FAVORITE TEAMS

5. #12 NORTH CAROLINA (1-0 ACC) AT BOSTON COLLEGE (2-0 OVERALL; 1-0 ACC) 12:30PM PT / 3:30PM ET on ABC

The Heels’ play their second game, but they struggled for two and a half quarters against undermanned Syracuse. The run game eventually squeezed out the Orange for a 31-6 victory.

The Eagles are 2-0, but it’s unsure if they’re proven to compete in the ACC. They took care of business on the road against Duke. Then they made a two-score rally in the second half against Texas State. Albeit, Texas State is 1-3 and no team should have any business playing them, but Texas State did compete in all four of their games and three of their losses were by a touchdown or less. Boston College has an ok passing game, but the concern should be from their run game and quarterback Phil Jurkovec led the team in that category last week.

North Carolina is favored by two scores, but again, they haven’t played for the last three weeks after their opener. It could have some impact but they’re much more experienced with the same staff than Boston College. Overall, Boston College should stay with UNC, but their running game is unproven and Phil can’t do everything. The Heels’ should eventually pull away in Massachusetts.

4. #13 TEXAS A&M (1-0 SEC) AT #2 ALABAMA (1-0 SEC) 12:30PM PT / 3:30PM ET on CBS

I’m still puzzled on how this game’s a gauntlet matchup, because the number one pick Game To Watch is the REAL gauntlet matchup. Let me reiterate, number four is more of a GAUNTLET task for Texas A&M. Between COVID-19 affecting offseason practices and playing in the SEC, I’m not sure what to expect from the Aggies. However, they return the majority of experience on offense, defense, and special teams minus the receivers (which are young but talented).

Quarterback Kellen Mond started and played against Alabama all three years. He was the guy leading the backfield because he’s the best this team has. I’m not saying he’s the best quarterback, but he is the best option. In his freshmen season in 2017, the Aggies were a touchdown and a 2-point conversion away from forcing overtime against Bama. Once Jimbo Fisher became the Aggies’ head coach the next season, they lost by 20 plus the next two seasons. There’s skepticism on how Fisher deals with the Tide, but here’s additional info on those two losses. When Kellen played his freshmen year, Bama’s quarterback at that time was Jalen Hurts. Statisically, the offense wasn’t fully there under Hurts and Bama was lucky enough to get into the playoffs by committee decision and win the whole thing after Tua took over in the second half of the championship game. In the next two losses in Fisher’s two seasons, Tua Tagovailoa was the quarterback and he was tearing defenses apart in the SEC. You get the picture, people?

Summing everything up, this “gauntlet” game forces me to ask what Fisher, Mond and the Aggies will do this season? After avoiding a big loss against Vanderbilt, is this team ready to compete in Tuscaloosa? Also, Alabama has quarterback Mac Jones if some don’t know. He’s also not the best quarterback, but he has options and a dang good backfield. If Texas A&M has any chance of spoiling Alabama’s early season run, it comes down to their defense outplaying the Tide’s offensive line, Isaiah Spiller having the same performance, and Kellen Mond taking care of the ball.

3. #18 OKLAHOMA (1-1 OVERALL; 0-1 BIG 12) AT IOWA STATE (1-1 OVERALL; 1-0 BIG 12) 4:30PM PT / 7:30PM ET on ABC

Iowa State bounced back after losing to Arkansas State and looking to end the Sooners’ Big 12 title run. The team is tough, gritty, physical, and blue collar. But people are missing something that I even at times fool myself on. Iowa State has several, subtle issues. Quarterback Brock Purdy is good, but he struggled a lot against Louisiana’s defense. He only threw for 145 and an interception. Right now, Breece Hall is the better offensive player and carried last week against TCU with three touchdowns and 155 yards. The defense can play, but the coverage struggled and will be vulnerable this weekend too. They allowed 400 yards and three touchdowns!

