Week 13 NFL TV Schedule – Turkey, turkey, and more turkey

To our American neighbours to the south, I wish you a happy Thanksgiving and a lot of turkey and other food you may not normally eat on a regular basis.  It might keep your tummies uncomfortable until Christmas but it’s the price you pay for good food for the most part.  Except for green bean casserole.  That stuff is shit.

Thanksgiving in the NFL means some American Turkey day football games.  Three games on Thursday and at least two of them are pretty high stakes.  Here’s the whole week 13 schedule:

Thursday
12:30	Chicago at Detroit	CBS/City
4:30	Philadelphia at Dallas	FOX/City
8:30	Seattle at San Francisco	NBC/SNP/SNW/SNO/SNE
Sunday
1:00	Washington at Indianapolis
1:00	Tennessee at Houston
1:00	Cleveland at Buffalo	CBS (Golden Horseshoe, GTA, Eastern Ontario (except Ottawa & Cornwall))/CTV (Toronto, Ottawa, Kitchener)/CKPR (Thunder Bay)
1:00	San Diego at Baltimore	CBS (BC, Alberta, Northern Ontario, Western Ontario, Midwestern Ontario, Ottawa, Cornwall, Quebec, Eastern Canada)/CTV (Vancouver, Alberta, Saskatchewan, Winnipeg)/CITL (Lloydminster)
1:00	NY Giants at Jacksonville	FOX (Northern Ontario, Belleville, Cornwall, Quebec)/TSN2
1:00	Cincinnati at Tampa Bay
1:00	Oakland at St. Louis
1:00	New Orleans at Pittsburgh	FOX (Western Ontario, Midwestern Ontario, Ottawa, Eastern Canada)/CTV (Montreal, Atlantic, Northern Ontario)
1:00	Carolina at Minnesota	FOX (Saskatchewan, Manitoba, Northwestern Ontario)
4:05	Arizona at Atlanta	FOX (BC, Alberta, Golden Horseshoe, GTA, Peterborough, Kingston)/TSN2
4:25	New England at Green Bay	CBS/CTV (Toronto, Kitchener, Ottawa, Northern Ontario, Montreal, Vancouver, Alberta, Saskatchewan, Winnipeg)/CTV2 (Atlantic)/CKPR (Thunder Bay)/CITL (Lloydminster)
8:30	Denver at Kansas City	NBC/TSN2
Monday
8:30	Miami at NY Jets	TSN1/TSN3/TSN4/TSN5

Great games on Thursday followed by what might be the game of the year…and a bunch of filler.  Seriously.  The 1:00 games look pretty crappy really.  Then we get Patriots-Packers later on in the afternoon which should be a treat to watch.  Denver-KC should be good then the Monday nighter which I could probably avoid.

This week will be the last week before the playoff push.  Not a single team can clinch a playoff spot until next week.  Has this ever been the case before this far into the season?  (After further research, the last time this happened was only four years ago.  Before that, it had been at least a decade.  So yeah, parity!)  Looking at the playoff race, this is how I feel it will end up:

AFC Wild Card

Byes: New England (1), Denver (2)

Cleveland (6) at Indianapolis (3)

Kansas City (5) at Cincinnati (4)

NFC Wild Card

Byes: Green Bay (1), Arizona (2)

Detroit (6) at Philadelphia (3)

Seattle (5) at New Orleans (4)

First off, it could end up being VERY ironic that the second-ever team to make the playoffs with a below-.500 record might be New Orleans and that they would be home to Seattle, the exact reversal of the first time this happened.  I think Seattle will end up being a shoo-in for the wild card but won’t catch Zona.  Detroit and Dallas will fight to the final week and you could put either team in the 6 spot.  San Fran I can see falling off.  There are no other NFC teams probably with a chance.

In the AFC, however, parity rules.  There are still 12 teams with legitimate playoff aspirations and will through this weekend.  You are going to have some very good teams (San Diego, Baltimore) or some much-improved teams (Buffalo, Houston) that will miss the playoffs but may still be at over above .500.  My guess is 10 wins is the minimum to make it and I wouldn’t be surprised to see the #6 seed at 11 wins.  I still think Cleveland will make it although they will have to beat at least one of Indy, Cincinnati, or Baltimore to get there (if not two or all three); however, if they fall to Buffalo on Sunday I think their chances are slim considering their schedule.

Enjoy the football today (as much as you can)!

Week 14 College Football TV Schedule – I am so ready for this!

This will be a longer post than normal.  We will start with the schedules and then look at the games with implications this week.  And there are a lot of them.  So get your remote ready as this will be a crazy two-and-a-half days.  Let’s start with the cable schedule:

LSU at Texas A&M (Thu)	7:30 PM	TSN4/TSN5
Nebraska at Iowa (Fri)	12:00 PM	ABC/TSN3
Houston at SMU (Fri)	12:00 PM	CBSSN
Arkansas at Missouri (Fri)	2:30 PM	CBS
Stanford at UCLA (Fri)	3:30 PM	ABC/TSN1
Colorado State at Air Force (Fri)	3:30 PM	CBSSN
Arizona State at Arizona (Fri)	3:30 PM	FOX
Old Dominion at Florida Atlantic	12:00 PM	WNYO
Purdue at Indiana	12:00 PM	BTN
Rice at Louisiana Tech	12:00 PM	CBSSN
South Carolina at Clemson	12:00 PM	TSN3
Georgia Tech at Georgia	12:00 PM	TSN4
NC State at North Carolina	12:30 PM	WSBK
Grambling vs. Southern (in New Orleans)	2:30 PM	NBC
Michigan State at Penn State	3:30 PM	ABC/TSN5
UAB at Southern Miss	3:30 PM	WNYO
Minnesota at Wisconsin	3:30 PM	BTN
Mississippi State at Ole Miss	3:30 PM	CBS
San Jose State at San Diego State	3:30 PM	CBSSN
Florida at Florida State	3:30 PM	TSN3
Notre Dame at USC	3:30 PM	FOX
Middle Tennessee at UTEP	7:00 PM	WNYO
Auburn at Alabama	7:45 PM	TSN1
Oregon at Oregon State	8:00 PM	ABC/TSN2

A lot of split games/simsubs by TSN.  I guess it keeps the specialty packs relevant because if TSN had to pick between the games left over, the specialty packs would have no games (maybe this would force them to pick up ESPNEWS, ESPN3, and (God forbid) FS1 games).  Also, TSN still has to think about ratings whereas the specialty pack it doesn’t matter.  Speaking of the specialty pack:

Northern Illinois at Western Michigan (Fri)	11:00 AM
UCF at USF (Fri)	12:00 PM
Virginia at Virginia Tech (Fri)	8:00 PM
East Carolina at Tulsa (Fri)	8:30 PM
Kentucky at Louisville	12:00 PM
Illinois at Northwestern	12:00 PM
Syracuse at Boston College (SD only)	12:30 PM
NC State at North Carolina (SD only)	12:30 PM
Baylor vs. Texas Tech (in Arlington)	3:30 PM
Rutgers at Maryland	3:30 PM
Tennessee at Vanderbilt (Bell only – SD)	4:00 PM
Pittsburgh at Miami	7:00 PM
Wake Forest at Duke	7:00 PM
Auburn at Alabama (Finebaum SEC Network telecast)	7:45 PM
Utah State at Boise State	10:15 PM
Nevada at UNLV	10:30 PM

A few important games (out of the many) are highlighted in the specialty pack.  The asterisks (*) denotes that the game isn’t set yet on the specialty pack schedule; however, I see more than enough spots where it says college football with the game to be announced so all the games above should appear on the specialty pack. Update: all games now set on the specialty pack.  I am guessing the specialty pack version of the Iron Bowl will be the one with the Paul Finebaum commentary which I will wholeheartedly avoid.  Otherwise, this is going to be a great week of college football!

OK now for the important games of the week.  Basically these are the games with some sort of implication.  So for all of you asking where Notre Dame-USC is on this list, there are no implications with this game at all.  Kind of why it lost its primetime spot to the Civil War.

Thursday

TCU at Texas (7:30, for us?  Nowhere) – A much-improved Longhorns team can destroy TCU’s College Football Playoff chances by winning in.  Don’t count them out either.  If TCU wins big, it may trump their head-to-head loss against Baylor in the minds of The Committee.

Friday

Northern Illinois at Western Michigan (11:00am, probably the specialty pack) – If Northern Illinois wins, they go to the MAC Championship game.  If WMU wins, then they have to hope Toledo loses so that they can go to the MAC Championship.

Western Kentucky at Marshall (Noon, we aren’t seeing it) – This is simple.  Marshall has already clinched a spot in the C-USA Championship game but need a win here (and probably a decisive one) to keep their New Year’s Six bowl chances alive.

UCF at USF (Noon, specialty pack) – The War on I-4 is somewhat big…for UCF at least.  The Knights have to win this game to stay alive in the American conference title race.  Lose and they are probably done.

Houston at SMU (Noon, CBS Sports Network) – For Houston this isn’t a big deal.  For SMU it is massive.  They really don’t want to have the embarrassment of being winless this season.  Also, they haven’t just been winless…they’ve been horrible.  They would have struggled in the Sun Belt this season.

Toledo at Eastern Michigan (1:00, ESPN3, so nope for us again) – Toledo gets one of the worst FBS teams ever to finish their season.  I’m sure at least 18,000 will pack the stands there for this one.  I hope you saw the sarcasm in that last sentence.  Toledo needs to win and have Northern Illinois lose for them to win the MAC West.

Akron at Kent State (1:00, not here) – Akron needs a win to become bowl-eligible and possibly go to their first bowl in 9 years.

Arkansas at Missouri (2:30, CBS) – A Mizzou win here puts them, amazingly enough, back in Atlanta for the SEC Championship.  A loss and Georgia goes.  Don’t count the Hogs out yet since they have been red-hot for the past month.

Navy at South Alabama (3:00, no TV…or ESPN3, whichever you prefer) – Navy wins here and they are going to the Poinsettia Bowl.  If they lose, it creates an interesting issue.  They would be 5-6 going to the Army-Navy game.  Can the Poinsettia Bowl give Navy the bid even though they haven’t clinched bowl eligibility?

