College Football Cheat Sheet: Week 13
The final week of the regular season has arrived. There are still five remaining undefeated teams in the Power Five. There are four more teams with only one loss. The College Football Playoff race is wide open. That should create quite the festive rivalry weekend.
There are numerous trophy games on the slate in Week 13 with more than a handful of games sliding into the Black Friday window to give us quite the card. Bragging rights are at stake. There will be numerous in-game scuffles. Conference championship and playoff berths are on the line.
Let’s have a weekend. KSR’s College Football Cheat Sheet is here a day early to set the table for a very important Thanksgiving weekend.
The Slate
| No. 12 Ole Miss at Mississippi State | 7:30pm ET (Thursday) | ESPN |
| No. 17 Iowa at Nebraska | Noon ET (Friday) | CBS |
| Memphis at Temple | Noon ET (Friday) | ESPN |
| Miami at Boston College | Noon ET (Friday) | ABC |
| Ohio at Akron | Noon ET (Friday) | CBS Sports Network |
| TCU at No. 13 Oklahoma | Noon ET (Friday) | FOX |
| Toledo at Central Michigan | Noon ET (Friday) | ESPNU |
| Utah State at New Mexico | 3:30pm ET (Friday) | CBS Sports Network |
| UTSA at No. 23 Tulane | 3:30pm ET (Friday) | ABC |
| Air Force at Boise State | 4:00pm ET (Friday) | FS1 |
| No. 9 Missouri at Arkansas | 4:00pm ET (Friday) | CBS |
| No. 11 Penn State vs. Michigan State | 7:30pm ET (Friday) | NBC |
| Texas Tech at No. 7 Texas | 7:30pm ET (Friday) | ABC |
| No. 16 Oregon State at No. 6 Oregon | 8:30pm ET (Friday) | FOX |
| UConn at UMass | Noon ET | ESPN+ |
| No. 2 Ohio State at No. 3 Michigan | Noon ET | FOX |
| Middle Tennessee at Sam Houston | Noon ET | ESPN+ |
| Houston at UCF | Noon ET | FS1 |
| Indiana at Purdue | Noon ET | Big Ten Network |
| Kentucky at No. 10 Louisville | Noon ET | ABC |
| Miami (Ohio) at Ball State | Noon ET | CBS Sports Network |
| Navy at SMU | Noon ET | ESPN2 |
| Northern Illinois at Kent State | Noon ET | ESPN+ |
| Pittsburgh at Duke | Noon ET | ACC Network |
| Texas A&M at No. 14 LSU | Noon ET | ESPN |
| Troy at Southern Miss | Noon ET | ESPNU |
| Florida Atlantic at Rice | 1:00pm ET | ESPN+ |
| Georgia State at Old Dominion | 2:00pm ET | ESPN+ |
| Tulsa at East Carolina | 2:00pm ET | ESPN+ |
| UAB at North Texas | 2:00pm ET | ESPN+ |
| Wake Forest at Syracuse | 2:00pm ET | The CW |
| San Jose State at UNLV | 3:00pm ET | Mountain West Network |
| WKU at FIU | 3:00pm ET | ESPN+ |
| Colorado at Utah | 3:00pm ET | Pac-12 Network |
| ULM at Louisiana | 3:00pm ET | ESPN+ |
| No. 25 Liberty at UTEP | 3:30pm ET | CBS Sports Network |
| No. 8 Alabama at Auburn | 3:30pm ET | CBS |
| No. 15 Arizona at Arizona State | 3:30pm ET | ESPN |
| Arkansas State at Marshall | 3:30pm ET | ESPN+ |
| BYU at No. 20 Oklahoma State | 3:30pm ET | ABC |
| Georgia Southern at Appalachian State | 3:30pm ET | ESPNU |
| James Madison at Coastal Carolina | 3:30pm ET | ESPN2 |
| Maryland at Rutgers | 3:30pm ET | Big Ten Network |
| Northwestern at Illinois | 3:30pm ET | Big Ten Network |
| Vanderbilt at No. 21 Tennessee | 3:30pm ET | SEC Network |
| Virginia Tech at Virginia | 3:30pm ET | ACC Network |
| Wisconsin at Minnesota | 3:30pm ET | FS1 |
| Jacksonville State at New Mexico State | 4:00pm ET | ESPN+ |
| Washington State at No. 4 Washington | 4:00pm ET | FOX |
| South Alabama at Texas State | 7:00pm ET | NFL Network |
| No. 5 Florida State at Florida | 7:00pm ET | ESPN |
| No. 18 Notre Dame at Stanford | 7:00pm ET | Pac-12 Network |
| West Virginia at Baylor | 7:00pm ET | FS1 |
| Charlotte at USF | 7:30pm ET | ESPNU |
| No. 24 Clemson at South Carolina | 7:30pm ET | SEC Network |
| No. 1 Georgia at Georgia Tech | 7:30pm ET | ABC |
| Kansas at Cincinnati | 7:30pm ET | ESPN2 |
| Iowa State at No. 19 Kansas State | 8:00pm ET | FOX |
| North Carolina at No. 22 NC State | 8:00pm ET | ACC Network |
| Wyoming at Nevada | 9:00pm ET | CBS Sports Network |
| California at UCLA | 10:30pm ET | ESPN |
| Fresno State at San Diego State | 10:30pm ET | FS1 |
| Colorado State at Hawai’i | 11:00pm ET | PPV |
Top 10 Games
- No. 2 Ohio State at No. 3 Michigan
- No. 5 Florida State at Florida
- No. 16 Oregon State at No. 6 Oregon
- UTSA at No. 23 Tulane
- North Carolina at No. 22 NC State
- Texas A&M at No. 14 LSU
- No. 17 Iowa at Nebraska
- No. 24 Clemson at South Carolina
- TCU at No. 13 Oklahoma
- Texas Tech at No. 7 Texas
College Football Gambling Corner
Want spread plays? We got spread plays.
