The Joel Klatt Show: A College Football Podcast - Can Coach Prime pull off another upset? Ohio State-Notre Dame keys & will Alabama bounce back?

Episode Date: September 21, 2023

FOX Sports’ lead college football analyst Joel Klatt gives his in-depth previews of this weekend’s stacked list of games which includes 6 ranked matchups. He breaks down the keys to each matchup, beginning with the Big Noon Saturday game between #16 Oklahoma and Cincinnati. He then reveals which area of the game will decide the Top 10 clash between Ohio State and Notre Dame before discussing whether Coach Prime and Colorado can pull off another huge upset on the road at #10 Oregon. Klatt explains why Alabama will need to use their inner-Muhammad Ali to avoid defeat at the hands of Lane Kiffin and Ole Miss. He also discusses Florida State’s trip to Clemson and Iowa’s attempt at the upset at Penn State. Joel finishes with two more ranked Pac-12 matchups as UCLA travels to Utah and Washington State hosts Oregon State. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Today on the Joel Clad show, the 2003 college football season officially begins this week. It's the best slate of games we've had in years. College football has never been better. Interest has never been higher. Believe that we are at the dawn of the golden age of college football. It was an epic day of college football. It was one of those days where you fall in love with the sport all over again. Hey, hey, welcome into the Joel Clash show.

I am Joel Glad. This show is presented by Hampton. by Hilton. We've got a lot to get into. One of the best slate of games that I can remember in a long time. And so we're going to break down a ton of games. More games than we've ever really broken down

on a preview episode. So buckle up and gear up for it. Now, if you want to follow us on social media, you can do that at Joel Klatt show, wherever you like to social media, big on TikTok here around these parts. You can follow me personally. I'm on X generally.

You can follow me at Joel Klat. And then remember, if you're listening to this, wherever you get your podcast, go ahead and subscribe to the show so that the new episodes are, boom, downloaded right there for you. And then if you're on YouTube and you're watching the show, first of all, welcome and subscribe, like the show. And we'll have some exclusive content on YouTube throughout the season. I went through that quick because we got to get through this quickly. There are so many good, I mean, like, do you hear that? Those are you listening? That's my papers.

I got so many, I got so many games to get through. what a great epic week. Ranked matchups, significant matchups in each conference, the Pack 12. The Pack 12 has eight ranked teams. Six of them are playing this week. We're going to get into it. So last week I gave out picks.

I was three and two in the five picks that I gave out. Unfortunately, one of those two that I lost was the one I was most emphatic on, and I'm a little shy. I'm a little gun shy this week on the picks. I will tell you, before I get into these, most of these riding with the underdog most maybe not all i don't know if i'm going to exactly tell you which ones but i'm just saying of all these games of all these games i like basically all but one underdog to cover just saying i'm just saying it could be that type of a week last

week i was on the favorites i went three and two this week i'm on the underdogs that's that's all i'm going to say let's start with the game i'm going to be at a big noon saturday big noon kickoff We're going. We're going to be live at Cincinnati. Looking forward to seeing Cincinnati. There's no doubt. This is the first Big 12 game for Cincinnati. So they enter the league. And here we are.

First Big 12 game for them in the last season, the Big 12 for Oklahoma, the team that has largely owned of the Big 12 since its formation in the late 90s. All right. Lots of Big 12 time. When I look at this game, I look at Oklahoma first and foremost as a team that, to be candid,

I think is a little undervalued. at this point. You've heard me all week talk about above the line teams below the line teams, about how in college football over the last, let's say, decade plus, we've had that line right at about two, maybe three teams in the sport that we really believe can win the national championship. I believe that this year, that line has been lowered way down to nine, ten, maybe even 11. Now, should be noted, at this point in the year, Oklahoma, I wouldn't consider to be an above the line team, but that can change if there was a team out there that is not in the top 11 that I think could make a deep playoff run or make a playoff run. It wouldn't be a

deep because there's only four teams, but make a playoff run and potentially make some noise. Oh, use one of those teams. Remember, and I told you this in the off season, this is a team that lost a lot of close ball games last year. I think I believe six of them, one possession games. that could easily go the opposite way and then boom, all of a sudden you're a 10-11 win team. The games that they didn't play well and lost by more than a possession

were the games that Dylan Gabriel was either hurt or didn't play. Okay, so with a healthy Dylan Gabriel, now all of a sudden, it's like, okay, they're deeper at wide receiver. They're probably deeper at running back, although the running back position hasn't really come to fruition yet this season.

