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CFB TV Guide and Open Thread

It is going to be a huge day in CFB today. And we are right here.

NCAA Football: College Game Day-Richmond at James Madison Brad Mills-USA TODAY Sports

In the year 1900, civil engineers unleashed a series of freshly dug canals and channel locks in quite literally reversing the flow of the Chicago River. The engineering marvel essentially solved the problem of water-borne disease that had as recently as 1885 been responsible for killing 12% of Chicago’s population.

That was big.

Frederic Bartholdi’s dream became a reality nearly 11 years after his work began in New York Harbor. Lady Liberty was introduced to the world in October 1886, three years before the Eiffel Tower would be constructed in Paris. Since then, the Statue of Liberty has been a symbol of hope, freedom and peace to people from all across the globe.

That was big.

In 2008, the work product of tens of thousands of engineers from over 100 countries became a reality when the European Organization for Nuclear Research unveiled the single largest machine ever built by mankind in Geneva, Switzerland. The Large Hadron Collider is a particle collider that is allowing scientists to pursue the most bold theories presented in the world of quantum physics including ideas on interdimensional transport.

That was big.

And now I bring you to Week 3 of the College Football 2016 season. Ok, it may not be as big as the Chicago River, Statue of Liberty or Hadron Collider, but it will be big by sports standards. There may not be a more meaningful week of football the remainder of the season when it comes to stacking up post-season resumes for teams that are contending.

Here are some things that I’ll be watching.

The Road to the Playoffs Goes Through the South...

Many are buzzing that the SEC may not be the first or, even, second best conference in CFB this year.

That may or may not be true. Regardless, it is hard to imagine a scenario where the playoffs don’t go through the South. The biggest matchup today is Alabama’s road trip to Ole Miss.

Ole Miss has won two in a row in this series, including a dramatic six-point victory in Tuscaloosa last year. However, Ole Miss needed all of five turnovers to squeak out that win. I don’t see that happening today. The conditions are going to be wet and mushy in Mississippi today. That bodes well for the Tide.

...Or This South

ESPN College Gameday is in Louisville today to cover the matchup between #2 Florida State and #10 Louisville. There is no doubt this game has enormous playoff implications. I suspect that many of you are looking to me to pick the Louisville upset.

I’d love to.

But I can’t see it happening. Mostly because we haven’t actually seen Louisville play anybody with anything resembling a college level defense. There is no doubt that the Cards can rack up points, but I don’t know if they have enough to outscore the immensely talented Seminoles, freshman QB or not.

The Upset Pick

I try to pick an upset - a real upset - every weekend. Sometimes I have more conviction than in other times. I felt very strongly about Houston beating Oklahoma two weeks ago and now, here we are, with the Cougars having a clear line of sight to the playoffs. Last week, I felt an “urge” but not a conviction to pick Virginia Tech. That was close, but not quite.

So, where do we go this week? And how strongly will I feel about it?

FCS North Dakota State is traveling to #13 Iowa today and my upset radar is blowing up. The last five times NDSU has traveled to visit an FBS opponent, they won. Let me repeat that, NDSU has a FIVE GAME WINNING STREAK ON THE ROAD AGAINST FBS OPPONENTS.

Are you kidding me?

The Hawkeyes are feeling pretty good about themselves coming off of a huge blowout over rival Iowa State last weekend. They might be feeling pretty good about themselves. A feeling of satisfaction combined with the fact that NDSU athletes have been playing against Iowa athletes all of their lives has me thinking that this is an upset special. I’m going with NDSU in a tight one today.

This is your open thread post for college football. We have the full schedule below. Enjoy.

