Week five brings us the first blockbuster slate of the season. It’s a weekend so big that two of the top-5 teams in the AP Poll are playing at noon, all while a matchup of two top-25 teams also kicks off in the noon window. It’s big. It’s bold. It can’t possibly get worse for Oregon. Let’s cannonball into this one.
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GAME OF THE WEEK: Ohio State at Indiana
There are definitely games with more clout than this one, but nowhere in the country will the home crowd be as hyped as it will be in Bloomington on Saturday afternoon. The last time Indiana played in any game with considerable national importance was Nov. 6, 1993, when it carried a 7-1 record — and a No. 17 AP ranking — into Happy Valley before losing to No. 19 Penn State, 38-31. Only 12 of this year’s Hoosiers were alive when that game took place. The oldest, Michael Cooper, had been alive just a year and three weeks when that game happened.
Ohio State is in a state of, it seems, constant disarray, but Indiana hasn’t played anyone close to top-caliber this season. Indiana was taken to the limit by Southern Illinois and Western Kentucky, and had to hold on late last week against a mediocre Wake Forest team. Ohio State seemed to right the ship last weekend against Western Michigan after its confusingly head-scratching win over Northern Illinois a fortnight ago.
Ohio State will win this game, but it’ll be a party in Bloomington unlike anything the locals have seen during football season in decades.
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UPSET SPECIAL: Kansas State at Oklahoma State
I’m 0-4 in my upset specials this season, so I’m going with gut instinct in a big way this week. The Big 12 is a crapshoot on the best of days with the abundance of spread and blur offenses throughout the league. By contrast, Kansas State runs an incredibly balanced attack. So far, through three games, the Wildcats have amassed 585 yards in the pass game and 529 yards rushing. I like the Cats in Stillwater.
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NERDOUT OF THE WEEK: Oregon at Colorado
Oregon’s worldview changed last weekend at the hands of Utah. Now the Ducks must travel east to play a Colorado team that has won its last three games. The Buffaloes have been in the wasteland for years. They haven’t had a winning season since 2005, but they’ll have a chance to make a statement against a Ducks team that will also be looking to make a statement of its own.
This game could look very different when viewed through the lens of a complete season come January, but for now this is a game you should make time for on Saturday. Also realize that you’ll get to see one of the most balanced rushing attacks in the country in Colorado’s Christian Powell, Phillip Lindsay, and Michael Adkins II. They each have touched the ball at least 40 times, each have at least 200 yards rushing, and each have three touchdowns.
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UNIMPORTANT GAME OF IMPORTANCE:
Louisville at North Carolina State
Louisville’s freefall will either be somewhat righted or hit terminal velocity this weekend in Raleigh. After dispatching Samford last week, the Cardinals return to the men’s tees to play an N.C. State team that has quietly put together a solid opening month of the season. The Wolfpack went a perfect 4-0 in September including wins at Old Dominion and South Alabama. Sure, those aren’t big names, but Power Five programs playing true road games at Group of Five schools can backfire — just look at Purdue this season (Marshall, week one). N.C. State slammed both of its Group-of-Five foes, and will try to do the same to the rudderless Cardinals. Louisville needs this and N.C. State wants this, but without a true quarterback I don’t see how the Cardinals can win.
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ODDITY OF THE WEEK: Notre Dame at Clemson
This one is certainly a big one — it is the GameDay game after all — but it’s also the first time in a long time that these two programs have crossed paths. The last time the Tigers and Irish faced off was in 1979 in South Bend, a game won by Clemson, 16-10. The game is Notre Dame’s first trip to the Palmetto State since beating South Carolina, 30-6, in Columbia in 1983.