and the defense, which was horrid a year ago, seems to be a lot better. I still have my concerns with their secondary, and I think sooner fans, you would probably agree with me, that the concerns lie with the secondary. They bolstered their defensive front seven, namely the defensive line through the transfer portal, and I like what they did at linebacker. So here's this team.

They're ranked 16th in the country right now, and yet I'm sitting there thinking to myself, you know, it's not a shoe in that Texas beats Oklahoma. And Oklahoma, I think, is better than most teams in the Big 12 outside of that matchup against Texas. So if you're looking for a team right now that might be a little undervalued as it relates to the playoff, as it relates to a conference championship, Oklahoma might be that team. Dilling Gabriel has had a really strong start to the season. I like the way that he's playing.

He leads the country in completion percentage, just over 82%. He's coming off a 400-yard game, five touchdowns, and that went over Tulsa. And this SINC defense, there are a great test for a quarterback. If you look at the SINC defense, they're holding quarterbacks to about 45% completion percentage. That's third in the nation. So we're going to find out about Dylan Gabriel. If this quality start to the season was just about the level of competition, or if it was

something that has more staying power. Now, I believe that it has more staying power, but we'll see this Saturday. Bearcats coming off a really frustrating and candidly bad loss to Miami of Ohio. That was an overtime lost. After they had beat Pitt on the road, you feel like they had some momentum there. They're going into their first season in the Big 12. You know, that's a disappointing thing.

They had too many miscues in particular in the red zone. I like the receivers for Oklahoma. They have Jalil Faruque is still there. Nick Anderson, by the way, is Rodney Anderson's brother. Rodney Anderson, I just love because Gus used to as he would get going in games. Rodney Anderson would break off like a nice little run and Gus would say, Mr. Anderson.

I was like, man, Gus is the best. Andrew Anthony transferred in from Michigan. Remember, he was a guy that I thought a lot of after that. He really broke on the scene against Michigan State a few years ago. He's at OU and he's done a nice job. I believe he's got 14 catchers. Drake Stoops. Got to love that.

I will say this, though, for for oh you. This is a team that has got to prove to itself that it can get over the hump because they started quality last year. I remember doing that game against Nebraska. Unfortunately, Gus didn't join me for the second half, but that's neither here nor there. I thought, you know what? This OU team is really, really good.

So they were three and O last year and then they finished three and seven from that point out. This team currently is a. top five scoring offense and a top five scoring defense. Is this the OU that we came to appreciate and know for the last two decades? Or is this a team that is not quite there? I believe that this week will find out a lot about this team. I do like OU. I do like OU. Emory Jones, by the way, he's the QB for Cincinnati.

He went to Florida and ASU. He's been at a bunch of different places. He ran for over 100 yards last week. So something to watch out for. game. All right, that's OU and Cincinnati. Let's get to a big one here. And I talked about it for a long time yesterday on the podcast, and I really talked about it more from a 30,000 foot view than I did kind of get into the nitty gritty of this particular matchup. Number six, Ohio State on the road at number nine Notre Dame. I will remain consistent in saying that we view Ohio

state differently than almost everybody in the country. Nobody gets the level of scrutiny as Ohio State. This is a team that has beaten everybody handily this season and should because they haven't played anybody particularly tough. But they beat Indiana in a game that they handled and people said it wasn't good enough. And then Youngstown and it's like, well, you still don't have a starting quarterback. And then they handled Western Kentucky. And it started to quiet down the naysayers. But let's face it, let's face it.

