Week eight Is Headlined By Two Intriguing Top-25 Games.
Last week college football proved it can be a bit unpredictable. Clemson has looked like a really solid team, last week they fell to Syracuse. Syracuse isn’t a terrible team but they probably aren’t any better than average.
Washington State, who was ranked number eight in the country heading into last week, got throttled by Cal 37-3.
Any team could lose any week no matter how dominant one team looks on paper.
Here are two games that could end up being pretty good:
#19 Michigan at #2 Penn State, 7:30 pm on ABC
Michigan was looking to bounce back from their loss to Michigan State in week six, while they won it still wasn’t pretty. They beat Indiana 27-20 in overtime. This week they have was might be their toughest test of the season.
Penn State looks like one of best teams in college football. They haven’t been tested much up to this point but they’ve handled their business well.
For Michigan, defensive tackle Maurice Hurst was able to get the proverbial monkey of off his back last week. He recorded half a sack, he had none heading into the game.
Hurst, and all of Michigan’s defense, will need to be at their best in order for Michigan to have a chance against Penn State. The Wolverines offense has been struggling all year.
Running back Saquon Barkley (pictured above) is pretty good at football. He leads college football in all-purpose yards per game. In addition to leading Penn State in rushing he also leads the team in receiving and is one of the most dangerous kick returners in the country.
It will be interesting to see Barkley against Michigan’s defense who ranks in the top-five rush defenses in college football. They haven’t seen a back like Barkley yet either. If Michigan can at least contain him then they might have a chance but it will be tough for them otherwise.
#11 USC at #13 Notre Dame, 7:30 pm on NBC
USC sits at 6-1 but they have been somewhat inconsistent. They’ve had a few close games with teams they have a clear talent advantage over. A win in this contest could really give them momentum heading into the final stretch of the season.
Notre Dame has performed well this year. Their loss came against Georgia who are now the number five team in the country. They also have a nice win over Michigan State under their belt.
USC’s star quarterback Sam Darnold (pictured above) is considered by many to be the best quarterback prospect in college football. He’s obviously a talented player but has struggled with consistency at times this year. He’s played really well in the last two games so he’ll try to keep that going.
Running back Ronald Jones is on track for the best season in his career. He’s got great speed and uses it to make explosive plays. There’s a good chance he will get his name called in the early rounds of next years draft.
Notre Dame features two of the best offenive lineman in the country in tackle Mike McGlinchey and guard Quenton Nelson. Both those guys look like first round draft picks.
Wide receiver Equanimeous St. Brown has struggled for Notre Dame so far this season. It’s not completely his fault, the Notre Dame passing game as a whole hasn’t been very good. St. Brown is a big bodied reciever who can go up and get the ball over basically anyone. He’ll try to break out this week.
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