Arizona State at Arizona (3:30, FOX) – Arguably the biggest Territorial Cup ever.  Team RichRod wins here and UCLA loses against Stanford and Zona is going to the Pac-12 title game up in 49ersLand.  Hey how about that, same scenario for the Sun Devils.  So the winner gets to sit and wait and scoreboard watch.  Nice.

Stanford at UCLA (3:30, ABC) – UCLA won the huge Battle for LA, setting up this game against a not-so-good Cardinal team.  Then again, this is David Shaw’s Stanford.  They can compete with anyone.  UCLA wins here and it doesn’t matter what else happens; they go to face Oregon in the Pac-12 title game.  And then potentially Playoffs?  PLAYOFFS???!!?!  I wish Jim Mora Jr. would do that for at least one press conference.

Colorado State at Air Force (3:30, CBS Sports Network) – CSU does not have their fate in their own hands in the Mountain West and the New Year’s Six.  A win doesn’t guarantee them anything if Boise State doesn’t lose.  But a loss here eliminates everything (except a run-of-the-mill bowl).

Virginia at Virginia Tech (8:00, specialty pack) – Biggest Commonwealth Cup in a while and probably not for the best reasons.  The winner will go to a bowl game and the loser is home for the holidays.  For the Wahoos, this season is already better than imagined.  For Grandpa Beamer’s Hokies, this has been a brutal one, punctuated with last week’s terrible display of all things football against Wake Forest.

Saturday

Cincinnati at Temple (Noon, no TV here) – The Bearkats have recovered from a slooooooow start and need to win here to continue their chances at the American conference title.  Temple on the other hand could surprise a lot of people if they win here because then they would be bowl-eligible.

South Carolina at Clemson (Noon, TSN3) – The Battle of the Palmetto State isn’t as huge this season as it normally is.  However, there is a possibility that Clemson, of all teams, could snag the Orange Bowl berth if they win here and Georgia Tech loses big in their next two games.  Improbable, or as we’ve said this season, it very well could happen.

Georgia Tech at Georgia (Noon, TSN4, specialty pack) – Time for some Clean, Old-Fashioned Hate!  Georgia will know by this point if they are headed to Atlanta.  Ironically enough, Atlanta’s FBS team, the Ramblin’ Wreck, don’t need this win in terms of going to the ACC Championship (they are already booked for a Seminole Beatdown); however, a big loss here could make them drop in the rankings meaning the only way to get to the Orange Bowl would be to somehow beat Florida State.

Kentucky at Louisville (Noon, specialty pack) – For the Wildcats, a big Governor’s Cup.  For one, beating Louisville almost validates the football season, regardless of what they do otherwise.  And secondly, a win puts them in a bowl game…making Mark Stoops an instant coach-of-the-year candidate.

Michigan at Ohio State (Noon, ABC) – The Game comes to the Horseshoe and is, as usual, important for both teams but for VASTLY different reasons.  tOSU needs a win here to stay in the hunt for the College Football Playoff.  Michigan needs a win to go bowling, although I am pretty sure nothing will save Brady Hoke’s job.

Rice at Louisiana Tech (Noon, CBS Sports Network) – LaTech’s stunning loss to Old Dominion last week set’s up this Conference USA West Division championship game.  The Owls figured they were out as the Bulldogs only needed to beat ODU to move on to the conference championship game.  Instead, the Monarchs’ win, sets this up.  Winner faces Marshall.  And remember what happened to Houston a few years back with the BCS money on the line in the C-USA Championship (spoiler alert for anyone who doesn’t remember: they were beaten pretty badly by Southern Miss).

Illinois at Northwestern (Noon, specialty pack) – I don’t care what they call it now, it’s still the Sweet Sioux Tomahawk to me.  And somehow, someway this game is relevant.  Winner take all (meaning bowl eligibility).  Also, Tim Beckman’s job could be on the line in this one.

Louisiana-Lafayette at Troy (12:30, who the hell knows) – Thanks to the idiotic NCAA policy that dictates “transitional” teams can’t win conference championships, the Ragin’ Cajuns still have a shot to win the Sun Belt.  Just beat a weak Troy team and they’re in.

Mississippi State at Ole Miss (3:30, CBS) – It is certain that CBS is regretting pulling the trigger on picking the Egg Bowl now.  Then again, the Bulldogs still have an outside shot at the College Football Playoff if they beat Ole Miss.  Lose and it’s New Year’s Six (which isn’t a bad consolation prize).

Florida at Florida State (3:30, TSN3) – The chances of Florida beating FSU are almost nil.  Meaning there is a good possibility considering the way this season has gone.  WILL MUSCHAMP’s last game and he’s hoping they don’t get embarrassed.  Florida State wins and chances are they are almost guaranteed a CFP spot.  Lose and they are not going.  Simple as that.

Baylor at Texas Tech (3:30, specialty pack) – Trap game!  The Fighting Kingsburys have been pretty bad this season, much worse than most people expected.  Baylor needs to win this one to set up the showdown of sorts against Kansas State.  Lose and their chances of the College Football Playoff and probably the New Year’s Six are down the toilet.

UAB at Southern Miss (3:30, WNYO) – Somehow UAB is within one win of becoming bowl-eligible.  It also may help save the entire program as it seems like there is a good possibility it will be shut down.  So yeah, to say it’s huge implications may be understating this.

Minnesota at Wisconsin (3:30, BTN) – How the Big Ten Network got this game I will never know.  This is the Big Ten West Division championship right here.  Two of the best running backs facing off.  Maybe Melvin Gordon pushes towards a Heisman trophy.  Either way, I am pissed off I won’t be seeing it.

Kansas at Kansas State (4:00, FOX Sports Fucking One Damn It) – The implications here are all on Papa Snyder’s Wildcats.  They need to win to even have a chance at the Big XII crown.  Can’t see them losing here but who knows in the Governor’s Cup (wait, another one?).

Connecticut at Memphis (4:00, ESPNEWS meaning we probably won’t see it) – Memphis?  MEMPHIS?  They were supposed to struggle for bowl eligibility, not compete for a conference championship.  But there they are.  They win out, they clinch the American conference title, which gives them…..absolutely fucking nothing (although they are going to a bowl so that’s kinda sorta nice).

Tennessee at Vanderbilt (4:00, specialty pack) – I can’t believe it’s been as long as it has since Tennessee went to a bowl game.  Butch Jones has a chance here to validate his hiring by winning and going to a bowl game.  Vandy can do what Vandy used to always do…try to play spoiler.

BYU at California (4:30, no TV for you!) – Sonny Dykes has done a remarkable job in Berkeley and they are now one win away from going to a bowl game.  Plus, BYU has looked unbelievably average without Taysom Hill in the lineup.  Cal could pull this one out.

Hawaii at Fresno State (7:00, I have no clue) – It amazes me that Fresno State is in the driver’s seat in the Mountain West’s West Division.  They’re 5-6 for Christ sake!  But if they win against a much improved Hawaii team, they go to the MWC championship.  Crazy.

Pittsburgh at Miami (7:00, specialty pack) – Pittsburgh has disappointed me a lot this season.  I had them pegged for an 8-0 start.  So what do they do?  Blow a gasket….over and over and over again.  They can somehow make it to a bowl game if they can beat Miami, joining almost every ACC team not named Wake Forest or Syracuse in a bowl game.

Auburn at Alabama (7:45, TSN1 & specialty pack) – Iron Bowl time!  Again this is a huge game.  Not as huge as last year’s one when we witnessed the greatest play in college football history not called The Play.  Alabama probably cements their CFP spot with a win.  Auburn can play the spoiler of all spoilers if they can pull this one out.

Oregon at Oregon State (8:00, ABC & TSN2) – The Civil War!  Team Nike has a chance to get a chance to claim their so-called rightful spot in the final four with a win here over their little brothers.  State, on the other hand, needs a win to go bowling.  Fun times on the coast and it’s not even #Pac12AfterDark!

Utah State at Boise State (10:15, specialty pack) – Boise will host the Mountain West Conference championship with a win here.  Plain and simple.  A win also probably gives Marshall the New Year’s Six spot as I can’t see how The Committee would potentially give it to the Broncos.  Lose here and Colorado State has a chance to make some history.  USU trying to play spoiler with probably their 14^th-string quarterback playing.

I was able to get Friday off so I will be (most likely) live-tweeting on both Friday and Saturday.  Now I have to make sure I have some good food without gorging on crap too much.  Despite the fact it will be an awesome two days of college football viewing, I don’t want to wake up Sunday morning feeling like I gained ten pounds.  Then again…..FOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOTBALL!!!!!!!!!!!

Week 13 College Football Recap – Sponsored by Running the Rock (Starring Melvin Gordon and Semaje Perine)

So Melvin Gordon sets the new all-time FBS rushing record in three quarters against Nebraska a mere 9 days ago.  I guess Semaje Perine thought that looked fun so he would try and do it in soggy Norman against a terrible Charlie Weis-less Kansas team.  I’m going to take a wild guess and say “James Conner, come on down!”

I didn’t get to watch any college football live this week.  Had my kids and it was a lot of fun.  And to be honest, from what I did see on my PVR late into Saturday night/Sunday morning, it felt like a blah weekend.  If this weekend would have been played three seasons ago, it would have been considered a good college football weekend.  Good, not great.  But this season, it doesn’t even come close.  A quick look at some of the games I PVRed:

• The Minnesota-Nebraska game which probably qualified as the game of the day
• The hilariously bad Virginia Tech-Wake Forest game
• The Battle for LA
• Ole Miss-Arkansas
• Boise State-Wyoming

And on and on.  12 games in all and most of them (save Minny-Nebraska) were garbage.  Didn’t record BC-FSU but that’s more due to the restrictions on my PVR and not me not picking it (although I had to make some choices).

Anyway, it says a lot about how wild and wacky this season has been by the fact that Perine set the new rushing record and most went “oh that’s nice…carry on.”  Let’s look at the week that was, shall we?

