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We would have loved to have waited until Wednesday to write this to have the benefit of the College Football Playoff Rankings, but MACtion football kicks off the week on Tuesday, the same evening of the first rankings release.
Nevertheless, it doesn't change the fact that the most eyes and ears will be on the 1 vs. 2 matchup (Super 16, AP polls) of Georgia hosting Tennessee at 3:30 ET on Saturday on CBS. The winner will not only take the driver's seat in the eastern half of the SEC, but also cement itself as a front-runner to the national title. The Bulldogs, who are hosting this affair, opened as sizeable 8.5-point favorites at FanDuel Sportsbook. The line had not been swayed by the betting action as of Tuesday afternoon. The Congrove Computer Rankings at CollegeFootballPoll.com has the game only slightly closer with a 7.15-point margin, but the trend has moved toward Tennessee since the preseason as the Bulldogs' power rating has declined 1.76 points while the Vols' has risen by 3.60 points.
There is only other matchup of teams ranked in the Super 16 and it's another SEC battle as No. 6 Alabama visits No. 16 LSU. This game airs at 7 ET on ESPN with Alabama opening as a 13.0-point favorite at the sportsbooks. The computer gives the Tide a 16.75-point edge. But as Lee Corso might say, "not so fast, my friends." LSU is in a 3-way tie with Alabama and Ole Miss atop the SEC's western half of the ledger and owns the tie-breaker with the Rebels after issuing a 45-20 spanking to Lane Kiffin's team two weeks ago. Both teams, which are coming off bye weeks, have already faced Tennessee and the results were starkly different with Alabama losing in 52-49 in the final seconds in Knoxville, and LSU getting whipped 40-13 in front of its home crowd.
No. 20 Wake Forest visits No. 21 NC State in a matchup of AP-ranked teams. Last week, Wake Forest had 8 turnovers in the second half on its way to losing 48-21 at Louisville, and NC State rallied from a 21-3 deficit at home in the second half to edge Virginia Tech 22-21.
SEE: Complete Schedule and Picks
Auburn will play its first game under interim head coach Carnell "Cadillac" Williams after Bryan Harsin was fired on Monday. Auburn is 3-5 this season and 1-4 in the SEC. In less than two full seasons, Harsin's teams were 9-12 over-all and 4-9 in the conference.
Interim head coaches are 14-15 so far in 2022.
The Tigers visit Mississippi State on Saturday as a 13.5-point underdog after opening at -11 before the firing. The computer has the margin wider at 16.42, and the trend line bumps it to 19.58.
SEE: Coaching Changes
Clemson at Notre Dame is must-see TV on Saturday. The Irish have won 7 straight over ACC teams since last losing to Clemson in the ACC Championship Game in 2020 when they played a full ACC schedule because of the pandemic. Notre Dame won the regular season meeting with the Tigers earlier that year. Clemson has won 14 straight over-all.
Air Force vs. Army at Arlington, Texas - The game is being billed as the Commanders' Classic and Air Force can claim the Commander-In-Chief's Trophy with a win, having already beaten Navy 13-10 earlier this year. If Army wins, the Black Knights will retain possession as the last out-right winner of the round robin competition in 2020.
Michigan State at Illinois - The Spartans will be without DB Angelo Grose who has 53 tackles and 4 PBU, freshman DE Zion Young who has 21 tackles and a sack, backup defender Itayvion “Tank” Brown who has 1 tackle, and sophomore DB Khary Crump who has 1 tackle and 1 PBU. (NOTE: Michigan State suspended four additional players on Tuesday - freshman Malcolm Jones who has seen very little action, junior CB Justin White who has 19 total tackles and a QB hurry, a key defender in Jacoby Windmon who has 49 tackles with 10.5 for loss, 5.5 sacks and 5 forced fumbles, and DE Brandon Wright who has14 tackles with 1.5 for loss,a QB hurry and a forced fumble.)
All the suspensions are the result of for their role in the attack on 2 Michigan players in the tunnel after this past Saturday's 29-7 loss. They are all suspended indefinitely and further investigation is ongoing.
