College Football Cheat Sheet: Week 2

The college football marathon ended on Monday, and there was much to unpack. However, things move quickly during the season. We have a jam-packed Saturday waiting for us while the NFL takes over on Sunday. The card is also improved. Get ready for another thrilling football weekend.

There are some intriguing ranked vs. ranked matchups and multiple ranked teams hitting the road to face unranked competition. We will see some upsets this weekend. KSR’s College Football Cheat Sheet is your ultimate guide to another gridiron weekend.

Let’s ride!

The Slate

— Indiana State at Indiana (7:00 Friday, Big Ten Network)
— Illinois at Kansas (7:30 Friday, ESPN2)
— Vanderbilt at Wake Forest (11:00 a.m., ACC Network)
— Troy at No. 15 Kansas State (Noon, FS1)
— No. 10 Notre Dame at NC State (Noon, ABC)
— Youngstown State at No. 5 Ohio State (Noon, Big Ten Network)
— No. 12 Utah at Baylor (Noon, ESPN)
— Ball State at No. 1 Georgia (Noon, SEC Network)
— Delaware at No. 7 Penn State (Noon, Peacock)
— Delaware State at Army (Noon, CBS Sports Network)
— James Madison at Virginia (Noon, ESPNU)
— Nebraska at No. 22 Colorado (Noon, FOX)
— Purdue at Virginia Tech (Noon, ESPN2)
— Charleston Southern at No. 25 Clemson (2:15, ACC Network)
— Eastern Kentucky at Kentucky (3:00, ESPN+)
— Western Michigan at Syracuse (3:30, ESPN+)
— UNLV at No. 2 Michigan (3:30, CBS)
— Texas State at UTSA (3:30, ESPN+)
— No. 23 Texas A&M at Miami (3:30, ABC)
— Miami (Ohio) at UMass (3:30, ESPN+)
— Richmond at Michigan State (3:30, Big Ten Network)
— No. 22 Ole Miss at No. 24 Tulane (3:30, ESPN2)
— Wagner at Navy (3:30, CBS Sports Network)
— Iowa at Iowa State (3:30, FOX)
— UTEP at Northwestern (3:30, Big Ten Network)
— Kent State at Arkansas (4:00, SEC Network)
— Marshall at East Carolina (4:00, ESPNU)
— Tulsa at No. 10 Washington (5:00, Pac-12 Network)
— Appalachian State at No. 17 North Carolina (5:15, ACC Network)
— Ohio at Florida Atlantic (6:00, ESPN+)
— New Mexico State at Liberty (6:00, ESPN+)
— SMU at No. 18 Oklahoma (6:00, ESPN+)
— UAB at Georgia Southern (6:00, ESPN+)
— Louisiana at Old Dominion (6:00, ESPN+)
— Cincinnati at Pittsburgh (6:30, The CW)
— North Texas at FIU (6:30, ESPN+)
— No. 13 Oregon at Texas Tech (7:00, FOX)
— No. 11 Texas at No. 3 Alabama (7:00, ESPN)
— Memphis at Arkansas State (7:00, ESPN+)
— UCF at Boise State (7:00, FS1)
— UConn at Georgia State (7:00, ESPN+)
— Middle Tennessee at Missouri (7:00, ESPN+)
— Jacksonville State at Coastal Carolina (7:00, ESPN+)
— Houston at Rice (7:00, NFL Network)
— Eastern Michigan at Minnesota (7:30, Big Ten Network)
— UCLA at San Diego State (7:30, CBS)
— No. 19 Wisconsin at Washington State (7:30, ABC)
— Arizona at Mississippi State (7:30, SEC Network)
— Charlotte at Maryland (7:30, NBC)
— McNeese at Florida (7:30, ESPNU)
— Temple at Rutgers (7:30, Big Ten Network)
— Air Force vs. Sam Houston (8:00, CBS Sports Network)
— Southern Miss at No. 4 Florida State (8:30, ACC Network)
— Stanford at No. 6 USC (10:30, FOX)
— Auburn at California (10:30, ESPN)
— Oklahoma State at Arizona State (10:30, FS1)

Top 10 Games

1. Texas at Alabama
2. Texas A&M at Miami
3. Nebraska at Colorado
4. Ole Miss at Tulane
5. Wisconsin at Washington State
6. Notre Dame at NC State
7. Oregon at Texas Tech
8. Iowa at Iowa State
9. Arizona at Mississippi State
10. Cincinnati at Pittsburgh

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— Luckett’s Locks: Six spread picks, team totals, and player props

Finding the upset

We saw No. 9 Clemson go down to unranked Duke in Week 1 to give us our second unranked over ranked upset. Whenever a ranked team hits the road early in the season to face an unranked team, things can get a little weird. These types of upsets happen throughout the season. There are multiple candidates this week.

