College football Week 2:
We preview Oklahoma-Ohio State, Auburn-Clemson, Stanford-Southern Cal and other top games; plus lines, predictions.
A look at the the top Football Bowl Subdivision games for the upcoming week.
OKLAHOMA AT OHIO STATE
Sept. 9, 7:30 p.m., ABC Line: Ohio State by 71⁄ 2
Oklahoma’s last loss was a 45-24 drubbing at the hands of Ohio State early last season.
The Sooners get a chance to make up for that lopsided home setback and perhaps put themselves on the path to the College Football Playoff.
Oklahoma (1-0) looked comfortable in its 56-7 pummeling of Texas-El Paso as QB Baker Mayfield completed 19 of 20 passes for 329 yards with three TDs in Lincoln Riley’s debut as head coach.
This weekend will provide a greater challenge, even if the Buckeyes (1-0) were lethargic early in their 49-21 defeat of Indiana. Urban Meyer’s team trailed at halftime, but RB J.K. Dobbins rushed for 181 yards in place of injured Mike Weber.
Last year, the Buckeyes picked off Mayfield twice, bringing back one for a score. If Ohio State can flummox him again, it will be in good shape to sweep the homeand-home series. uWho wins? Ohio State 31-27
IOWA AT IOWA STATE
Sept. 9, noon, ESPN2 Line: Iowa by 21⁄ 2
For much of this decade, the Cy-Hawk Trophy was decided in tight games. But the series has shifted in Iowa’s favor the last two years; the Hawkeyes manhandled Iowa State 42-3 last year.
Iowa (1-0) secured an impressive 24-3 defeat of Wyoming, while the Cyclones (1-0) avoided their fourth loss to a Football Championship Subdivision team in five years when they turned back Northern Iowa 42-24. uWho wins? Iowa 28-13
LOUISVILLE AT NORTH CAROLINA
Sept. 9, noon, ABC, ESPN Line: Louisville by 8
Not much has changed for Louisville (1-0) based on its victory against Purdue. The Cardi- nals can still count on QB Lamar Jackson, who began his Heisman Trophy defense with 378 yards and two TDs passing and 107 rushing yards. He could have a monster day against North Carolina (0-1), which allowed 469 yards to rebuilding California in a disappointing 35-30 loss at home. uWho wins? Louisville 42-27
PITTSBURGH AT PENN STATE
Sept. 9, 3:30 p.m., ABC Line: Penn State by 201⁄ 2
This in-state rivalry resumed last year, with Pittsburgh claiming a 42-39 victory. The Panthers will have trouble repeating that, and not just because this season’s meeting is in Happy Valley.
The Panthers (1-0) needed overtime to defeat Youngstown State, while Penn State (1-0) breezed past Akron 52-0. RB Saquon Barkley began his Heisman bid with a 172-yard, twotouchdown day on the ground. uWho wins? Penn State 45-24
TEXAS CHRISTIAN AT ARKANSAS
Sept. 9, 3:30 p.m., CBS Line: TCU by 3
Neither team had trouble with Football Championship Subdivision foes. TCU (1-0) hammered Jackson State 63-0 while Arkansas (1-0) routed Florida A&M 49-7. Arkansas won last year’s meeting 41-38 in double overtime. uWho wins? Arkansas 31-28
NEBRASKA AT OREGON
Sept. 9, 4:30 p.m., Fox Line: Oregon by 14
Oregon faces its first big test under new coach Willie Taggart. The Cornhuskers won last year’s meeting 35-32, precipitating a 4-8 Ducks season that cost coach Mark Helfrich his job.
RB Royce Freeman rushed for 150 yards and four TDs as Oregon (1-0) obliterated Southern Utah 77-21 in Taggart’s debut. Nebraska (1-0) survived a late push from Arkansas State to earn a 43-36 victory, but the Cornhuskers allowed 497 total yards. uWho wins? Oregon 38-31
AUBURN AT CLEMSON
Sept. 9, 7 p.m., ESPN Line: Clemson by 6
Clemson (1-0) QB Kelly Bryant, Deshaun Watson’s backup the last two seasons, looked comfortable in his first career start. Bryant shredded Kent State in the defending national champion’s opener, but the degree of difficulty increases with Auburn.
Auburn (1-0) had little trouble with Georgia Southern, holding the Eagles to 78 total yards in a 41-7 victory. RBs Kam Martin and Kerryon Johnson each ran for more than 100 yards in the absence of suspended Kamryn Pettway. He’ll return to face a stingy Clemson line. uWho wins? Clemson 28-24
GEORGIA AT NOTRE DAME
Sept. 9, 7:30 p.m., NBC Line: Notre Dame by 61⁄ 2
Georgia’s QB situation is in flux. Jacob Eason suffered a knee injury in a 31-10 defeat of Appalachian State. Freshman Jake Fromm, who’ll start, entered and threw for 143 yards and a TD.
QB Brandon Wimbush was one of three Notre Dame players (along with RBs Josh Adams and Dexter Williams) to rush for 100 yards in 1-0 Notre Dame’s 49-16 steamrolling of Temple. Georgia (1-0), though, boasts one of the Southeastern Conference’s most experienced and capable defenses. uWho wins? Georgia 27-17
STANFORD AT SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA
Sept. 9, 8:30 p.m., Fox Line: USC by 7
Stanford (1-0) had two weeks to prepare for its conference opener, though it spent some of that time dealing with jet lag after a domi- nant victory against Rice in Australia on Aug. 26.
The Trojans (1-0) were shaky for much of their opener against Western Michigan but pulled away for a 49-31 win. QB Sam Darnold had no TD passes and two interceptions in a sluggish showing and will need to be sharper against Stanford. uWho wins?
Southern California 24-21
UTAH AT BRIGHAM YOUNG
Sept. 9, 10:15 p.m., ESPN2 Line: BYU by 11⁄ 2
The series has tilted toward Utah. The Utes have won six in a row, including 20-19 in 2016, but all but one of the victories were in one-possession games.
Utah (1-0) shrugged off North Dakota in its opener, but BYU (1-1) comes off a 27-0 loss to LSU. The Cougars were limited to 97 yards and never crossed midfield. uWho wins? Utah 27-14
BOISE STATE AT WASHINGTON STATE
Sept. 9, 10:30 p.m., ESPN Line: Washington State by 9
Washington State had lost five openers in a row before beating Montana State 31-0, and now QB Luke Falk and the Cougars get a much trickier test vs. Boise State.
The Broncos (1-0) defeated Troy 24-13 but managed only 357 total yards as QB Brett Rypien spent much of the fourth quarter on the bench in favor of Kansas transfer Montell Cozart. Both could be factors vs. the Cougars. uWho wins? Washington State 28-27