Illinois looks to go 8-1 over-all and 6-1 in the B1G.
Texas at Kansas State - Kansas State is coming off a 48-0 shellacking of Oklahoma State, a week after coughing up an 18-point lead in a 38-28 loss at TCU. The Wildcats are alone in second in the Big 12 and in position to gain a rematch with the Horned Frogs in the conference championship game. It's no wonder K-State and TCU are the betting favorites to win the Big 12 title.
Florida State at Miami - This used to be one the most-anticipated rivalry games of the season. This year, FSU opened as a solid 8.5-point favorite while the computer has it a little tighter at 6.74 points. The 'Noles ended a 4-game losing streak in the series with last year's 31-28 win in Tallahassee, but Miami still leads the series 35-31.
Most of the highly-ranked teams this week have road games, but are still expected to win in blowout fashion.
The computer has Ohio State by 37.66 at Northwestern, Michigan by 25.48 at Rutgers, and Oregon by 25.14 at Colorado.
UCLA is only getting a 4.05-point advantage from the computer for its visit to Arizona State.
Meanwhile, TCU hosts Texas Tech as an 8.13 computer choice, and USC is favored by 14.99 at home against Cal.
Ole Miss is among 11 idle teams.
There will be 119 FBS vs. FCS matchups this season with App State, Army and Marshall each playing two such games, and 116 other FBS schools playing one apiece.
Only one such game took place this past weekend as Appalachian State cruised to a 42-3 win over Robert Morris.
None are scheduled this week. Lamar visits New Mexico State on November 12, and the final FBS-FCS matchups occur on November 19 with Austin Peay at Alabama, Utah Tech at BYU, ETSU at Mississippi State, and North Alabama at Memphis.
The FBS is 106-8 vs. the FCS this year, and 1,680-148 (.919) since we began tracking this in 2003.
Here are the FCS wins in 2022:
September 2: William & Mary 41, Charlotte 24
September 3: Delaware14, Navy 7
September 10: Weber State 35, Utah State 7
September 10: Incarnate Word 55, Nevada 41
September 10: Holy Cross 37, Buffalo 31
September 10: Eastern Kentucky 59, Bowling Green 57 (7 OT's)
September 17: Southern Illinois 31, Northwestern 24
September 24: Sacramento State 41, Colorado State 10
CLEMSON - Won 14 straight over-all; Won 38 straight home games.
Last: Won 27-21 at home over Syracuse on Saturday, October 22.
Next: at Notre Dame on Saturday, November 5.
CINCINNATI: Had won 19 straight conference games.
Last: Lost 25-21 at UCF on Saturday, October 29.
Next: Hosts Navy on Saturday, November 5.
MICHIGAN - Won 10 straight conference games.
Last: Won 29-7 at home over Michigan State on Saturday, October 29.
Next: Visits Rutgers on Saturday, November 5.
GEORGIA - Won 9 straight true road games.
Last: Won 42-20 over Florida in Jacksonville on Saturday, October 29.
Next: Hosts Tennessee on Saturday, November 5.
AKRON - Lost 8 straight.
Last: Lost 27-9 at home to Miami (O) on Saturday, October 29.
Next: Hosts Eastern Michigan on Tuesday, November 8.
MASSACHUSETTS - Lost 11 straight to FBS schools, lost 21 straight road games.
Last: Lost 24-13 at home to New Mexico State on Saturday, October 29.
Next: Visits UConn on Friday, November 4.
NORTHWESTERN - Lost 6 straight at home.
Last: Lost 33-13 at Iowa on Saturday, October 29.
Next: Hosts Ohio State on Saturday, November 5.
VANDERBILT - Lost 25 straight conference games.
Last: Lost 17-14 at Missouri on Saturday, October 22.
Next: Hosts South Carolina on Saturday, November 5.
NEW MEXICO STATE - had lost 21 straight road games.
Last: Won 24-13 at UMass on Saturday, October 29.
Next: Hosts FCS Lamar on Saturday, November 12.