College Football Cheat Sheet: Week 11

Only three weeks remain in the college football regular season. The coaching carousel, national signing day, and the first big transfer portal window are all around the corner. The next two months will be a busy time in the college football landscape. On the field, much will be determined over the next three weeks.

A ton of undefeated and one-loss power conference teams are still alive in the College Football Playoff hunt. Some teams and coaches are entering must-win situations. There are still wide-open division battles. I’m not sure anyone knows who is going to win the Heisman Trophy.

We are in for a fun November Saturday. KSR’s College Football Cheat Sheet is back to provide a full preview. Let’s ride.

The Slate

North Texas at SMU	9:00pm ET (Friday)	ESPN2
Wyoming at UNLV	10:45pm ET (Friday)	FS1
No. 8 Alabama at Kentucky	Noon ET	ESPN
Holy Cross at Army	Noon ET	CBS Sports Network
Indiana at Illinois	Noon ET	Big Ten Network
Maryland at Nebraska	Noon ET	Peacock
No. 3 Michigan at No. 10 Penn State	Noon ET	FOX
Vanderbilt at South Carolina	Noon ET	SEC Network
Georgia Tech at Clemson	Noon ET	ABC
Virginia Tech at Boston College	Noon ET	ACC Network
Texas Tech at No. 16 Kansas	Noon ET	FS1
Temple at USF	Noon ET	ESPN+
Tulsa at No. 23 Tulane	Noon ET	ESPN2
Old Dominion at Liberty	1:00pm ET	ESPN+
UConn at James Madison	2:00pm ET	ESPN+
No. 21 Arizona at Colorado	2:00pm ET	Pac-12 Network
NC State at Wake Forest	2:00pm ET	The CW
Memphis at Charlotte	2:00pm ET	ESPN+
Appalachian State at Georgia State	2:00pm ET	ESPN+
Troy at ULM	2:00pm ET	ESPN+
Sam Houston at Louisiana Tech	3:00pm ET	ESPN+
Baylor at No. 25 Kansas State	3:00pm ET	ESPN+
Nevada at Utah State	3:00pm ET	Mountain West Network
FIU at Middle Tennessee	3:30pm ET	ESPN+
Minnesota at Purdue	3:30pm ET	NBC
New Mexico State at WKU	3:30pm ET	ESPN+
Northwestern at Wisconsin	3:30pm ET	FS1
Rutgers at No. 22 Iowa	3:30pm ET	Big Ten Network
No. 13 Tennessee at No. 14 Missouri	3:30pm ET	CBS
No. 18 Utah at No. 5 Washington	3:30pm ET	FOX
Pittsburgh vs. Syracuse	3:30pm ET	ACC Network
Miami at No. 4 Florida State	3:30pm ET	ABC
No. 15 Oklahoma State at UCF	3:30pm ET	ESPN
UAB at Navy	3:30pm ET	CBS Sports Network
Texas State at Coastal Carolina	3:30pm ET	ESPN+
Auburn at Arkansas	4:00pm ET	SEC Network
Washington State at California	4:00pm ET	ESPN2
East Carolina at Florida Atlantic	4:00pm ET	ESPN+
Arkansas State at South Alabama	5:00pm ET	ESPN+
Stanford at No. 12 Oregon State	5:30pm ET	Pac-12 Network
No. 9 Ole Miss at No. 2 Georgia	7:00pm ET	ESPN
Cincinnati at Houston	7:00pm ET	FS1
West Virginia at No. 17 Oklahoma	7:00pm ET	FOX
Georgia Southern at Marshall	7:00pm ET	NFL Network
San Diego State at Colorado State	7:00pm ET	CBS Sports Network
Florida at No. 19 LSU	7:30pm ET	SEC Network
Michigan State at No. 1 Ohio State	7:30pm ET	NBC
Mississippi State at Texas A&M	7:30pm ET	ESPN2
Rice at UTSA	7:30pm ET	ESPNU
Duke at No. 24 North Carolina	8:00pm ET	ACC Network
Arizona State at UCLA	9:00pm ET	Pac-12 Network
New Mexico at Boise State	10:00pm ET	FS1
Iowa State at BYU	10:15pm ET	ESPN
USC at No. 6 Oregon	10:30pm ET	FOX
Fresno State at San Jose State	10:30pm ET	CBS Sports Network
Air Force at Hawai’i	11:00pm ET	Pay-Per-View

Top 10 Games

1. No. 3 Michigan at No. 10 Penn State
2. No. 9 Ole Miss at No. 2 Georgia
3. No. 13 Tennessee at No. 14 Missouri
4. No. 18 Utah at No. 5 Washington
5. USC at No. 6 Oregon
6. West Virginia at No. 17 Oklahoma
7. No. 8 Alabama at Kentucky
8. Miami at No. 4 Florida State
9. No. 15 Oklahoma State at UCF
10. Rutgers at No. 22 Iowa

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Where is Michigan at?

Penn State’s struggles in premium games have been well documented. James Franklin‘s program feels like it is on the cusp of a great season nearly every year, but the Nittany Lions cannot come up with enough juice against the biggest teams on their schedule. The top-10 team will get another swing on Saturday in Beaver Stadium, but that is not the story entering the 27th meeting between Michigan and Penn State.

There has been reporting all week pointing to a potential suspension for Michigan head coach Jim Harbaugh. As of Friday, that had not happened yet, but a three-game suspension from the league office could arrive at any point.

REPORT: The Big Ten is preparing a notice of disciplinary action against Michigan ahead of trip to Penn State, per @CFBHeather.

