College Football Week 4 Schedule: TV Info, Live Stream and More for Top-25 Teams
Two of college football's top-25 teams received early Week 4 action when No. 5 Auburn faced No. 20 Kansas State on Thursday night. After some impressive defense from both squads in a back-and-forth game, the Tigers emerged victorious by a score of 20-14 when the Wildcats' fourth-quarter comeback bid fell short.
On Saturday, plenty more of the nation's top teams will be in action, and each will continue jockeying for position for eligibility in the first-ever College Football Playoff. Every game is significant for these teams, so none will want to be caught sleeping on its opponent—one bad loss could have season-altering consequences.
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As we impatiently await for Saturday's big games to get underway, let's take a look at the complete viewing information for each game involving a top-25 team, followed by a preview of the game of the week.
| 12 p.m. | Eastern Michigan at (11) Michigan State | BTN | BTN2Go |
| 12 p.m. | Troy at (13) Georgia | SEC | WatchESPN |
| 12 p.m. | Bowling Green at (19) Wisconsin | ESPN2 | WatchESPN |
| 3:30 p.m. | Florida at (3) Alabama | CBS | CBSSports.com |
| 3:30 p.m. | (6) Texas A&M at SMU | ABC/ESPN2 | WatchESPN |
| 3:30 p.m. | Virginia at (21) BYU | ESPN | WatchESPN |
| 4 p.m. | Indiana at (18) Missouri | SEC | WatchESPN |
| 7 p.m. | Mississippi State at (8) LSU | ESPN | WatchESPN |
| 7:30 p.m. | (4) Oklahoma at West Virginia | Fox | FoxSportsGo |
| 7:30 p.m. | (14) South Carolina at Vanderbilt | SEC | WatchESPN |
| 8 p.m. | (22) Clemson at (1) Florida State | ABC | ABC.go.com |
| 8 p.m. | Miami (FL) at (24) Nebraska | ESPN2 | WatchESPN |
| 10:30 p.m. | (2) Oregon at Washington State | ESPN | WatchESPN |
The AP Poll Top 25 can be viewed at CollegeFootball.AP.org.
Game of the Week
(22) Clemson at (1) Florida State
Aside from the sloppy game we saw on Thursday night, a clash between Clemson and Florida State is the only other Week 4 contest that features two top-25 squads.
Clemson comes into the contest lacking a true identity to this point. After a favorable preseason ranking, the Tigers couldn't keep up with Georgia's ground attack in Week 1. While Heisman hopeful Todd Gurley pounded away at Clemson's defense, quarterback Cole Stoudt had a less-than-desirable performance through the air, completing just 16 of his 29 passing attempts for 144 yards and an interception.
A combination of a stagnant offense and lackluster rush defense led to a 45-21 defeat.
Well, head coach Dabo Swinney made sure his team rebounded in a big way the following week. In completely different fashion from Clemson's Week 1 showing, the Tigers defeated South Carolina State in a rout, winning by a score of 73-7 at Memorial Stadium.
Stoudt looked much better, completing 22 of his 31 passing attempts for 302 yards and a score. Aaron Brenner of The Post and Courier relayed the team's quarterback situation going forward:
Also, Clemson's running game got on track, as Wayne Gallman and Adam Choice led the team to combine for 268 yards and four touchdowns on 51 carries. The defense held the Bulldogs to just one touchdown—a garbage-time score with just 4:05 remaining in the game.
But, that still leads us to ask one question: Which Clemson performance most resembles what we'll see against Florida State?
The Seminoles aren't exactly coming into the game with their roster intact. Heisman-winning quarterback Jameis Winston will be held out of the entire game due to a school-imposed penalty, according to a tweet from Andy Staples of Sports Illustrated:
With backup Sean Maguire set to take the reins in Winston's absence, perhaps Clemson will gain an opportunity to make an early move.
ESPN College Football tweeted Maguire's so-so stats to this point in his career:
After all, it hasn't been smooth sailing for Florida State through two games. In Week 1, the team met a resilient Oklahoma State team that refused to go away. In a game plagued with penalties and turnovers, the Cowboys got within six points of the Seminoles with just under two minutes remaining but failed to complete the upset.
Winston wasn't in great form in Week 1, throwing for 370 yards but tossing two interceptions as well. While the quarterback was far more efficient in Week 2—he completed 22 of his 27 passing attempts for 256 yards and two scores—it's difficult to measure that performance due to a porous Citadel secondary.
After watching Winston struggle in Week 1 and taking into consideration Maguire's very little experience, Clemson could suddenly have an advantage. Making matters worse for Florida State, the Seminoles did allow 4.5 yards per carry against Citadel on 56 attempts. If Clemson's running game can match the success it had against South Carolina State, there's always a chance of an upset.
Although, ESPN Stats & Info noted Clemson's track record against top-ranked squads:
Expect this game to remain close, as stopping the run and limiting turnovers from quarterbacks will be the primary keys for both teams. We'll find out soon enough if Florida State can increase its winning streak to 19.
.jpg?w=480 "Ohio State Team Doctor")
