SATURDAY, SEPT. 19
Houston at Baylor – 12 p.m. ET
Talk about acting fast– this game wasn’t even scheduled this time last week. The two schools struck an impromptu deal to play after both of their competitions were postponed due to opposing outbreaks. After star quarterback D’Eriq King left the program mid-last season the Cougars went 3-5, losing games to very tough opponents (ranked teams Cincinnati, SMU, UCF Memphis, and Navy). Baylor is looking to continue last year’s success without coach Matt Rhule, who left for the Carolina Panthers’ head job.
Boston College at Duke – 12 p.m. ET
Duke kept their game with Notre Dame (-20.5) well under control and even looked like they were going to threaten the Irish with a loss. Former Ohio State secondary coach Jeff Hafley (who helped develop Jeff Okudah, Damon Arnette, and Shaun Wade) is making his debut as head coach with Boston College in Durham. The Eagles ranked just 122nd in pass defense a season ago, and Hafley is an excellent choice to put the brakes on the skid. Just in time, too, as Clemson-transfer Chase Brice passed for over 250 yards against the Irish last week.
Liberty at Western Kentucky – 12 p.m. ET
WKU’s offense was stagnant against Louisville a week ago, but the final score showed a much closer contest. After a brutal start to last season, the Hilltoppers have gone on a 9-2 tear that included a win over SEC foe Arkansas and a bowl win. Offseason controversy with the pandemic and social justice forced the hands of a few projected starters to leave the program and saw the chancellor of the school resign. A distracting offseason could be cause for some serious early struggles for the Flames.
No. 19 ULL at Georgia State– 12 p.m. ET
The Ragin Cajuns looked dominant in their season opener at Iowa State, holding last year’s 39th-ranked scoring offense to just 14 points and the 11th-ranked passer (Brock Purdy) to a dismal 4.1 yards per completion, 145 yards, and a 45.7 completion percentage. ULL will look to capitalize on Georgia State’s 119th-ranked rush defense from a season ago while trying to keep the Panthers’ 12th-ranked rush defense under control.
Navy at Tulane – 12 p.m. ET
Navy’s had a couple of weeks to think about the beatdown they took on national TV at the hands of BYU (and likely did hours of tackling drills in that time). The Midshipmen looked helpless on both sides of the football and were utterly dominated at the line of scrimmage. Tulane controlled the line of scrimmage in their opening matchup against South Alabama, rushing for 5.1 yards per carry while only allowing 1.9 to the Jags. This looks like another matchup issue for Navy.
Syracuse at No. 25 Pitt – 12 p.m. ET
The decimated 2020 schedule does funny things to the rankings; in this case, a 55-0 win over FCS Austin Peay was enough to bring the Pittsburgh Panthers into the AP Top 25. Syracuse was looking like they were holding their own against a sloppy UNC team until the Tar Heels posted 21 in the fourth quarter and put the Orange away. The point spread is steep given the bad quarter from Cuse and underwhelming performance for Pitt, but the Panthers have several playmakers on both sides of the football at their disposal.
Tulsa at No. 11 Oklahoma State – 12 p.m. ET
Last year’s contest was a whole lot closer than the final score indicated as Tulsa even led 21-20 at halftime. It was bell-cow Chuba Hubbard who single-handedly put them away behind 256 yards and three scores. Hubbard is back and the game is in Stillwater, likely spelling disaster for the Golden Hurricanes. Last season, Tulsa produced the 90th-ranked rush defense and return just two of their front seven.
No. 23 Appalachian State at Marshall – 1:30 p.m. ET
It wasn’t the most inspiring win for the Mountaineers last week, but App State did manage to produce two 100-yard rushers against Charlotte. Marshall swept EKU right out of town in their opener 59-0 and had their second game against East Carolina postponed. App State’s offensive line massively outweighs Marshall’s front four, which allowed just 2.8 yards per rush to EKU. With the size advantage up front, App State has a chance to win this one with authority.
