Is BC Clemson’s last big hurdle?
The toughest test remaining for second-ranked Clemson comes Saturday in New England, where the Tigers play 17th-ranked Boston College.
BC-Clemson ranks as college football’s game of the day.
After Saturday, Clemson finishes off at home with Duke and South Carolina.
Here are the top non-Big 12 games of Saturday:
1. Clemson at Boston College, 7 p.m. ABC: Biggest BC home game since 2007, when the Eagles rose to No. 2 before losing to Florida State.
2. Washington State at Colorado, 2:30 p.m., ESPN: Last road game for WSU, which finishes with Arizona and Washington in Pullman.
3. Auburn at Georgia, 6 p.m., ESPN: Tigers haven’t won in Athens since 2005.
4. Ohio State at Michigan State, 11 a.m., Fox: Buckeyes haven’t lost in East Lansing since 1999 but have lost thrice to the Spartans this decade.
5. Virginia Tech at Pittsburgh, 2:30 p.m., ESPNU: A Hokie win creates a three-way tie atop the ACC Coastal, with Virginia joining these two.
6. Mississippi State at Alabama, 2:30 p.m., CBS: Bulldogs haven’t beaten Bama since 2007, Nick Saban’s first season in Tuscaloosa.
7. Northwestern at Iowa, 2:30 p.m., Fox: The Wildcats win the Big Ten West with a victory here and losses by Wisconsin to Penn State and Purdue to Minnesota.
8. Oregon at Utah, 4:30 p.m., Pac-12 Network: Utes in a Pac-12 South dogfight — 1½ games separate first place and last place.
9. Florida State at Notre Dame, 6:30 p.m., NBC: The Seminoles would seem to be no match for the Fighting Irish. But no matter what the record says, that’s still Florida State.
10. UCLA at Arizona State, 1 p.m., Pac-12 Network: Sun Devils control their own destiny in the Pac-12 South.
Upset special
Upstart Northwestern has a one-game lead over Wisconsin and Purdue in the Big Ten West, but the Wildcats have beaten both, so they own the tiebreaker. Northwestern has a two-game lead over Iowa, which hosts the Wildcats on Saturday.
Northwestern had a rough start to the season, winning 31-27 at Purdue before losing home games to Duke and Akron. Since then, Northwestern has lost only tough home games to Michigan and Notre Dame.
Iowa is a 9½-point favorite Saturday, which is a little strange. Northwestern and Iowa share two common opponents; both played at Purdue and hosted Wisconsin. Northwestern is 2-0 and Iowa is 0-2.
The wrong team is favored. Take Northwestern in the upset.
Coach on the hot seat
Tobacco Road really doesn’t care about college football. And that includes the University of North Carolina.
The last UNC team to play in a major bowl was the 1949 Tar Heels. Carolina’s last ACC championship was in 1980. But North Carolina’s patience is not limitless.
Larry Fedora’s team is 1-7, a year after going 3-9. Just three years ago, the Tar Heels were 11-3 and played Clemson tough in the ACC title game. But off have come the wheels.
UNC feels indebted to Fedora, since when he was hired he wasn’t properly informed of the budding academic scandal hitting the athletic department. And the former Oklahoma State offensive coordinator signed a contract extension 22 months ago that includes a $14 million buyout if fired after the 2018 season.
But still. Four wins in two years will make any coach’s seat hot.
Saturday, UNC plays at arch-rival Duke. At least it’s not basketball.