Big XII Preview: Week 3
Tulsa at Oklahoma, 12 noon ET
After losing the preseason quarterback battle to Trevor Knight, senior Blake Bell will get his chance to prove he should’ve been Oklahoma’s starter all along. The former situational goal line quarterback will get the starting nod in place of the injured Knight when the No. 14 Sooners square off against Tulsa tomorrow in Norman.
Bell getting the start may give a stagnant OU offense the jolt that it has needed. Sooner fans are usually treated to a high-flying passing attack, but so far Knight has only thrown for 205 yards and four touchdowns while tossing three interceptions.
Georgia State at West Virginia, 12 noon ET
Fresh off a closer-than-expected loss to Oklahoma last weekend, West Virginia returns home to the friendly confines of Mountaineer Field for a clash with the Panthers of Georgia State.
Although GSU is 0-2 and coming off a 28-point loss to Chattanooga, it would behoove the Mountaineers not to look past the Panthers to their annual matchup with Maryland. WVU needed all four quarters to secure a victory against fellow FBS opponent William & Mary two weeks ago.
While the WVU defense is markedly better so far than it was last season, the offensive production is down, ranking 110th in the country at 15.5 PPG. Look for the Mountaineers to light up the scoreboard and get back on track Saturday.
Massachusetts at Kansas State, 7 PM ET
Speaking of teams that should not overlook anyone, Kansas State will need to avoid another upset bid, this time versus UMass.
Two weeks ago, the Wildcats were knocked off by the Bison of North Dakota State, setting the trend in what would become a weekend littered with FBS school over BCS school upsets.
If K-State finds itself stranded in Upset City again, don’t be surprised if you see QB2 Daniel Sams come off the bench. Last week versus Louisiana Lafayette, the Wildcats could not generate any offensive production, until Sams got under center and righted the ship.
Iowa at Iowa State, 6 PM ET
For the 61st time since 1894, Iowa and Iowa State will clash in their annual football showdown. The right to take home the Cy-Hawk Trophy will be on the line Saturday at Jack Trice Stadium.
The Cyclones are already behind in the Iowa bragging rights department, dropping a 28-20 decision in in-state rival Northern Iowa two weekends ago. To even their record at 1-1, ISU will depend on the talented arm (and legs) of dual-threat quarterback Sam Richardson. The do-it-all sophomore led the Cyclones in rushing and threw two touchdowns.
Iowa State has won the last two meetings in this rivalry, but trails in the all- time series 39-21.
Lamar at Oklahoma State, 7:30 ET
Despite the allegations that surfaced against the Oklahoma State football program earlier this week, and while the distraction of these alleged misdoings coupled with lowly Lamar coming to Stillwater, the No. 12 ranked Cowboys have to stay focused to keep their perfect record intact.
OSU’s offense has been on point thus far this season. Sophomore QB J.W Walsh has been near perfect, competing over 77% of his passes and is the team’s leading rusher with 137 yards.
Even more impressive has been the Oklahoma State defense, which has been very un-Big 12-like so far. The Cowboys gave up only 3 points to Mississippi State two weeks ago and held Texas –San Antonio to a single touchdown until deep in the fourth quarter when starters were pulled last week.
Kansas at Rice, 7:30 ET
A 31-14 win over South Dakota may not be a big deal on many Big 12 campuses, but for Charlie Weis and the Jayhawks, that win helped them match their win total from a disastrous 2012.
Kansas will try keeping momentum and move to 2-0 when they travel to Rice this Saturday. The Jayhawks will certainly attempt the pound the Rice defense on the ground as they did against the Coyotes. KU put up 280 yards rushing two weeks ago led by senior running back James Sims. KU will also look to former BYU transfer Jake Heaps, who threw for 110 yards and a touchdown in his Kansas debut.
Mississippi at Texas, 8 PM ET
Goodbye Manny Diaz. Hello Mack Brown’s hot seat.
With one disturbingly-bad showing against BYU last week, questions about focus and toughness have began to surface around Austin and the Longhorns’ football program.
UT gave up a school record 550 yards on the ground to the Cougars (a BYU team that lost the Virginia two weeks ago, keep in mind) en route to a 40-21 defeat. Less than 24 hours later, the Texas fired their defensive coordinator Diaz leaving this team in complete disarray. Flushed are the confidence of the Texas defensive unit and likely UT’s BCS Championship hopes.
The up-and-coming Ole Miss Rebels coming to town this Saturday won’t help matters.
The darlings of the SEC are averaging 35 ppg and are totally capable of gashing Texas on defense if the defensive problems aren’t fixed.