Plenty of college football teams should be concerned and on upset alert heading into Week 3 of the season.
After another week of great college football action, we are now entering Week 3 of the season. We are still a week away from more conference games, but there are a few this week and one makes an appearance in our upset alerts.
For the upset picks in week 2, I went 0-4 with South Florida’s game being cancelled. Boise State blew its upset bid when they were up by 21 points with less than 11 minutes to go in its game against Washington State. The Cougars eventually beat the Broncos in triple overtime.
There are some enticing matchups this week and we know a little bit more about teams after Week 2. Let’s get to the teams that should be on high alert in Week 3. The odds are provided by Sportsbook Review.
A team from the Sun Belt conference beating an SEC team? It may sound far fetched, especially given that Texas A&M is favored by 24 points, however the Aggies are struggling right now and are primed to lose.
In Week 1 Texas A&M blew a 34 point lead in a little over a quarter against UCLA. Then last week, the Aggies faced Nicholls State in a game that should not have been close. With about 12 minutes to play in the fourth quarter it was tied at 14. The Aggies survived a nightmare scenario by scoring the last 10 points, but this team is clearly on the struggle bus right now.
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In two games, Louisiana-Lafayette is averaging 46.5 points per game compared to the A&M’s 34 points a game. The Ragin’ Cajuns also are averaging 47 yards more than the Aggies per game. It’s a small sample size, but it is at least worth noting.
In College Station, there is a lot of talk of Kevin Sumlin’s job being on the line. If the Aggies lose this one, his fate could be sealed. Even if they pull it out, it has to be convincingly or the talk of firing Sumlin will continue. It’s not going to get any easier for the Aggies with the start of SEC play looming next week.
In last Saturday’s game versus Nebraska, the Ducks built a 28 point halftime lead before nearly squandering it, however they hung on to beat the Huskers by seven. Oregon hits the road for the first time this season to face Wyoming and the Ducks are 14 point favorites.
Oregon’s high-powered offense has soared in the first two games. The offense is averaging nearly 60 points in two games, which is good for third best in the country. They rank second in total yards with a 634 yards per game average. Wyoming’s defense so far has been pretty good, although they haven’t faced an offense like Oregon’s yet.
The Cowboys certainly have a home field advantage. It’s not the noise advantage of the home crowd. War Memorial Stadium only sits just over 29,000 people. This advantage comes in the form of the thin air of Laramie, Wyoming. The stadium sits at over 7,200 feet above sea level. The Ducks will need to acclimate themselves to the conditions quickly.
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Wyoming also boasts a future NFL pro quarterback in Josh Allen. He has had a shaky start this season but still thrown for 502 yards with two touchdowns but also two interceptions. Last season, Allen threw for over 3,200 yards and 28 touchdowns so he is more than a capable quarterback.
Oregon’s offense is better than their defense. Not calling it a bad defense, but they better be ready to face Allen. Wyoming will be chomping at the bit to welcome a Power Five team to their house and will be wanting to make a statement. The Ducks will need to bring their oxygen and their A-game.
It’s Big Ten versus the SEC as Purdue travels to take on Missouri. These two teams have not met since the 1980 Liberty Bowl and you would have to go back to 1953 to find the Boilermakers last trip to Columbia. None of that matters in this game. The Tigers enter the game seven-point favorites.
Missouri started the season with a shootout win over Missouri State 72-43 and followed that up with a home loss last weekend to South Carolina 31-13. Tigers quarterback Drew Lock is pretty good, but right now he has inflated stats due to his seven-touchdown performance against Missouri State. With an improving Purdue defense, they may be able to keep Lock in check enough to allow their offense enough time to work.
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Speaking of the Purdue offense, quarterback David Blough has a 74.4 completion percentage through two games. He’s thrown for 410 yards and five touchdowns so far and the Tigers’ inexperienced secondary may have trouble containing him. The Boilermakers would also be wise to keep feeding the ball to sophomore running back Tario Fuller. Last week against Ohio, Fuller ran for 142 yards and a touchdown on only 16 carries.
Coming into the season, it seemed Missouri would be improved over their 4-8 record last year, but I wasn’t sure what to make of Purdue. Through two games, I’ve been impressed by the Boilermakers, especially hanging with Louisville in the opening week. This definitely will be a tough battle and Purdue has a realistic shot of leaving Columbia victorious.
UCLA takes its 2-0 record on the road this weekend as the Bruins take on the Memphis Tigers. This is the back end of a spread out home and home series. UCLA won the 2014 meeting 42-35 at the Rose Bowl. The Bruins enter this game three-point favorites.
As mentioned earlier, UCLA was the fortunate recipient of a Texas sized meltdown by Texas A&M in the first game of the season. Last week the Bruins handled Hawaii 56-23 at home. Quarterback Josh Rosen has been great in the first two games.His stat line includes a 67.9 completion percentage, 820 yards, nine touchdowns and zero picks. The Tigers will have their hands full trying to contain Rosen from scorching them through their air.
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With that said, here’s why Memphis has a good chance of pulling the upset. The Tigers have a pretty good running back tandem in Patrick Taylor Jr. and Darrell Henderson. They combined for 300 yards on the ground against Louisiana-Monroe. The Bruins are giving up 331 yards per game on the ground, which ranks dead last in the Pac-12.
The intangibles in this game are enticing. UCLA has lost their last four road games and this one is a trip across the country where kickoff will be 9 a.m. PT for the Bruins. Also the Tigers play well at home, winning seven out of their last nine home games. Memphis had an unexpected two weeks to prepare for this one as their game against UCF was cancelled due to Hurricane Irma.
Memphis will be looking to make a statement against a Power Five foe. This one could be interesting and end poorly for UCLA.
The big game in Week 3 takes place Saturday night in Louisville as the 14th-ranked Cardinals welcome the third-ranked Clemson Tigers. The Tigers are a mere three-point favorites so it would be a minor upset if the Cardinals were to win. Last year’s game was a classic as the Tigers pulled off a 42-36 win in Death Valley.
Both teams enter the game 2-0. Clemson walloped Kent State followed by a close, defensive win against Auburn last week 13-6. Louisville survived a close call against Purdue in Indianapolis followed by a 47-35 victory over North Carolina this week. This will be the Cardinals first home game of the season and ESPN’s College Gameday will be on location.
Everybody knows what the Cardinals bring to the table with quarterback Lamar Jackson. So far on the year, he has thrown for 771 yards and five touchdowns plus added 239 yards on the ground and three scores. He’s Louisville’s do everything player. Jackson’s top target, Jaylen Smith, is certainly tough to cover.
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Both of these teams knows the other ones strengths and weaknesses. It’s going to be a tough game for both teams, but certainly fun to watch if you are a fan with no rooting interest in the two schools. Louisville has enough fire power to eek out a victory and with home field advantage, it may give them a slight edge to pull off the upset. In the first two weeks, we have seen two top five teams stumble. Don’t be surprised if Clemson becomes the third in as many weeks.