Poor Buffalo.  Yeah it doesn’t really matter that the Kent State-UB game was cancelled.  Really.  Even if the Bulls won that game and their last game, their six wins aren’t enough since they defeated two FCS teams.  See, scheduling issues filter down even to MAC teams.

Way to rile them up.  So one of the Duke coaches threw shit all over the locker room area and basically acted like one of those roided-up dickheads during a rage.  And what did it do?  I don’t think Duke has looked this bad in three seasons.  The Fighting Fedoras lit them up and are going bowling.  Also it puts Georgia Tech in the annual Florida State ACC beatdown game.

Well that was just FCS-riffic.  Look, I don’t care that FBS teams schedule an FCS game every season.  It gives FCS teams a cash boost they may or may not need.  What I hate (and I mean hate) is when these games happen in November.  Everywhere it is promoted that every week of the college football season is important, and then we are treated to a garbage week of football.  And yes I understand the SEC isn’t the only conference that does this; however, they are the one conference that almost ALWAYS does it in November.  Want to schedule an FCS team?  Brilliant!  Do it in September or October (or late August) please.

I select Jerry Kill as coach of the year.  Yes, there are other good candidates but looking at an entire body of work, what Jerry Kill has done in Minnesota is amazing.  Or in other words, all Jerry Kill does is resurrect football programs.

Marshall, Marshall, Marshall.  They hung on to beat a UAB team which is sneaky-good (in Conference USA parlance).  You can arguably say they are one of the worst-looking undefeated teams of the past two decades and be probably spot on.  The thing is, if they win out, I can’t see how you don’t put them in Fiesta or Cotton Bowl, unless insanity happens in the Mountain West and Colorado State somehow wins the conference title.

June Jones is somewhere, sipping whiskey/rum/moonshine/whatever alcohol he likes and just shaking his head.  SMU.  You can honestly say they are one of the worst winless teams in recent history.  It’s been painful to even hear the results, much less watch any highlights.  Just lose out and regroup.  And pray.

Illinois and Northwestern will face off in a winner-takes-all game next week.  And by all I mean bowl eligibility.  Again, does this tell you what kind of crazy season it has been?  And if the Illini somehow win, Tim Beckman may get a contract extension.

Hokie player – Oh so we have to score points.  Is that right, Coach Beamer?  Beamer – Can I retire yet?  What a complete shitshow at Wake Forest.  Worst part is there were no weather issues.  None.  It was just awful football.  Most high schools don’t play football that badly.  But the worst part is it had that trainwreck quality: you just had to watch to see when it would end and how it would end.  Easily one of the worst things to come out of the college football season.  And now, it sets up an Illini-Wildcat like match for the Commonwealth Cup.  Virginia Tech-Virginia.  I like the Hokies but I honestly hope the Wahoos mop the floor with them, just for putting me through that misery this past Saturday.

Ole Miss?  More Like Ole No.  Arkansas pasted the Rebs 30-0.  First of all, the Razorbacks became the first unranked team ever to post back-to-back shutouts over ranked teams.  Impressive.  Oh, and watch out for them next season.  Like the SEC West needed to be any stronger.  On the flip side, Ole Miss’ loss puts a bit of a damper on the Egg Bowl and may challenge whether CBS made the right choice of game for this Saturday.

RichRod baby!  Talk about a statement game.  The Wildcats destroyed Utah in Salt Lake City in terrible weather.  Despite the fact they still might not win the Pac-12 South, don’t they at least give The Committee some difficulty keeping them out of the New Year’s Six?

For god’s sake, just fire the guy already.  It should be obvious to EVERYONE that Brady Hoke will not coach next season for the Michigan Wolverines.  And with one win needed to become bowl-eligible and that game being against Ohio State, you can pretty much stick a fork in this team.  So why delay this?  Seems ridiculous.  And a distraction.  Probably didn’t help the team during their loss to Maryland this past Saturday that basically sealed the deal on their season.

See?  That’s why The Committee doesn’t respect the Noles.  One of the worst undefeated Power conference teams in recent memory (this seems to be a trend today).  They barely win half their games.  Jameis CrabLegs isn’t the QB he was a year ago, that is obvious.  And neither is the entire defense.  They lose against either Florida or Georgia Tech and they can kiss any CFP talk goodbye.

Battle for LA wasn’t a battle at all.  There’s more fight into bringing an NFL team back to LA then the Trojans put up.  They looked out of it from early on.  So now UCLA is in the driver’s seat in the Pac-12 South.  If they win out, do they at least get some consideration from The Committee?

Meanwhile, on the islands…  Norm Chow is honestly doing an amazing job out in Honolulu.  The Fighting Rainbow Warriors just won their fourth game on a last-second touchdown over UNLV.  No one (myself included) figured they’d win more than two.  Think of it this way…three of their losses were by a single score or less.  Win those and they are 7-5 and staying home to play a bowl on Christmas Eve.  Hope they give Chow one more chance next season to complete the turnaround.

One mid-week MACtion game on Tuesday.  Looks like specialty pack since I see nothing on the TSN schedule indicating they are showing this one.  Then the real college footballgasm starts Thursday night.  A ton of football Friday and Saturday.  Schedule will be put out Wednesday and it should be finalized by then considering that there’s an extra full day of games on Friday.  Then again, this is Bell and Rogers we are talking about.

Week 12 NFL TV Schedule – Sponsored by Snow (and a hell of a lot of it)

If you haven’t seen what’s been happening in Buffalo, well here’s your chance to crawl out from under that rock.

There is a football stadium somewhere under there

That is Ralph Wilson Stadium as of yesterday. Buried in snow.  Last night’s Kent State-Buffalo college football game was postponed to Friday afternoon and even then they are worried about UB Stadium being ready despite the fact it got about half the snow the Ralph got.  The stadium is offering people $10/hour and free tickets to the Jets-Bills game if they can come and shovel snow.  Last number I’ve heard on this was 220 metric tons of snow with quite a bit more coming sometime today.  Talk about a disaster.  And please don’t move the game to Toronto.  Just move it to Tuesday if need be (then the NFL can sell it to the highest bidder and consider this as a potential experiment for next year because it’s the NFL).

Update: The Jets-Bills game is pretty much a guarantee to be either moved or played in Buffalo Monday or Tuesday.  Stay tuned for more updates.

Update #2: Sounds like the Jets-Bills game will be moved to Detroit for Monday night.  In that case, only the Buffalo area and the NY-NJ area would get the game.  On which channel I do not know though as ESPN will be showing Baltimore-New Orleans nationally.

Update #3: The Jets-Bills game HAS been moved to Detroit and will be played on Monday night.  People who get CBS out of Buffalo will be able to see that game.  Otherwise, you are SOL.  Game starts at 7:00.  Now, the Ralph Wilson Stadium crew has extra time to get the stadium ready for next Sunday’s game against the Browns.

Update #5 (and hopefully the last one): TSN4 has decided to put on the Jets-Bills game nationwide instead of showing Monday Night Football.  Good for TSN for realizing that most of the country won’t see the game and it gives them yet another NFL game on their network.

So as of right now, here’s the NFL TV schedule:

Thursday
8:30	Kansas City at Oakland	NFLN/SNE/SNO/SNW/SNP
Sunday
1:00	Cleveland at Atlanta
1:00	Tennessee at Philadelphia	CBS (Alberta)
1:00	Detroit at New England	FOX (All of Ontario (except Northwestern Ontario), Quebec, Eastern Canada)/CTV (Vancouver, Alberta, Montreal, Ottawa, Northern Ontario, Atlantic, Saskatchewan)/CKPR (Thunder Bay)/CITL (Lloydminster)
1:00	Green Bay at Minnesota	FOX (Saskatchewan, Manitoba, Northwestern Ontario)/CTV (Winnipeg)
1:00	Jacksonville at Indianapolis
1:00	Cincinnati at Houston	CBS (BC, Northern Ontario, Western Ontario, Midwestern Ontario, Ottawa)/TSN2
1:00	Tampa Bay at Chicago
4:05	Arizona at Seattle	FOX (BC, Alberta)/CTV2 (Vancouver Island, Alberta)/TSN2
4:05	St. Louis at San Diego
4:25	Miami at Denver	CBS (All of Canada)/CTV2 (Toronto, London/Windsor, Ottawa, Atlantic)
4:25	Washington at San Francisco
8:30	Dallas at NY Giants	NBC/TSN1/TSN3/TSN4/TSN5
Monday
7:00	NY Jets at Buffalo	CBS (Golden Horseshoe, GTA, Eastern Ontario (except Ottawa), Quebec)
8:30	Baltimore at New Orleans	TSN1/TSN3/TSN4/TSN5

Now let’s talk contingency plan. Not a worry about moving the Jets-Bills game to Tuesday night.  I would assume the NFL Network would pick it up.  The issue comes with what the viewers who would have got the Jets-Bills game on CBS will now get.  My best guess is they end up with the Bengals-Texans game but no one knows until the decision is made and it would have to be made by Saturday morning at the latest.

Update #4: Looks like FOX will allow people who get FOX out of Buffalo to watch the Lions-Patriots game this Sunday thanks to Snowmageddon.

Let’s Gamble!

I have now made the crazy discovery that there is almost no way anyone could win ProLine pools without boxing at least one game. What boxing is (in ProLine speak) is the ability to pick both teams in a game if you’re not sure of the pick.  It costs more to do so but it basically takes that game out of the equation.  For example, this past week I did it with the Broncos-Rams game.  I had a funny feeling about it.  I turned out to be right.  Too bad the rest of my ticket stunk.  Anyway, here are my (probably mediocre) picks.

Kansas City over Oakland

Cleveland over Atlanta

Philadelphia over Tennessee

New England over Detroit

Green Bay over Minnesota

Indianapolis over Jacksonville

Houston over Cincinnati

Buffalo over NY Jets (when it eventually happens)

Chicago over Tampa Bay

Seattle over Arizona

San Diego over St. Louis

Denver over Miami (no way they are losing three in a row)

San Francisco over Washington

NY Giants over Dallas (upset pick of the week)

New Orleans over Baltimore

I will keep this updated as to what’s happening with the Jets-Bills game as we should find out more over the next 24 hours.

