COLLEGE FOOTBALL WEEKEND PREVIEW
BEST GAME
No. 25Wisconsin at No. 19Iowa: The Hawkeyes (5-2, 5-2Big Ten) are averaging better than 37points during their five-game win streak, their longest since the magical 2015 season that saw them go 12-0in the regular season. Wisconsin (2-2, 2-2) has had a bumpy ride. Graham Mertz had one of the best starting debuts in FBS history against Illinois but hasn’t come close to duplicating that 20-for-21 performance. The Badgers, ranked as high as No. 9before having three games in five weeks canceled because of COVID-19, have scored a combined 13points in losing their last two.
HEISMAN WATCH
Alabama’s Mac Jones overtook Florida’s Kyle Trask as the favorite with a stellar performance against LSU. That’s according to oddsmakers. Jones closes the regular season at Arkansas after throwing for 385yards and four touchdowns in the Crimson Tide’s 55-17win. Trask gets his turn against LSU. Don’t discount the possibility of Trask going over 400yards passing for the fourth time this season against beleaguered defensive coordinator Bo Pelini’s unit. Two other Heisman contenders, Clemson’s Trevor Lawrence and Notre Dame’s Ian Book, are idle until the ACC title game next week.
NUMBERS TO KNOW 0:
Second-half points allowed by Colorado in back-to-back games against San Diego State and Arizona, the first time in 18years the Buffaloes had blanked opponents after half in consecutive games.
6: Fourth-quarter comebacks for wins in Baylor quarterback Charlie Brewer’s career.
7: Consecutive weeks Indiana has been ranked in the Top 25, matching the school regularseason record set by the 1945team.
10: Miami scoring drives of 80yards or longer the last four games. The Hurricanes had two such drives in their first five games.
1943: The last time the Army-Navy game was played at a home site. The teams meet Saturday in West Point, New York. The game was moved out of Philadelphia because COVID-19 attendance limits in Pennsylvania would prevent the Brigade of Midshipmen and Corps of Cadets from attending.
UNDER THE RADAR
San Jose State vs. Nevada, at Las Vegas: The winner clinches a spot in the Mountain West championship game, with the loser advancing depending on the outcome of the Wyoming-Boise State game. The Spartans (5-0) can become the first San Jose State team to go 6-0since the
13-0campaign in 1939. Nevada (6-1) is led by sophomore Carson Strong, who has thrown for
330yards per game with 21touchdowns against four interceptions. This was supposed to be a home game for San Jose State. It was moved to Vegas because of COVID-19protocols in Santa Clara County.
HOT SEAT COACH
Eastern Michigan’s Chris Creighton did an admirable job reviving a moribund program, getting the Eagles to a bowl in his third season. Things have gotten stale in Ypsilanti. The Eagles are 1-4, and Creighton is 29-51in seven years. His contract runs through 2022, and he might be safe for now because any MAC program will hesitate to pay a buyout during these economic times.