ESPN College Gameday 2022: TV Schedule and Predictions for Week 9 Location
ESPN's College GameDay will have a prime-time feel on Saturday morning when the show heads to Jackson State, where head coach Deion Sanders is looking to lead the Tigers to an 8-0 start to the 2022 season.
Jackson State is set for a rivalry matchup against Southern on Saturday, and College GameDay is making a rare visit to an FCS campus to be there for it. It's the first time the show, which airs live on Saturdays at 9 a.m. ET on ESPN, will be held at the university in Mississippi.
It will also be the first time it has taken place at the site of an FCS game since Aug. 28, 2021, when it aired in Atlanta ahead of a game between North Carolina Central and Alcorn State.
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Before further breaking down the Southern-Jackson State matchup, here's the schedule for ranked teams in Week 9, along with predictions for each game.
Week 9 Top 25 Schedule, Predictions
Saturday, Oct. 29
No. 2 Ohio State at No. 13 Penn State, noon ET, Fox
No. 7 TCU at West Virginia, noon ET, ESPN
Notre Dame at No. 16 Syracuse, noon ET, ABC
Florida vs. No. 1 Georgia, 3:30 p.m. ET, CBS
No. 8 Oregon at California, 3:30 p.m. ET, FS1
No. 9 Oklahoma State at No. 22 Kansas State, 3:30 p.m. ET, Fox
No. 10 Wake Forest at Louisville, 3:30 p.m. ET, ACC Network
No. 17 Illinois at Nebraska, 3:30 p.m. ET, ABC
No. 20 Cincinnati at UCF, 3:30 p.m. ET, ESPN
Missouri at No. 25 South Carolina, 4 p.m. ET, SEC Network
No. 10 USC at Arizona, 6 p.m. ET, Pac-12 Network
No. 19 Kentucky at No. 3 Tennessee, 7 p.m. ET, ESPN
Michigan State at No. 4 Michigan, 7:30 p.m. ET, ABC
No. 15 Ole Miss at Texas A&M, 7:30 p.m. ET, SEC Network
Pittsburgh at No. 21 North Carolina, 8 p.m. ET, ACC Network
Stanford at No. 12 UCLA, 10:30 p.m. ET, ESPN
Picks in bold.
Southern-Jackson State Preview, Prediction
It hasn't taken long for Sanders to turn Jackson State into a powerhouse team in the Southwestern Athletic Conference. And the Tigers are only getting better in his third year at the helm.
In the pandemic-shortened 2020 season (which was played in the spring of 2021), Jackson State went 4-3. It built off that performance by going 11-2 in the 2021 season, which ended with a loss to South Carolina State in the Celebration Bowl.
However, the Tigers didn't lose any SWAC games last season, going 9-0 in conference play. They're now off to a 5-0 start in conference action this year, as they've been rolling during their seven-game overall winning streak to open the season.
Jackson State's offense is the best in the SWAC, as it leads the conference in points (40.9) and total yards (495.3) per game. The unit is led by sophomore quarterback Shedeur Sanders, Deion's son, who has thrown for 2,218 yards, 23 touchdowns and five interceptions.
The Tigers also have the best defense in the SWAC, as they lead the conference in points allowed (10.1) and total yards allowed (190.3) per game. So they're getting it done on both sides of the football.
However, Southern has both the No. 2 offense and the No. 2 defense in the conference. So, if there's any SWAC team capable of taking down Jackson State, it's likely the Jaguars, which are 5-2 this season.
One of those losses came against an FBS opponent, as it lost 65-17 at LSU on Sept. 10. But the following week, the Jaguars dropped their conference opener, when they were beaten 24-0 by Texas Southern.
Since then, Southern has reeled off four straight wins, three of which have come against SWAC opponents.
For much of the past decade, this rivalry series had gone Southern's way, as it had an eight-game winning streak against Jackson State from 2013-21. But the Tigers snapped that skid last year, when they beat the Jaguars 21-17 on the road.
This year, there should be an even more electric atmosphere for this marquee SWAC matchup.
"I just hope we, as a city and as a school, understand the magnitude of what’s about to transpire," Coach Sanders told reporters. "I hope we do our homework as a city and come out and support College GameDay, support what it is and then some. We need to put on for our city for real. Southern needs to be a big part of this as well."
It should be a competitive game, but Jackson State can't be stopped right now. Expect the Tigers to outlast the Jaguars and notch their most impressive win yet in their quest for an undefeated season.
The Jackson State program is loaded with talent, and that will be apparent when it beats Southern again.
Prediction: Jackson State 27, Southern 18
.jpg?w=480 "Ohio State Team Doctor")
