The Big Three

The college football season is finally upon us! The anticipation of finding out where College Gameday will set up camp, the hope of watching the performance that defines a Heisman Trophy campaign, the upset of the year, the breakout team no one expected to be great, it's all here! Now, I'll confess I'm not one of the total diehards who lives for the beginning of college football. I AM a passionate college football fan and I try to keep up with what's going on around the country, but this isn't my favorite sport. Come talk to me in October for the beginning of college basketball or March for the beginning of the NCAA Tournament and I'll tell you all about why basketball is my favorite sport, but it doesn't mean I don't get excited about some college football!

Today, I want to look at three college football games I'm interested in this weekend. Two of these games are receiving a great deal of national attention and they feature possible Heisman trophy candidates and BCS bowl contenders. However, one game features two unranked teams who have no big stars, no big name coaches, and no expectations for making a BCS game in January. The games I'm most intrigued by are: Oregon vs. Boise State, Georgia vs. Oklahoma State, Minnesota vs. Syracuse. Let's take a look at the match-ups.

No. 16 Oregon vs. No. 14 Boise State

Boise, ID, Thursday, 10:15 PM Eastern (ESPN)

It's rare that we get to see a team play it's biggest game of the season in their opening game, but that's the case for Boise State. The Broncos are a popular pick to go undefeated and serve as the BCS-buster this season, but they face a tough task in their first game against the Oregon Ducks. I wonder if Boise State will feel any pressure playing in front of their home crowd at night in such a big game, or if they'll be able to feed off the crowd energy and enthusiasm. In redshirt sophomore quarterback, Kellen Moore, Boise State has a leader who has already played in big games and shown he can lead his team to victory, so we'll see how the rest of his teammates perform. And doesn't it seem like Oregon is a program that never really gets the respect they deserve going into a season? People rarely talk about the Ducks, but they consistently contend for Pac-10 titles and finish in the top 10-20 in the rankings every year. Mike Bellotti built a solid program in Eugene, but now we'll see if Chip Kelly, the new Oregon head coach, can continue that success. Also, I'll tune in to this game just to see what uniforms Oregon breaks out to start the season.

No. 13 Georgia vs. No. 9 Oklahoma State

Stillwater, OK, Saturday, 3:30 PM Eastern (ABC)

Whenever you get a game with Oklahoma State, there's the potential for a shoot-out. The Cowboys feature a three-headed monster on the offensive side of the ball in Zac Robinson, Kendall Hunter, and Dez Bryant; and coach Mike Gundy has shown plenty of offensive creativity in being able to put points on the board. After all, HE'S A MAN! HE'S 40! However, the Cowboys will be going up a Georgia defensive unit that is expected to be much improved from last season. The Bulldogs feature one of the premiere tandems of defensive tackles in the country in Geno Atkins and Jeff Owens, and Rennie Curran is being talked about as one of the best linebackers in college football. Will the Cowboys offensive line be able to protect Zac Robinson and give him time to find Dez Bryant? Or will the Bulldogs defensive line control the line of scrimmage and create blitzing opportunities for the linebackers and safeties? Another thing I'm interested to see in this game is whether or not Dez Bryant is really worth all the hype. He has great overall statistics, but he had a tendency to disappear in the big games for the Cowboys last season. In their four games against Texas, Missouri, Oklahoma, & Texas Tech, Bryant never had 100 yards receiving and didn't record a touchdown in three of the four games. If Bryant is going to truly emerge as a Heisman Trophy candidate, he'll need to shine in the games where everyone is watching.

Minnesota vs. Syracuse

Syracuse, NY, Saturday, 12:00 PM Eastern (ESPN2)

I don't think I've ever been interested in a Minnesota football game in my life and they aren't really the reason I'm interested in this game. The Gophers were a feel-good story last year until they fell apart down the stretch and lost six straight games, but the program appears to be headed in the right direction; but does anyone outside the state of Minnesota actually care? Now, I'm not sure people around the country cared about Syracuse football (I know I didn't) until a couple weeks ago when they named Greg Paulus their starting quarterback. For those who don't know, Paulus spent the last four years playing basketball for Duke and he has been away from football since his senior year in high school. After graduating from Duke this past spring, Paulus pursued the possibility of joining a football program (Syracuse, because it's his hometown) and seeing if he could contribute as a quarterback for a season. I thought it would a good story and Greg might get to play in a couple games, but he's been named the starter and the team captain! The work ethic and commitment Paulus has displayed has been remarkable and I really hope he has a great season for the Orange. Unfortunately, he had trouble dealing with injuries in his four year career at Duke and he probably will not have a great deal of talent around him in Syracuse, so it could be a bumpy road for the little guy with the lion's heart.