Week 13 College Football TV Schedule – This is some type of joke right?

Let us compare this week’s schedule to almost any other week’s schedule this season. OK stop.  Don’t bother.  Let me break this down for you: this week’s schedule is terrible.  Almost nothing stands out.  I’m not even that excited about it and I am a die-hard college football fan.  I am thinking the casuals will be turned off by this and just wait until next week’s football-gasm.  Our only hope is that some of the games this week go down to the wire and we have some fantastic finishes because there is almost no hype for these games at all (and rightfully so).  The only thing that could make it worse is a shitty ABC Saturday Nighter (a la Michigan-UConn last season).  We are spared that by having almost the most important game of the week in the Battle for LA.

Alright, let’s get down to it. Cable schedule time:

Bowling Green at Toledo (Wed)	8:00 PM	TSN2
Air Force at San Diego State (Fri)	9:30 PM	CBSSN
San Jose State at Utah State (Fri)*	10:00 PM	TSN2
Elon at James Madison	12:00 PM	WNYO
Indiana at Ohio State	12:00 PM	BTN
Fordham at Army	12:00 PM	CBSSN
Minnesota at Nebraska	12:00 PM	TSN3
Penn State at Illinois	12:00 PM	TSN2
Virginia Tech at Wake Forest	12:30 PM	WSBK
Wisconsin at Iowa	3:30 PM	TSN2
FIU at North Texas	3:30 PM	WNYO
Maryland at Michigan	3:30 PM	BTN
Ole Miss at Arkansas	3:30 PM	CBS
Lehigh vs. Lafayette (in New York)	3:30 PM	CBSSN
Arizona at Utah	3:30 PM	TSN3
Boston College at Florida State	3:30 PM	ABC/TSN1
Louisville at Notre Dame	3:30 PM	NBC
Florida Atlantic at Middle Tennessee	7:00 PM	WNYO
Oklahoma State at Baylor	7:30 PM	FOX
Vanderbilt at Mississippi State	7:30 PM	TSN2
USC at UCLA	8:00 PM	ABC
Cincinnati at Connecticut	8:00 PM	CBSSN

I guess you could say there’s a fair amount of variety but other than that it’s whole lot of blah. Nothing really special here.  Hate to say it’s disappointing but compared to the schedule the rest of the season it is.  Maybe it’s the College Football Playoff that really does add a small layer of extra excitement that we didn’t get from the BCS.  Then again there will always be people out there bitching about it. “Let’s make it like March Madness.  68 teams baby!”  Yeah, and while we’re at it, can you tell me who your dealer is since that is a completely idiotic idea.

Update: Reverse mirror fun this weekend.  If you receive ABC out of Buffalo, you will get the Boston College-Florida State game on ABC.  If you receive ABC out of Detroit, you get the Wisconsin-Iowa game on ABC.  Either way, both games are on a TSN network so you’re fine either way, luckily.

Now on to the specialty packs:

Kent State at Buffalo (Wed)	8:00 PM
North Carolina at Duke (Thu)	7:30 PM
Arkansas State at Texas State (Thu)	9:30 PM
San Jose State at Utah State (Fri)	9:30 PM
Northwestern at Purdue	12:00 PM
Charleston Southern at Georgia(Bell only)	12:00 PM
Virginia Tech at Wake Forest	12:30 PM
Syracuse at Pittsburgh	3:30 PM
Georgia State at Clemson	3:30 PM
Western Carolina at Alabama (Bell only)	4:00 PM
Samford at Auburn	7:00 PM
Miami at Virginia*	7:00 PM
Missouri at Tennessee*	7:30 PM
Boise State at Wyoming	10:15 PM
Fresno State at Nevada	10:30 PM

* – denotes game not set yet on the specialty pack schedule

Wow, not a whole lot of choice here. Still worth the money in the end (at least on the Bell end of things) but these are those rare weekends when I wonder if it’s worth it….ah, who am I kidding, I’d pay for it anyway.

Update: The Kent State-Buffalo game has been postponed due to weather (obviously).  No one knows if the game will happen tomorrow night, Friday night, or at a later date.  They won’t put the game on Saturday with the Bills playing on Sunday.  The only issue will come if the Bulls win their last game of the year against UMass they would be 5-6 and one win away from bowl eligibility, which would mean the KSU-Buffalo game would have to be played.  I will keep updating as I get information on this.

Update #2: The Kent State-Buffalo game has been canceled completely now.  Next week’s game for KSU against Akron that had been moved to Friday will stay on Friday.  The Bulls had a shot to finish 6-6 but would have had to apply for a waiver to play in a bowl because two of their victories were against FCS teams (you are only allowed to count one towards the 6-win minimum).  Wouldn’t it be interesting if there weren’t enough bowl-eligible teams come the end of the regular season.

A few notes on both schedules:

• The SJSU-USU game on Friday night is, as of this point, on both TSN2 and the specialty pack.  The game starts at 9:30 and can be seen in its entirety on the specialty pack.  On TSN2 it will appear after the UMass-Lowell/Notre Dame hockey game.  They have it scheduled for 10:00 but that’s based on no overtime.  Update #3: I noticed a couple hours ago that the SJSU-USU game was taken off the specialty pack because TSN2 will go to it in progress.  Makes sense.  So why was it on the guide until some time today?
• VT-WF appears on both WSBK and the specialty pack on Saturday.  This happens often.
• Odd occurrence.  We have been receiving ACC regional games through FOX Sports Net on the specialty pack all season.  Now we have an SEC regional game appearing through FSN.  South Alabama-South Carolina is on at noon, at least on Bell’s package.  Interesting to see this on here and I am not complaining.  Update #4: Well I should know better than to do this.  Of course Bell still had to tinker with their schedule until Friday night.  USA-SC will not be shown at all and Eastern Kentucky-Florida was replaced by the other SEC Network game, Charleston Southern-Georgia.  Ridiculous.
• According to schedules I have seen, Rogers has a noon game and an afternoon game as TBA.  Looking at the full schedule, I can’t really see what this could be.  My best guess is they are putting one of the other ESPN games on there, despite the fact it’s already on TSN.  Either that or they have come to their senses and finally decided to show SEC Network games.  Yeah you’re right that won’t happen.
• Only one simsub this weekend, and it’s the ABC afternoon game (BC-FSU).  Unless BC keeps it close, no one will care.

Games o’ the Week

USC at UCLA (8:00, ABC) – This is the de facto game of the week.  Yeah this is how bad the schedule is this week.  Anywho…the Battle for LA is still an important game.  A lot at stake in the Pac-12 South with this one.  A USC win eliminates Utah, UCLA, and Arizona from winning the division title.  It also puts a ton of pressure on Arizona State.  UCLA wins and it could be totally chaos.  Five-way tie anyone?

Arizona at Utah (3:30, TSN3) – When was the last time the top two games of the week were Pac-12 affairs?  I can’t remember one.  This is the appetizer to the Battle for LA main course later on.  Utah needs a win and a lot of help to stay alive for a chance to go to Santa Clara.  Arizona wins and it makes the Territorial Cup next week against ASU a HUGE game.

Minnesota at Nebraska (12:00, TSN3) – Can Nebraska bounce back after getting the shit kicked out of them by Melvin Gordon (and the rest of the Badgers I guess)?  Can Minnesota bounce back after keeping it close with tOSU in the snow last Saturday?  Loser is definitely done in the Big Ten West.  Nebraska probably can’t win the division anyway unless chaos occurs inside the division.  Plus, Pelini has lost two games with two and a bowl left to go.  Will he get to his four losses that he seems to always get?

Kansas State at West Virginia (Thursday 7:00, we won’t get it) – KSU seems to be on the outside looking in.  It’s almost forgotten that they are technically tied with TCU and Baylor in the Big XII (one loss).  They should (SHOULD!) be able to handle the Fighting Holgorsens and Kansas.  It sets up a game with Baylor.  Potentially it will be for the Big XII title and could be for one of the Final Four spots.  Potentially.  Until, KSU gets into the top 10 they probably won’t get a whole lot of respect from The Committee.

Boston College at Florida State (3:30, ABC/TSN1) – We all thought Miami had them on the ropes.  We thought the Irish had a great shot.  Oklahoma State and Clemson gave them scares.  But the Seminoles are still standing with an unblemished record.  Something tells me one of two things will happen in this game: either it will be a blowout in favour of FSU or the Eagles will make a game of it, further putting The Committee in turmoil.

Missouri at Tennessee (7:30, SP (I think)) – I have no idea if we are getting this game or not on the specialty pack.  At this point I will assume yes despite the fact it isn’t appearing on any guides.  Anyway, this is a trap game for Mizzou, no doubt about it.  They have to win this to stay alive for a second consecutive SEC East crown.  The Vols, on the other hand, can go to a bowl game with a win today (despite the apparent layup forthcoming against Vanderbilt) so it’s huge to them and especially Butch Jones who can validate his hiring (potentially) with this one win.

Picks, picks, and more picks

Not talking about interceptions here, although it feels like any of my most recent weeks of picks could be considered a pick-six early in the first quarter from the opponent’s red zone. Yeah, pretty deflating.

Duke over North Carolina

Minnesota over Nebraska

Utah over Arizona

Ole Miss over Arkansas (barely)

Notre Dame over Louisville (barely)

Wisconsin over Iowa (and you have to drop Gordon to an easy 200 in this one don’t you think?)

Cal over Stanford (and then the ensuing hot seat comments about David Shaw)

UCLA over USC

Boise State over Wyoming (to set up a HUGE Mountain West game next week)

OK so there may be some changes to the specialty packs in the coming days. I can pretty much safely say the cable schedule is set.  Not that that’s a good thing.  But next week will be huge.  Really huge.

Week 12 College Football Recap – Sponsored by Running Back U

Melvin Gordon had a day for the ages on Saturday. He broke LaDainian Tomlinson’s single-game rushing yards record BY THE END OF THE THIRD QUARTER!  408 yards in total.  I don’t know what Nebraska’s problem is with Wisconsin but most of it has to do with stopping the run.  They just couldn’t do it.  Not saying many other teams would have done better because the Badger O was on fire, but still, it was pretty something to watch.  Gordon is now 91 yards away from 2000 for the season which would make him the 23^rd player in FBS history to hit that mark.  He’s still 720 yards away from passing Barry Sanders for the season record but he has two more regular season games, a potential Big Ten Championship game, and a bowl game left.  Going to be tough but at this point I’d say he has a shot.

