Beyond the Apocalypse of the Trojeyes: Ten Other Games to Watch

God bless you, Week 3. Finally, it's time for football with outcomes less predictable than Al Davis' wardrobe or what happens when you leave PJ Hill alone with a Twinkie. Here's 10 games to watch other than Ohio State-USC.

Kansas vs. South Florida, Friday 8PM

Why We're Watching: Velour. Please, Mark Mangino, bring back the velour. We'll plant a velour tree, write velour ballads and pray to a velour god who wears gold chains and sleeps on a circular bed (Which is probably James Caan).

Then there's the football, as two previously not-ready-for-primetime teams meet on national television in a game that's as much about this season as a dipstick on the state of two climbing programs. Quarterbacks Matt Grothe andTodd Reesing are the constants from last year's teams, but both the Bulls and Jayhawks have to prove that they've successfully rebuilt key areas of their teams. South Florida lost two four-year starters at cornerback to the NFL draft and replaced them with Jerome Murphy and Tyller Roberts, two players with two career starts entering the season. Kansas lost its leading rusher and its leading receiver, but seems to have no problem filling the holes with Brandon Anderson-styled powerback Angus Quigley and an array of receivers (Reesing has completed passes to 11 different players).

But the matchup of the game will be South Florida's George Selvie against red-shirt freshman lineman Jeff Spikes. Selvie led the nation in sacks last year, but hasn't had the chance to so much as touch a quarterback inappropriately this season. He's due, which should alone send a shiver down Bulls' fans like they just hired Isiah Thomas to run the team. And if that doesn't strike enough fear, consider this: When he was a kid, George Selvie had a Buick fall on his head. If you think that doesn't make you an unstoppable badass, ponder it some more with the entire Wisconsin offensive line sitting on your head to add to the realism.

If South Florida wins, they likely won't play another ranked team this season until they meet West Virginia in December. [ Ed. Note -- The Bulls edged out Kansas on a dramatic last-second field goal. ]

Michigan at Notre Dame, 3:30PM

Why You're Watching: You can't help but feel that the winner of this battle between two past-their-prime football starlets earns a spot in the next season of the Surreal Life. People in train wrecks would stop what they're doing to tune in to this game. Notre Dame is 78th in total offense after struggling to beat one of the worst teams in Division I at home Saturday. Michigan ups the awful ante, ranking 114th in total offense. Last year, Jimmy Clausen spent more time on his back than a government oil broker, getting sacked eight times. Without Shawn Crable, Michigan's defensive front isn't as fierce this season, but should be able to cause tremendous problems for a Notre Dame offensive line that could only push around San Diego State for 105 rushing yards. (Against FCS team Cal Poly, the Aztecs surrendered 263 yards). Who wins? We can only guess VH1, who should pick up Notre Dame's rights from NBC.

Oregon at Purdue, 3:30PM Saturday

Why We're Watching: If the film "Office Space" could root for a college football team, it would be Purdue. The Boilermakers are the masters of doing just enough not to get fired. They beat who they're supposed to beat, lose to who they're supposed to lose and lead the nation in Wilford Brimley jokes while compiling a resume fit enough for your finest third-tier bowl, all in about 15 minutes of real work a week. The Boilermakers haven't beaten a ranked team in their last 14 attempts and haven't won a home game over a ranked team since 2003. But the player to watch is Boilermaker quarterback Curtis Painter, who may well be one of the nation's elite passers, but has struggled against top-level competition. He's 0-7 against ranked teams and even though he improved his touchdown-to-interception ratio to 29:11 last year, that number falls to just 11:7 against Big Ten teams and stands at just one touchdown against three interceptions against the top Big Ten teams Purdue played last season: Ohio State, Michigan and Penn State. Oregon will put points on the board, but can Purdue keep up? If not, there's always diabeetus.

UCLA at BYU, 3:30PM

Why We're Watching: Bruins coach Rick Neuheisel couldn't have rattled Tennessee's Phil Fulmer any more in UCLA's Week 1 win than if he had a summons in his hand and announced the Vols starting punter had just driven into a tree trunk, both of which we can only assume happened anyway. Saturdays' God vs. Glam battle may turn out to be the most important game of the week. The Bruins will be watching to see which Kevin Craft shows up at quarterback, the shaky third-stringer who threw four first-half interceptions and looked like your drunk uncle trying to throw a tire at Thanksgiving, or the Troy Aikman clone that ran the finest two-minute drill in college football this season.

Last week's BYU win over Washington will almost certainly be remembered as a referendum on the celebration penalty, but that might've been the worst thing that could happen to the Cougars. Bronco Mendenhall's team outgained the Huskies by 138 yards and deserved to win behind a masterful performance by Max Hall (30-41, 338 yards, three touchdowns). But one thing is for certain this week. Any post-game celebrations will make Al Gore seem like a showboater.