“We’re hearing this morning, it could be a 3-game suspension, which would be significant and it could start this weekend.”https://t.co/QdMl79FeiB pic.twitter.com/DY61pSd4Sp

— On3 (@On3sports) November 10, 2023

No matter what happens with Harbaugh, you have to wonder where Michigan’s team psyche is at after another long week filled with clutter due to the sign-stealing scandal. After handling Purdue at home, the Wolverines will hit the road to face their toughest test yet in Week 11. Have the distractions been an issue? Or is this team good enough that it doesn’t matter what is going on off the field?

No matter what the final result is on Saturday afternoon, storylines will be bountiful for both programs. Either Franklin gets one of the biggest wins of his tenure and gets the Nittany Lions back in the College Football Playoff hunt or Michigan’s dream season rolls on despite a major controversy.

We’re in for a good one in Happy Valley.

Nick Saban’s lieutenants finally meet again

Lane Kiffin and Kirby Smart spent two years together on the Alabama coaching staff from 2014-15. During their overlap, the Crimson Tide won two SEC titles and a national championship in 2015. For a time Nick Saban had the best coaching staff in college football due to the star power at coordinator.

Smart departed the program following the 2015 season to take over at Georgia. The Bulldogs have since won two national titles. Kiffin left during the College Football Playoff in 2016 after being hired by Florida Atlantic. After winning two C-USA titles in three seasons, Kiffin returned to the SEC in 2020. The Rebels are 31-14 (19-12) since his arrival.

For the first time, Smart and Kiffin will battle head-to-head on the field. They’ll do it in a November game with a ton of stakes.

Georgia (9-0, 6-0) will clinch another SEC East title with a win on Saturday night at home. Ole Miss (8-1, 5-1) needs to keep winning to stay in the College Football Playoff hunt. We have a top-10 matchup at Sanford Stadium with two of the best head coaches in the sport.

Seeing how Kiffin’s tempo offense and Smart’s defense matchup will be the most popular story of this game. However, former Alabama defensive coordinator Pete Golding will need his Ole Miss defense to make some stops for the Rebels to have a chance on Saturday night.

A massive game in the SEC.

New Year’s Six is on the line in Columbia

Missouri is having a special season. In year four under Eliah Drinkwitz, the Tigers sit at 7-2 (3-2) with the only two losses coming in close games against top-20 opponents. With two home games and a road trip to Arkansas remaining on the schedule, there is a clear path to 10-2 and a berth in the New Year’s Six on the table.

After a slow start to the season, Josh Heupel‘s offense has found its groove in recent weeks. The Vols (7-2, 3-2) gave Alabama a game in Bryant-Denny Stadium and own wins over Kentucky and Texas A&M. A win on Saturday would set the stage for a huge home game against Georgia next week with a chance to finish the season with a consecutive 10-2 finish.

For Missouri, a huge breakthrough season is on the line. Meanwhile, Tennessee is attempting to prove that last year’s run was not a fluke and that this program will have staying power with Heupel. Expect an intense conference game in Columbia with two offenses that can score from anywhere on the field.

Tricky home games in the Pac-12

No. 5 Washington (9-0, 6-0) and No. 6 Oregon (8-1, 5-1) sit atop the Pac-12 standings with three games to go. The Huskies and Ducks are the conference’s only remaining College Football Playoff hopefuls. We are looking at a potential play-in game in the Pac-12 Championship if chalk holds.

The problem is this is rarely a league where chalk holds. Both teams will face some tricky challenges at home in Week 11.

No. 18 Utah (7-2, 4-2) will bring their top-15 defense into Seattle to attempt to slow down Washington’s high-flying passing attack. However, the Huskies have looked mortal in recent weeks and needed an absurd rushing performance to beat USC. That won’t happen against Utah. Washington’s run defense (No. 124 in success rate) is a problem. If Utah gets a lead early this one could get scary for the home team.

USC (7-3, 5-2) is reeling. After a 6-0 start, the Trojans are 1-3 in their last four outings and needed 50 points to survive an upset bid from California. Lincoln Riley just fired defensive coordinator Alex Grinch, and their season appears to be going down the tubes. However, Caleb Williams is still on this roster, and Riley is holding the call sheet. USC can score points. If a track meet breaks out at Autzen Stadium, Oregon could find itself in some trouble.

College Football Degenerate Under: Rutgers at Iowa Under 28.5

Iowa is playing a Big Ten game. You know the drill for our degenerate under.

One week after needing overtime to defeat Northwestern 10-7 at Wrigley Field, Iowa will return home to Kinnick Stadium to face another limited Big Ten offense that has a good defense. In this Kirk Ferentz vs. Greg Schiano matchup in November, expect a lot of punts.

Will another small point total in an Iowa game still cash those under tickets?

The rest of the college football card

— South Carolina has to win out to get to 6-6. Vanderbilt is on the verge of their third winless conference season in four years with a road game against Tennessee still on the schedule. Someone is going to leave Williams-Brice Stadium very unhappy and facing some criticism heading into the offseason.

— Are you ready for the biggest Kansas-Kansas State game of our lifetime? The Jayhawks (7-2, 4-2) and Wildcats (6-3, 4-2) must take care of business at home to set the stage for a monster game in Lawrence next weekend. Texas Tech will be a sneaky road dog against KU while K-State should easily handle Baylor. Both teams are still alive in the Big 12 title race and could play a memorable rivalry game next weekend.

— Florida suffered an awful home loss to Arkansas last week. The Gators (5-4, 3-3) are now in danger of missing the postseason. Billy Napier‘s team travels to LSU (6-3, 4-2) in what could be a bounce-back performance from the Bayou Bengals under the lights in Tiger Stadium. Napier ending the season losing four consecutive SEC games would create quite the hot seat situation in year three down in Gainesville.