They've continued to move down in the rankings, and their average margin of victory is up there with the top teams in the country. You know, and it begs the question, as I've said so far this week on the show, imagine a scenario where Ohio State is the one hosting Wyoming, and they're in a 10-10 game in the fourth quarter. Imagine a scenario where Ohio State is the one on the road at Boston College. and they're in a game in which they control for a bit of it and then make mistake after mistake and allow Boston College several opportunities to win the game late before surviving on the road. We'd never let them hear the end of it.

And yet here we are. We've knocked Ohio State for the way they've looked and they've got a brand new quarterback. I think that they're coming into their own a little bit, to be quite honest with you. The way that that film looked against Western Kentucky, team that is much better than they were in week one. They've found their identity a little bit in in terms of their run game and in particular in their past game. And now they're going to go on the

road and face Notre Dame. And this is a Notre Dame team that I really believe in. So this is a great matchup. This is, I think, the first great game that we've got in college football this season. Let's start with Notre Dame. Sam Hartman has been spectacular. And if you're a Notre Dame fan, this is exactly what you dreamed of, not just hoped, but dreamed of when Sam Hartman committed transferred to Notre Dame. He has been outstanding. It is very clear, clear, clear, clear that last year they did not have a requisite quarterback. We saw that last week when Tyler Buckner struggled against South Florida for Alabama. Now they have an adult in the room at quarterback, and I know that sounds harsh, but listen, that's just kind of the way I talk. And it's improved every

element of their offense. Estimay is a better running back because of Sam Hartman, the skill position players are better. Why? Because of Sam Hartman. The offensive line is better because of Sam Hartman. This is a guy that gives me a lot of belief in what the top end and the ceiling can be for Notre Dame. I told you yesterday, I think this could be the most impactful or important win if they were to win this game that Notre Dame has had in basically 30 years. Because it would tell me and all of us, if they were to win that Notre Dame is a legitimate title contender. Think about it now. This is Sam Hartman's 50th start of his career.

So they've got the important experience at that position. They're going to get Bertrand back at linebacker. He missed last week with a concussion. I look at this team. They're 10 and 1 in their last 11 games dating back to last season. That one loss was against USC and Caleb Williams. their biggest question mark, I believe, is not how their offense is going to play, because I think their offense will play particularly well.

It's how much can you disrupt the timing and the impact of what Kyle McCord is feeling on the opposite side. Kyle McCord's making his fourth start, not his 50th, right? So clear advantage for Notre Dame. What do you need to do to do to a guy making his fourth start and really his first? I know he started at Indiana, but to be fair to Indiana, Like, this is his first real road, like environment. You know what I mean? Like environment.

By the way, I'm interested to see how much red is going to be in that stadium. But I digress for a moment. Notre Dame's job is going to be, can we get pressure on Kyle McCord? Really, Ohio State is one of the best pass blocking teams in the country, have been for a number of years. If they can protect McCord and he can just play within the same, system. Ohio State's got a lot of talent. They're more talented than Notre Dame. Okay. They will be able to move the football as long as they can protect McCord. Then you can get to the run game. It's going to be

really important that they run the ball efficiently and well, in particular early, because one of the things that Ryan Day loves to do and one of the things that makes them most potent is their ability, in particular in the second quarter, with tempo to throw play action. pass when they cross the 50 yard line. It's something that they love to do, and he's got to have it. Day, on the other hand, he's looking to this and he's like, you know, what do I have to do to earn any sort of narrative or credibility? He's 46 and 1 against teams outside of the top 5.

The only loss was that loss in C.J. Stroud's second start, I believe it was, against Oregon and 2021. Similarly, on their side, I do believe that a lot of this game rests in not necessarily how their offense plays, although that's obviously important, but how much they can affect the passer. So this is an area where they have not been strong so far this year and an area that we thought they would have some strength coming into the season. Let me tell you what I'm talking about. JT. Tuimolo out, highly recruited player and a guy that dominated against Penn State last year, and we get the sense that it was like, okay, he's about to become a dominant edge rusher.

