Sophomore wide receiver Richard Smith avoids two Oregon players during a game in 2012. No. 3 Oregon goes head to head with No. 12 UCLA this weekend while the Sun Devils have a bye week. (Photo by State Press Staff)This week features a trio of top-25 matchups from all different conferences. Who will rise to the occasion and who will go down? Find out in this week's Games of the Week.
No. 10 Texas Tech (7-0, 4-0 Big 12) vs. No. 15 Oklahoma (6-1, 3-1 Big 12)
Texas Tech is off to a hot start and has been lighting up scoreboards in the process. The Red Raiders are second in the Big 12 in scoring offense, averaging 41.7 points per game thanks to their blistering aerial assault. They have the No. 1 passing offense in the Big 12 and No. 2 passing offense in the country (416.4 ypg).What Texas Tech does through the air, Oklahoma does on the ground. The Sooners are second in the conference in rushing offense (227.9 ypg) led by senior running back Brennan Clay’s 522 rushing yards and three touchdowns. On top of their bruising offense, the Sooners have the country’s ninth-best defense and fourth-best passing efficiency defense to match up with the Red Raiders' aerial onslaught.
No.12 UCLA (5-1, 2-1 Pac-12) vs. No. 3 Oregon (7-0, 4-0 Pac-12)
UCLA had its first slip up of the season against No. 13 Stanford, but the Bruins won’t have any time to dwell on that loss as they face off against the No. 3 Ducks. Despite the loss, UCLA still remains a threat to anybody, boasting the No. 4 offense and No. 2 scoring defense in the Pac-12, which allows only 19.2 points per game. Much of the Bruins' hopes rest on the shoulders of redshirt sophomore quarterback Brett Hundley, who will have to do better than his 192-yard, one-touchdown, two-interception performance he had against Stanford last week.Oregon might come into this game with a chip on its shoulder after slipping to No. 3 in the first BCS standings of the season. Everyone knows what the Ducks are capable of on offense but their defense might surprise you. Oregon only allows an average of 17.3 points per game. Should the Ducks pull off the W, it sets up a pivotal rematch of last year’s classic against Stanford with national title hopes on the line.
No. 5 Missouri (7-0, 3-0 SEC) vs. No. 21 South Carolina (5-2, 3-2 SEC)
After a pair of impressive wins by the Tigers, this will be the one that determines whether or not Missouri is a real BCS threat. The Tigers have the 11th-ranked offense in the country (513.4 ypg) and proved they can put up points after posting 36 points on a Florida defense that ranks fourth nationally. Redshirt freshman quarterback Maty Mauk did a good job stepping in for injured senior James Franklin. Now it’s time to see if he can do it again against another top-25 defense.The Gamecocks will be looking to rebound after a painful loss to an unranked and, frankly, not great Tennessee team that hadn’t beaten a ranked team in 19 previous tries. Adding insult to injury, South Carolina will be without starting senior quarterback Connor Shaw who hurt his knee late in the fourth quarter.
Small School Game of the Week: Toledo (4-3, 2-1 MAC) vs. Bowling Green (5-2, 3-0 MAC)
The small-school game of the week takes us back to the MAC. The Toledo Rockets do one thing very well, and that’s get the ball to senior running back David Fluellen, the country’s third-leading rusher with 999 yards. The Rockets are also fourth in the conference in scoring, averaging 30.9 points per game.The Falcons barely trail Toledo in scoring offense (30.3 ppg) but are way ahead of the Rockets on defense. Bowling Green has the No. 9 scoring defense in the country, giving up only 17.1 points per game. The Falcon defense is lead by redshirt junior linebacker D.J. Lynch who leads the team in tackles with 41 and tackles for loss with five.
Reach the reporter at ejsmith7@asu.edu or follow him on twitter @EricSmith_SP
