Notre Dame Fighting Irish, Nebraska Cornhuskers, and Top 10 CFB Games in Week 3
The first two weeks of the college football season have failed to disappoint and Week 3 should be no different.
There are fewer big named matchups this week than in the previous two weeks, but there are still plenty of games on which to keep an eye.
This week's slate of games features one of the nation's top defenses against one of the nation's top quarterbacks, as well as two teams looking to make a name for themselves in their respective conferences.
Another intriguing matchup this week is between two teams that have been mired in turmoil early in the season, but were both expected to contend before the year began.
Here are the 10 best games to watch this coming weekend, as well as predictions for each game.
Nebraska Cornhuskers at Washington Huskies
1 of 10
The eighth-ranked Cornhuskers will travel to Seattle to take on the Huskies in a matchup that will surely be billed as the Blackshirts vs. Jake Locker.
The game pits one of the top defenses in the country against one of the top quarterbacks in the country.
Nebraska is coming off a mostly unimpressive 38-17 home victory over Idaho, while Washington beat Syracuse 41-20 in its most recent outing.
The Huskers fumbled eight times against Idaho, losing three of them, and freshman quarterback Taylor Martinez added an INT for Nebraska's fourth turnover of the game.
While the Nebraska offense wasn't great, the Husker defense continued to play well, forcing five interceptions and recording seven sacks.
Washington struggled out of the gate against Syracuse due to poor special teams play for the second-straight week, trailing 10-3 after the first quarter.
The Huskies were able to shrug off the slow start and dominate the last three quarters as the Huskies' Heisman contender at quarterback, Jake Locker, threw for 289 yards and four touchdowns.
UW has one of the top receivers in the country in Jermaine Kearse, as he is currently third in the nation with an average of 143.5 yards receiving per game.
This should be one of the best games of the day, but the outcome may actually be decided by both teams' weaker sides.
Look for the Husky defense to create some turnovers at Husky Stadium and keep UW headed toward the perfect home record that Steve Sarkisian predicted this season.
Prediction—Washington 27, Nebraska 23
Florida Gators at Tennessee Volunteers
2 of 10
Florida is clearly suffering from a post-Tebow hangover so far this season, while winning its first two games in unconvincing fashion.
Tennessee is coming off a 35-point drubbing at the hands of the Oregon Ducks.
The Volunteers held a 13-3 lead in the first half, but a 72-yard touchdown run by Ducks running back LaMichael James seemed to swing the game's momentum in favor of Oregon.
The Vols figure to face an offense that isn't as potent when they take on Florida this week.
The Gators are coming off of a 38-14 win over South Florida. The game was tied at the half at seven, but Florida dominated the second half to record the victory.
Florida junior quarterback John Brantley has been less than stellar this season, throwing for just 285 yards and four touchdowns in two games.
The Gators have relied on their rushing attack, which currently ranks 50th in the country at 175 yards per game.
Jeffery Demps has been the leader on the ground this year for the Gators with 237 yards and two touchdowns.
Tennessee should have a chance to win this game if they are able to hang around longer than they did last week against the Ducks, but as they have done in the first two games this season the Gators will pull away late.
Prediction—Florida 31, Tennessee 20
Iowa Hawkeyes at Arizona Wildcats
3 of 10
This should be one of the best games of the weekend as Iowa travels to Tuscon to take on the Wildcats.
Iowa showed off its impressive defense in a victory against in-state rival Iowa State last week, defeating the Cyclones 35-7.
Arizona had an easier opponent in its win as they defeated The Citadel 52-6.
Both teams have been solid on both sides of the ball, as each team ranks in the top 33 in both scoring offense and scoring defense.
Arizona has allowed an average of four points per game this season, which ranks them second best in the country.
The Wildcats offense is led by junior quarterback Nick Foles, who has thrown for 574 yards and three touchdowns this season. 6'4" Las Vegas native Juron Criner has been Foles' favorite target this season, catching 13 passes for 247 yards and a touchdown.
The Iowa offense has relied on a balanced attack this season, but the Hawkeyes' rushing attack has been particularly strong through two games while running for an average of 227 yards per game.
Junior quarterback Ricky Stanzi has played well this season completing 70.7 percent of his passes while throwing for 433 yards and three touchdowns.
Expect a defensive battle in the desert and a Wildcats' upset over the ninth-ranked Hawkeyes.
Prediction—Arizona 17, Iowa 13
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California Golden Bears at Nevada Wolf Pack
4 of 10
California travels to Reno in one of the more underrated matchups of Week 3, as this game will take place on Friday night on national television.
The state of Colorado is wishing it never encountered either of these schools, as Cal and Nevada combined to outscore the Buffaloes and Rams by a score of 103-13.
Cal has looked like a darkhorse contender in the Pac-10 with its first two performances, but it will get its stiffest test of the young season as it takes on one of the WAC's strongest opponents in Nevada.
The Wolf Pack have also been impressive during their first two games, as senior quarterback Colin Kaepernick has thrown for 547 yards and four touchdowns.
Nevada has also been led on the ground by Kaepernick, who has 221 yards rushing and four touchdowns, as well as running back Vai Taua, who has run for 169 yards and three touchdowns.
This will be the biggest game either team has played in this season and it figures to be a battle until the end.
The Golden Bears would be my pick if the game were in Berkeley, but it's not, so the Wolf Pack get the edge.
Prediction—Nevada 33, California 28
Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets at North Carolina Tar Heels
5 of 10
This game has lost some of its luster after the turmoil both teams have faced early this season, but it is still an important game in the ACC race and intriguing nonetheless.
North Carolina showed a ton of heart in its close loss to LSU two weeks ago, while the Yellow Jackets' loss came on the other end of the losing spectrum.