Week 3 College Football Schedule

Thursday, Sept. 15, 2016
Matchup Time (ET) TV / Streaming
(6) Houston at Cincinnati 7:30 p.m. ESPN / WatchESPN
Friday, Sept. 16, 2016
Matchup Time (ET) TV / Streaming
(21) Baylor at Rice 8:00 p.m. ESPN / WatchESPN
Arkansas State at Utah State 9:00 p.m. CBSSN / CBSSports.com
Arizona State at UTSA 9:30 p.m. ESPN2 / WatchESPN
Saturday, Sept. 17, 2016
Matchup Time (ET) TV / Streaming
(2) Florida State at (10) Louisville Noon ABC / WatchESPN
Georgia State at (9) Wisconsin Noon BTN / BTN2Go
Ohio at (15) Tennessee Noon SECN / WatchESPN
(25) Miami (FL) at Appalachian State Noon ESPN / WatchESPN
South Carolina State at (5) Clemson Noon RSN / WatchESPN
North Dakota State at (13) Iowa Noon ESPN2 / WatchESPN
Iowa State at TCU Noon FS1 / FS Go
Kansas at Memphis Noon ESPNU / WatchESPN
Temple at Penn State Noon BTN / BTN2Go
New Mexico at Rutgers Noon ESPNEWS / WatchESPN
Middle Tennessee at Bowling Green Noon ASN / ESPN3
Akron at Marshall Noon CBSSN / CBSSports.com
Vanderbilt at Georgia Tech 12:30 p.m. ACCN / ACCNExtra
Virginia at UConn 1:30 p.m. SNY / ESPN3
Idaho at Washington State 2:00 p.m. Pac-12N / Pac-12.com
North Carolina A&T at Tulsa 2:00 p.m. ESPN3
Florida Atlantic at Kansas State 2:30 p.m. FSN / FS Go
UNLV at Central Michigan 3:00 p.m. ESPN3
Fresno State at Toledo 3:00 p.m. ESPN Extra / ESPN3
Eastern Kentucky at Ball State 3:00 p.m. ESPN3
(1) Alabama at (19) Ole Miss 3:30 p.m. CBS / CBSSports.com
Colorado at (4) Michigan 3:30 p.m. BTN / BTN2Go
(22) Oregon at Nebraska 3:30 p.m. ABC / WatchESPN
Pittsburgh at Oklahoma State 3:30 p.m. ESPN / WatchESPN
Boston College at Virginia Tech 3:30 p.m. ESPNU / WatchESPN
USF at Syracuse 3:30 p.m. ACCNExtra
James Madison at North Carolina 3:30 p.m. RSN / WatchESPN
San Diego State at Northern Illinois 3:30 p.m. CBSSN / CBSSports.com
Western Kentucky at Miami (OH) 3:30 p.m. ESPN Extra/BCSN/TWC / ESPN3
FIU at UMass 3:30 p.m. ASN / ESPN3
Monmouth at Kent State 3:30 p.m. ESPN3
East Carolina at South Carolina 4:00 p.m. SECN / WatchESPN
New Mexico State at Kentucky 4:00 p.m. SECN alternate / WatchESPN
Western Michigan at Illinois 4:00 p.m. ESPNEWS / WatchESPN
Northern Colorado at Colorado State 4:00 p.m. ROOT Sports / MWN
UC Davis at Wyoming 4:00 p.m. WyoVision / MWN
Idaho State at Oregon State 5:00 p.m. Pac-12N / Pac-12.com
Old Dominion at NC State 6:00 p.m. ACCNExtra / WatchESPN
ULM at Georgia Southern 6:00 p.m. ESPN3
Eastern Michigan at Charlotte 6:00 p.m. CUSA.TV
Delaware at Wake Forest 6:30 p.m. ACCNExtra / WatchESPN
(17) Texas A&M at Auburn 7:00 p.m. ESPN / WatchESPN
Mississippi State at (20) LSU 7:00 p.m. ESPN2 / WatchESPN
Louisiana Tech at Texas Tech 7:00 p.m. FSN / FS Go
Maryland at UCF 7:00 p.m. CBSSN / CBSSports.com
Navy at Tulane 7:00 p.m. ASN/NESN / ESPN3
Army at UTEP 7:00 p.m. ASN
South Alabama at UL Lafayette 7:00 p.m. ESPN3
Troy at Southern Miss 7:00 p.m. beIN SPORTS
Liberty at SMU 7:00 p.m. ESPN3
(3) Ohio State at (14) Oklahoma 7:30 p.m. FOX / FS Go
(12) Michigan State at (18) Notre Dame 7:30 p.m. NBC / NBCSports.com
(16) Georgia at Missouri 7:30 p.m. SECN / WatchESPN
North Texas at (23) Florida 7:30 p.m. ESPNU / WatchESPN
Texas State at (24) Arkansas 7:30 p.m. SECN alternate / WatchESPN
USC at (7) Stanford 8:00 p.m. ABC / WatchESPN
Portland State at (8) Washington 8:00 p.m. Pac-12N / Pac-12.com
Duke at Northwestern 8:00 p.m. BTN / BTN2Go
Buffalo at Nevada 9:00 p.m. MWN
UCLA at BYU 10:15 p.m. ESPN2 / WatchESPN
(11) Texas at California 10:30 p.m. ESPN / WatchESPN
Utah at San Jose State 10:30 p.m. CBSSN / CBSSports.com
Hawaii at Arizona 10:45 p.m. Pac-12N / Pac-12.com

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