12:00 PM ET ESPN2: 22 Georgia 1-0 @ 24 South Carolina 1-0 (-3.5) - I can't think of a better way to start Monster Saturday than with two top 25 teams playing in the SEC. The Gamecocks have lost to the Bulldogs 7 of the last 8 times they've met and 4 straight times in Columbia, however this game might be different for a multitude of reasons... 1) No A.J. Green: This week we found out that Georgia's star WR will be suspended for 3 more games because he sold his game used Independence Bowl jersey for $1,000 to an agent. 2) Georgia's starting QB Aaron Murray is a red-shirt Freshman, who is playing in his first ever road game. Last week he threw for 160 yards, 3 TDs, and 1 INT, but that was against Louisiana-Lafayette. 3) South Carolina's offense is improved with frosh RB Marcus Lattimore, who was one of the top recruits in the nation. 4) The Gamecocks have 16 returning starters, including junior QB Stephen Garcia. He threw for 193 yards and ran for 2 TDs last week against Southern Miss. 5) The Bulldogs have switched to a 3-4 defense under new DC Todd Grantham. We'll find out in a hurry if the current players are right for the system. Working in the Bulldogs favor is the fact that they get their top RB, Washaun Ealey, back from suspension. If you want to play a drinking game while watching this one, drink every time you hear the word "suspension" or "suspended." Between Green and Ealey, you'll have a nice buzz going.
3:30 PM ET NBC: Michigan 1-0 @ Notre Dame 1-0 (-4) - Denard "Shoelace" Robinson could not have looked better last week against UConn. When he decided to pass the ball, he was accurate going 19/22 for 186 yards and 1 TD. When chose to keep the ball and run, he was decisive and elusive, rushing for 197 yards on 29 carries for 1 TD. The Wolverines won the game 30-10, but a fumble at the goal line by the Huskies really changed the tone of the game. Notre Dame looked good, not great, in their 23-12 win over Purdue. QB Dayne Crist was 19/26 for 205 yards and 1 TD, while Armando Allen ran the ball 18 times for 93 yards and 1 TD. Last season, ND came back from an 11 point deficit in the 4th quarter, only to have Michigan score just before the game ended to snatch the win right back. I'm expecting a high scoring game with lots of lead changes, as the Michigan secondary is banged up and the ND defense simply doesn't have the personnel to stop "Shoelace." It's worth noting that 7 of the last 10 and 5 of the last 6 games in this series have ended in an upset.
3:30 PM ET ABC: 17 Florida State 1-0 @ 10 Oklahoma 1-0 (-7.5) - The Sooners are lucky they come into this game 1-0. Last week they almost lost to Utah State 31-24. The offense did it's part as DeMarco Murray ran for 218 yards on 35 carries for 2 TDs, while WR Ryan Broyles caught 9 balls for 142 yards and 2 TDs. It's the defense that needs help, specifically the secondary, which gave up 341 passing yards. The Seminoles crushed Samford 56-9, a game where QB Christian Ponder looked every bit the Heisman hopeful, going 12/14 for 167 yards, 4 TDs, and 1 INT... at half. "New" coach Jimbo Fisher will be focusing on stopping Sooners QB Landry Jones with the help of Mark Stoops, Oklahoma coach Bob Stoops' younger brother. Special teams could play a big part of this game, especially with FSU CB Greg Reid returning kicks. Last season he was the top kick returner and punt returner in college football, as a freshman. The last time these two teams met it was in the 2000 Orange Bowl for the National Championship, a game OU won 13-2.