— No. 10 Notre Dame at NC State: Sam Hartman had some rough performances against NC State at Wake Forest and will attempt to get those turned around against NC State. Virginia transfer Brennan Armstrong had a strong first performance at NC State, but creating explosive plays was an issue for the Wolfpack. They’ll need those chunk gains to hang with a Notre Dame squad that should be an efficiency machine on offense throughout the season. NC State has covered three consecutive games as a home dog at Carter-Finley Stadium with an outright win over Hartman last season.

— No. 12 Utah at Baylor: Utah had one of the biggest wins in Week 1, and Baylor had one of the worst losses. That is what caused a big movement in this line. But is it an overreaction? Both teams are dealing with QB1 injuries as Blake Shapen is out of the lineup for the Bears, and Cameron Rising‘s status is still to be determined. Utah is 3-8 against the spread (ATS) in its last 11 games as a road favorite. The Utes have lost three September road games when they laying points over the last two seasons. Is Dave Aranda‘s squad a live dog?

— No. 23 Texas A&M at Miami: The Bluegrass play-caller principle will be in play at Hard Rock Stadium with Bobby Petrino and Shannon Dawson serving as the offensive coordinators in this contest. In a matchup of two head coaches with safe contracts but tenuous situations, things could get tight in South Florida. Jimbo Fisher really cannot afford to lose this game.

— No. 13 Oregon at Texas Tech: Similar to the other Big 12 program hosting a ranked Pac-12 team, Texas Tech is fresh off a bad Week 1 performance. Oregon is riding high after dropping a fiftyburger and an additional half fiftyburger on Portland State last week. However, the Red Raiders have a team that can go toe-to-toe with the Ducks. Dan Lanning‘s squad must play well to walk out of Jones AT&T Stadium with a victory.

— No. 19 Wisconsin at Washington State: The Cougars upset Wisconsin in Camp Randall Stadium. The Badgers will be looking to return the favor under new head coach Luke Fickell. We could get a sneaky shootout in Pullman as both spread offenses want to make games a track meet. Former transfer quarterbacks Tanner Mordecai (Oklahoma to SMU to Wisconsin) and Cameron Ward (Incarnate Word to Washington State) could post big numbers in a primetime ABC game. Do not sleep on this matchup. Most underrated game on the card.

There will be some upsets among this group. Get ready for a wild Saturday.

Measuring stick for Texas

Steve Sarkisian owns a modest 14-12 record through 26 games at Texas, but that has not stopped the hype train. The Longhorns were picked to win the Big 12 in the preseason for the first time since 2009. Sarkisian’s staff has signed consecutive top-10 recruiting classes and has effectively found starters in the transfer portal at quarterback, wide receiver, and safety. All the pieces should be in place to compete for a College Football Playoff spot.

On Saturday at Bryant-Denny Stadium, we’ll get our first real look at the Horns.

Texas had Alabama on the ropes in Austin last season before some Bryce Young magic in the fourth quarter. Sarkisian has a roster that should be able to go toe-to-toe with this Nick Saban team. But will that happen?

We’ll find out soon enough. Alabama has future tests later on that will determine their season, but this is the biggest game on the schedule for Texas. Sarkisian’s public perception will largely hinge on the results in Tuscaloosa. Is the burnt orange ready for the big time?

If Texas has a bad performance, that seat could start to get warm for Sarkisian with this program making the jump to the SEC in 2024.

All eyes on Colorado football

The biggest story in college football last week was Colorado beating TCU outright as a near three-touchdown underdog. Now the Buffaloes return to Folsom Field with Big Noon Kickoff in the house and a 10:00 a.m. local kickoff scheduled. Despite the breakfast football, Coach Prime and his all-transfer roster have created a sizable amount of buzz for Colorado football.

Nebraska will look to play spoiler as this former Big Eight rivalry is renewed in what will be one of the most-watched games in Week 2.

Colorado was more than happy to get into a track meet with TCU, but Nebraska won’t let them do that on Saturday. Expect Matt Rhule‘s team to get run-heavy, and this 3-3-5 defense will give offensive coordinator Sean Lewis some issues. Colorado’s offensive and defensive fronts will see a bigger test this week. Will the Buffs avoid the dreaded letdown performance?

