Laken Litman

American Football and College Soccer Analyst

Last week, college football fans watched as Arch Manning stepped in for the injured Quinn Ewers and led Texas, now the No. 1 team in the country, to a convincing 56-7 victory over UTSA. Manning threw for 223 yards and four touchdowns, while also adding a 67-yard rushing score that will give Longhorns fans flashbacks to Vince Young. This Saturday, Manning gets his first college start when Texas takes on UL Monroe at home.

We also saw Georgia, now the second-best team in the country, struggle to eventually defeat Kentucky 13-12. While the scoreline surprised some, Bulldogs coach Kirby Smart praised his team’s resilience. Smart’s teams have overcome these types of games in the past, and there’s no reason to believe they won’t do the same this year as the opponents on their schedule get tougher.

Meanwhile, Alabama looked like a College Football Playoff contender in a 42-10 win over Wisconsin in Madison. Behind a healthy offensive line, quarterback Jalen Milroe threw for five touchdowns and is back in the Heisman Trophy discussion.

The schedule for week 4 looks equally attractive, with several showdowns between the top 25 opponents.

Here are the five best matches to watch this weekend:

No. 24 Illinois at no. 22 Nebraska (Friday at 8pm ET on FOX)

Nebraska will face its first opponent under the lights on Friday night in Lincoln. Huskers quarterback Dylan Raiola is sharp in his debut season. In last week’s 34-3 win over Northern Iowa, Raiola completed 17 of 23 passes for 247 yards with two touchdowns and one interception. He’ll have a new challenge this week, facing the best defense he’s seen all year. Illinois is limiting opponents to 151.7 passing yards per game and has thrown six interceptions through three games.

Both teams have done an admirable job of preventing opponents from scoring: the Huskers have given up just 20 points through three games, while the Illini have allowed 26.

Marshall at no. 3 State of Ohio (Noon ET on FOX)

Ohio State hasn’t had a real challenge yet this season, and that won’t start this weekend when Marshall comes to town. The Buckeyes have only played two games this season and are coming off a week of inactivity. While the Thundering Herd may not be a top 25 team, Ryan Day needs to make sure his team is prepared and doesn’t overlook their opponent. The last thing Ohio State needs right now is to be stunned the same way Notre Dame was at home by Northern Illinois a few weeks ago.

The Buckeyes should enjoy this early slate of games, though, because once October rolls around, the schedule gets tougher. They travel to No. 9 Oregon on Oct. 12, face No. 22 Nebraska at home on Oct. 26, and then travel to No. 10 Penn State on Nov. 2. Things will slow down again after that before taking on Michigan in the final game of the regular season. With a weaker strength of schedule when it comes to non-conference play, the Buckeyes will need to beat the teams they’re supposed to beat to stay atop the CFP rankings.

No. 11 USC at no. 18 Michigan (3:30 p.m. ET on CBS)

It’s Alex Orji’s time at Michigan. Head coach Sherrone Moore announced earlier this week that he would start Orji at quarterback in place of Davis Warren, who had started the previous three games. Orji is a dual-threat quarterback, but has only seven passing attempts in his college career. Primarily a runner, Orji has 10 carries this season and is averaging 5.8 yards per rush.

How will USC’s defense contain Orji? The good news for the Trojans is that they’ve had plenty of time to prepare, as Moore has given them a heads-up. New defensive coordinator D’Anton Lynn will want to stop the run and put pressure on Orji, forcing him to throw the ball. Michigan could also be without star tight end Colston Loveland, who leads the team with 19 catches for 187 yards and a touchdown. The junior suffered an upper-body injury in last week’s Wolverines game against Arkansas State and his status is currently unknown, though Moore is hopeful he will be available.

No. 12 Utah at no. 14 State of Oklahoma (4:00pm ET on FOX)

The winner of this race is the favorite to win the Big 12 from the start.

Utah’s Cam Rising missed last week’s game against Utah State after injuring his finger the week before against Baylor. While there is no definitive update on the QB’s status, the plan is for Rising to play in what could be the Utes’ first and last true test of the regular season. They don’t have to play a top 25 team again until No. 20 Iowa State visits Salt Lake City on Nov. 23. Not only will Utah need Rising to pull off an upset against the Cowboys in front of a raucous crowd in Stillwater, but the Utes’ defense will also have to contain last season’s Doak Walker Award winner, Ollie Gordon II.

In his second year at Oklahoma State, quarterback Alan Bowman is completing 67 percent of his passes for an average of 322.3 yards per game. In last week’s 45-0 win over Tulsa, he had 396 passing yards with five touchdowns and one interception. De’Zhaun Stribling had 174 yards and two touchdowns, while Talyn Shettron had 110 yards and one TD. Coach Mike Gundy has said he’s not worried about his running game, but it would certainly be ideal if Gordon could get going. After rushing for 126 yards and three touchdowns in the Cowboys’ opener, Gordon hasn’t rushed for more than 50 yards in each of the last two games. Oklahoma State plays back-to-back Utah and Kansas State, so this would be a good time to get Gordon into a rhythm.

No. 6 Tennessee at no. 15 Oklahoma (7:30 p.m. ET on ABC)

This will be Nico Iamaleava’s first real road test. Tennessee’s young quarterback has been efficient and is quickly becoming a future Heisman Trophy winner. How will he fare against a Brent Venables defense? Oklahoma has had its own struggles to start the season, but it still has a top-30 unit that has allowed just 11.3 points per game. Linebacker Danny Stutsman has 33 tackles in three games (second most in the SEC), while lineman R Mason Thomas has been able to consistently pressure quarterbacks and has three sacks (also second most in the SEC).

It also marks a homecoming for Tennessee coach Josh Huepel, who was the Heisman Trophy runner-up in 2000, the same season he led the Sooners to a national championship. Huepel began his coaching career in Norman as a graduate assistant and later served as quarterbacks coach and co-offensive coordinator under Bob Stoops, along with Venables, who was OU’s defensive coordinator at the time.

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Laken Litman covers football, basketball, and soccer for FOX Sports. She previously wrote for Sports Illustrated, USA Today, and The Indianapolis Star. She is the author of “Strong Like a Woman,” to be published in spring 2022 in celebration of the 50th anniversary of Title IX. Follow her on Twitter @LakenLitman.

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