they’ve been, though they’re pretty good. On defense they’re not as good as they’ve been the last two years after losing some guys to the NFL. I like the Tide to take care of business at Vaught-Hemingway.

Alabama 31, Ole Miss 17

 

No.17 Texas A&M (2-0) @ Auburn (1-1)

Jordan-Hare Stadium (87,451)

6 PM CT/7 PM ET

ESPN

Dave Flemming, Brian Griese, Todd McShay

Weather 86, clear, wind minimal

Line: AU by 3 1/2

I really like the physicality that Gus and Auburn got back to last week. I was watching the offensive line and they were dominating Arkansas State’s defensive front. Kerryon Johnson ran for 124 yards and a pair of sevens, and Kamryn Pettway ran for 152 yards on 15 carries. It’s a good one-two punch. Really like Kerryon a lot, and while Pettway is not a blazer speed-wise, he does bring more power to the running game at 240 pounds and at 6’3″. Sean White played an excellent game last Saturday completing 17 of 23 passes for 244 yards and three TDs. Hopefully for the Tigers, Gus has settled in on Sean and won’t be making any more of those what I would call bonehead decisions to rotate Sean and John Franklin III in and out. Franklin III has his strength, so he certainly can be used for his running, but White should be the starter for the major part of the game. Auburn’s defense has been terrific so far this season. I really like freshman Marlon Davidson. He is an outstanding player at defensive end. Carl Lawson should get it going this week. The secondary has played well and the linebackers have been much better than anticipated. Darrell Williams, Deshaun Davis, Tre Williams and company have been very good tacklers in the open field and playmakers on defense. Johnathan Ford, Carlton Davis, Tray Matthews, Josh Holsey and the secondary have been super. 

A&M brings a high powered offense and a much improved defense into Jordan-Hare. The great recruits that Kevin Sumlin brought in on defense the last three years have really matured, Defensive ends Myles Garrett and Daeshon Hall are major studs. They are highly disruptive to an offense, so left guard Alex Kozan, left tackle Austin Golson, right tackle Robert Lett and the entire offensive line will have to really be ready to block. Trevor Knight is a good quarterback, but he’s also a gunslinger who can make mistakes with the ball. He throws interceptions at the wrong time, but he can still be a real playmaker. He has excellent weapons on the perimeter led by the ultra exciting Christian Kirk and big wide out Ricky Seals-Jones (6’5″, 240). If head case Speedy Noil has it together this week, he can be a playmaker. The A&M running game is not bad. Oklahoma transfer Keith Ford has been pretty solid thus far. He’s got better power than he looks and he’s quick. 

This should be a shootout, but still a pretty well played game defensively. Turnovers and special teams will be pretty important in this one. But I like the AU offense and defense a little better than A&M’s. I’m expecting a very good game, but like the Tigers at home to get the job done in the end. A Daniel Carlson field goal and a stop by the defense will win it for the Tigers. 

Auburn 34, A&M 31

 

Mississippi State (1-1) @ No.20 LSU (1-1)

Tiger Stadium, Baton Rouge (102,321)

6PM CT/7 PM ET

ESPN2

Mike Patrick, Ed Cunningham (may want to mute this one), Dr Jerry Punch

LSU by 14

Good chance of rain at 6 PM and 8 PM CT, so this one could be kind of ugly at times. Les looks like he might have settled on Purdue transfer Danny Etling as his quarterback as Brandon Jennings showed no signs of being able to lead this offense to any kind of success this season. Etling showed promise last week in the Bengal Tigers’ 34-13 victory over Jax State. Leonard Fournette is back this week after sitting out last week’s game with an injury to his ankle, but I’m not sure he’s that much better than Derrius Guice, who ran for 155 yards and a seven last Saturday night. But with Fournette and Guice this LSU offense is pretty formidable. They have the dual weapons on the outside in Travin Dural and Malachi Dupre, they just need to get those guys the ball. Dupre has not been very reliable this season though as he’s dropped three passes that could have been big plays for LSU. They just haven’t thrown Dural’s way enough. The LSU defense has got all the talent you can ask for, but I’m not positive first year defensive coordinator Dave Aranda is the perfect fit for this talent. The former Wisconsin DC is real cerebral and I don’t think that works for these guys. They just want to line up and  make plays and not be confused with a lot of different formations and signals. He needs to let his guys loose and they’ll be really good. State had a nice bounce back last week against South Carolina after suffering a tough opening week upset loss at home to South Alabama. Nick Fitzgerald is a very good passer and outstanding runner. He ran for 195 yards last week against the Gamecocks. I don’t see him running against the LSU defense like that, so he’ll have to do something in the air and try to find his talented receiver Fred Ross and the other guys to keep the LSU defense honest and open up some running lanes. The State defense is solid though and can make this interesting, particularly with the weather being questionable at times. I like State to be very competitive, but I’m taking the Bengal Tigers at Death Valley on a Lousiana Saturday Night.

