The college football schedule of games for week 3 is far from the strong, but there are still some interesting games on the docket. UCLA and Stanford are hoping to avoid upsets against strong group of 5 teams, Tennessee and Florida face off in their SEC East rivalry, and traditional powers Texas and USC will fight it out in Los Angeles. Steen Kirby, Yesh Ginsburg, Mike Loveall, John Bava, and Brett Margolies offer their predictions and previews.
#25 UCLA at Memphis (Saturday at 12:00 P.M. in Memphis, TN)
Line: UCLA by 3
Steen: UCLA is a talented team, but Memphis is one of the best G5 teams, and given they are at home in the Liberty Bowl they should remain competitive well into the second half in this one. The UCLA defense will need to patch up the holes they had in week 1, that said, Josh Rosen is a special player and should lead them to victory. UCLA 38, Memphis 28
Yesh: It’s so easy to remember the end of UCLA’s opening game without thinking about what happened before that. The Bruins defense was absolutely gashed by Texas A&M’s run game and there is little reason to think that Memphis can’t follow suit. The Memphis defense might not be fast enough to slow down the offense, but this should be very close. Memphis 41, UCLA 35
Mike: The only thing that worries me about this game is UCLA traveling east with a noon EST start. That’s a 9 a.m. start for the Bruins. UCLA has the talent to win, but a sluggish start might let the Tigers get some momentum. Additionally, Memphis has a good run game and that’s what Texas A&M had success with against UCLA in Week 1. UCLA is too talented, though, and pulls away late. As much as I want to take the home dog against an early start, I can’t here. UCLA 38, Memphis 28
John: UCLA’s Josh Rosen already came into the 2017 season as one of the nation’s most highly touted quarterbacks. But after his exploits in the Bruins’ 45-44 comeback victory against Texas A&M in week one, his hype train went into overdrive mode. He comes into Saturday’s game against Memphis leading the nation with nine touchdown passes and hasn’t thrown an interception.
But the biggest X-factor this weekend may be whether or not UCLA can defend the run. They currently have the nation’s third worst rushing defense, in large part due to giving up 382 yards on the ground against the Aggies. In Memphis’ opener against Louisiana-Monroe, their dynamic rushing tandem of Darrell Henderson and Patrick Taylor combined for 300 rushing yards.
Kudos to the Bruins for scheduling a non-conference road game against one of college football’s better schools not in a Power Five league. But just two weeks removed from a shaky performance, huge comeback notwithstanding, they could be on upset alert this weekend. Memphis 38, UCLA 35
Brett: This has the potential to be one of the most fun games of the week. Both teams are going to put up a lot of points, I think the noon start might hurt UCLA with the time difference as well. Don’t be surprised if Memphis gets a signature win over Josh Rosen and the Bruins. Memphis 38 UCLA 34
#23 Tennessee at #24 Florida (Saturday at 3:30 P.M. in Gainesville, FL)
Line: Florida by 4.5
Steen: Florida has been disrupted by Hurricane Irma and I’m still not convinced they have an offense that can be competitive against top tier teams. Tennessee has weaknesses on defense, but their running game and passing attack seems stable. Both teams will get up for this rivalry game, but the Vols should win unless Butch Jones has a coaching error. Tennessee 28, Florida 17
Yesh: Florida had no offense against Michigan, but that Wolverines defense is a monster. They don’t have a great quarterback, but should be able to run the ball all over Tennessee. The Volunteers got a miracle to beat Georgia Tech. I don’t see them getting a second. Florida 35, Tennessee 17
Mike: The Vols ended an 11-game losing streak in the series with a resounding win in Knoxville last year. Jim McElwain seems to be under pressure in Gainesville after two consecutive Division Championships. This series – which decided several national championships in the ‘90s, doesn’t have the luster it once had. Tennessee is tested, and Florida is still short of talent. Look for the Vols to make it two in a row. Tennessee 24, Florida 17
John: As the state of Florida recovers from Hurricane Irma, this weekend’s college football games represent some semblance of a return to normalcy. Saturday’s matchup in Gainesville between two long-time SEC East rivals is one of the most prominent examples. Florida hopes to return to winning ways after falling to Michigan in week one, while Tennessee is looking for its second straight 3-0 start.
