As the college football regular season begins to wind down, it’s tempting to look ahead to the ridiculously amazing uniforms for the Army-Navy Game, the six (SIX!) edible mascots for the Pop-Tarts Bowl, and what is bound to be chaos in the coaching carousel.
But not yet, friends. We still have work to do. Because in Week 13, the Carla and Crappy Show will once again be sitting in as the celebrity guest picker for Blue Raider Extra Point on Saturday morning. And, according to Crappy and AJ, attendance is mandatory.
We begin, as always, with a look back at a weekend of wild finishes and big statements, which may have resulted in a new addition to the CnCShow lingo – Universal Reverse Clemsoning. Because, yeah. Friday night in Louisville was crazy. A close second might be Texas A&M’s second-half escape from South Carolina. Pitt definitely wasn’t it against Notre Dame. And Oklahoma may have made the biggest statement of the weekend at Bryant-Denny. Oh, and we learned that Brent Fry can be very angry after a win, and that college football can absolutely tug at the heartstrings. (Thanks for your passion, Shane Hanafin.)
And then, Carla calls a production meeting to prepare for her appearance on BREP at 11:30 ET Saturday. You can tune in to watch live on the Middle Tennessee Sports YouTube channel. How did we pick these games? You’ll have to watch Saturday to find out! Also, for the final time this season, Jake Rose is on the call for the MTSU game, so be sure to add that one to your afternoon quad box.
Missouri State at Kennesaw State (2 ET, ESPN+)
Liberty at Louisiana Tech (3 ET, ESPN+)
New Mexico State at UTEP (3 ET, ESPN+)
Jacksonville State at FIU (3:30 ET, CBSSN)
Sam Houston at MTSU (3 ET, ESPN+)
AJ then picks things up with his #GroupOfFiveAfterDark report, which, as always, includes heavy mentions of Hawaii.
Florida State at NC State (8 ET Friday, ESPN): Just … noting this. For reasons.
Hawaii at UNLV (10:30 ET Friday, FS1): C’mon, Bows. Don’t let us down.
Washington State at James Madison (1 ET, ESPN+): Still an outside chance of getting Jimmy to the CFP?
Mercer at Auburn (2 ET, SECN+): Umm, Mercer is 9-1. Just a heads up on that.
Marshall at App State (2:30 ET, ESPN+): We’re divided on this one.
East Carolina at UTSA (3:30 ET, ESPN+): Meep, meep? Maybe? Also, Pirate’s Booty is delicious.
Cal at Stanford (7:30 ET, ACCN): A classic ACC rivalry. Heh.
Western Kentucky at LSU (7:45 ET, SECN): Can Western cover? We think so.
Washington at UCLA (10:30 ET, NBC): Nico’s status is unknown.
Utah State at Fresno State (10:30 ET, CBSSN): Eyeballs here if you’re interested in the Mountain West conference race.
San Jose State at San Diego State (10:30 ET, FS1): We need an SDSU loss, but this likely isn’t it.
Next up is the Big 12 Buffet, which is yet again as delicious as ever.
Kansas at Iowa State (Noon ET, FS1): Cyclones, only because they’re playing at home.
Baylor at Arizona (1 ET, TNT): Wildcats play good defense.
Kansas State at No. 12 Utah (4 ET, ESPN2): Utes.
TCU at Houston (4 ET, FOX): Buffet pick of the week.
Oklahoma State at UCF (4 ET, ESPN+): UCF.
Arizona State at Colorado (8 ET, ESPN2): Buffs are improving, but not enough for a win here.
No. 11 BYU at Cincinnati (8 ET, FOX): This week’s main course is especially tasty as a QB named Bear plays the Bearcats. We’re divided on this one, too.
And finally, the Big Boy Games. We’ve only got one ranked-on-ranked matchup, but boy, are all of these games important. (Well, maybe except for that last one. That’s just for giggles.)
Missouri at No. 8 Oklahoma (Noon ET, ABC): Is this a letdown game for the Sooners? The possibility would be there … if Missouri wasn’t on its backup QB. Oklahoma’s defense is legit, and they get to close out the season at home.
Louisville at SMU (Noon ET, ESPN2): How does Louisville respond after last week’s debacle against Clemson? SMU is still a contender in what is an exceptionally messy ACC title game race.
No. 15 USC at No. 7 Oregon (3:30 ET, CBS): USC is showing that it has some mettle, pulling out a sloppy win over Iowa in the Coliseum last weekend. Now they head to Oregon, a team that, yes, could still be in the mix for a second-straight Big Ten title berth. The Ducks defend the pass well, which could spell trouble for Jayden Maiava and crew.
Pitt at No. 16 Georgia Tech (7 ET, ESPN): Let’s see how serious Pat Narduzzi was about focusing on ACC games, huh? This one’s critical for both of these teams, and we’re fairly certain that Georgia Tech did not have a fun week of practice after last weekend’s edging of Boston College.
No. 20 Tennessee at Florida (7:30 ET, ABC): Florida is 17-3 in the past 20 years against Tennessee, and the Vols host Vandy next weekend. How dumb will this game be this year? (Spoiler alert: We think real dumb. Go Gators.)
In addition to honorable mention nods to the six edible Pop-Tarts Bowl mascots and the ridiculously good Army-Navy uniforms, here are more games to keep on your radar (if we didn’t give you enough options already):
Rutgers at No. 1 Ohio State (Big Nude, FOX): Just because.
Misericordia at Carnegie Mellon (Noon ET, Centennial Conference TV): The Tartans host the Cougars in one of three DIII Centennial-MAC Bowl Series games.
FCS No. 8 Harvard at Yale (Noon ET, ESPNU): The lone nationally televised FCS game this week, and it’s a good one.
FCS No. 4 Lehigh at Lafayette (12:30 ET, ESPN+): Unbeaten conference foes meet in The Rivalry.
FCS No. 3 Montana State at FCS No. 2 Montana (2 ET, ESPN+): The Brawl of the Wild should be extra spectacular this year.
Duquesne at Robert Morris (2 ET, ESPN+): Senior day for Bob against the local rival.
Nebraska at Penn State (7 ET, NBC): Penn State favored by 9.5 at home and looking to stay alive for a bowl berth.
Division II and Division III playoffs also get underway this weekend, so check your local listings for those games as well.
And with that … we’re getting down to the end, friends. Watch college football … at all levels this weekend. It’s gonna be good stuff. Also, watch Carla on TV on Saturday morning. Attendance is mandatory. AJ and Crappy said so. We’ll see you here next week for our annual Elmer Fudd Rivalry Week Turkey and Mashed Potato Bowl edition. Cheers, yinz and y’all!