South Florida at No. 7 Notre Dame – 2:30 p.m. ET
Things were looking ugly to start for USF against FCS Citadel. The Bulls tried out three different quarterbacks who combined for 102 yards and one touchdown. Other than sharing the wealth behind center, USF had 10 different players carry the ball and 11 different players catch a pass. That ploy may not work when they visit No. 7 Notre Dame. The Irish allowed just 85 yards rushing against Duke and a team average yards per carry of 2.4.
Charlotte at No. 12 North Carolina – 3:30 p.m. ET
Charlotte kept their opener against Appalachian State closer than many expected but were gashed on the ground to the tune of 6.2 yards per carry. North Carolina’s Javonte Williams scored three times on the ground against Syracuse, though the Heels didn’t produce a 100-yard rusher. The key for the 49ers keeping this game close is to slow budding star Sam Howell and capitalize on his inevitable mistakes– Howell threw two bad interceptions to the Orange last week.
Florida Atlantic at Georgia Southern – 3:30 p.m. ET
It was a bit of a scare in Statesboro over the weekend; it took the Eagles staving off a last-second two point conversion to beat Campbell, 27-26. Georgia Southern led in time of possession and Campbell committed 12 penalties for 138 yards, but had trouble sustaining drives (GASO went 4/11 on third down). FAU is coming off a season in which they won their last seven games, including a dominant bowl game win over then-red hot SMU.
No. 14 UCF at Georgia Tech – 3:30 p.m. ET
Georgia Tech produced the shocker of the weekend by upsetting Florida State in Tallahassee. There wasn’t much to speak of on the offensive end for the Jackets, but defensively they stuffed the Seminoles and controlled the line of scrimmage. UCF, however, presents a bigger problem with their high-flying offense that ranked sixth in scoring a season ago (fifth in 2018 and first in 2017). The Knights also return a ton of offensive production and are looking to get back to their undefeated ways in 2020.
Troy at Middle Tennessee – 4 p.m. ET
Asher O’Hara and the Blue Raiders looked helpless against Army in their season opener, failing to put any points on the board. In seven possessions, MTSU had four turnovers and ended the first half on some exasperating clock mismanagement. Troy doesn’t boast quite the same defensive prowess as Army, but O’Hara has to minimize the turnovers or this season will turn ugly fast.
SMU at North Texas – 6 p.m. ET
SMU was given a run for their money against Texas State in their season opener and missed out on their annual rivalry game with TCU due to an outbreak with the Horned Frogs. UNT’s defense played much better than the scoreboard gave them credit for (HBU scored two late touchdowns with the backups in). The offense looked explosive, scoring 57 in their season opener. However, the Mean Green need to tidy it up with their passing offense, as they gave up 480 yards to their FCS foe. Shane Buechele will have a field day given that chance.
Louisiana Tech at Southern Miss – 7:30 p.m. ET
Despite losing a chunk of their 2019 team, Louisiana Tech is coming off a 10-3 season – their fifth 8-plus win season under coach Skip Holtz. Southern Miss has had two weeks to mull over their dismal effort against South Alabama in Week 1. The Golden Eagles had trouble defending stud receivers, something LA Tech has ample of (three of them, in fact).
No. 17 Miami at No. 18 Louisville – 7:30 p.m. ET
The Hurricanes took on UAB in their season opener and held a slim lead until newcomer D’Eriq King broke the game open in the third quarter with electric scrambles and money throws. Louisville looked like it was going to give up their game when WKU brought the game within two scores in the fourth, but ultimately sealed the game. College GameDay is visiting Louisville for the only matchup between ranked opponents this week.
Texas State at ULM – 7:30 p.m. ET
The Bobcats rewrote the books on how to lose in spectacular ways with their 51-48 OT thriller loss to UTSA. Texas State has shown some fight and sparks of promise this season under coach Jake Spavital. ULM, on the other hand, was decimated 37-7 by an Army team that has been rolling. The Warhawks need to clean up their rush defense to keep them in this ballgame.
Wake Forest at NC State – 8 p.m. ET
Credit to Wake Forest. They came closer to beating Clemson than any ACC team since North Carolina nearly a year ago. This week, they get a break against an NC State team that ranked 107th in scoring in 2019.