Florida’s Feleipe Franks and Tennessee’s Quinten Dormady have emerged as the starting quarterbacks. Early in the year, Dormady is currently the SEC’s fourth leading passer. But establishing the run may determine who prevails in this one. That could be a problem for the Gators who managed just 11 yards rushing against Michigan. Meanwhile, the Vols John Kelly is one of five SEC running backs averaging over 100 yards rushing.
Ultimately, this game between two teams on the cusp of the top 25 goes to the visiting Vols. Tennessee 34, Florida 27
Brett: After Hurricane Irma caused Florida to miss last week, Florida’s quarterback situation still has a lot of question marks. An easy game against Northern Colorado might’ve given Felipe Franks some confidence heading in to the Tennessee game, but I expect him to be ready for the vols on Saturday. Playing at home should help the gators as well. Look for Florida to get revenge on Tennessee after last years meltdown. Florida 27 Tennessee 20
#3 Clemson at #14 Louisville (Saturday at 8:00 P.M. in Louisville, KY)
Line: Clemson by 3
Steen: Lamar Jackson is a big time player and he’ll keep Louisville in this game. The Clemson defense stifled Auburn last week though, and their big bodies up front should bottle up Jackson and the Cardinals enough to get a big ACC road win. Clemson 24, Louisville 17
Yesh: This is the biggest game of the week. I feel like Louisville is honestly very overrated coming into it. Struggles against both Purdue and North Carolina aren’t very inspiring. Lamar Jackson is incredible, but so is Clemson’s defense.
Clemson 38, Louisville 21
Mike: Watching the match-up of Lamar Jackson and Clemson’s defensive line will be worth the price of admission. Which Cardinals team will we see? The team that routed Florida State last season, or the team that Ed Oliver and Houston embarrassed on national television. Is Brett Venables the best assistant coach in college football? Tigers fans hope so. Clemson 42, Louisville 24
John: The most mouth-watering clash of week three is an early ACC tussle as the defending national champion Clemson Tigers face Louisville on the road. Last year’s game was an instant classic with the Cardinals erasing an 18-point deficit with 26 unanswered points before falling 42-36.
Louisville quarterback Lamar Jackson is back to doing Lamar Jackson kind of things. His 505 yards of total offense currently leads the nation. He threw for 300 yards and rushed for 100 in both of the Cardinals’ first two games. In so doing, he became one of just two players in FBS history to accomplish that feat over that span.
Jackson will have his hands full against a Clemson defense averaging 118.5 yards per game, the second best mark in college football. It included limiting Auburn quarterback Jarrett Stidham to 79 yards passing in last week’s 14-6 win. But Jackson is on a different level and might be able to outscore a Tiger offense that looked rather ordinary last week. Louisville 23, Clemson 20
Brett: Reigning Heisman trophy winner, against the defending national champion, that’s all you need to know about this game! Lamar Jackson hasn’t slowed down one bit from last years impressive season the first two games. I think he’ll continue that and put up a similar performance like he did against FSU last year to put his name on the map. Louisville wins comfortably. Louisville 44, Clemson 24
Texas at #4 USC (Saturday at 8:30 P.M. in Los Angeles, CA)
Line: USC by 15.5
Steen: Texas will be fine long term but USC is simply the more talented team right now. Texas having to travel out west is also a disadvantage, and USC, which may have the best offense in the country, will run wild on the Longhorn defense. USC 55, Texas 35
Yesh: The Tom Herman era got off on the wrong foot in Week 1. A huge road win against USC would change that quickly. I don’t quite think he has the team in a place to pull it off (the Texas defense will have a very hard time getting stops), but this spread is just too high. USC 45, Texas 35
Mike: Keep Austin weird, right? Well, Tom Herman is doing his part. Texas just can’t seem to get back on track in the post-Brown era. This is a rematch of one of the greatest games in college football history. Unfortunately for Longhorns fans, Vince Young ain’t walking through that door. But the Trojans are. The same Trojans that just bullied Stanford for their 12th straight win. The men of Trojan rout Texas. USC 38, Texas 21
John: Texas football’s present state is a far cry from where it was the last time these two programs met. Back then, the Longhorns defeated USC for the national title in one of college football’s greatest ever games. Fast forward to 11 years later and it’s pretty evident the program has fallen into disrepair. First-year head coach Tom Herman, expected to foster an immediate turnaround, clearly has a lot of work to do after the Horns gave up 51 points to Maryland in a season opening loss.
