Trent's Touchdown: Six Games to Watch in Week 10

Oh man, we go all season with a few really good games, and then get knocked up last week with the OSU-PSU and Texas-Oklahoma State games. Seriously, right now, both would be in my top 10 games of the year.

I do have to say that you have to be a real fan to appreciate the defensive effort by both OSU and PSU (or completely disgusted by the offensive effort). I think I’m starting to buy into PSU, which means one thing—PSU will lose.

Anyway, on to the Touchdown.

1) No. 1 Texas at No. 7 Texas Tech—8:00 on ABC

Last week made me realize that you can only beat Texas by either having a reasonably competent defense or being able to outscore them in a shootout. This might be a case of the latter. Texas Tech will be the toughest test Texas has had to face.

No offense to Chase Daniel, Sam Bradford, or Zac Robinson, but no QB that has faced Texas has been able to completely capitalize on the weak secondary of Texas. Graham Harrell, however, is a much better and more competent QB. Detron Lewis and Michael Crabtree are the best WR combo in the nation (yeah, I said it!).

I’m calling it now: Texas Tech upsets No. 1 Texas.

2) No. 8 Florida vs. No. 6 Georgia—3:30 on CBS in Jacksonville

Anytime something is nicknamed “The World’s Largest Outdoor Cocktail Party,” you have to put it near the top. To be fair, the winner most likely wins the SEC East and keeps its National Championship hopes alive.

Florida is one of the best teams in the nation, yet doesn’t seem to want to grab that mantle. No team should come close to them, yet that Ole Miss game mystifies me. I think it was good for them since it was a wake-up call. With everyone’s friend revenge on their side, Florida will utterly destroy Georgia.

3) No. 15 Florida State at Georgia Tech—3:30 on ABC

I never would have thought I would have put this game at number three. It either means that there is a lack of good games or FSU is better than expected (a little from column A, a little from column B).

I’m still not sure how they did it, but FSU seems to have keyed into one of the more magical things in college football: youthful enthusiasm. I love it, even though I don’t like FSU. This is a game worth watching because you’ll finally see why FSU is for real and why Georgia Tech is wildly worse than their record suggests.

4) Nebraska at No. 4 Oklahoma—8:00 on ESPN

Remember when this was a great and storied rivalry? Now, before everyone writes this one off, remember that Oklahoma is vulnerable if you have a competent defense or a high-powered offense. The defense may be suspect, but Nebraska can score. I’m not saying Nebraska will win, but I am saying they can make it interesting.

5) No. 24 Oregon at California—3:30 on ABC

You know, I always liked the Pac-10, and this one is definitely for the fans. Basically, they are battling to see which team might have a chance to upend USC for the Pac-10 championship.

Cal is going to need another strong performance from their defense if they hope to stop the running attack of Oregon and the smart QB play of Jeremiah Masoli. Basically, I think Cal should start Nate Longshore and let fly, but that won’t happen, and they’ll lose.

6) Clemson at Boston College—3:30 on ESPNU

Now, most of you are probably thinking I put this up here because I’m an incurable Clemson fan and am hoping that this year will finally be the year Clemson beats BC (you know, when it means nothing). You would be wrong.

It’s here because the Duchess scored tickets to the game, and I’ll be there rooting for my team live and in person. Here’s hoping I come back alive.

Extra Point

7) Figuring out who would be my choice in the NCG is tough. Usually, I can pick a few teams I could see in it. However, I can’t really buy into a lot of teams. Too many are flawed in too many ways. We can attribute that to parity, or we can attribute it to poor recruiting.

OSU is a perfect example. All they really need is an offensive leader at QB, and they don’t have it.

So, I sit here and try to come up with teams that I see as National Champions, and it's tough. There are no teams like USC with Leinart and Bush.

The only teams I can seriously consider are Penn State, whose only real competition was Ohio State, and Texas Tech, who hasn’t faced anyone and may very well buckle against Texas, Oklahoma State, or Oklahoma.

But if I’ve proven anything, it’s that I know very little, if anything.