Big Games This Weekend

In addition to the big Penn State-Wisconsin game Saturday evening, this weekend will showcase three games featuring top-five teams squaring off against other ranked teams. One way or another, there will be a shakeup in the top five. Let’s take a quick look, in order from least to most intriguing:

#17 Oklahoma State @ #3 Missouri (8 pm, ESPN2)
Is Oklahoma State for real? We will find out as they invade Missouri on Saturday for one of three huge games that kicks off in primetime.

The #3 Tigers are led, of course, by Heisman-calibur duo Chase Daniel and Jeremy Maclin. They have Texas coming up next week, but they don’t want to overlook an Oklahoma State team that has flown under the radar to the tune of a 5-0 start. If Mizzou can squeak past those two, the only real test left is a final game with Kansas. A win in that could set up a potential conference title game with Oklahoma.

The Cowboys are hoping to pull the big upset in Missouri. If they can do it, kudos to them, but they still have games with Texas, Texas Tech and Oklahoma on the schedule after this one. It’s going to be a tough road for anyone in the Big XII this year. But we think they might be able to do it, because they’re led by All-Big XII press-conference-giver and All-World man, Mike Gundy. Yes, the real reason we’re talking about this game is so we could show this:

Don't act like you don't enjoy this every time you see it.

#4 LSU @ #11 Florida (8 pm, CBS)
Well, batten down the hatches in the swamp, there’s a bounty on the head of Tim Tebow! Of course the LSU guy, named Ricky Jean-Francois no less, did some pretty quick backpedaling afterwards, because he doesn’t want to look like an ass if Tebow tears him a new one, which is a distinct possibility.

The Gators (who are sick on NCAA 09, btw) have already lost one, so they need to pull this one out at home, while the Tigers are looking to keep their unbeaten season alive. (Side note: we refuse to call LSU "the Bayou Bengals", because it's the single-most annoying fucking nickname ever, and if we hear Reece Davis utter it again, we're going to go insane. Back to the blog.)

Are we sick of LSU and Les Miles? Yep. Are we even more sick of the SEC in general? You betcha. All the SEC people are hiding behind the ol' "everyone is beating each other up within the conference" excuse for the losses. Well that's fine, except Florida lost to Ole Miss. Oops. Explain that one. Either way, this is a big time game down south, and we can only hope that the Gators prevail, if only so we can hear SEC apologists pooh-pooh it on Monday. This is also the third huge game on at 8 pm. It's gonna be a fun night.

#5 Texas vs #1 Oklahoma (12 pm, ABC)
This game is obviously huge for a number of reasons, not the least of which is that it means at least one top-five team will fall this weekend. But this will give us a look at the front-runner in the Big XII, a conference that is pretty stacked this year. Both Sam Bradford and Colt McCoy have been playing out of their minds so far and will look to carry their team to a big W.

A win for either side would obviously be huge (and may bring a #1 ranking either way), but this game is just the beginning for both squads. Oklahoma faces off with Kansas next week, and still has a high-octane Texas Tech team on its schedule. The Longhorns’ schedule is absolutely brutal, as they will face off with Missouri, Oklahoma State and Texas Tech consecutively before having a cake game against Baylor. Yikes.

This is one the nation’s top rivalry games, even more interesting that it’s at a neutral site. And with both teams playing so well, we’re sure it’ll quite the scene in Dallas. Kind of anticlimactic that it’s at noon, but we’ll be tuned in.

Stay tuned for the Penn State-Wisconsin preview, coming later today.