College Football Week 3 Preview (Part 2 of 2)

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Week 3 may not feature a battle between two highly ranked teams such as last week’s Ohio State/USC clash, but the schedule more than makes up for it with a slew of quality games and intriguing storylines.

Here is Part 2 of 2, a preview of some of the bigger games this weekend:

(Rankings courtesy of AP Top 25; Point spreads courtesy of wsex.com)

Tulsa Golden Hurricane at #12 Oklahoma Sooners (-17.5) (3:30 PM ET Saturday)

Who would have thought that the question coming into this game would be whether the Sooners offense has the fire power to hang with the Golden Hurricanes? Such is life for Oklahoma without quarterback Sam Bradford and tight end Jermaine Greshman. Redshirt freshman quarterback Landry Jones has a long way to go before he can be counted on as a steady source of offense. As a result, running back DeMarco Murray needs to be the difference maker for Oklahoma. Tulsa has the ability to put a ton of points on the board but the Oklahoma defense may prove to be too much for them. Look for Oklahoma to grind it out and capitalize on field position.

Final Score: Oklahoma 38, Tulsa 21

#19 Nebraska Cornhuskers at #13 Virginia Tech Hokies (-5) (3:30 PM ET Saturday, ABC)

The five-point spread seems to indicate that Las Vegas isn’t quite sure what to make of this game. The Virginia Tech offense looked very pedestrian against Alabama in Week 1 but bounced back nicely last week against Marshall. Then again, the Alabama defense makes a lot of teams look pedestrian. Nebraska’s defense can play a little bit themselves and if they can get something going on offense, while having to deal with one of the loudest crowds in America, they might be able to escape Blacksburg with a victory. Should Nebraska win, which I think they have a very good chance of doing, their schedule quietly sets them up for what could be their first 10-win season since 2003.

Final Score: Nebraska 20, Virginia Tech 17

Florida State Seminoles at #7 BYU Cougars (-8) (7:00 PM ET Saturday, Versus)

Explain to me again why offensive coordinator Jimbo Fisher is the head coach-in-waiting at Florida State? The ‘Noles put up just 7 points against FCS Jacksonville State last week before scoring twice in the final minute to escape with a victory. The offense looks no better than it has in the last few seasons and honestly, the only reason why Florida State is just an 8-point underdog here is because of their name. The opportunity looms large for BYU to pick up another victory over a big-name program and they should have no problem doing so.

Final Score: BYU 28, Florida State 13

#23 Georgia Bulldogs at Arkansas Razorbacks (-2) (7:45 PM ET Saturday, ESPN)

Simply put, Georgia has not done much to inspire confidence thus far. The Dawgs looked just “okay” in their efforts against Oklahoma State and South Carolina, but okay doesn’t get it done on the road in the SEC. No one said replacing Matt Stafford and Knowshon Moreno was going to be easy, and so far, it hasn’t been. Georgia gets a bit of a boost this week with the return of tailback Caleb King, their primary option at the position, who missed the first two games with a hamstring injury. Will it be enough? A frisky Arkansas team coming off of an idle week says no.

Final Score: Arkansas 23, Georgia 20

Texas Tech Red Raiders at #2 Texas Longhorns (-17.5) (8:00 PM ET Saturday, ABC)

It isn’t so much that the Red Raiders are a bad team; they’ve actually reloaded quite well given what they lost from a season ago. The problem lies in the fact that Texas is going to be out for blood after Tech dashed their national championship hopes a year ago. There is nothing scarier than a talented team with a chip on their shoulder and that is exactly how the Longhorns enter this game. The future looks bright for Texas Tech, but chances are Saturday night is going to be a long one for head coach Mike Leach and company.

Final Score: Texas 45, Texas Tech 21