Jack Sawyer, highly recruited. Can he be a dominant edge rusher. And yet, they have yet to record a sack between them this season against, let's face it, lesser competition. Last week got better, though. I'll say this. Last week, 13 pressures between them against Western Kentucky. Only had four in the first two games. It's starting to get a little bit better. Can they get to Hartman? If they can get to Hartman, Ohio State's got a great chance in this game. Ohio State is favored by three. This is going to be a wonderful game. I believe the key to the whole game

lies in the hands of the pass rush of each team. The team that generates pass rush is going to win the game because everything else to me is somewhat constant and equal. That's just where I'm sitting right now. Ohio State favored by three.

They're on the road. Hey, it's my favorite time of year. It's the football season. And as you know, I take it seriously. So when I'm traveling on the road to watch my favorite team, I can't risk calling the wrong play with where I stay. Wherever I go, I know that I can count on Hampton by Hilton

because I can depend on their comfortable rooms and their warm and friendly service and definitely their free hot breakfast. That's a game changer. So whether you're cheering on your team from the stands or never leaving the tailgate, Hampton by Hilton will always give you that win. All right, let's move on.

A big one up in Eugene, although this line suggests that not a lot of people believe in Colorado. Number 19, Colorado on the road against Oregon. Number 10, Oregon. Oregon is one of those teams, I believe, is an above-the-line team. I like Oregon a lot. If you look at what they've done so far, they are quietly one of the best teams in the country. They have the number two scoring offense in the country.

They've averaged 58 points per game. But to be fair, part of that is dropping an 81 burger on Portland State in the opener. You heard that right. They scored 81 points against Portland State. Bo Nix is off to a great start. This is one of the reasons why I have hounded the table for the PAC 12 is the quarterback play. And part of that quarterback play is Bo Nix.

He's been outstanding. If you look at their run game, it's the area that I thought was going to take a little bit of a dip. Remember, they were replacing four offensive linemen. I was questioning in the preseason. how they would run the football. I know they haven't played much yet, but Oregon is averaging about 7.2 yards per carry.

That's number two in college football. But my concerns, I'm not going to just put them away. I don't think that they've answered every question about the way that they run the football. Because when they did go on the road and face a Power 5 opponent in Texas Tech, they averaged 3.7 yards per carry in that game. something to watch out for.

Now, I don't think Colorado's defense up front is quite as stout as Texas Techs. So there's a good chance that Oregon is able to run the football fairly effectively. The offensive line has done a tremendous job of protecting Bo Nix. He's only been sacked one time this season. And candidly, I get it why the line is 21. If you watch the game Colorado played against Colorado State last week, week and you see the impact that their poor performance with their offensive line had on their offense, generally speaking, for the first, let's face it, 58 minutes of that game,

you can easily think to yourself like, boy, even with Shador Sanders, I don't know how they're going to play offensively. Now, we might see Alton McCaskill for the first time this year. If you don't know who McCaskill is, McCaskill was a transfer from Houston that a couple of years ago was the conference freshman of the year on offense there for Houston. He tore his ACL, transferred to Colorado. This guy is a dynamic, dynamic player. And they have tried to slow play him to get him ready and get him healthy for the majority of the season. He finally, I believe, is going to see the field. And I know that coaching staff is very excited about that. So McCaskill will be in the backfield, apparently, along with Dylan Edwards. So

they've got some electricity. The question is, can they block anybody? up front. Last week against Colorado State, when I'm watching that game, Colorado State was able to play a light run box. That means that the defense only plays in the run front enough players where the offense has the run ratios. They can block everybody. There's no free player. Okay, so the run ratios lie with the offense. If you're able to stop the run, when the run ratios are in the offense's favor, you got something going on defense. And that's what Colorado State did for the most part against Colorado. They've got to find a way to run the football.

They've got to find a way to take the pressure off of Shador Sanders. I know that there's an immense amount of pressure on Shudor Sanders, both literally and figuratively. Literally 15 times he's been sacked in three games. That's the most of any Power 5 quarterback. And the run game is only averaging 61 yards. So guess what happens? he's constantly in we have to pass situations.