Another win for Deion Sanders will create even more hype. A Week 3 home contest with Colorado State should be a victory for the Buffs. A 3-0 start with a road trip to Oregon on Sept. 23 is now on the table in Boulder.

College football track meet in New Orleans

Tulane is on a 13-2 run dating back to last season with wins over Kansas State, UCF, Cincinnati, USC, and South Alabama. Michael Pratt is a legitimate NFL Draft prospect at quarterback, and the Green Wave appears to be the favorite to represent the Group of Five in the New Year’s Six.

Lane Kiffin is back for year four at Ole Miss. The former Alabama offensive coordinator owns a 24-13 record in Oxford and has the Rebels back in the top 25. After some more shrewd work in the transfer portal, the Rebels should again have a top-15 offense.

The offenses are known commodities in this matchup at Yulman Stadium. Both Ole Miss and Tulane are breaking in new offensive coordinators. The scoreboard could see a lot of action on Saturday afternoon.

The rare SEC team on the road against an American Athletic Conference foe could end up being the most entertaining contest of Week 2 in college football.

College Football Degenerate Under: Iowa at Iowa State

Last week, the Northwestern-Rutgers total of 38.5 easy came in with Greg Schiano’s team recording a 24-7 home win in a game that did not feature any offensive plays over 20 yards. That is very hard to do in college football.

This week, the sicko mode heads for the Cy-Hawk Trophy. Iowa and Iowa State will meet for the 70th time on Saturday afternoon and this one won’t be easy on the eyes.

Both offenses could be among the worst in the Power Five, while each defense should be top-15 caliber. That will mean punts, three yards and a cloud of dust, and some ugly passing game numbers. The spot is big for Brian Ferentz as this Iowa offense needs to score some points to save the offensive coordinator’s job.

Are you willing to sweat out an under? Yards per rush in this game will likely be cheaper than gas.

The rest of the college football card

— Illinois at Kansas is a sneaky good college football Friday night game. Lance Leipold has an energized fan base in Lawrence. The Jayhawks get star quarterback Jalon Daniels back. Bret Bielema‘s team needed some fourth quarter heroics to beat Toledo at home in Week 1. I expect a four-quarter game between mid-tier teams in the Big Ten and Big 12.

— Vanderbilt travels to Wake Forest in a very important game for both teams. The Commodores can get off to a 4-0 start if they can pull the upset as a 10-point underdog. The Demon Deacons are looking to prove that Mitch Griffis is a more than capable replacement for Sam Hartman. Vanderbilt head coach Clark Lea worked for Wake Forest head coach Dave Clawson back in 2016 at Wake Forest. It’s a student vs. teacher contest for two programs trying to build some September momentum before conference play begins.

— Speaking of sneaky non-conference matchups, Ryan Walters could start his head coaching career with consecutive losses after Purdue after losing to Fresno State last week. Virginia Tech has some momentum after a home win over Old Dominion in year two under Brent Pry. The Hokies could be a sneaky team in the ACC this season. The nooner in Blacksburg is a big contest for both teams.

— Virginia is a near touchdown home dog to in-state James Madison. The Dukes were in the FCS in 2021. That is not a good sign for second-year head coach Tony Elliott. Things could get ugly on the field in Charlottesville this season.

— Appalachian State and North Carolina gave us one of the best games of the season in Week 1 last season with a shootout for the ages. I doubt we see the same this week, but this could tell us more about North Carolina’s defense. Are the Heels for real on that side of the ball? Or is South Carolina’s offensive line just awful? I think it could be the latter.

— Is Oklahoma for real? Or is Arkansas State just that bad? We’ll find out on Saturday evening when Rhett Lashlee brings his explosive SMU offense to Norman. Expect points in bunches for what could be a typical college football shootout.

— An old Big East rivalry gets renewed on Saturday when Cincinnati travels to Pittsburgh. However, there are some more similarities in this non-conference matchup with Scott Satterfield having gone against Pat Narduzzi twice in the ACC. Bryan Brown‘s defense put the clamps on Pitt last season. Are the Bearcats a live dog?

— Arizona can put up points on offense. However, the defense is leaky in Tucson. Saturday night in Starkville should tell us how this offensive transition is going for head coach Zach Arnett. The Wildcats are good enough to win this contest outright. Mississippi State will need to score some points on Saturday.

— Oklahoma State-Arizona State, Stanford-USC, and Auburn-California will fill our Pac-12 After Dark Window. There will be a blowout in Los Angeles, but two road teams are laying points on the road. What could go wrong for Oklahoma State and Auburn?