College Football 2010: Is This the Worst November Saturday Slate Ever?

When ESPN's Chris Fowler said that he felt that this Saturday's (November 13, 2010) slate of games was perhaps the worst November Saturday ever, I began to run down the list of all the games available to watch this Saturday.

It should be noted that there were a number of games before Saturday, but only No. 4 Boise State at Idaho features a ranked team.

For Saturday's lineup, there are only two games—out of 46 televised college football games—that feature two FBS teams ranked in the AP Top 25.

By far, the most important game is the SEC-East (better known as the "Well, somebody has to win it" division) deciding game between No. 22 South Carolina and No. 25 Florida. It really is amazing that Florida (with their offensive disarray) and South Carolina (with their wild ups and downs) are the top teams in the SEC-East.

When was the last time a pair of 6-3 teams (with all three losses being in-conference) battled for the division title? Simply put, never.

The SEC began divisional play in 1992. Since then, no three-loss team has ever won division crown (the 2002 Arkansas team that played in the SEC championship had three losses, but only advanced to the SEC championship because the West Division Champion, Alabama, was ineligible due to NCAA probation).

The only other game featuring two AP Top 25 teams is another SEC match-up between Mississippi State and Alabama.

The No. 17 Mississippi State Bulldogs are 3-2 in the SEC, which would put them in first place in the East, but is only good enough for 5th in the West. No. 11 Alabama is playing for pride, as their SEC title hopes all but ended with their loss to LSU.

The fact that this game is, in essence, meaningless to the SEC standings, and won't result in any major shake-ups in the BCS (regardless of the outcome), makes this game exciting only for Tide and Bulldog fans.

No. 13 Iowa travels to Ryan Field to take on a decent Northwestern team, but Michigan State came back from 17 down at Northwestern. I don't expect Iowa to spot NU 17 points.

No. 15 Utah visits Notre Dame. Penn State travels to No. 8 Ohio State. No. 10 Oklahoma State visits a pretty bad Texas squad. Those games have marginally interesting story lines—if you care about one of those teams.

Fowler wasn't far off. November is usually the month when it seems like every game on television features two teams with their season on the line. Beyond South Carolina-Florida, that really isn't the case this weekend, at least not in the FBS.

The most entertaining games of this weekend might very well be in the FCS or Division II. Both of those divisions are nearing their respective playoff selections (Division II selects this Sunday, the FCS the Sunday following). In fact, there are a couple of rivalry games with playoff implications you could watch that may well be more entertaining that the bevy of uninteresting FBS games on Saturday.

FCS: South Dakota State at No. 20 North Dakota State

NDSU can avenge last season's 28-13 loss at the hands of the Jackrabbits. The Bison can also vault to third in the conference, giving themselves a shot at their first-ever FCS post-season. An SDSU win puts them in a potential tie for second in the MVFC, and could lead to their second-straight trip to the playoffs. Webcast available: gobison.com. Television: Fox College Sports Central.

Division II: No. 6 Grand Valley State at Saginaw Valley State

The Battle of the Valleys is the annual matchup between these two Michigan schools. GVSU can secure their playoff bid as well as a sixth-consecutive out-right GLIAC conference championship, and eighth in ten years. SVSU (4-6) can play spoiler, although they haven't beaten their arch-rival since 2004.  Webcast available: athletics.svsu.edu.

Is this the worst slate of games ona November Saturday?  Maybe, maybe not.  But it definately has fewer nationally important story lines than any November Saturday in recent memory.