Week 2 of the college football season delivered its fair share of high-quality, intense football action. Week 3 should provide more of the same with plenty of top-notch football games on the schedule.
Read on for the five best NCAA football games to watch in Week 3, including the Texas Longhorns vs. the UCLA Bruins and Georgia vs. South Carolina.
[sc:Football ]Top Five Games to Watch in Week 3 of College Football
USC Trojans vs. Boston College Eagles (Saturday, September 13)
Line: USC Trojans (-18.5) at Boston College Eagles (+18.5) – see all NCAAF lines
[sc:NCAA240banner ]The USC Trojans continued their strong start to the season by edging past no. 13 Stanford, 13-10, on Saturday. Andre Heidari was the hero for the Trojans as he kicked a 53-yard field goal with 2:30 remaining to preserve their unbeaten record.
They will look to extend their perfect slate when they face the Boston College Eagles next. The Eagles are coming off a disappointing 30-20 loss to the Pittsburgh Panthers in Week 2 as their quarterback Tyler Murphy struggled with just 10-of-28 passes completed the entire game with only one touchdown against two interceptions.
Writer’s Prediction: The Trojans preserve their unbeaten mark and go 3-0.
Notre Dame Fighting Irish vs. Purdue Boilermakers (Saturday, September 13)
Line: Purdue Boilermakers (+28.5) at Notre Dame Fighting Irish (-28.5) – see all NCAAF lines
It may be the end of an era on Saturday night as two great rivals meet in what is surely a humdinger of an affair before Notre Dame moves to the ACC next season.
The Notre Dame Fighting Irish showed they are one of the teams to beat this season by thrashing their old enemies Michigan Wolverines 31-0 in week 2. It was a dominating performance on both sides of the ball as they snapped Michigan’s NCAA record streak of games without being shut out at 376.
Purdue, on the other hand, had a miserable Week 2 as they lost 38-17 to Mid-American Conference team Central Michigan.
Danny Etling struggled for the Boilermakers completing just 17-of-32 passes for a measly 126 yards and two interceptions. He was replaced in the fourth quarter by backup QB Austin Appleby and it will be interesting to see whether head coach Darrell Hazell will make the switch permanent in the game against Notre Dame on Saturday.
Writer’s Prediction: Notre Dame cruises to an easy win over Purdue.
Iowa Hawkeyes vs. Iowa State Cyclones (Saturday, September 13)
Line: Iowa Hawkeyes (-11) at Iowa State Cyclones (+11) – see all NCAAF lines
The state of Iowa will be at a standstill this coming Saturday as two of its biggest schools square off to renew their budding football rivalry. The Iowa Hawkeyes are on a high after defeating the Ball State Cardinals 17-13 to go 2-0 after Week 2 of NCAA action.
The Hawkeyes will put their unbeaten record on the line against their state rivals the Iowa State Cyclones who are struggling mightily in the early part of this season. The Cyclones have lost their first two games, both at home, allowing 33 points and 488.5 total yards per game in those two losses. The Cyclones are 7-3 ATS in their last 10 meetings with Iowa.
See our complete preview and prediction for this game here.
Writer’s Prediction: Iowa wins to go 3-0.
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Georgia Bulldogs vs. South Carolina Gamecocks (Saturday, September 13)
Line: Georgia Bulldogs (-6) at South Carolina Gamecocks (+6) – view all NCAAF lines
The South Carolina Gamecocks complete their three-game opening home stand when they face the Georgia Bulldogs this coming Saturday. The Gamecocks rebounded from their humiliating 52-28 defeat to Texas A&M on opening week by beating the East Carolina Pirates 33-23 in Week 2.
They will have to step it up though against the Georgia Bulldogs who beat them 41-30 last season. The Bulldogs climbed to no. 6 in the rankings by virtue of their 45-21 demolition of no. 16 Clemson Tigers on opening weekend. Todd Gurley was the star of the show for the Bulldogs as the Heisman Trophy candidate rushed for 198 yards with three touchdowns in the game against the Tigers last August 30.
Writer’s Prediction: The Bulldogs preserve their unbeaten mark and go 2-0.
UCLA Bruins vs. Texas Longhorns (Saturday, September 13)
Line: Texas Longhorns (+7.5) at UCLA Bruins (-7.5) – view all NCAAF lines
The UCLA Bruins look to extend their perfect 2-0 record when they face the Texas Longhorns this coming Saturday. The Bruins were far from convincing in their win against the Memphis Tigers as they barely escaped with a 42-35 victory.
Quarterback Brett Hundley starred for the Bruins as he completed 33-of-44 passes for 396 yards and three touchdowns with one interception. He will be confident though facing a Texas side that were once again mightily beaten by the BYU Cougars in their last game.
Last year, the Cougars ran for a school-record 550 yards en route to a 40-21 shock victory. This year, it was basically more of the same as Taysom Hill and the rest of the Cougars ran roughshod over the Longhorns defense for a comprehensive 41-7 victory that sent Texas crashing down to 1-1.
UCLA is 3-1 in their four meetings with Texas. Check out our full preview for this game here.
Writer’s Prediction: UCLA will dominate an injury-plagued Texas side.
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