Want to watch some quality college football games that are flying under the radar? This list should help you do just that this weekend.
If you’re looking for a high-profile, quality college football game between some notable teams, there’s a few lined up this weekend, but this isn’t the place to talk about them. If you’re looking for a quality college football game that is likely to be full of oddities, mistakes, and entertaining plot twists, then this list is for you.
Each and every week during the college football season, entertaining games get overlooked. It’s a tragedy. But we’re here to put an end to that. You want to watch a quirky game between two slightly above average teams? You should do that. And this list is here to help you pick out what to watch.
This week we’ve got some SEC misfits looking to avoid falling to the bottom of their division, some Big 12 teams that are trying to climb up the ladder, and a Pac-12 match up that will be a battle of opposing philosophies.
No. 5: Iowa State vs. Baylor
The Iowa State Cyclones and the Baylor Bears are meeting up this weekend. Had Iowa State found a way to take down Iowa, this game would likely attract a significant amount of attention. Both Baylor and Iowa State are putting up notable amounts of points each week (46.7 for the Bears and 39.3 for the Cyclones) and are capable of slowing foes with seemingly steady defenses. The two teams appear to be equally matched in many ways, right down to the fact that both head coaches are named Matt.
No. 4: Kentucky vs. South Carolina
Kentucky can’t kick a field goal through the uprights and is missing its starting quarterback. South Carolina can’t beat anyone who isn’t an FCS team and is also missing its starting quarterback (and a long list of other players due to injury).
On Saturday night, these two lovely misfits meet up on the SEC Network for a game that probably won’t be the glowing example and standard bearer for efficient offenses. Both teams are committing at least two turnovers per game. Both teams are off to rough starts and absolutely need this win. Neither team is going to convince anyone that its great anytime soon. So, let’s embrace chaos. South Carolina, Kentucky, make some madness happen.
No. 3: Arkansas State vs. Troy
The Arkansas State Red Wolves and the Troy Trojans are both looking to take a step toward leading their respective divisions in the Sun Belt Conference. While it’s not exactly a heated conference title race that most people pay attention to (due to the nature of the conference’s size and the teams that compete in it), it’s a fairly intriguing one that could yield some interesting results. If you’re looking for a game where points should be scored at a relatively high rate, this one should fit that bill.
No. 2: Kansas State vs. Oklahoma State
In what might just be the most underrated game involving Big 12 teams up to this point, the Kansas State Wildcats and the Oklahoma State Cowboys are meeting up Saturday evening. Chris Klieman really has Kansas State running well right now, with the Wildcats sitting at 3-0, fresh off a bye week, and having beaten the SEC’s Mississippi State Bulldogs.
Oklahoma State, coming off of a frustrating defeat at the hands of Texas, is looking to get back on track. The Cowboys, unsurprisingly are scoring points at will but are also giving up yards by the hundreds. K-State has found a recipe that works for this offense and has a decent defense to back it up. Playing in Stillwater might make this game a bit more difficult for the Wildcats, but it should be intriguing nonetheless.
No. 1: Washington State vs. Utah
After Utah fell to USC (who is now on its third string quarterback), the Pac-12 turned to Washington State to somehow make it to the College Football Playoffs. The Cougars responded by giving up 50 points in the second half of its game against UCLA and blowing a 32 point lead in what ended up being a 67-63 loss.
Now, Washington State and Utah are both having to get over embarrassing losses. Both teams blew their chances at getting to the playoffs. Both teams blew their chances at controlling the Pac-12 in a year in which the more traditional powers in the conference are anything but solid. Both teams should be playing infuriated by how they performed a week ago. Utah’s specialty is stopping teams from scoring. Washington State’s specialty is scoring by the dozen. This should be fun.