National Game of the Week: #17 Cincinnati @ #24 Utah
It’s not a top-heavy slate of games for the weekend- after all, the Dawgs are on a bye. That gives us the opportunity to focus on some teams that aren’t usually in the spotlight. It’s interesting that three of the four teams at the top of the Big 12 standings are relatively new to the conference. BYU, Cincinnati, and Houston join old(er) stalwart Texas Tech at 5-0 or 4-1 in conference. The Bearcats and BYU are tied at 5-0. Utah has only lost to Texas Tech and archrival BYU, the latter by a mere field goal on the road. Cincinnati narrowly lost their season opener against Nebraska and has been flying ever since. This game will be their toughest test. It’s a very tricky road environment and Utah can’t afford another loss if they want to stay in the race to make the CCG. QB Brendan Sorsby has 20 TDs to a single Int. The Utah defense is getting back to the form we expect from a Kyle Whittingham team. It should be a good one.
Also of note
- #9 Vanderbilt @ #20 Texas – Will the Longhorns be better without Arch Manning? If Sark really wants to go to the NFL, he can’t afford a total faceplant of a season. With two losses and games coming up against Georgia and Texas A&M, they need to take care of business here.
- #10 Miami @ SMU – There are seven teams in the ACC with 0 or 1 conference loss. That congestion will make it extra difficult to make up ground for teams who fall behind. The loser of this one will have their second conference loss and could be in trouble.
- #18 Oklahoma @ #14 Tennessee – Both teams have two losses, all to quality opponents. They have similar resumes to UW’s (6-2, 2 losses against ranked teams). Should the Huskies be ranked? Watch this game to decide for yourself.