They've thrown the ball more than anybody in college football. They are passing on 67% of their plays. The entire offense is on Shador Sanders right now. That has to be remedied at least a little bit. Now, are they ever going to go to 50-50? No, nor should they, and that's not what I'm suggesting. What I'm suggesting, though, is that they've got to put Shador in more advantageous spots, situations,

to throw the ball. You've heard me say it this way time and time again. There is a massive difference, massive, between throwing the ball as an offense and a quarterback when you have to and throwing the ball as an offense and a quarterback when you want to. You want to sit in that range where, listen, we are attacking and throwing when we want to do it, when we have the advantage, when we can scheme the advantage. And right now, that's not the case with Colorado. Shador has played out. Outstanding football. Outstanding football. He's the most clutch player in the sport up to this moment in the season. What he's done in the fourth quarter is equaled by nobody.

It's been the best fourth quarter quarterback in college football so far. The question will remain. Can Colorado be close late? Because Oregon is the better team. They're better on the line of scrimmage on both sides of the ball. They can run the football. They can control the clock. And you better believe that that environment is going to be electric,

welcoming in Dion Sanders and the Colorado hype train that is the Buffaloes. Right? Like that place is going to be on fire. So you're going to get a really tough road environment to play in against a team that's really good, better than TCU. Now, TCU is also about a 21-point favorite. Colorado pulled the upset. Do we expect Colorado to pull the upset for the second time in four weeks as a 21-point dog? Yikes.

I don't know. I don't know. I will say this, though. Oregon better be careful about being in a tight game late. Because I don't want number two walking on the field in the tight game if I'm the opposition. Shador will find a way. Sean Lewis will find a way as an offensive coordinator. They have enough talent out there even without Travis Hunter.

More on that in a moment. So if I'm Oregon, the pressure is on the ducks to make sure you have a multiple possession lead late. If you don't, watch out. All bets are off. Because when Shudor walks onto the field, I'm going to bet on him. I'm going to bet on him. Travis Hunter, not going to play in this game. I know that it's been all the talk on a lot of shows,

and I know that I haven't really touched it, the hit from Henry Blackburn last week on Travis Hunter. I'm going to just kind of bottom line it because, to be quite honest with you, I think anything else is hyperbolic. And I think Travis and Dionne, have handled it best. A couple of truths about last week's game against Colorado State.

Neither coach at any point during the course of the week did anything to lower the temperature in the room. So you going into the game were expecting some of the chippiness and undisciplined play in particular that we saw in the first quarter. And to be quite fair, that's on those two coaches,

both Jay Norvel and Dionne Sanders. They did nothing to lower the temperature. So you could expect that there was going to be something that happened. Now, thankfully, it didn't escalate into a full-fledged fight, but to be candid, that was a bit of a concern on my part. So with the temperature in the room, did Blackburn pull an emotional, undisciplined, cheap hit on Travis Hunter?

Yes. Yes. In no way, shape, or form did I feel like he was trying to make a play on the ball. I think he was trying to take out Hunter. Now, take out as a strong word. He was trying to get a free shot on Travis Hunter. I don't think he was trying to injure him. If you're trying to injure somebody,

just like a pitcher in baseball, you throw at their head, in football you would go at their head or go at their knee. If you're trying to take them out, you went at the midsection. It's the equivalent of a guy in baseball throwing at the ribs of an opponent.

Am I throwing at you intentionally? Yes, I am. Do I want to hurt you? No, I don't. Now, it just so happened. Hunter did get hurt. And you know what? I'm sure Blackburn feels terrible about it. Now you're going to have Hunter out for a couple of weeks. And then the question becomes like, well, should Blackburn be suspended? I mean, who makes that call? This is the problem with being in college football and not in the NFL. In college football, we don't have an overarching governing body that's going to hand out that suspension. So who is it? Who is it in this fragmented space? that's going to hand out that suspension and be the governance body that's going to oversee something like that. Who's it going to be?

Is it the Mountain West? What they're going to step in, even though it's a non-conference game? Is it his coach? Is it his athletic director? I don't know. I'm not saying any of these are totally absolved from that. But I am saying like, it's very ambiguous as to who has the power or the right or the jurisdiction to make that suspension.

