If you thought the opening week of the college football season had a loaded schedule, just wait until you see what’s on tap for Week 2.
If you had any plans for Saturday, make sure you cancel them right now so you can be free to devote your time and attention to the great slate of college football games this weekend. The first week was headlined by No. 1 Alabama defeating No. 3 Florida State, but other than that, there wasn’t a whole lot of marquee games on paper heading into the week. But Week 2 is loaded and you don’t want to miss what’s on tap. Week 2 brings a nice mix of rivalry games, enticing non-conference matchups and one that could be a preview of a conference championship game.
Below you can see the five games I’ve picked out as the five can’t miss games on the Week 2 schedule and a little preview of what you can expect. I’ll have my official predictions for these five games on Friday, so make sure you check back then to see what direction I’m leading for the best games of the week.
5 – Pitt at No. 4 Penn State – 3:30 – ABC
There may not be a more electrifying talent with the ball in his hands than Penn State running back Saquon Barkley. The Penn State junior running back is firmly in the Heisman conversation after rushing for 172 yards and a pair of scores in the season opener vs. Akron. Now, Barkley gets his chance to run wild in a rivalry game against the Pitt Panthers. They have a talented back of their own in Qadree Ollison who led the team in rushing and receiving in their overtime win against Youngstown State in the opener. Last year’s contest saw Penn State stage a furious comeback to win, but look for the Nittany Lions to build a huge lead early and bring home a big win.
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4 – No. 15 Georgia at No. 24 Notre Dame – 7:30 – NBC
This is the first game between the two schools since the 1981 Sugar Bowl that saw Georgia win their most recent national title. The stakes won’t be as large this time, but it’s a big non-conference game nonetheless. Georgia will be without quarterback Jacob Eason who is week-to-week after spraining his knee in the first quarter of the Dawgs opener. Jake Fromm replaced him and managed the game as he handed the ball off to Sony Michel and Nick Chubb. Look for a similar offensive philosophy as he makes his first collegiate start at Notre Dame. The Fighting Irish, meanwhile, lean on first-year starter Brandon Wimbush who had a strong debut last week. He’ll feed running back Josh Adams who had 161 yards and a pair of scores in the Week 1 win.
3 – No. 13 Auburn at No. 3 Clemson – 7:00 – ESPN
Clemson opened last season with a 19-13 win over Auburn that served as the launching point for Dabo Swinney’s team that won last year’s national championship.
This year’s game figures to be a similar one-score game and the winner could be decided by the quarterback who has the best game. In his first start for Clemson, Kelly Bryant did his best Deshaun Watson impersonation, accounting for two touchdowns and using his feet to make plays as well as his arm.
Meanwhile, Jarrett Stidham fared well in his first start for Auburn after transferring from Baylor. Stidham threw for 185 yards and two touchdowns and looked like their best passer since Cam Newton. Both teams feature dynamic rushing attacks and suffocating defenses, so look for the quarterback that makes the fewest mistakes to be the victor on Saturday.
2 – No. 14 Stanford at No. 6 USC – 8:30 – Fox
This very well could be a preview of the Pac-12 Championship Game. Stanford had an entire week to prepare for this game after opening two weeks ago vs. Rice in Australia. Keller Chryst and Bryce Love look like future stars but they’ll face their toughest test of the year on Saturday against the Trojans. USC got a tough test from Western Michigan in the opener before pulling away late. Sam Darnold didn’t put up Heisman numbers as he was held without a touchdown pass and threw two interceptions. But Ronald Jones II did put up Heisman-caliber numbers with 159 yards and three touchdowns on the ground. Provided Darnold looks like the player he did last year and Jones has a similar performance, USC should improve to 2-0 on the young season.
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1 – No. 5 Oklahoma at No. 2 Ohio State – 7:30 – ABC
For the second week in a row, we have a matchup featuring a pair of top-five teams. Alabama vs. Florida State didn’t live up to the hype, but Oklahoma and Ohio State should because both teams should be able to score frequently. Sooners’ quarterback Baker Mayfield was nearly perfect, completing 19-of-20 passes for 329 yards and three touchdowns in the opener. Meanwhile, J.T. Barrett threw for 304 yards and three touchdowns of his own in the Buckeyes win over Indiana. Helping Ohio State is true freshman running back J.K. Dobbins who ran for 181 yards to set a Buckeye record for freshman for more yards in their debut. This could be a game that Oklahoma misses Joe Mixon and Samaje Perine because the Ohio State defense is nothing like Mayfield will face in the defenseless Big 12. If Ohio State can run the ball and Oklahoma can’t, Ohio State will beat Oklahoma for the second year in a row.