It’s for that reason that the Trojans come into this game as fairly sizable favorites. Couple that with USC’s dynamic offense led by Heisman hopeful quarterback Sam Darnold and conditions are ripe for them to romp. Texas is also dealing with some uncertainty at that position with Shane Buechele not likely to be at 100 percent due to a shoulder injury. All in all, it doesn’t look good for the Horns on Saturday. USC 48, Texas 17
Brett: You have to wonder what Sam Darnold will do to the Texas defense after Maryland embarrassed them a couple weeks ago putting up 51 points. Texas did respond this weekend with a 56-0 shutout over SJSU though. Even though Texas is a work in progress I don’t think it’ll be as bad as the line suggests. USC 31 Texas 23
#19 Stanford at San Diego State (Saturday at 10:30 P.M. in San Diego, CA)
Line: Stanford by 9
Steen: I respect Stanford, but they got run over by USC last week on defense, and the SDSU run game is perhaps even stronger than Ronald Jones and the USC attack. Stanford will score and this will be a competitive game, but San Diego State is massively underrated and they will probably win the MWC this season, in the process contending for the top G5 bowl bid. San Diego State 42, Stanford 35
Yesh: This late game fascinates me. San Diego State might be the most underrated team in the country. The Aztecs have NFL talent sprinkled around and have a running back (Rashaad Penny) who might be even better than Donnell Pumphrey. Stanford will be able to move the ball on SDSU, but this line seems too high against such a talented team.
Stanford 31, San Diego State 30
Mike: How do you replace the all-time rushing leader in college football history? You replace him with Rashaad Penny. Penny has 413 yards on 39 carries. That’s 10.6 yards per carry. USC outmatched Stanford last week. Can San Diego run past the Cardinal? Or will Stanford be looking forward to UCLA next weekend? Either way, nothing looks right for the Cardinal – location, schedule, offensive line. Be on the lookout for the upset here. San Diego State 28, Stanford 27
John: This is one of the more intriguing Power Five vs. Group of Five matchups of week three. Stanford comes into this game ripe for a possible letdown after falling fairly convincingly to USC last week. On the other hand, San Diego State is coming off a fairly dominant performance against another Pac-12 foe in Arizona State, a game where the Aztecs never trailed.
Expect the ground game to figure prominently for both these teams. SDSU’s Rashaad Penny and Stanford’s Bryce Love currently rank first and fourth respectively in the nation in rushing yards. And the Cardinal appear to be susceptible defending the run, ranking tenth among Pac-12 teams in rushing defense. That is partly due to facing USC’s potent rushing attack, though.
The home-standing Aztecs will put up a fight and keep this one close. But unfortunately for them, a second straight win over Pac-12 opposition will prove elusive. Stanford 31, San Diego State 27
Brett: Stanford’s performance against USC was a little disappointing after their blowout win over Rice to start the season. They have to recover quickly as it won’t be easy playing SDSU on the road after their upset win over ASU. SDSU will keep it close, but not enough to pull off back to back PAC-12 wins. Stanford 35 San Diego State 28
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