Because of the fragmented space that we live in in college football, and I harp on this all the time. It's my belief that if this was the NFL and that same hit took place in the NFL, Blackburn would not play the next week. Why? Because they have a very structured, disciplinary standard. And everyone knows that the commissioner is going to look at this and he's going to hand out suspensions. And guess what? I don't think Blackburn would play the next week. That doesn't mean I think he deserves a suspension. It just means that in the NFL, there is a, that path and jurisdiction and governance available. In college football, we don't have that. I love what Dion Sanders said this week in his press conference about Henry Blackburn, just trying to make a play, trying to do the best for his team, which I also believe,

and they're in no way, shape, or form should anybody be harping on this guide in particular in death threats? And if you're doing that and you're watching this show, knock it off. Because that's ridiculous. And then kudos also to Travis Hunter, who went on social media and said, like, yeah, You know, I mean, it's a hit that's football. I'm going to try to heal up as fast as I can and get back on the field. Okay?

So that's my thoughts on Travis Hunter. They're without him against Oregon. Not a good omen right there because defensively, they struggled without Hunter. They need them on the field offensively. So that, you know, that's a tough one. There's a reason why they're 21 point dogs. All right, let's move on. Ole Miss Alabama.

Okay, Ole Miss 15th in the country at number 13, Alabama. is still kind of shocking to see that rank next to them. Bama is still favored by seven in this game. That's a lot. That's a lot. Now, I think that they're banking on something here, and I'm going to call it the roper dope effect. Not that Bama is a roper dope right now,

but there's this element, and hear me out. When George Foreman fought Muhammad Ali, Muhammad Ali realized that he's like, okay, my initial strategy is not going to work. And so this guy just said like, whatever it takes, I'm going to win this fight. Even though I think we would all agree, and maybe even, you know, he would have agreed, he wasn't going to be the best fighter that night. And yet he implored whatever strategy necessary to win the fight. Why? Because he was a great champion, maybe the greatest champion.

Okay, so that's kind of the way I view this game. Now, I don't know if Ole Miss is definitely better than Alabama. From a roster perspective, that is not the case. Alabama has the better roster. But you get this sense that it's like there's a confidence about Ole Miss of this up-and-coming program, if you will, with Lane Cuffin. They can do it. They can do it.

Like this might be their time. This might be the moment where they walk into Tuscaloosa as the better team. Now, Vegas doesn't think so. They're seven point dogs. But you get the sense that they think so because all the chirping from Lane Kiffin this week, all the chirping. Last week was not Alabama. Last week was basically a glorified scrimmage for Alabama. I will maintain this.

Nick Saban can disagree with me on this. I believe they were trying to figure out their starting quarterback last week. They knew what they had in Jalen Milrow. They had to figure out what they had with Tyler Buckner and Ty Simpson. Now, while Ty Simpson might have the better upside long term, he's not the better option right now. That became painfully clear when they only beat South Florida, what was it, 173 in that game.

So you've got to go with Jalen Milrow, and now you're going to get what I believe is the late round Muhammad Ali Flurry after being on the ropes. Okay, you think I'm going to be. I'm done. You think we're done. We've got more pride than that. We're the crimson tide. All right. Now you're coming into our building. Nick Saban hasn't lost two games in his building in one season since 2007, his first year. Kiffin's 0 and 4 against Sabin. And the chirping suggests that he feels like he's going to get his first win. You know, like calling him the goat, oh, toughest

place to play, the Taylor Swift song, all this stuff. And listen, I love it. Fans love it. All of us on social media think it's great. But deep down in Tuscaloosa, this is a burning hatred, I'm sure of it, for this game. You get the sense, I get the sense that they've got a little Muhammad Ali in them this week. Whatever it takes ain't going to happen tonight. Whatever it takes, we're going to win that game. That's the way I feel about Alabama right now. Going back to Jalen Milrow, I've already talked about all week, the style in which Alabama is going to have to play.

Okay? They're going to have to add the extra hat in the run game with Milro. They're going to have to be dominant on first and second down in order to get to a position where Milro does not have to drop back and pass. They're going to have to simplify the passing game, get more misdirection and screen passes involved. This is going to be a new look Bama. I believe that they should slow the game down. They should be more methodical. They should probably not snap the ball offensively unless it's inside of five seconds on the play clock if the game clock is also running. be deliberate.

