There are always many questions heading into a weekend of college football.
One will be answered on Thursday, while a marque match-up may present more questions on Saturday.
Ranked No. 2 in the AP Top 25, Baylor (7-0, 4-0) visits Kansas State (3-4, 0-4) on Thursday for a Big 12 contest with a new starting quarterback.
Junior Bears quarterback Seth Russell suffered a season-ending neck injury two weeks ago in a 45-27 win over Iowa State.
With a bye week helping with the preparation, freshman Jarrett Stidham will be in control of the Baylor offense.
“All I can do is go by on what I’ve seen,” Baylor Head Coach Art Briles said during his weekly press conference. “That’s kind of how you judge people by, about what you see and what you hear.”
“I’ve been doing it 37 years,” Briles added. “I’d be totally shocked if he’s not very composed, very competitive, very intelligent, and very on cue, with everything he does Thursday for our football team.”
Stidham has played in all seven of Baylor’s games. He has completed 24-of-28 passes for 331 yards and six touchdowns. Russell ended the season with 2,104 yards and 29 touchdowns as he completed 119-of-200 passes.
Focus on Tuscaloosa
A Southeastern Conference tilt that features a pair of AP Top 10 teams will have the nation’s attention on Saturday as No. 4 LSU (7-0, 4-0) travels to No. 7 Alabama (7-1, 4-1). The result likely will shake up the rankings.
The affair took on some added importance this week when the College Football Playoff committee announced its initial rankings on Tuesday. LSU is in the second spot, while Alabama is fourth.
“I can always tell you that this is a special week for us,” LSU Head Coach Les Miles said. “We look forward to playing Alabama. They’re a very talented team, very capable team, and we look forward to playing in big games, and so many times it’s difficult to muster the emotion and the passion when you lineup against a team that does not necessarily have the same name recognition as a very quality opponent in Alabama.”
Alabama Head Coach Nick Saban echoed that sentiment.
“We have had some great games with LSU through the years,” Saban said. “This has turned out to be a great rivalry, and I think it’s a great rivalry because of the quality of the programs.”
“I think six or seven times since I’ve been here both teams have been ranked in the Top 10, and that’s obviously a credit to the great job Les Miles has done in the 11 years he’s been there,” Saban continued. “Their players and the way they compete, and the quality of players that they have is because of the great job of coaching that they do.”
The match-up has the top two running backs in the SEC. LSU’s Leonard Fournette leads the nation with 1,352 yards on the ground with 15 touchdowns on 176 carries. Alabama’s Derrick Henry is second in the SEC and ninth in the country with 1,044 yards rushing in 180 attempts with 14 scores.
Other Top 25 Match-ups
Clemson (8-0, 5-0) is ranked third in the AP poll and in the top spot by the College Playoff committee. The Tigers entertain No. 17 Florida State (7-1, 5-1).
No. 5 TCU (8-0, 5-0) starts a rough stretch in Big 12 play with a trip to No. 12 Oklahoma State (8-0, 5-0).
Thursday-Friday games
No. 24 Mississippi State (6-2, 2-2) is at Missouri (4-4, 1-4) on Thursday, while No. 23 Temple (7-1, 4-0) faces SMU (1-7, 0-4) on the road.
Here are the rest of the AP Top 25 games on Saturday: Minnesota (4-4, 1-3) at No. 1 Ohio State (8-0, 4-0), No. 6 Michigan State (8-0, 4-0) at Nebraska (3-6, 1-4), No. 8 Notre Dame (7-1) at Pittsburgh (6-2), No. 9 Stanford (7-1, 6-0) at Colorado (4-5, 1-4), No. 10 Iowa (8-0, 4-0) at Indiana (4-4, 0-4), Vanderbilt (3-5, 1-3) at No. 11 Florida (7-1, 5-1), No. 13 Utah (7-1, 4-1) at Washington (4-4, 2-3), Iowa State (3-5, 2-3) at No. 14 Oklahoma (7-1, 5-1), Navy (6-1, 4-0) at No. 15 Memphis (8-0, 4-0), Rutgers (3-5, 1-4) at No. 16 Michigan (6-2, 3-1), Cincinnati (5-3, 2-2) at No. 18 Houston (8-0, 4-0), Arkansas (4-4, 2-2) at No. 19 Mississippi (7-2, 4-1), Duke (6-2, 3-1) at No. 21 North Carolina (7-1, 4-0), No. 22 UCLA (6-2, 3-2) at Oregon State (2-6, 0-5) and Auburn (4-4, 1-4) at No. 25 Texas A&M (6-2, 3-2).
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