Sep 16, 20174 min read

CFB: Week 3 Preview

Week 2 of the College Football season was inarguably better than the previous Saturday, mainly because of three ranked-vs.-ranked matchups, including No. 3 Clemson stifling No. 13 Auburn, No. 4 Oklahoma avenging last year's loss against No. 2 Ohio State, and No. 6 USC running past No. 14 Stanford out in L.A.

Week 3's slate doesn't have as many top tier games, but there are a handful to watch out for. Our College Football Staff is ready for another Weekly Edition, as Charles Post, Chase Zayac, and Chinedum Wejinya are going to preview the upcoming set of games.

*Maximum of 100 Points*

Top-25 Rankings:

1. Alabama (2-0) - 100 Pts.

2. Clemson (2-0) - 95 Pts.

3. Oklahoma (2-0) - 93 Pts.

4. USC (2-0) - 87 Pts.

5. Penn State (2-0) - 85 Pts.

6. Michigan (2-0) - 79 Pts.

7. Washington (2-0) - 77 Pts.

8. Ohio State (1-1) - 70 Pts.

9. Oklahoma State (2-0) - 66 Pts.

10. LSU (2-0) - 64 Pts.

11. Florida State (0-1) - 61 Pts.

12. Wisconsin (2-0) - 59 Pts.

13. Georgia (2-0) - 52 Pts.

14. Louisville (2-0) - 47 Pts.

15. Auburn (1-1) - 43 Pts.

16. Virginia Tech (2-0) - 40 Pts.

17. Miami (1-0) - 36 Pts.

18. Kansas State (2-0) - 33 Pts.

19. South Florida (2-0) - 24 Pts.

20. TCU (2-0) - 22 Pts.

21. Stanford (1-1) - 19 Pts.

22. Washington State (1-1) - 18 Pts.

23. Tennessee (2-0) - 15 Pts.

24. Florida (0-1) - 6 Pts.

25. Utah (2-0) - 5 Pts.

Just Missed the Cut:

26. UCLA (2-0) - 4 Pts.

27. South Carolina (2-0) - 3 Pts.

28. Toledo (2-0) - 1 Pt.

29. Wakes Forest (2-0) - 1 Pt.

30. Texas Tech (2-0) - 1 Pt.

Charles Post:

Illinois @ No. 19 South Florida

Air Force @ No. 6 Michigan No. 2 Clemson @ No. 14 Louisville No. 10 LSU @ Mississippi State

No. 23 Tennessee @ No. 24 Florida SMU @ No. 20 TCU Colorado State @ No. 1 Alabama Samford @ No. 13 Georgia No. 18 Kansas State @ Vanderbilt No. 21 Stanford @ San Diego

Week 2 Record: 9-1.

Overall Record: 18-2.

Chase Zayac:

Illinois @ No. 19 South Florida

Air Force @ No. 6 Michigan No. 2 Clemson @ No. 14 Louisville No. 10 LSU @ Mississippi State

Week 2 Record: 9-1.

Overall Record: 17-3.

Chinedum Wejinya:

Illinois @ No. 19 South Florida

Air Force @ No. 6 Michigan No. 2 Clemson @ No. 14 Louisville No. 10 LSU @ Mississippi State

Week 2 Record: 8-2.

Overall Record: 15-5.

1. Who prevails: No. 2 Clemson's defense or No. 14 Louisville's offense?

Post: Give me No. 2 Clemson. They showed me last week that their defense may be unmatched by anyone else (even Alabama) in the country, and can carry them even when the offense is struggling. The Tigers only allowed No. 15 Auburn to gain 117 yards, while sacking Jarrett Stidham 11 (!) times. Now, I know No. 14 Louisville has Lamar Jackson, but their defense isn't very good, and I think Clemson will be able to slow down the Cardinals just enough to come away with another ranked victory.

Zayac: Clemsons defense. They'll hold Lamar Jackson in check enough to win.

Wejinya: Clemson’s defense will prevail because more players than Lamar Jackson need to step up.

2. What till it take for Mississippi State to upset No. 10 LSU, and are they able to do it?

Post: A couple of things must happen if Mississippi State wants to keep it close, and have a chance to pull out a win in the final minutes. 1) Nick Fitzgerald has to throw for 250+ yards and rush for 75+ yards, while only turning the ball over once at most. 2) The Bulldogs' defense can not allow Derrius Guice to hit 150 rushing yards. I think it'll be closer than the line suggests, but I'll play it safe with No. 10 LSU coming out on top.

Zayac: Mississippi State will have to string together a near perfect offense to win which likely won't happen.

Wejinya: Mississippi State needs to play great defense to beat LSU, but I don't think they'll be able to.

3. Will No. 1 Alabama surpass 500-yards and how many will Jalen Hurts have?

Post: I'll say no to No. 1 Alabama reaching 500 total yards, because it's a pretty high feat for any team, and the way Nick Saban coaches, running the ball a lot and pulling his starters prior to the fourth quarter, it's not likely. The Crimson Tide put up 497 yards against Fresno State, so they'll probably be just short of 500. Jalen Hurts has averaged 199.0 yards per game against Florida State and Fresno State, so I'll say he goes for exactly 207 total yards.

Zayac: Alabama's offense will surpass 500 yards (mostly rushing) and Jalen Hurts will have 150 in the air.

Wejinya: I think Alabama will get close to 500 yards, while Jalen Hurts will have 200 total yards.