Georgia Tech lost in Lawrence to the Kansas Jayhawks in a game with which it was supposed to have no problem.
North Carolina played without at least six of its defensive starters against LSU, as well as its leading receiver Greg Little, and top two running backs.
Despite the loss of all of those key players, the Tar Heels still managed to mount a late rally that fell just short in the end.
UNC senior quarterback T.J. Yates played great in the Tar Heels' only game this season, throwing for 412 yards and three touchdowns.
Yates should continue his success this week against a Georgia Tech secondary that allowed three touchdowns through the air against the Jayhawks' passing attack.
Georgia Tech's option attack has been productive as usual, ranking second in the country with 331.5 yards per game, but quarterback Joshua Nesbitt has not played very well and the Yellow Jackets have struggled to pass the ball this season.
This will be undoubtedly the toughest defense Georgia Tech has faced this season, and after losing to KU last week it will need a victory at Chapel Hill.
I don't think the Jackets will get it, though, as UNC is playing at home and should be able to carry the momentum the Heels gained late against LSU into this game for the win.
Prediction—North Carolina 35, Georgia Tech 20
Air Force Falcons at Oklahoma Sooners
6 of 10
Oklahoma has been up and down so far this season, looking vulnerable in its seven-point opening game win over Utah State, and looking like an unquestionable title contender after its 30-point victory over the Seminoles.
Air Force was very impressive in its 35-14 win home victory over BYU, but going to Norman to play the Sooners will be a different story.
The Falcons have the No. 1 rushing attack in the country with 423 yards per game on the ground, but this isn't the Northwestern State defense again, this is the Sooners.
Oklahoma was very impressive in its victory last game against Florida State, dominating the majority of the game on both sides of the ball.
Air Force hasn't seen anything like Sooners running back DeMarco Murray this season, but the Falcons did do a good job containing the Cougars offense, forcing three turnovers.
The Falcons will need to force even more turnovers this weekend if they hope to stay with the Sooners and have a shot at pulling off the huge upset.
Air Force should hang tough during the first half, but ultimately Oklahoma will have too much firepower for the Falcons.
Prediction—Oklahoma 37, Air Force 24
Arizona State Sun Devils at Wisconsin Badgers
7 of 10
Wisconsin has played well this season, but the Badgers have not been as impressive as some may have expected in their victories. They only beat San Jose State by 13 a week after knocking off UNLV by 20.
The Wisconsin offense is built to wear its opponents down with a rushing attack that is averaging 245 yards per game.
The running game revolves around sturdy junior running back John Clay, who has rushed for 260 yards and four touchdowns this season.
The Badgers feature a passing attack that is averaging fewer than 200 yards per game, so they will rely on Clay to break through the Sun Devils' defense.
Arizona State has started the season 2-0, but were predicted to finish in the bottom half of the Pac-10 this season.
The Sun Devils have fared well moving the ball through the air this season as junior quarterback Steven Threet has thrown for 630 yards and five touchdowns.
Wisconsin is the more talented team and should win this game, but they can't let ASU hang around or they could be in trouble.
Prediction—Wisconsin 34, Arizona State 23
Maryland Terrapins at West Virginia Mountaineers
8 of 10
The ACC has been a struggling conference so far this season, but Maryland hasn't contributed to struggles as of yet.
The Terrapins will get their toughest test of the season as travel to Morgantown to take on the Mountaineers.
Both teams have played very good defense so far this season, as Maryland was able to shut down the Navy rushing attack earlier in the season.
Maryland's defense will need to be up to the test once again as it faces a tall order in West Virginia running back Noel Devine this weekend.
Devine has run for 223 yards and five touchdowns so far this season, and the Mountaineers offense has put up an average of 27.5 points per game.
Maryland also has a strong running game behind running back Davin Meggett who is averaging 9.7 yards per carry this season on 16 carries.
This game should come down to defense, and stopping the opposing team's rushing attacks. Morgantown is not an easy place to win and Maryland will find that out the hard way.
Prediction—West Virginia 30, Maryland 17
Clemson Tigers at Auburn Tigers
9 of 10
The battle of two Tigers should be a good one this weekend.
ESPN Gameday will be on hand for the game between two teams that are looking for early signature wins on their resumes.
Auburn won a tough game last week on the road against Mississippi State while Clemson has yet to play a legitimate opponent.
Auburn is definitely the favorite to win this game, but they should not overlook Clemson, as the ACC Tigers have put up over 400 yards per game this season.
Clemson is led on offense by sophomore quarterback Kyle Parker, one of the top returning quarterbacks in the league.
Auburn is led by former Florida quarterback Cameron Newton, the 6'6" junior has accounted for over 550 total yards on seven touchdowns this season.
Newton should have a good game in this one and the Auburn defense should be up to the task of slowing down the Clemson offense and walk away with the home victory.
Prediction—Auburn 27, Clemson 13
Notre Dame Fighting Irish at Michigan State Spartans
10 of 10
Notre Dame will look to bounce back from a heartbreaking loss at the hands of Michigan last weekend with a win over Michigan State this weekend.
Michigan State has yet to face a true test this season, but the Spartans will definitely get one when they take on the Irish.
The Spartans have struggled to move the ball through the air this season, but have fared much better on the ground while rushing for an average of 261 yards per game.
Notre Dame is led on offense by junior quarterback Dayne Crist and wide receiver Michael Floyd.
Crist has thrown for 482 yards and three touchdowns this season, with 148 of the yards going to Floyd.
This game should be similar to the one the Irish played last week against the Wolverines, but look for them to come out on top in this one.
Prediction—Notre Dame 34, Michigan State 28
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