College football Week 4: 5 underrated games die-hard fans will love

Want to watch some quality college football games that are flying under the radar? This list should help you do just that this weekend.

It’s time to figure out which weird (or eccentric or odd or intriguing or high-scoring or weirdly low-scoring) college football games you’re going to watch this weekend. Every week, there’s an underrated college football game that isn’t going to get the attention it deserves, and that’s why this weekly list exists.

This week, we’ve got close match ups, a rivalry that isn’t really a rivalry but is full of aggression, teams that are eclectic and don’t seem to have an identity, and a team from the South traveling to the middle of the Pacific Ocean.

Here’s some college football games that are flying under the radar and that you should watch this week:

No. 5: Louisiana vs. Ohio

The Louisiana Ragin’ Cajuns are getting a nice road trip to the Midwest as they face they Ohio Bobcats. The two teams enter into this game on opposite streaks. Louisiana started the season by challenging, and subsequently falling to Mississippi State in New Orleans, but then winning its next two games. Ohio started the season by knocking down Rhode Island and then losing to Pitt and Marshall in frustrating fashion. The Bobcats will have a chance because this game is at home, but the Ragin’ Cajuns are looking pretty solid to start the season.

No. 4: Kentucky vs. Mississippi State

This is technically a rivalry, and neither side really likes the other all that much, but most fans involved don’t really look at it as a rivalry. The SEC mandated that the two teams face each other a while back, and so they do, typically in close fashion, but neither fanbase really, truly cares about this game as a defining part of a season the way that they do about their traditional rivals. Also, Kentucky came close to defeating Florida for the second time in two years and appears to be a solid team. Mississippi State is weaker on defense than it was a season ago and has an offense that is more efficient but is sputtering as its starting quarterback is injured and a freshman takes his place.

No. 3: California vs. Ole Miss

This game will only be interesting if Ole Miss can actually find a pulse on offense. Otherwise, California might roll into Oxford and stroll right out with a win. So far, the Rich Rodriguez experience has been a rough one for the Rebels. The season opener against Memphis was a close game, but with far fewer points than anyone really anticipated. And then the Rebels have been far from consistent on defense as well, giving up 29 points to Southeastern Louisiana a weekend ago. Cal, meanwhile, has been consistent in that the Golden Bears don’t score a lot of points and slowly smother their foes. Cal is not a dominant team, but they’re good on defense, and that could create issues for Ole Miss at home.

No. 2: Central Arkansas vs. Hawai’i

I love it when smaller schools get to take a trip to Hawai’i and play in ridiculously late games. Central Arkansas will never know what it’s like to play in a bowl game as the Bears are an FCS program, so a trip to a tropical island in the middle of the season should be fun for this team. Hawai’i gets to face off against an opponent that it should theoretically handle with ease after being handled with ease by the Washington Huskies last week. But late night games are weird (looking at you, Pac-12 after dark) and Central Arkansas will be looking for landmark win.

No. 1: Colorado vs. Arizona State

Colorado, you were so close to really getting everyone’s respect. So, so close. And you blew it. A week after the Buffs came back to beat the Nebraska Cornhuskers in overtime, Colorado fell short against Air Force in overtime. Now, the Buffs look to bounce back, and they’ll have a chance to do so as Arizona State is riding a similar high that Colorado was a week ago as the Sun Devils knocked off Michigan State this past week. For Arizona State to win, the Sun Devils will need to make sure that they actually learn from Colorado’s mistakes and not overlook an opponent that might seem less than remarkable following a fun upset win.