— Luckett’s Locks: Rivalry Football
The Big Game without Jim Harbaugh
A College Football Playoff play-in game will take place at high noon on Thanksgiving Saturday. Ryan Day‘s Ohio State Buckeyes (11-0, 8-0) will look to end a two-game losing streak to the Michigan Wolverines (11-0, 8-0). In a battle of top-five unbeatens, the home team will have to knock off its biggest rival without the head coach on the sidelines.
Jim Harbaugh will finish up his three-game suspension on Saturday as offensive line coach Sherrone Moore will once again serve as the game-day head coach for Michigan. That could matter in a big way if this game goes into the fourth quarter undecided.
In a battle with top-five defenses, scoring could be at a premium. Ohio State has the most dangerous player on the field in Marvin Harrison Jr. at wide receiver. However, J.J. McCarthy is the best quarterback in the. The team that gets a star performance from their offensive stars will likely leave The Big House victorious.
However, you cannot belittle the importance of Harbaugh not being on the sidelines in a game of this magnitude. Does that end up burning Michigan?
Backup QB Bowl
Jordan Travis and Graham Mertz were both having excellent seasons heading into Week 12. Travis had Florida State in the College Football Playoff hunt, and Mertz might have been the most surprising transfer addition in the SEC this season.
Unfortunately, each was knocked out of the game last week. FSU will have to try to win an ACC title and national championship with a backup quarterback. Florida will need a big home upset to get to bowl eligibility with a backup quarterback taking the snaps.
We will learn a lot more about Tate Rodemaker and Max Brown on Saturday night in Ben Hill Griffin Stadium. Do these two programs have their QB of the future on the roster right now or is an addition needed?
Week 13 will give each a big-time opportunity in a heated rivalry matchup.
An odd Civil War
The best game on Friday night has been put into a prime-time window on FOX when No. 6 Oregon hosts No. 16 Oregon State. The Ducks would lock up a trip to the Pac-12 Championship Game with a win, but this is very much the end of an era.
After this season, Oregon is making the move to the Big Ten, and Oregon State will be left on the west coast with Washington State for a likely conference merger with the Mountain West. Now reports are coming out that Oregon State head coach Jonathan Smith is a top target for Michigan State. That could make the stakes higher at Autzen Stadium.
Both the Beavers and the Ducks have top-20 offenses going against defenses that are not juggernauts. We could see some points in bunches on Friday night. We will miss the Civil War if Oregon decides to end the series. Dan Lanning could have more head-to-head battles with Smith in the Big Ten. Savor this matchup in a big spot.
This is yet another sign that the sport of college football is changing in a big way.
College Football Degenerate Under: Iowa at Nebraska Under 25.5
You couldn’t keep them out of this spot for long. After one week off, Big Ten West Champ Iowa will be playing for a 10-2 record on the road against Nebraska in the Degenerate under spot. Somehow the Hawkeyes are an underdog.
With a projected final score of 14-11.5, we should expect a ton of punts on Black Friday. The first team to score two touchdowns figures to have a massive advantage in this contest. Heck, one touchdown might be enough to win this Week 13 matchup.
In another game that will be played in the mud, I’m willing to ride with Iowa. Give defensive coordinator Phil Parker the Broyles Award.
The rest of the college football card
— The Egg Bowl is back on Thanksgiving night and will give us a solid alternative to 49ers-Seahawks. Ole Miss can lock up a 10-2 season with a win in Starkville against a Mississippi State program that is currently conducting a coaching search. The Rebels should handle this matchup with ease, but this is a rivalry tends to get off the rails.
— Speaking of a 10-2 record, Missouri could lock up a New Year’s Six bid with a road win on Black Friday over Arkansas. However, the Hogs just announced that head coach Sam Pittman will be getting another season. Will that give the home team an emotional boost in a trophy game?
— The battle of outer space will occur in Orlando when UCF hosts Houston. Does this game have a rocket ship trophy? If not, it needs to get one stat.
— Can Jayden Daniels lock up the Heisman Trophy on Saturday? The LSU quarterback will need a big performance against Texas A&M in a rare noon game at Tiger Stadium. The last few weeks have shown us that head coach Brian Kelly is committed to winning that trophy for Daniels. If the Tigers can run it up they will against an Aggies team currently going through a coaching search.
— Oklahoma State can lock up a trip to the Big 12 Championship Game with a home win over BYU on Saturday afternoon in Stillwater. Mike Gundy should be getting heavy consideration for coach of the year honors. The Pokes have been one of the biggest surprises of the season and could get a chance to knock off both Oklahoma and Texas in the same year before the two bluebloods move to the SEC.
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