Days after the Kansas State/Oklahoma, I’m still speechless. They are talented and have players that make plays. But not when your offensive line, especially quarterback Spencer Rattler’s blind side, can’t protect him nor open lanes for the backs to run through consistently. This is a rare weak spot because they haven’t struggled like this since 2016 when they ran through a new offensive line for Baker Mayfield. I haven’t forgotten about their defense. They played their best first half of football in probably years, when maybe Zack Sanchez and Ogbonnia Okoronkwo were still in Oklahoma. But after seeing Kansas State’s receiver get so wide open with NOBODY around him for probably miles, I saw Oklahoma’s defense like the typical Oklahoma defense…terrible…

Both teams’ season is likely on the line, especially Oklahoma. The Sooners’ playoff hopes are slim to bupkis, but anything’s possible. It happened before but trying to return with a 9-game conference schedule plus conference title game in the COVID-era is doubtful, but not impossible. I explained the weaknesses for both teams, so who has the advantage? Common sense says Oklahoma. They have more talent and more depth. Unfortunately they’re on the road and Iowa State has been in ear shot four straight seasons with one win in 2017 (sigh). Oklahoma’s offensive line will be critical because they’re facing probably the best defensive line in the Big 12 led by JaQuan Bailey. If they struggle in that area again, Oklahoma’s playoff and Big 12 title run is over.

2. #25 MEMPHIS (1-0 OVERALL) AT SMU (3-0 OVERALL) 12:30PM PT / 3:30PM ET on ESPN2

Last year was a doozy. It was a high-scoring affair, but Memphis had an early advantage before SMU scored 24 points in the fourth quarter only to come up short in the end. Memphis handed SMU their first loss of the season last year, took the West division and AAC title, and New Year’s Six Bowl bid.

SMU’s currently 3-0 and tore up the last two opponents after an ugly first game against Texas State. The backfield has two good backs in Ulysses Bentley and TJ McDaniels (combined for 673 and 8 touchdowns), but the offense overall should score a lot of points. If their defense shows improvement, the Mustangs could pull off the upset.

Memphis played one game last month after their upcoming game against Houston was cancelled. They played well against Arkansas State and their rushing defense played a tad better, but one game doesn’t tell the story about their improvement. Memphis’s running back Rodrigues Clark is a welcoming sight after Kenneth Gainwell’s reasonable opt out.

As I mentioned above, Memphis dominated SMU early before SMU’s fourth quarter scoring affair. In the last three meetings, the Mustangs crept closer to a victory over Memphis. SMU has the advantage at home with three games in compared to Memphis’s one even though the Tigers are a field goal favorite. Memphis took everything (and I mean everything) from SMU, so the Mustangs should come out ready. Expect another high-scoring affair and SMU potentially upsetting Memphis.

1. #7 AUBURN (1-0 SEC) AT #4 GEORGIA (1-0 SEC) 4:30PM PT / 7:30PM ET on ESPN

The Tigers vs. the Dawgs at Sanford Stadium is THE Gauntlet game to watch this weekend.

Auburn played well against Kentucky last weekend. Quarterback Bo Nix threw for 233 and three touchdowns while getting 34 more yards on the ground. His receivers could be dangerous if put into the right situation with Georgia’s defense. Auburn’s defense was underestimated despite allowing more yards than Kentucky. They forced turnovers and made impact plays.

Georgia’s defense could be the best defense in the SEC and likely the nation. However, their offense looks so sus (‘suspect’ in Among Us term. I’m being nerdy). They were awful in the first half and the D’Wan Mathis-hype was a disappointment. It may be the first game, but it was against Arkansas of all SEC teams. Quarterback Stetson Bennett did his job well in the second half. Whether he’s the starter or not, Georgia’s offense must play better to stay with Florida in the SEC East.

Here’s the rivalry’s timeline in the past decade: After Auburn won the National Championship, they won three total games against Georgia and haven’t score 20 points in the rest of their losses (averaging 8.1 points). Since 2013, Every Auburn win resulted in Georgia’s next three wins, and they just won their third straight game last season. With questions about Georgia’s quarterback, this could be Auburn’s chance for a huge win in Athens for the first time since 2005.

Here’s a bonus game: Jacksonville State vs Florida State on ESPN3 at 1PM PT / 4PM ET. Florida State’s 0-2 for the first time since 2017. The 52-10 loss to Miami forced coach Mike Norvell to make changes to the roster, including quarterback James Blackman being on a short leash.

Jacksonville State plays their first game of the season after a 6-6 record in 2019. Clemson-transfer quarterback Zerrick Cooper headlines the Gamecocks and played a decent two seasons. They started well at 6-3, ranking in the FCS Top 25 before their three-straight losses ended their run. Believe it or not, they’ve had several winning seasons and came close to a championship on a few occasions. Florida State was overall terrible after the first half against Georgia Tech. They are also without a rushing touchdown and their leading rusher is a backup quarterback. Saturday is gut check time for the Seminoles. If they somehow lose to an FCS opponent, Mike Norvell will be on the chopping block after just three games.

RESULTS FROM LAST WEEK’S TOP 5 GAMES