The college football season continues this weekend as the elite teams begin to break away from the pack. While the week is light in terms of elite matchups, here are some games to pay attention to.
South Carolina (1-1) at No.1 Georgia (2-0), 2:30 p.m. CT, Saturday, CBS
The light schedule puts this one on the list. Back-to-back defending national champion Georgia has breezed through its first two games but now faces an SEC opponent for the first time this season. South Carolina ran out of fuel against No.21 North Carolina to start the season, but Saturday will be the first time Georgia quarterback Carson Beck faces an SEC defense as the starting signal-caller.
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Minnesota (2-0) at No. 20 North Carolina (2-0), 2:30 p.m. CT, Saturday, ESPN
North Carolina easily handled South Carolina in its season opener but needed double overtime to survive against Appalachian State last week. Minnesota also comes in at 2-0, but the Golden Gophers have not played the same level of teams, spoiling Matt Rhule’s Nebraska debut and beating Eastern Michigan. North Carolina appears to be the better team by far, but in a light week, any matchup of unbeaten teams is notable.
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No.11 Tennessee (2-0) at Florida (1-1), 6 p.m. CT, Saturday, ESPN
Many people have low expectations for Florida this year, but this game is still a heated rivalry. Florida has dominated the series in recent seasons, but Josh Heupel appears to be turning Tennessee into a national contender. The Volunteers have one of the most potent offenses in college football, while the Gators struggled in their only game against a Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) team.
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BYU (2-0) at Arkansas (2-0), 6:30 p.m. CT, Saturday, ESPN2
This is another game that makes the list because both teams are undefeated. Arkansas quarterback K.J. Jefferson returned this season to improve his NFL chances and has become the leader of the Razorbacks’ offense. Meanwhile, BYU was picked to finish near the bottom of the Big 12 and struggled against Sam Houston in Week 1.
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Pittsburgh (1-1) at West Virginia (1-1), 6:30 p.m. CT, Saturday, ABC
The 106th “Backyard Brawl” makes the list since it’s a rivalry game on a light week. West Virginia has won six of the last 10, but Pitt came up with a 38-31 come-from-behind victory last season, as M.J. Devonshire intercepted a West Virginia pass and returned it for a touchdown with 2:58 left. Pitt is coming off a loss to Cincinnati and could get caught looking ahead to next week’s big game against North Carolina, while West Virginia looks for a second straight win before facing Texas Tech.
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TCU (1-1) at Houston (1-1), 7 p.m. CT, Saturday, FOX
TCU welcomes Houston to the Big 12 as the teams meet in the conference opener on Saturday. TCU is looking to build on its defensive performance from last week’s win over Nicholls and hopes to continue to see growth from its offense. Houston is a more challenging team to evaluate. The Cougars struggled offensively in Week 1 but pulled out a 17-14 win over Texas-San Antonio. Yet, last week, they fell in double overtime against Rice.