Week 11 game previews: Josh Pate predicts marquee matchups in college football

Tuesday’s episode of Josh Pate’s College Football Show brought a trio of previews. All three from different parts of the country, likely being the conference’s premier game of the weekend. A fun slate should be ahead of us.

Josh Pate began in Tuscaloosa before hopping over to the Big 12. He then wrapped things up with a key Big Ten showdown, holding up a few caution signs for the favored teams.

LSU at Alabama

The story of this one is going to be LSU heading into the post-Brian Kelly era. Frank Wilson takes over as the interim head coach and gets quite the test to begin his tenure. Some might assume this might be where LSU rolls over, especially facing a top-four team in Bryant-Denny Stadium. But Pate knows a team led by Wilson is going to be ready to fight. LSU may wind up losing but it’s not going to be for a lack of effort.

“General expectation for this game,” Pate began. “I expect the most fight you’ve seen out of LSU all year. So, that doesn’t guarantee anything in terms of outcome. But if anyone out there is thinking to themselves the generic ‘Oh, coach got fired, season’s mailed in.’ Sometimes, that happens. I cannot, in strong enough terms, express to you how much disdain in that building had for [Brian Kelly] and how much love they have for Frank Wilson.

“Therefore, how over the cliff ready they are ready to go for him. So, they may lose by 30, they may win outright. But if they lose by 30, I highly doubt it’s going to be because LSU showed unprepared to play and unprepared to just light their hair on fire.”

BYU at Texas Tech

Pate quickly mentioned the weird scheduling quirk coming to light here. Texas Tech will play its sixth straight game while BYU comes off a bye. Always something to note when the calendar turns to November.

As for the preview, Texas Tech is the selection for Pate. He sees a world where BYU gets into a game they are not too familiar with, relying on freshman quarterback Bear Bachmeier. If the Red Raiders can force them to do that, Pate can see the gates opening.

“There is a world where Brigham Young wins this game outright by doing the exact same thing that they’ve done for a long time,” Pate said. “The reason I’m going to go the direction I’m going to go because I think there are a couple of dam-breaker moments that could happen here, where if they happen, they’re happening to Brigham Young for the first time this year. And if they’re put in an unfamiliar spot, I think there is a chance to get margin here for Texas Tech.”

Oregon at Iowa

Most Big Ten teams enter Kinnick Stadium with caution, knowing a tough Iowa team is on the other side. Oregon has previously played there twice but never in a conference showdown. A different style of game is heading their way. Pate believes there will be a time for the Ducks to throw a knockout punch and they need to connect.

“Oregon has got to, kind of, make Iowa’s game their game is basically what I’m saying,” Pate said. “Forget about the early knockout. That is very unlikely to happen… If you can go do that, be my guest and do that. It’s far more likely that it gets drug out into the deep end and the score is like 13-9 in the fourth quarter, something like that. And you just jabbed and jabbed and jabbed the whole game. Then, there is this three-minute chunk of the game where you got a couple of chances to deliver a knockout blow. It comes down to whether you land it or not.”

Texas A&M at Missouri

Josh Pate thinks Texas A&M vs. Missouri will be a one-score game, which means this game could go either way. This game could be decided by situational football. Notably, Pate’s ‘Model’ isn’t so high on the Aggies, which is why the Tigers could keep it close — or even steal the win from the last team undefeated in the SEC.

“A&M, you’ve gotten this late in the season, and yet you’re still looking at an offensive line and a tailback room here (against Missour) that can give you a pretty unique challenge up front. A&M, they’ve dealt with several different kinds of teams. This matchup here, we’ve got reason to believe that (Missouri) can give A&M some fits.

“If you don’t take care of business, if Marcel Reed and that passing attack doesn’t take care of business, and you’re not putting what you should put up on the board, and you scored 40 plus two consecutive weeks. If you’re not doing that, Missouri can just slowly put their hands around your neck and start to just squeeze, and all of a sudden you can’t breathe, and it’s too late. That could be this kind of game — it has to be that kind of game for Missouri.”