You almost knew this would happen. It just seemed inevitable that Mississippi State would lose a game this season and many had this game circled in the calendars at Tuscaloosa against the Tide.  The worst part is the Bulldogs didn’t play good, but it’s not like Alabama were firing on all cylinders.  I still think they lose the Iron Bowl the way they are playing.  Then again…

Wow, that escalated quickly. Auburn was never in the game against Georgia.  The return of Todd Gurley spurred on the Dawgs victory and Nick Chubb continued to impress.  Problem is that feeling is gone now as Gurley is done for the season with an ACL injury.  So it’s all up to Chubb again.  He has proven himself before but Clean, Old-Fashioned Hate against Georgia Tech won’t be easy and they still have to hope for a Missouri loss or no SEC Championship game and no guarantee to be in the New Year’s Six.

Does anyone want the other ACC spot in the New Year’s Six? Speaking of the Yellow Jackets, they throttled Clemson.  So that probable eliminates Clemson from that spot way behind Florida State.  Then Duke coughed it up against Virginia Tech so they lose ground.  Georgia Tech probably has the inside track but if they lose to Georgia, they have 9 wins this season, not too impressive for the Orange Bowl.

Is anyone talking about Ohio State? Everyone seems to be forgetting the Buckeyes.  Two more wins and they are a Big Ten title game win away from probably the College Football Playoff unless everything else doesn’t go their way.  I will explain later in this post.  Oh yeah, and Braxton who?

And it finally happened. For some Gator fans, about ten months too late.  WILL MUSCHAMP! is officially done as head coach of the Florida Gators.  He will coach the last two games of the season.  Whether he coaches in the bowl is up in the air although it seems like they will have an interim coach at that point.  Why don’t they just hire Jon Gruden/Jim Harbaugh/hottest coaching prospect out there before the bowl and get it over with.  And no, I am pretty sure the Head Ball Coach won’t come back to Gainesville.

I was wrong. So very wrong.  Air Force just went to 8-2 after their victory over Nevada.  They are hiding in the weeds in the Mountain Division in the Mountain West conference, hoping for chaos in front of them.  Really it doesn’t matter though as Troy Calhoun has done a masterful job getting the Falcons back to where they were a few years back.  I (along with MANY experts) figured Air Force wouldn’t be bowl-eligible.  Well they did that a few games ago now.  Now they are aiming for ten wins which would be huge in Colorado Springs.

Marshall won again. They sure did.  Two more wins and they head to the Conference USA Championship game.  Does ABC put it on their network like they did a few years back when Houston came in undefeated (and ultimately lost)?  Interesting decision they have coming up as long as the Herd keep winning.

Well Gary, that was, um, interesting. That TCU-Kansas game would have been painful to watch if we actually got the game in this area.  I think many people were hoping for the Kansas upset, especially Baylor fans.  I still have Baylor below TCU in my rankings but I also think TCU might have some trouble with Texas on American Thanksgiving so it may work itself out on its own.

Speaking of interesting, that is not the word that I would use to describe what happened in South Bend. Anyone who watched that game cannot consider the Irish for the New Year’s Six now, even if they beat USC by 80.  That was pathetic.  Well, correction.  Their defense was pathetic.  And Brian Kelly’s decision to go for two when he did is perplexing at best.  The kind of coaching decision that could haunt him if the Irish do win their last two games.

Holy RichRod, Gus! Arizona gutted out a victory over Washington.  And it came on the heels of one of the stupidest things a coach can do (in my estimation).  This idea of freezing the kicker…whoever came up with it should be shot and pissed on and not necessarily in that order.  I can almost guarantee it doesn’t work more often than it works.  And again, it doesn’t work here.  The Zona kicker misses the first attempt but nails the second one.  Got to consider the Wildcats as an outside shot for the New Year’s Six.

Uh, if you haven’t noticed, we have a Volunteer sighting. That’s after a continuous loop of Rocky Top and Turn Down for What.  Butch Jones has done a good job taking a not-so-talented squad and bringing them to within one game of bowl-eligibility.  And they still face Vandy so yeah, the chances are REALLY good.

The bowl silly season has officially begun. With BYU’s win, they were able to officially except their invitation to the new Miami Beach Bowl, commencing the season of bowl bids and invites and offers and even rejections.  It will be interesting to see how this process goes this season with the CFP instead of the BCS.  If Navy can beat South Alabama on the 28^th, then they, too, automatically get an invite to the Poinsettia Bowl.  Last season they will have that now that they are joining the American conference next season.

Missouri holds on…barely. It wasn’t pretty but Mizzou kept their driver’s seat position in the SEC East by surviving in College Station.  Now they have a better-than-expected Vols team and another better-than-expected team in Arkansas to get past.  Do that and they book their ticket for Atlanta.  Georgia fans have to swallow a bitter pill and become…..ugh….hold on a second……………Tennessee fans next week.  Hopefully Dawgs fans didn’t just vomit.

Oh yeah there was a game in Miami. Actually Miami Gardens but who’s checking.  Miami had Florida State on the ropes.  But it’s the Noles.  You HAVE to finish them off.  Can’t let them stay around and that’s just what The U did.  It would be an absolute shock if FSU lost to either Boston College or Florida.  Not saying it won’t happen.  Remember what has happened this season.  But more than likely, FSU will be undefeated in Charlotte in three weeks.

The blue turf wins out again. Boise State came back from 20 down to beat San Diego State.  This keeps Boise at the top of the Mountain Division with the inside track to win it, much to the chagrin of the Mountain West Conference.  They won’t say it but they desperately want the Broncos to lose one of their last two games so Colorado State wins the division and has a shot at getting into the New Year’s Six.  I don’t see how BSU has a shot despite what many are saying.

#Pac12AfterDark. It happens pretty much every week.  Some late-night Pac-12 game causes a lot of shakeup, not only in the Pac-12, but in all of college football.  ASU’s loss to Oregon State probably kills any chance of a Pac-12 South team getting into the CFP.  FYI, next weekend’s late Pac-12 affair is on the Pac-12 Network and is OSU-Washington so unless it turns out to be a crazy game, the only thing that matters is the winner becomes bowl-eligible and the loser has to wait to try and clinch.

60 teams are now bowl-eligible. 16 spots left to fill.  30 teams left with a shot to play their way in.  The odds aren’t great but it is still a possibility that only 15 teams become bowl-eligible, meaning Georgia Southern, in their first FBS season, should get an opportunity to play in a bowl, the first team ever to be able to do that in their first season since I don’t remember any season when there weren’t enough teams to fill the bowl games.  Next week will settle a lot and allow the dust to settle a bit more.

Speaking of bowls, the four teams I have in the four semi-final spots are Florida State, Ohio State, Oregon, and Baylor. The first three will win out and win their conference championship in my opinion, and Baylor should win their last three Big XII games.  I still believe Bama will lose the Iron Bowl to Auburn.  I think the only chance the SEC has to get a team in is to have MSU or Bama win out and win the conference championship.  Then they guarantee a spot.  Anything less and the SEC is in big trouble.

We’re back to some Tuesday and Wednesday MACtion. Tuesday night we get one game on TSN and Wednesday, a game on TSN and one on the specialty pack.  College basketball is starting to fill the specialty pack channels so it’ll be very interesting to see how they work around all the college football still left in the season.

Week 11 NFL TV Schedule – Sponsored by Mid-season Contract Extensions

The poor Arizona Cardinals. Yes they’re 8-1, sporting the best record in the NFL so far.  They’ve looked dominant and look like the surprising heir apparent to their divisional rival Seattle Seahawks in the NFC.  Unfortunately for them, there are three letters that could destroy a dream season for the Fighting Bruces…the letters are A, C, and L.  Carson Palmer’s ACL injury, which ends his season, is a MASSIVE loss for the Cards.  It looks even worse considering he just signed a huge contract extension (3 more years at $50 million broken down in stupidly specific ways…like who the hell needs a $4,900 workout bonus?).  As much as they have other weapons on offense and their defense is much better than, well, almost any Cardinals defense in NFL history, losing Palmer probably kills any Super Bowl chances.  Drew Stanton is not bad but not a true NFL starter.  Logan Thomas and Ryan Lindley have potential but are pretty green at this point.  The point of all this?  I think mid-season contract extensions aren’t very smart.  I know some would say it’s a distraction to the team but if one player’s contract issues are a distraction to a team in the middle of the season, it’s safe to say that player shouldn’t be kept after that season.  Just a thought.

Alright, now let’s look at the Week 11 schedule:

Thursday
8:30	Buffalo at Miami	NFLN/SNE/SNO/SNW/SNP
Sunday
1:00	Minnesota at Chicago	CBS (Saskatchewan, Manitoba, Northwestern Ontario, Northern Ontario, Western Ontario, Midwestern Ontario, Ottawa)/CTV (Winnipeg, Saskatchewan)
1:00	Houston at Cleveland
1:00	Seattle at Kansas City	FOX (BC, Alberta, Saskatchewan, Manitoba, Northwestern Ontario, Western Ontario, Midwestern Ontario, Ottawa)/CTV (Vancouver, Alberta)/CITL (Lloydminster)
1:00	Atlanta at Carolina
1:00	Cincinnati at New Orleans	CTV2 (Toronto, Ottawa, London/Windsor, Vancouver Island, Alberta, Atlantic)
1:00	Tampa Bay at Washington
1:00	Denver at St. Louis	CBS (Alberta, Golden Horseshoe, GTA, Eastern Ontario (except Ottawa), Quebec, Eastern Canada)
1:00	San Francisco at NY Giants	FOX (Northern Ontario, Golden Horseshoe, GTA, Eastern Ontario (except Ottawa), Quebec, Eastern Canada)/CTV (Toronto, Ottawa, Kitchener, Northern Ontario, Montreal, Atlantic)/CKPR (Thunder Bay)
4:05	Oakland at San Diego	CBS (BC)
4:25	Philadelphia at Green Bay	FOX (Saskatchewan, Manitoba, Northwestern Ontario, Northern Ontario, Golden Horseshoe, GTA, Eastern Ontario (except Ottawa), Quebec, Eastern Canada)/CTV2 (Toronto, Ottawa, London/Windsor, Atlantic)
4:25	Detroit at Arizona	FOX (BC, Alberta, Western Ontario, Midwestern Ontario, Ottawa)/CTV2 (Vancouver Island, Alberta)
8:30	New England at Indianapolis	NBC/TSN1/TSN3/TSN4/TSN5
Monday
8:30	Pittsburgh at Tennessee	TSN1/TSN3/TSN4/TSN5

Speaking of the Cards, I think their game with the Lions is the true game of the week. Not that NBC should have flexed it out because the Pats and Colts are both good too.  It’s not like next week when NBC is sticking (stubbornly) with the Cowboys going to New York to play the Giants.  You want any evidence that the Cowboys are still America’s team, then this is it.  With Detroit-New England and Arizona-Seattle ready to be flexed, NBC stuck with Dallas-Giants despite the fact Coughlin’s Crew pretty much sucks this year.  I guess the equation of Cowboys = Ratings still holds true.  I would have flexed in the Cards-Seahawks game myself but that’s just my opinion.