Limit the number of possessions. These are all the things, this is the rope-a-dope. This is what I'm trying to tell you. Like, if you think, Ole Miss, that you're going to roll into Tuscaloosa and just win because Alabama is down,

you will get something that you are not prepared for, just like George Foreman did. This is the Muhammad-All Lee game. Junkins, by the way, he's been bothered by a midsection injury. He played last week. By the way, I really love Junkins for Ole Miss, but there's just something about this game

that I just feel like Alabama is going to come out like a cornered lion. They're still Alabama. They have like 85 five star players. That's an exaggeration. That would be a record if all 85 scholarship guys were five stars. But like 18, it's the most in the country. They're talented.

They're strong. Their defense is really good. Their offensive line, when run blocking can be dominant. They've got great backs. Watch out. Watch out, old. All right. Let's move on. Florida State at Clemson. Florida State's number four. They're favored by only two and a half. So they're playing an unranked Clemson. They're only favored by four and a half. Why? Because of the last week against Boston College. That's why I told your fan base, Florida State that's like, oh no. It's like, oh, crap. We thought this was going to be an easy game. And now all of a sudden it's not. They're coming off of that win over Boston College. By the way, Boston College only beat Holy Cross by three the week before. So, like,

Like there's some questions for Florida State. Meanwhile, Clemson has won the last seven meetings over the Knowles. Florida State has only won at Death Valley one time the last 20 years. They're one and nine in that stretch. And like we saw last week, just because we think Tennessee is definitely better than Florida, it's a location where Tennessee just doesn't win. The same can be applied to this game. The same can be applied to this same.

A Florida State win would hand Clemson their second loss in the ACC. They are going to get the best shot from Clemson that they can possibly get. The difference is that Clemson is not like Alabama in the sense that their roster is not the same as Alabama's this year. So they're not quite the lion that can go into the Muhammad Ali effect and say like, nope, not today, not here. Now, they might win. They might win. But that would only be because Florida State has some flaws of their own. Okay.

I will say this. and this is just an interesting point to this game. If it comes down to a kick late, it's like it's the most interesting thing that I've seen in a long time. Clemson's kicking situation. They've been bad all year. And if you're a Tiger fan, you know what I'm talking about. So Dabo finds out that his old backup walk-on kicker,

who retired in the spring, was no longer on the team. But that guy was still taking an online master's course. So he's technically still a student. and technically still has a year of eligibility. So because of COVID, because everyone has like a thousand years of eligibility. I think I might have it.

I think everyone in the room might have an extra year of eligibility, by the way. So he calls up this guy and he's like, come on back. And so you might have this guy go out there and try a kick. And here's what Dabo said about it. This is amazing. Here's a quote. I'm going to read it. It's either going to be a great story or it's going to be terrible.

It's not going to be anything in between. I hope Saturday doesn't come down to a kick. I don't know if my heart can take that. So now that's all I'm rooting for. It's a two and a half point spread. And I want this to come down to a kick. I want desperately this to come down to a kick. I don't know about that Florida State team.

Because I don't know about LSU. You know, we're finding out about a lot of people here. Hey, white out game. Let's go to Penn State. Let's go to Penn State. Iowa at Penn State. number 24 Iowa, number seven Penn State. Penn State is a 14 and a half point favorite.

A week after they were, I'll be honest in my evaluation, sluggish against Illinois on the room. This is a huge test for Drew Aller, and for his sake, it's really good that this one's coming at home in that environment. And again, white out. Like, it's tough to win. It is really tough to win.