3:40 PM ET ESPN: 12 Miami (FL) 1-0 @ 2 Ohio State 1-0 (-8.5) - Since the 2003 Fiesta Bowl, these two programs have gone in different directions. Miami has fallen off the national scene and only recently climbed back into the top of the rankings, while Ohio State has won Big Ten title after title and played in multiple BCS Bowls. They come together in a game that has serious national title implications for both schools. The 'Canes come in with junior QB Jacory Harris as a possible Heisman candidate. Last week against Florida A&M, Harris was 12/15 for 210 yards and 3 TDs, two of which went to senior WR Leonard Hankerson. The offense was so effective that they never had to punt the ball. The Luckeyes come in with their own star QB in junior Terrelle Pryor, who was 17/25 for 247 passing yards and 3 TDs against Marshall last week. Also in that game, senior RB Brandon Saine had 103 yards on 9 carries and 2 TDs... In the '03 Fiesta Bowl 100 players were involved in the game, 58 of which played at least one game in the NFL. 86|PERCENT| of the starters in the game were drafted into the NFL and 18 of those players were first-round draft picks... think about that for a minute. I expect a great game with lots of speed on the field.
4:00 PM ET Versus: BYU 1-0 @ Air Force 1-0 (-1) - TCU isn't the only team out in the MWC to watch these days. BYU is coming off of a 23-17 win over a then 17th ranked Washington Huskies team. The Cougars held Jake Locker in check as best they could, as he had 226 passing yards for 1 TD and 29 rushing yards for another TD. BYU utilized a two-headed QB attack with frosh Jake Heaps and junior Riley Nelson. Both had 131 passing yards, but Nelson had 2 passing TDs, while Heaps had none. Nelson was also more accurate (11/17) than Heaps (13/23). Junior RB JJ Di Luigi had 69 yards rushing on 13 carries and 83 yards receiving on 4 catches for 1 TD. Air Force blew out Northwestern State 65-21in their opener. Junior QB Tim Jefferson had a field day, as he passed for 179 yards with 2 TDs and ran for 59 yards with 2 TDs. As a team they had 19 different rushers for 437 yards and 7 TDs. At home, they'll try to keep the triple-option offense rolling and knock off BYU for the first time since Bronco Mendenhall took over there. Under the Radar Game of the Week
7:00 PM ET ESPN: 18 Penn State 1-0 @ 1 Alabama 1-0 (-12) - The Tide will renew this old rivalry without Heisman Trophy winner, junior RB Mark Ingram, after he had his knee scoped last week. They will also be without junior DE Marcell Dareus, who is suspended. 'Bama fans aren't worried about Ingram's loss too much though because they have sophomore RB Trent Richardson, who had 111 rushing yards on 13 carries for 2 TDs against San Jose State. Also in that game, senior QB Greg McElroy was 13/15 for 218 yards and 1 TD, while junior WR Julio Jones had 6 catches for 93 yards and 1 TDs. The defense returns just 2 starters, but coach Nick Saban will have them playing at a high level. On the other sideline will be Joe Paterno, who has been coaching for as long as I can remember. Last week against Youngstown State, frosh QB Robert Bolden was 20/29 for 239 yards, 2 TDs, and 1 INT, while senior RB Evan Royster had 40 rushing yards on 11 carries. Expect Saban and his defense to disrupt Bolden and make his first ever road start, a long one.
10:30 PM ET ESPN: 25 Stanford 1-0 (-6) @ UCLA 0-1 - 1996, that's the last time the Cardinals beat the Bruins in the Rose Bowl. This season Stanford comes in without RB Toby Gerhart (NFL), but they've still got sophomore QB Andrew Luck on their side. He was 17/23 for 316 yards and 4 TDs last week against Sacramento State. The running game was excellent with 213 rushing yards. That will play huge as UCLA is coming off a 22-31 loss to Kansas State, a game where they gave up 313 rushing yards (wow). Bruins sophomore QB Kevin Prince had a game to forget passing, as he was 9/26 for 120 yards, 1 TD, and 2 INTs. On the ground he had 31 yards rushing for 1 TD. As a team, the Bruins racked up 193 yards rushing, lead by sophomore RB Jonathan Franklin, who had 60 yards rushing on 13 carries. I'm expecting Stanford to pound the ball and setup Luck for play action passes. If Prince, who is still banged up, is 9/26 again, this one won't be close.