“Five thousand on red.” “Black.”  “Damn.”

It’s Gambling Time! I’m kind of glad I didn’t win this past week since the prize was much smaller than usual.  I guess that’s what happens when 727 people get perfect tickets.  727?  Makes me feel like an idiot.  Anyway, here are my (probably mediocre) picks for the week:

Buffalo over Miami

Chicago over Minnesota

Cleveland over Houston

Seattle over Kansas City

Carolina over Atlanta

New Orleans over Cincinnati

Tampa Bay over Washington

Denver over St. Louis

San Francisco over NY Giants

San Diego over Oakland

Philadelphia over Green Bay

Arizona over Detroit (yes, even with the rant above I don’t think the Lions are quite the 7-2 team that many think they are)

Indianapolis over New England

Pittsburgh over Tennessee

Fingers crossed (well, on my right hand at least) that I can pull it off this weekend. Would be nice going into Christmas season to win some money (even if it is just the $1,200 or so all the winners got this past week).

Week 12 College Football TV Schedule – Sponsored by Respect

It’s something we give to all who have fought for our country. It’s also something Florida State fans think they aren’t getting.  They were dropped to #3 behind Oregon in the latest poll brought out by The Committee on Tuesday night.  Really though it doesn’t matter.  As I said in the post where I put my predictions, it’s what it looks like at the end of the season.  And to be honest I can’t see the Noles falling any farther than #3 in the poll before the end of the regular season and they have a decent chance to climb back to the #1 spot, depending on what Mississippi State and Oregon do in their final games.

OK the CFL is now in the playoffs. This means they move to Sundays only.  This frees TSN up on Saturday.  And we will get our first look at what this means this weekend.  Yes, they are simsubbing a couple of ABC games, but even with that, to see that TSN is showing 8 games on Saturday (after showing five in the days preceding it) is awesome.  No other way to say it.  13 college football games in one week.  Last year there were times where they went six weeks and didn’t put 13 games on.  I don’t even think Sportsnet did 13 games all last year.  Damn impressive.  Here is the cable schedule (at this point):

Ball State at Massachusetts (Wed)	8:00 PM	TSN4/TSN5
East Carolina at Cincinnati (Thu)	7:00 PM	TSN4
Southern Miss at UTSA (Thu)	8:00 PM	CBSSN
California at USC (Thu)	9:00 PM	TSN1
Tulsa at UCF (Fri)	8:00 PM	TSN1
Ohio State at Minnesota	12:00 PM	ABC/TSN4
Wesley at Charlotte	12:00 PM	WNYO
Iowa at Illinois	12:00 PM	BTN
Army at Western Kentucky	12:00 PM	CBSSN
Clemson at Georgia Tech	12:00 PM	TSN2/TSN3
Temple at Penn State	12:00 PM	TSN1
Pittsburgh at North Carolina	12:30 PM	WSBK
Nebraska at Wisconsin	3:30 PM	ABC/TSN2
Middle Tennessee at FIU	3:30 PM	WNYO
Indiana at Rutgers	3:30 PM	BTN
Mississippi State at Alabama	3:30 PM	CBS
Georgia Southern at Navy	3:30 PM	CBSSN
Oklahoma at Texas Tech	3:30 PM	TSN3
Washington at Arizona	3:30 PM	FOX
Northwestern at Notre Dame	3:30 PM	NBC
Albany at Villanova	7:00 PM	WNYO
Auburn at Georgia	7:00 PM	TSN3
Texas at Oklahoma State	7:30 PM	FOX
Florida State at Miami	8:00 PM	ABC
Michigan State at Maryland	8:00 PM	BTN
USF at SMU	8:00 PM	CBSSN
LSU at Arkansas	8:00 PM	TSN1/TSN5

A HUGE amount of games on cable, highlighted by the big Mississippi State-Alabama game on CBS. TSN3 has an unprecedented (for TSN at least) tripleheader.  It’s a sign of the changing of the times…or the fact TSN has no hockey to show.  Either way…

Update: All of a sudden I notice that East Carolina-Cincinnati is not on TSN4 tonight.  Not pleased when TSN does that.

Update #2: TSN2 has decided to show VaTech-Duke instead of doubling up on GT-Clemson.  Good call.

On to the specialty pack schedule:

Kent State at Bowling Green (Wed)	8:00 PM	SP
Bethune-Cookman at Hampton (Thu)	7:30 PM	SP
Virginia Tech at Duke	12:00 PM	SP
South Carolina at Florida*	12:00 PM	SP
Pittsburgh at North Carolina	12:30 PM	SP
Wake Forest at NC State (SD only on Bell)	3:00 PM	SP
Memphis at Tulane	3:30 PM	SP
Kentucky at Tennessee*	4:00 PM	SP
UNLV at BYU	7:00 PM	SP
Missouri at Texas A&M*	7:30 PM	SP
LSU at Arkansas	8:00 PM	SP
San Diego State at Boise State	10:15 PM	SP
Arizona State at Oregon State	10:30 PM	SP

Wow, much less on the specialty pack this weekend. Good for everyone who doesn’t have it though.  A few games aren’t set yet but probably will be.  The three asterisked games are SEC Network tilts that will only appear on Bell (poor Rogers customers).  Thankfully for Rogers customers, the SEC Network’s schedule has been largely disappointing so at least you have that to hold on to.  I have noticed on my guide (Bell Fibe) that there are a few slots opened on the specialty pack channels with no information.  However, there are no more games that can conceivably go on there.  So we may expect some games on TSN and the specialty pack.  I’ll keep updating this as I find out any information.

Games of the Week

Mississippi State at Alabama (3:30, CBS) – Duh.  This is EASILY the biggest game of the week.  Alabama is in a must-win situation since I can’t see them being selected for the CFP with two losses.  Mississippi State can afford a loss here as long as they win out from there.  Huge stakes in the SEC so of course Verne and Gary will bumble and stumble through this one for us.

Auburn at Georgia (7:15, expected to be TSN3) – The other huge SEC game is the second biggest game of the week.  Elimination game here for sure and not just from the CFP perhaps.  Georgia needs this to keep up with Missouri while Auburn needs to win and hope for a slip-up from one of Mississippi State or Alabama this week and then for the other to lose later on.  And again, no Todd Gurley so we shall see what Dawgs offense shows up this weekend.

Ohio State at Minnesota (12:00, ABC and TSN4) – I wouldn’t call Minnesota a surprising team but they have looked damn good most of the season.  Dancin’ Jerry Kill has done a phenomenal job in the Twin Cities.  This is the first of three massive tests in a row for the Gophers but maybe the least important of the three.  tOSU on the other hand has the East on a platter and just has to win out but easier said than done (although they do have the Fighting Hokes to finish their regular season).

Nebraska at Wisconsin (3:30, ABC and TSN2) – It certainly looks like Nebraska won’t lose four games this season!  What an accomplishment for Signore Pelini since that seemed to be one of the certainties in life: death, taxes, and Pelini’s Huskers losing four games.  They are snaking their way up the poll and towards a possible shot at Ohio State in Indianapolis in three weeks.  However, they have to take care of business.  It’ll be the Ameer Abdullah Experience vs. the Melvin Gordon Good Time Express.  There should be about 600-or-so yards of rushing between the two teams and the game should be done before dinner.

Clemson at Georgia Tech (12:00, TSN2) – Speaking of no respect, there’s these two teams.  Clemson plays second fiddle to Florida State in the one division (Atlantic?) and Georgia Tech is starting to play second fiddle to Duke of all teams.  The loser here has no shot at the Orange Bowl bid.

Florida State at Miami (8:00, ABC) – Probably the last chance that Florida State could lose before the ACC Championship and it comes against a somewhat rejuvenated Canes squad.  Al Golden and Al Golden’s tie have this team playing well at the right time.  Too bad this game wasn’t at the old Orange Bowl.  Dolphins Stadium just lacks the big-game atmosphere that The U needs for true home-field advantage.  Jameis Winston needs a huge game here to stay in the Heisman hunt.

Picks for the Week

Yeah last week I didn’t do any picks. Probably wouldn’t have made a difference.  Here we go:

Alabama over Mississippi State

Ohio State over Minnesota

Clemson over Georgia Tech

Arizona State over Oregon State

Arizona over Washington

Duke over Virginia Tech

South Carolina over Florida

Tennessee over Kentucky

Man that was a tough post to type. Wasn’t any longer or more difficult than other posts but I sliced a piece of my fingertip off last night with a potato peeler and it’s amazing how tough it is to type with your index finger out of commission.  Hoping to live-tweet again this weekend depending on how my finger is feeling (should be better by then but we shall see).  Definitely not going with Chinese food since I felt like shit the next day.  Hope it’s a good week of football and I am happy I have my kids next weekend.  Not only because it will be the first weekend in a while that they’re with me but it looks like a kind of shitty schedule so it’s not like I am missing a ton (I call that a win-win!).

