Guide to the ultimate college football Saturday, Week 6
By Stu White
Week 6 of the 2015 college football regular season is here. Are you ready?
Oh my, we’ve already reached the sixth week of the 2015 college football regular season. Where did all the time go? Remember when people thought Oregon and USC would be the Pac-12’s two best teams, destined to meet in the conference title game? Remember when the Utah Utes were picked to finish near the bottom of their division? Time makes fools of us all.
Week 6’s slate doesn’t feature as many high-profile contests as we saw last weekend, but there are still plenty of games worthy of your attention. Juggling a full day of nonstop college football action isn’t easy, which is why there’s a useful guide posted below. Just scroll down the page. You can’t miss it.
(All times Pacific)
7:45 a.m. — When’s the last time you went for a jog? Eons ago? Take a few laps around the block to get your heart pumping. It’s too early in the day to drink, but those exercise endorphins are damn sweet. The rush you seek is already inside of you, waiting. It’s like one of those Disney movies where the knight discovers that he’s been brave all along, except it’s with feeling high as opposed to feeling courageous.
8:15 a.m. — Recycle some of those empty beer cans that have been piling up in the garage for weeks now. Use the deposit money to buy yourself something nice, like a pack of frozen fish sticks or a big bag of candy corn.
9:00 a.m. — And away we go! It feels weird to say, but I’m oddly interested in Illinois at no. 22 Iowa (ESPN2/WatchESPN). Illinois sits at a surprising 4-1, and Iowa, led by their great defense, is undefeated. There probably won’t be a lot of points scored here, but that’s OK. As a viewer, you need to pace yourself. Can’t binge on points too early in the morning. That’s a rookie mistake.
If that’s not enough hard-hitting Big Ten action for you, break out the picture-in-picture and tune in for Maryland at no. 1 Ohio State (BTN) and/or Indiana at Penn State (ESPN/WatchESPN). Hell yeah! Fundamentally sound football, baby! The way the game was meant to be played.
Down in the Big 12, where the officiating alone is worth the price of admission, there’s no. 3 Baylor at woeful Kansas (FOXS1). That game will be about as brutal as — *checks list of hip references that are all the rage these days* — the Red Wedding, so don’t let your children watch. Another likely bloodbath is no. 10 Oklahoma at the tire-fire that is unranked Texas (ABC/WatchESPN). Keep Bevo in your prayers.
11:00 a.m. — MACtion time! You can choose between Miami (OH) at Ohio (ESPN3/WatchESPN) and Massachusetts at Bowling Green (ESPN3/WatchESPN). Enjoy!
12:00 p.m. — Hey, speaking of MACtion, no. 24 Toledo is hosting Kent State (ESPN3/WatchESPN). Beware: too much MACtion can be bad for your health.
12:30 p.m. — Here we go: a jam-packed slate of games. For all you triple-option fans out there, there’s Georgia Tech at no. 6 Clemson (ABC/ESPN2/WatchESPN) and Navy at no. 15 Notre Dame (NBC). Who needs those fancy spread offenses, anyway? Pitching the ball backward worked for decades, thank you very much. Wanna know who likes high-octane spread offenses? Millennials, that’s who. And Millennials are bad. There’s science behind that and everything.
For all you SEC fans out there, there’s no. 7 LSU at South Carolina (ESPN/WatchESPN) and no. 19 Georgia at Tennessee. Watch as both the Tiger and Bulldogs lose in close games, thus catapulting the Gamecocks and the Volunteers into the land of ranked teams, because that’s how the polls work when it comes to the SEC. No, I’m not bitter about that at all. Not in the slightest.
But the marquee game at this time is in the Big Ten: no. 13 Northwestern at no. 18 Michigan (BTN). Expect a defensive slug-fest — the Wildcats are first in the nation in terms points allowed per game, and the Wolverines rank second in that category — and at least one Jim Harbaugh sideline tantrum. After an early loss to Utah, Michigan is quietly putting together a solid season, but the Wildcats will provide them with their biggest test yet.
1:00 p.m. — Put that pork shoulder in the slow cooker so you can have pulled pork sandwiches for dinner. Wait, you did go out an buy a pork shoulder, right? You didn’t? OK, don’t panic. Just use your time machine to rewind to the start of the day.
3:00 p.m. — How will Oregon’s porous pass defense hold up against the aerial attack of Washington State? The answer is on the Pac-12 Network.
4:00 p.m. — If you get a kick out of seeing Bret Bielema lose, Arkansas is facing no. 8 Alabama (ESPN/WatchESPN). Running back Alex Collins has been a bright spot for the Razorbacks in 2015, and watching him go up against the Crimson Tide’s tough defense should be exciting.
In other ranked action, no. 21 Oklahoma State is in Morgantown to take on West Virginia (ESPN2/WatchESPN). Wait, hold on, I have to amend that: Oklahoma State and the Big 12 referees are in Morgantown to take on West Virginia. There, that’s better.
4:30 p.m. — If the four o’clock games aren’t quite up to snuff, there’s no. 2 TCU, always a lot of fun to watch, at Kansas State (FOX). I don’t think K-State is going to keep this close, but you never know (and I’m almost always wrong).
Also at this time, no. 11 Florida is on the road to take on Missouri (SEC Network/WatchESPN). Florida pulled off a remarkable win over Tennessee last weekend, but don’t get too high on the Gators: the Volunteers have turned late-game collapses into an art form. Missouri’s offense hasn’t exactly set the world on fire this season, so the Tigers will have to rely on their stout defense if they want to knock off undefeated Florida.
5:00 p.m. — Unranked Miami at no. 12 Florida State (ABC/WatchESPN). *Insert “Do you remember when this rivalry was appointment television? Pepperidge Farm remembers” meme here, because memes are forever funny. Haha.*
6:30 p.m. — If your energy levels are plummeting, get yourself a lil’ caffeine boost. You still have one more major game to go. Tough it out. You can do it!
7:00 p.m. — Hey, raise you hand if you predicted back in August that California (no. 23) at Utah (no. 5) would be a match-up between two undefeated teams (ESPN/WatchESPN). You’re lying.
As great as the Golden Bears have looked on offense this year — if you haven’t yet had the chance to watch Cal quarterback and future first-round pick Jared Goff, you’re in for a treat — they haven’t been able to pull away from opponents, winning by one against Texas, six against Washington, and six against Washington State. They will have to execute in all phases of the game if they want to knock off the Utes, who have had a week to rest after their monumental win over the Oregon Ducks in Eugene.
Don’t let the highlights from the Utah-Oregon game fool you. The Utes pulled off some nice trickery to beat the Ducks, but they are, at heart, a smash-mouth football team. Kyle Whittingham’s defenses are always tough, and running back Devontae Booker is a challenge for any defender to bring down. If quarterback Travis Wilson, who has been erratic over the course of his time at Utah, can put together another solid game like he did against Oregon, taking care of the football and using his surprising mobility when the need arises, don’t be surprised if the Utes kick the Golden Bears to the curb in impressive fashion.
10:00 p.m. — Well, would ya look at that. Another Saturday come and gone. There are probably bars open for those of you who like being social. For the rest of us, there’s bed.