They're generally speaking, more so even when they have the whiteout. Drew Aller's test this week against Phil Parker's Iowa defense is immense because it's very different than what he sees on a practice in, practice out basis from his own defense and really different than what he saw a week ago against Illinois. His defense and Illinois play a high percentage of man coverage. So that's what he's used to. He's used to this progression read, you know, finding the open window based on man coverage. And listen, there's some difficulty in that.

that because generally that's tight windows, but this is a very different test. This is going to be an Iowa team that majors in zone defense and they're really good at it. This is why they get so many interceptions every single years because their eyes are in the backfield. Tips and overthrows always end up in the hands of the Iowa Hawkeyes. Drew Aller has got to play his best football. He better be on time and on target. And if he starts throwing the ball high, if his heartbeat is elevated, if his timing is elevated, if he's too excited and the ball starts to sail, he will turn it over against Iowa because that's what Iowa does. Now, I don't know if Iowa's got the offense that's going to go out there against a very good Penn State defense and athletic

defense and score a lot of points. Yeah, they dropped 41 last week and Brian Ferrence gave just one of the all-time post-game quotes in history, but there's still 120-second in total yards per game. and 122nd in passing yards per game. So, you know, their offense is banged up. They've got a tight end. Nick Lachay, he's out for the season. Caleb Johnson, he's out for this game. It's going to be tough.

It's going to be tough. But Cade McNamara, their quarterback, he's won in Happy Valley. So there you go. UCLA at Utah, 22 UCLA at 11, Utah. This is a four and a half point spread for the home team, Utah. Utah has won 16 straight. at home, by the way, in 27 of the last 28.

UCLA won this game last year, but that was in the Rose Bowl. Of course, they won at 42.32. I will say this. If you haven't watched UCLA play, you need to watch them because they've got a young quarterback that I really believe in and Dante Moore. He started the last two games, has looked really like the real deal, one of the top recruits last year. And now he's going to go in what I think is one of the top two hostile environments

in the Pac-12 in Utah. and this is going to be a very difficult start for him. Good thing for him, they're great at running the football. This is a team that leads the country in rushing average, about seven and a half. Now, granted, averaging about 10 yards per carry last week against North Carolina Central helps out a lot of a lot. And now they're going to face a defense that is certainly physical and a lot better than NCC.

Utah is a little banged up. I'm interested to see if rising plays. Kyle Whittingham has said he's going to live it up, leave it up to the the medical staff and the surgeon as to whether his quarterback Cam Rising will play, but they still haven't had Brant Keithy yet. One of their running backs, Mike or Bernard, they've been like out a bunch of guys. In fact, Wittingham has said they've been missing 15, 16 guys that would be contributing this year in their lineup.

And they're still looking dominant. So that's a team playing at home. They're tough to be. Four and a half point favorite for Utah and a young quarterback going in and playing in that environment. that's a tough one. Last game that I want to get to, number 14, Oregon State, number 21, Washington State. Oregon State is a three-point favorite on the road. If you haven't watched Oregon State, they're another one of these teams that's totally undervalued in college football. This is a really good team.

They're great defensively. They can run the rock and their quarterback has been playing well, DJU. He's got 10 total TDs through three games, although he did throw a couple of picks last week. This quarterback matchup, I think, is the most underrated quarterback matchup that we've had in the season so far. maybe the most underrated that we will have all season long. DJU playing much better at Oregon State under Jonathan Smith against Cam Ward, who by the way, no one talks about, but is having a remarkable year. He's been lights out for Washington State this year, 330 yards per game with nine touchdowns and no interceptions. This Washington State team, they can handle the run game. That's what they're going to see a lot of from the beavers. Washington State, they beat Wisconsin

earlier this year and they held Chasma Lucey and Braylon Allen to 69 yards on 19 carries, under four yards per carry. Can they do that against the Oregon State run game? That's the question. Last thing I would say is that this Oregon State team is on a historic run for them. This could be one of the great eras of Oregon State football, in particular in the last 15, 16 games. In fact, they are 13 and 3 since the start of last year with two of those three losses being by three each to USC and Washington. Great teams. So watch out for Oregon State.

Man, that was a lot of games. Appreciate you listening, as always. Enjoy the weekend of college football. It's going to be an amazing weekend of college football. Follow us on social media, wherever you get your social media, Agile Clash show. And remember to subscribe, like the show,

whether you're listening, wherever you get your podcast, or on YouTube. Enjoy the weekend, everybody.