Week 11 College Football Recap – Sponsored by Kaelin Clay (or as he’s known in Philadelphia, Desean Jackson)

He may NEVER live this one down

I think the fact they both went to the same high school means that it must be a play actually taught to the players.  Couldn’t be anything else (except arrogance perhaps).

Another great Saturday (and other days preceding it) in college football.  Probably makes it better when I can watch it all live rather than through the PVR but beggars can’t be choosers (on some weekends).

MACTION! It feels good to see some mid-week MACtion throughout November.  Has that true college football season feel to it; like we’re really in the thick of it now.  I wish the Sun Belt would do more of it (and even Conference USA to get it some more exposure).

Clemson or Duke.  Duke or Clemson.  It’s almost like both teams aren’t really wanting that Orange Bowl bid (since I am sure Florida State will be in the College Football Playoff).  Both looked mediocre against bad teams (Clemson against Wake Forest and Duke against Syracuse).  Duke might actually be hampered by the fact they look like they will be in the ACC Championship and could drop in the rankings if they lose to Florida State.  One reason I think either all conferences need conference championships or none of them do.

Memphis is bowl-eligible.  Let me say that again.  Memphis is bowl-eligible.  And they beat Temple in a Winner-becomes-Bowl-Eligible game.  Temple!  Yeah, it has been crazy this season.

The Mountain West is going to have a problem in their Mountain Division.  The best team in the division (and conference) is Colorado State.  At this point, they wouldn’t go to the Mountain West Championship because they lost to Boise State earlier in the season. Boise State has lost only one conference game as well.  There’s also Utah State (who is better than Boise this season but not as good as CSU) lurking in the weeds.  If the conference wants a chance at that loan spot in the New Year’s Six, they need to pray Boise State loses one of their last three games.  Best case scenario is the Rams win out, Utah State loses to Boise in the finale and Boise loses to either San Diego State or Wyoming before that.  Then it’s cut-and-dry: CSU goes to the conference title game with a Fiesta or Cotton Bowl berth on the line (which CBS is also praying for).  This doesn’t happen and we may be stuck with a kind of a lame duck title game like last year’s tilt.

June Jones escaped at the right time.  This SMU team is historically bad.  Even by American conference standards.  They would have trouble competing in the Ivy League, let alone a decent FBS conference.  They had their first lead of the season this past weekend against Tulsa.  It was SMU’s eighth game of the season.  It’s painful to watch them (which makes me a bit thankful that I don’t receive the CBS Sports Network anymore).  They have four more games to get off the slide.  Really, winning isn’t as important as being close in these games since the way it’s going, they will find it very difficult to get a competent head coach to come in to this program.  It’s that bad.

And now on to actual good head coaches and good programs.  Jerry Kill is doing a masterful job up in Minnesota.  They are watching closely in the background and waiting for the right time to take over the division.  Their last three games will tell everyone how good this team really is (Ohio State, at Nebraska, at Wisconsin).  Win even two of these three and they have to be considered a huge threat going forward.

This isn’t your father’s Baylor Bears.  Wow did they ever put a beating on Oklahoma.  Boomer Sooner indeed.  Now the question is whether they can leap-frog TCU in the rankings.  It’s not so cut-and-dry (I’m using that term a lot today) to say that because the Bears beat the Horned Frogs in that epic comeback a few weeks back that they should be ranked higher than them.  That win only counts towards the Big XII conference standings, not the CFP poll that The Committee puts out now every Tuesday.  Maybe this is where teams will figure out that scheduling stronger non-conference foes can be very helpful (although it can also hinder you in a big way).

Couldn’t they go for 70?  Georgia doesn’t really miss Todd Gurley and Kentucky is who we thought they were (kind of).  Unfortunately for the Wildcats I can’t see them winning any of their remaining games which is too bad since they only need one win to be bowl-eligible which would be huge for Mark Stoops and the football program.  The Dawgs offense looks impressive sans Gurley, but the real test comes at home against Auburn in five days.

Scheduling FCS teams in November.  Can we double penalize a team for doing that?  Seeing Ole Miss pound Presbyterian into the ground in record time is stupid and pointless in November.  September, fine.  October is even OK.  This late in the season, no thanks.  It just gives more options for the pathetic SEC Network to send Brent and Jesse to (poor guys).

Kenny Who?  Kyle Allen solidified his hold on the starting quarterback job at Texas A&M for the rest of the season with that performance against Auburn.  Not only does it remind people that the Aggies are still a threat even without Johnny Clipboard but they may have destroyed Auburn’s chances at the College Football Playoff (although the Tigers have two opportunities to prove their worth in the coming weeks).  Also, you can’t fumble like that TWICE in the final few minutes.  Inexcusable.  Even a field goal gives them a chance in OT.

Talk about a Desert Swarm.  Terrible pun and it isn’t even the Arizona Wildcats.  I should have come up with something better.  Anywho…

Notre Dame looked overmatched very early on.  This one wasn’t even close.  Even the final score, where the Golden Domers lost by 24, was misleading.  ASU beat the Irish from pillar to post in this one.  Now the question is, will this be considered a signature victory if the Irish lose one of their last three games?

Not so fast says Charlie Strong.  They were considered a team that would struggle for bowl eligibility but their win against West Virginia shows that they aren’t too far away from contending.  The Horns faithful have to give Strong a chance.  Then again, if they are 5-5 next year with two to play, then sure, fire the guy.  I don’t see that happening though.

That was college football?  It looked like a local peewee game.  For those who decided to watch Michigan play Northwestern (or couldn’t look away due to the trainwreck-like feel of the game), I feel bad for you…and for myself since I watched some of it.  That was arguably one of the worst displays of college football I have seen all season.  Even though the maize and blue won this one, I would have fired Brady Hoke after this debacle on principle alone.  Too bad it hadn’t been relegated to the Big Ten Network.

They tore down the damn goal posts.  Yes, Kansas fans did just that.  After a victory.  Which is huge for this program.  Over Iowa State.  OK not so huge.  Is basketball season on yet for these guys?

Now THAT’S a statement game.  Man did TCU ever look dominant against K-State.  Wasn’t even close.  And do I hear some Trevone Boykin-for-Heisman rumblings going on?  Dak Prescott, Marcus Mariota, and Jameis Winston better be careful…a misstep and Boykin could become the ultimate out-of-nowhere winner.

Yes it was close.  Yes it went to overtime.  But that doesn’t mean it was good football.  I mean not as bad as Michigan-Northwestern but the Alabama-LSU game wasn’t exactly great.  Both teams looked outright bad at times.  It’s like neither team really wanted to win.  A bad game of hot potato if you will.  If Bama plays like this, then Mississippi State doesn’t need to worry this Saturday.

And there goes the Big Ten’s chances.  They were slim to begin with but tOSU’s win over Michigan State probably ends any hope of there being a Big Ten team in the College Football Playoff.  Then again, considering how this season has gone, you can’t count anyone with two losses or less (from a Power Five conference) completely out yet.

College football schedule for this coming week is starting to take shape.  Will have at the very least a preliminary schedule out on Wednesday with updates as they occur.  Remember we have some more mid-week MACtion with two games on Tuesday night and two games on Wednesday night.  All four games will be on the specialty pack and at least one of them will have big MAC implications heading toward bowl season.  Update: The Akron-Buffalo game on Tuesday night somehow has made its way to TSN1.  Nice.  The other game is still on the specialty pack.  Same with the next night as Ball State-UMass will be on TSN4 and TSN5. Why TSN picked the two weaker games is a mystery but nevertheless it’s college football on TSN so we shouldn’t complain…much.

Week 10 NFL TV Schedule – Sponsored by the potential end of the Bills in Toronto Series

And thank God for that.  It doesn’t take a rocket scientist (or in NFL terms, Phil Simms (according to Phil Simms)) to figure out that this Bills in Toronto series was doomed from the start.  It’s like they did very little research into this.  It would be like having only the Patriots play in London for the International Series because they are “the closest team to London.”  Pure stupidity.  Combine that with stupidly high ticket prices, a stadium not large enough for NFL attendance figures and the fact that most Bills fans in this region come from the Golden Horseshoe, not Toronto, made this an ill-fated idea at best.  Thankfully Terry Pegula isn’t Ralph Wilson and, despite the fact his Sabres are a middle-of-the-road AHL team masquerading as an NHL team (and doing a poor job of it…hello Connor McDavid), he seems to be progressive in his thinking.  A new stadium in Buffalo is the most important thing, not sending his team across the border.  Man, am I ever amped up with this post so far.  I better calm down.

And now for the TV schedule for Week 10:

Thursday
8:30	Cleveland at Cincinnati	NFLN/SNE/SNO/SNW/SNP
Sunday
1:00	Kansas City at Buffalo	CBS (Golden Horseshoe, GTA, Peterborough, Belleville, Eastern Canada)/CTV (Toronto, Kitchener, Northern Ontario, Ottawa)/CKPR (Thunder Bay)
1:00	Miami at Detroit	CBS (BC, Alberta, Saskatchewan, Manitoba, Northwestern Ontario, Northern Ontario, Midwestern Ontario, Western Ontario, Ottawa)/TSN2
1:00	Dallas vs. Jacksonville (in London)
1:00	San Francisco at New Orleans	FOX (BC, Alberta, Saskatchewan, Manitoba, Northwestern Ontario, Belleville, Cornwall, Quebec, Eastern Canada)/CTV (Vancouver, Alberta, Saskatchewan, Winnipeg, Atlantic)/CITL (Lloydminster)
1:00	Tennessee at Baltimore
1:00	Pittsburgh at NY Jets	CBS (Kingston, Cornwall, Quebec)/CTV (Montreal)
1:00	Atlanta at Tampa Bay
4:05	Denver at Oakland	CTV (Toronto, Kitchener, Ottawa, Northern Ontario, Montreal, Vancouver, Alberta, Winnipeg, Saskatchewan)/CTV2 (Atlantic)/CKPR (Thunder Bay)/CITL (Lloydminster)/TSN2
4:25	St. Louis at Arizona
4:25	NY Giants at Seattle	FOX (all of Canada)
8:30	Chicago at Green Bay	NBC/TSN1/TSN3/TSN4/TSN5
Monday
8:30	Carolina at Philadelphia	TSN1/TSN3/TSN4/TSN5

So of course since I talk about the International Series I have to show that the International Series game this week won’t be shown in Canada (you know, except for RedZone and Sunday Ticket yada, yada, yada).  Not that it matters.  If the Cowboys can’t beat the Fighting Bortles(s) then they ARE WHO WE THOUGHT THEY WERE (thanks again to Dennis Green).  I’m also glad CTV/TSN decided not to show the Giants/Seahawks game which is being shown in every household in Canada anyway on FOX.  Despite the fact I would struggle to take Oakland against the point spread even if they were given 30 points, it shows some forethought to put on a game that otherwise no one would see in this area.