Georgia at South Carolina, 3:30PM

Why We're Watching: Yogi Berra might say that it's getting late awful early for the Ole Ball Coach ... and then likely punch Spurrier in the eyeball for subjecting a Hall of Famer like himself to the two-headed quarterbeast of Chris Smelley and Tommy Beecher. The Gamecocks shocked Georgia in Athens last year, but will be without star wide receiver Kenny McKinley. South Carolina's only hope is that its league-best defense can hold up against Georgia's league-best offense. The Gamecocks are first in pass defense (69.5 yards per game), total defense (181.5 ypg) and are giving up just 12 points per game. Georgia, meanwhile, is first in passing efficiency, total offense (583.5 ypg), and scoring (50.5 points per game). Something's gotta give. Our guess, in order, is South Carolina's defense, Spurrier's visor and our attention span.

Georgia Tech-Virginia Tech, 3:30PM

Why We're Watching: Because someone has to win the ACC, right? Or will the league just decide that keeping score is unfair and name all 12 teams "winners"? As strange as it sounds, this could turn into one of Saturday's best games. The option offense hasn't entirely taken hold for Georgia Tech yet, but Paul Johnson had enough of it working to upset Boston College on the road last week, an impressive win for a team almost entirely composed of freshmen and sophomores. But we're watching the matchup of former redshirt quarterback Tyrod Taylor against Georgia Tech's imposing defensive line (including sacks leader Derrick Morgan and 6-foot-7 athletic outlier Michael Johnson, a lock for the first round of this year's NFL Draft if he can stay healthy). The Hokies have already allowed six sacks, which means Taylor will be playing, and scrambling, plenty.

Auburn at Mississippi State, 7PM

Why We're Watching: Last year, Derek Pegues taught us the full meaning of getting Croom'd when he picked off a Brandon Cox pass and raced it back to the end zone during Mississippi State's stunning upset. Pegues is still around, and one of the nation's best defensive backs, but Saturday's game should have a markedly different complexion from last year's. All eyes will be on the quarterbacks. Second-year starter and sophomore Wesley Carroll threw three interceptions in the Bulldogs' buzz-kill season-opening loss to Louisiana Tech while Auburn's Chris Todd seems to have locked up the Tigers' starting job but has just one start under his belt and faces a tough Bulldog secondary.

Oklahoma at Washington, 7:45PM

Why We're Watching: Oklahoma needs to prove its defense can do a better job than the 326-yards-allowed effort against Cincinnati, while Tyrone Willingham may need an upset here to keep his job at season's end, but we're watching this one purely for the offense. Both teams have gifted quarterbacks and both teams operate out of an empty backfield set at times. The Sooners should win, and likely easily, but this could be the week's most entertaining game. The only question is who will have the low score, Oklahoma or Ty Willingham's next round of golf, which likely might start in the third quarter.


Wisconsin at Fresno State, 10:30PM
Why We're Watching: It hasn't gotten the press of the Ohio State-USC matchup (then again, nothing short of the presidential election, Tom Brady's love life and various celebutantes sans drawers have managed that feat), but Saturday night's late game could be just as big a problem for the Big Ten. Unfortunately for the Badgers, Saturday's game has all the earmarks of an upset: A cross-country trip, an unusual start time (9:30PM Central) and a quarterback facing his first true road test in a hostile environment, against a ranked opponent with an off-week to prepare. If the Badgers fall behind 14-0, as they did last week against Marshall, Bret Bielema's team could be in trouble. Last year's club was just 2-3 in true road games. But the Badgers might be able to outclass the Bulldogs in the trenches. Wisconsin is averaging 281 rushing yards per game and might be able to roll up a Fresno State unit that finished 85th in the nation in rush defense last year and gave up 106 yards to offense-challenged Rutgers in its only game this year. The Bulldog defensive front should be improved, but Wisconsin's offense line is so big it probably measures itself on truck scales.

The Plus-One Game: Iowa-Iowa State, Noon

Why We're Watching: Because despite the exceptionally uncreative name for the Cy-Hawk Trophy and the hours of feed commercials you have to sit through to watch it on the Big Ten network, the battle for America's corn is usually an entertaining game. Both teams are 2-0, and for one week at least, the Hawkeyes are in the headlines for football instead of off-field problems. The pressure is on Kirk Ferentz, who hasn't lived up to the expectations of his lofty paycheck in recent seasons, but we're watching new Iowa quarterback Rick Stanzi, who grabbed the starter's job from longtime quarterback of the future Jake Christensen. Hopefully for Stanzi, the Hawkeyes do a better job of protecting him than Christensen (who was sacked 46 times last season), or it'll be another long Saturday in Iowa City.