If this college football season was a television series, you could jump right in this weekend without needing to catch up on previous episodes.
The first six weeks have been entertaining, sure, but really not much has happened. No plot twists. No significant new story lines. Take a glance at the Top 25 and your friends can get you up to speed in five minutes.
Week 7 feels like the first of the season you can’t miss. A season-high four games match ranked teams, all involving at least one top-10 team. Two more top-10 teams are facing high-profile rivals that have been in turmoil. Pretty much every game is a conference game. Both Death Valleys should be rocking Saturday.
The Red River Rivalry is a good place to start with its noon ET kickoff. No. 11 Texas has emerged from several years of mediocrity to again be a legitimate threat to No. 6 Oklahoma in the Big 12. The Longhorns and Sooners split two games last season, including the Big 12 championship. Final combined score: Oklahoma 84, Texas 75.
The headliner under the lights is No. 7 Florida at No. 5 LSU. The Gators are playing in a second-straight top-10 matchup after a home victory against Auburn. The annual SEC crossover rivalry has been one of the most competitive in the conference in recent years. The last seven meetings have been decided by 11 points or fewer, including six one-possession games.
In between, No. 1 Alabama visits No. 24 Texas A&M; No. 2 Clemson hosts Florida State; No. 10 Penn State is at No. 17 Iowa; and No. 9 Notre Dame faces Southern California.
A note of caution: The odds makers are not forecasting as much drama as the rankings and/or history suggests with most of the marquee matchups. Only one (Penn State-Iowa) has a point spread of less than 10 points as of Wednesday.
THE PICKS:
No. 1 Alabama (minus 16½) at No. 24 Texas A&M
Johnny Manziel isn’t walking through that door for the Aggies … ALABAMA 38-20.
Florida State (plus 27) at No. 2 Clemson
Tigers have won the last two meetings by a combined 90-24 and it feels like Clemson is due to break out after a close call at North Carolina; Or maybe FSU can show it has turned a corner under Willie Taggart and keep things competitive … CLEMSON 45-21.