Gambling with money I don’t really have

OK I was slightly better last week but still light years away from the promised land…being perfect.  I actually did a whole lot better with my NHL pools.  One away from a cool six grand.  Only loss?  Picking Chicago over Toronto.  My favourite team screwing it up.  Thanks a bunch guys.  OK here’s my picks for this week:

Cleveland over Cincinnati

Buffalo over Kansas City

Detroit over Miami

Dallas over Jacksonville

San Francisco over New Orleans

Baltimore over Tennessee

Pittsburgh over NY Jets

Tampa Bay over Atlanta

Denver over Oakland

Arizona over St. Louis

Seattle over NY Giants

Green Bay over Chicago

Carolina over Philadelphia

College Games of the Week

Stupid me, I forgot to put my college games of the week in my last post.  So this ends up being a bit of a hybrid post which is perfect for you fans of both the college and the pro game.  For others who have no interest in this section, just look away I guess (or go read one of my other amazing posts).

Kansas State at TCU (7:30, FOX) – You could make a case for many of this week’s games to be the game of the week.  It has, of course, been branded “Separation Saturday.”  As for this game, FOX has to feel very lucky.  They had this and Baylor-Oklahoma earlier in the day.  It’s like they can’t go wrong no matter which game they put in primetime.  Saying that, this was the right choice.  Two teams playing better than most thought and the loser has their College Football Playoff dreams end in one foul swoop.  Expect a great game between these two.  Winner has the inside track on the Big XII title.

Notre Dame at Arizona State (3:30, ABC) – Another elimination game of sorts.  More so for ASU than the Golden Domers but an elimination game nevertheless.  With the way things are going, Everett Golson could make a late entry into the Heisman race with a great performance here.  The Irish, even with a loss here, at the very least can get into the New Year’s Six with ease.  A loss here by Todd Graham’s bunch probably eliminates them from the CFP and the NYS.  Big stakes and the biggest game (by far) in the afternoon.

Oregon at Utah (10:00, specialty pack) – It’s a good sign when only one of the biggest five games is on the specialty pack.  I love my extra college football channels but it’s always nicer to have more of the better games on cable.  Oregon can call this a trap game all they want but it would be a bit disrespectful to the Utes to do so.  If the Ducks don’t watch it, their CFP dreams go up in smoke as well.  Isn’t this fun?

Alabama at LSU (8:00, CBS) – Verne and Gary in PRIMETIME!  Amazing that this may be the fourth or fifth biggest game of the week.  If this doesn’t show how important this week in college football is, I don’t know what will.  Everyone seems to be penciling the Tide into the final four.  Problem is they have three big games left before the conference championship.  Win all three and they may be able to write their own ticket.  For LSU, any chance at a New Year’s Six birth rides on this game.  The Hat better be ready.

Ohio State at Michigan State (8:00, ABC) – When is the last time there were TWO huge games on ABC in one week?  I remember a time when that happened at least three or four times a season.  I think that time was about four years ago.  Jim Delany has to be watching this one closely.  If the Buckeyes somehow pull this one out, that shuts the door on the Big Ten participating in the CFP despite the fact tOSU and Team Pelini only having one loss apiece.

Baylor at Oklahoma (12:00, we won’t be able to see it) – I figured this could have been the game of the week at the start of the year.  Not so now.  They both have to hope for a win here and a trip-up by both K-State and TCU by the end of the regular season.  Saying that it should be an enjoyable affair with a lot of offense.  Too bad none of us will get to see it.

A reminder that tonight we have some college and pro action.  The Battle of Ohio is on all the Sportsnets (and the NFL Network) between the Bengals and Browns.  Clemson plays lowly Wake Forest on TSN1 and Bethune-Cookman takes on Norfolk State on the specialty pack.  Enjoy the games tonight and for the next four days.

Week 11 College Football TV Schedule – Sponsored by MACTION!

Yes, Tuesday and Wednesday night football is back.   Well, for some of us it is back.  For others it is steady as she goes or more like SOS (same old shit).  It’s tough to gauge how Tuesday and Wednesday night football has helped the MAC.  I am sure it hasn’t hindered it and every so often you see a game that’s huge for the MAC in a stadium that is rammed with fans.  Doesn’t happen often since most MAC teams don’t average 20,000 fans-plus a game.  Makes me wonder why Eastern Michigan doesn’t have more of their games in the middle of the week since on a clear, sunny Saturday afternoon they can’t draw flies.

Cable schedule time!

Clemson at Wake Forest (Thu)	7:30 PM	TSN1
Fordham at Bucknell (Fri)	6:30 PM	CBSSN
Louisiana Tech at UAB	12:00 PM	WNYO
Penn State at Indiana	12:00 PM	BTN
SMU at Tulsa	12:00 PM	CBSSN
Georgia at Kentucky	12:00 PM	TSN3
Iowa at Minnesota	12:00 PM	TSN4
Presbyterian at Ole Miss	12:00 PM	TSN1
Georgia Tech at NC State	12:30 PM	WSBK
Notre Dame at Arizona State	3:30 PM	ABC
FIU at Old Dominion	3:30 PM	WNYO
Texas A&M at Auburn	3:30 PM	CBS
Army vs. Connecticut (in Yankee Stadium)	3:30 PM	CBSSN
Towson at Villanova	7:00 PM	WNYO
Boise State at New Mexico	7:00 PM	CBSSN
Kansas State at TCU	7:30 PM	FOX
Ohio State at Michigan State	8:00 PM	ABC
Alabama at LSU	8:00 PM	CBS
San Jose State at Fresno State	10:30 PM	CBSSN

For once, people without the Super Sports Pack or U.S. College Sports Package get some good-to-great Saturday night college football.  For the better part of this season, the schedule has been average to downright dreadful once the sky starts getting dark.  Also, it’s two big tilts that could shape each conference’s chances at putting a team in the College Football Playoff.  If K-State and tOSU win their games respectively, both conferences fall into a bit of chaos in terms of having a deserving team be in the final four.  I think this is what the SEC is hoping for to be honest.  Then again, if LSU somehow pulls it out against Alabama, then that conference could be in a state of flux.

And now the specialty pack schedule:

Northern Illinois at Ball State (Wed) (Rogers – SD only)	8:00 PM
Buffalo at Ohio (Wed) (Rogers – SD only)	8:00 PM
Bethune-Cookman at Norfolk State (Thu)	7:30 PM
Memphis at Temple (Fri)	7:30 PM
Utah State at Wyoming (Fri)	8:00 PM
Georgia Tech at NC State (SD only)	12:30 PM
Duke at Syracuse (SD only)	12:30 PM
Michigan at Northwestern	3:30 PM
Tulane at Houston (Bell – SD only)	3:30 PM
UT-Martin at Mississippi State	4:00 PM
Virginia at Florida State	6:30 PM
Hawaii at Colorado State (Bell – SD only)	7:00 PM
Louisville at Boston College	7:15 PM
Florida at Vanderbilt	7:30 PM
Oregon at Utah	10:00 PM

A good cross-section of games.  For once, the cable schedule outshines the specialty pack schedule.  Don’t get me wrong, I love the U.S. College Sports Package and the ability to see those ESPN network games I wouldn’t normally receive.  Saying that, I still believe that the cable schedule should always be on par with the specialty pack schedule, if not better than it.  Unfortunately, in our neck of the woods, this puts the onus squarely on TSN since they are the only ones that have the ability (for the most part) to change what games they put on the air.  There are other factors at play, like the CFL, so it’s not exactly cut-and-dry in TSN-land either.  Something they may need to think about starting next season, if possible.  Update: Wisconsin-Purdue will not be shown for some reason.  It may still be on the Rogers schedule, but Bell customers won’t get it.  Also, it looks like Bell has moved SEC Network games to HD and the afternoon and primetime ESPNU games to SD only.

Update #2: Wisconsin-Purdue has shown up despite not being on the guide.  I hate when they do that.

One thing that irks me a tiny bit with this week’s schedule is not being able to get the Marshall-Southern Miss game in this area.  Because ASN has contracts with both Conference USA and the Colonial conference from FCS, they split their games nationally at all three game times (noon, 3:30, 7:00) most of the time.  This Saturday night may be our last chance to actually see, live, Marshall try not to screw up their chances at getting into the New Year’s Six.  What do we get instead?  Towson-Villanova.  Don’t get me wrong.  Normally I’d be fine with this as for an FCS game at least it has two of the better teams playing.  But, come on.  Unless you are an alumnus of one of these schools, will you even consider turning the channel with the quality of games on in primetime?  At least with showing Marshall-So. Miss you will have people going over (even briefly) to get updated on the goings-on.  Not impressed.  This could have been re-arranged better I’m sure.

For the most part, at this point, the Rogers and Bell schedules are complete (for once).  My guess is that with MACTION! this week they have had to up their games and get things out earlier than they normally would.  Thank you Mid-American Conference for helping with that.  Greatly appreciated.  Just wish they did this every week….Rogers and Bell that is.  Either way, if there are any updates, I will keep you notified of them up until game time on Saturday.  I will be live-tweeting throughout the day on Saturday and probably gorging myself on not-so-healthy food so hopefully this weekend turns out to be a good one in the college football world.  Just a reminder I will have the NFL schedule up tomorrow.