LSU 24, State 21

 

No. 2 Florida State (2-0) @ No. 10 Louisville (2-0)

Papa John’s Cardinal Stadium (55,000)

11 AM CT/Noon ET

ABC

Chris, Herbie, Sam

Rain at kickoff 78, wind 6-8 MPH. Rain at 3 PM ET as well.

FSU by 2

Expected a real quarterback battle here, but with the potential for weather problems, this could turn into a running game duel. With that in mind, I like Dalvin Cook to be a difference maker on Saturday. Holding onto the football will be at a premium. Deondre Francois and Lamar Jackson will definitely make some plays, but the defenses could be more of a factor if the weather forecast holds true. Like Dalvin Cook and Francois to make more plays than Jackson and the Louisville group.

Noles 28, Cardinals 24

 

No. 16 Georgia (2-0) @ Missouri (1-1)

Faurot Field, Columbia, MO. (71,168)

6:30 PM CT/7:30 PM ET

SEC Network

Brent, Jess, Kaylee

Weather; fine

Dawgs by 6 1/2

Georgia really struggled last week with Nicholls. Nick Chubb got 80 yards, but they did not come easily. The quarterback situation is still unsettled as neither Jacob Eason nor Greyson Lambert has done anything to prove they have cemented the starting job for the University of Georgia. Kirby is keeping it quiet on who will start. Sony Michel is back, so whoever is under center will be handing off quite a bit to Chubb and Michel. I like the Dawgs, but they need to get better if they expect to contend for the East title. Missouri has a good defense, so that will keep it interesting. Their quarterback, Drew Lock, is talented and getting better. They’re a pretty good football team.

Georgia 31, Missouri 28

 

Upset specials

Oklahoma 35, Ohio State 34

6:30 PM CT/7:30 PM ET FOX

Vanderbilt 28, Georgia Tech 27

11:30 AM CT/12:30 PM ET WTTO 21 Birmingham, ACC Netwo

BYU 35, UCLA 31

9:15 PM CT/10:15 PM ET, ESPN2

Oregon 42, Nebraska 38

2:30 PM CT/3:30 PM ET, ABC

East Carolina 42, South Carolina 35

3 PM CT/4 PM ET, SEC Network

Other scores:

Notre Dame 31, Michigan State 28

6:30 PM CT/7:30 PM ET, NBC

Michigan 34, Colorado 31

2:30 PM CT/3:30 PM ET, Big Ten Network

Stanford 35, USC 30

7 PM CT/8 PM ET, ABC

Texas 42, California 31

9:30 PM CT/10:30 PM ET, ESPN

Northwestern 35, Duke 31

7 PM CT/8 PM ET, Big Ten Network

Arkansas 45, Texas State 10

6:30 PM CT/7:30 PM ET, SEC Network

Tennessee 48, Ohio 7

11 AM CT/Noon ET, SEC Network

Kentucky 42, New Mexico State 3

3 PM CT/4 PM ET, SEC Network

Florida 45, North Texas 3

6:30 PM CT/7:30 PM ET, ESPNU

Southern Miss 38, Troy 31

South Alabama 31, Louisiana- Lafayette 28

Texas Tech 45, La Tech 41

Friday

Baylor 48, Rice 7

7 PM CT/8 PM ET ESPN