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Before we begin our regular weekend preview, the rescheduling has disrupted the party again. Here’s what you need to know.

Is the Pac-12 Back?

Four schools join the competition

Boise State, San Diego State, Colorado State And State of Fresno (all from the Group of 5 Mountain West Conference) will join the nearly defunct Pac-12 in 2026, the conference announced today. Expansion gutted the conference last summer, leaving Washington State And Oregon State as the only remaining members. The addition of four schools is a sign of progress for the Pac-12’s rebuilding effort, but it still needs to gain eight members to remain an FBS conference.

Next week we’ll dive deeper into what this means, but here’s a taste of what we’ll cover today: the impact on the College Football Playoff (does an automatic bid trump TV revenue?), on other conferences (is the ACC vulnerable?), and which programs could be next (obvious targets like MWC members Air Force and UNLV or expansion into Texas for UTSA and North Texas?).

Also listen to our podcast “See you Saturday” where the crew explains today’s moves.

Friday night lighting

Big 12 vs. Big 12 Non-Conference Game

With so many fun Friday night games this season, it’s time to dedicate a section to what to watch on Friday nights (check out the full Week 3 schedule here). All times ET:

• UNLV at Kansas (7 p.m., ESPN). Manny Navarro predicts the Rebels will eclipse the 200-yard mark in the running game and beat the Jayhawks in this week’s oddly specific predictions.
• No. 20 Arizona vs. No. 14 Kansas State (8 p.m., Fox). As a matchup between two of the Big 12’s best teams, this should have conference title implications. But … it’s not actually a conference game at all. Arizona and Kansas State scheduled this home-and-away series in 2016, and agreed to keep it as part of their non-conference schedules after realignment. Arizona is on a nine-game winning streak — the longest active streak in the FBS.

Saturday Slate

The schedule looks light for now

This weekend’s schedule is pretty light — no late-night ranked matchups — but if Northern Illinois taught us anything last week, it’s that we should never rule out an unexpected thriller. Here’s a look at the matchups for every ranked team on Saturday. The darker the highlight = the greater the intrigue.

Early

Key game: No. 16 LSU vs. South Carolina. “College GameDay” is heading to Columbia, SC for the first time in 10 years. No one really knows what to make of the Gamecocks after they held off Old Dominion in Week 1 and knocked off Kentucky in Week 2. Meanwhile, LSU is a bit of a mystery, especially after needing a 21-point third quarter to separate themselves from FCS Nicholls last week (QB Garrett Nussmeier threw six TD passes in the win). LSU is favored by a touchdown, but I expect a narrow win here.

Most Underrated Game: No. 4 Alabama vs. Wisconsin. The last time Alabama made the trip was in 1928, when the Crimson Tide took a 24-hour train ride to Madison. Nearly a century later, the matchup is a similarly intriguing Big Ten vs. SEC affair. The Badgers’ first two outings haven’t inspired much confidence, but Alabama has its flaws. Will the Crimson Tide bounce back from a lackluster win over USF, or will Luke Fickell pull off one of the biggest wins in Wisconsin history?

Afternoon

Key game: No. 9 Oregon vs. Oregon State. This window has potential for Pac-12 revenge. The Beavers have a perfect opportunity — at home, no less — to take advantage of an Oregon team that has not lived up to expectations. The Ducks needed a last-second field goal to beat Boise State last week, and the offense hasn’t been as electric as in previous seasons. Oregon State has easily defeated Idaho State and San Diego State, but this will be their biggest test yet.

Most Underrated Game: Washington State vs. Washington, at Lumen Field in Seattle, Washington (3:30 p.m., Peacock). The Apple Cup rivalry features two teams in a bit of a rebuilding period. New Huskies coach Jedd Fisch is picking up the pieces from last year’s national runner-up team (his team is a 4.5-point favorite). Mississippi State transfer QB Will Rogers has looked consistent through two games, while Wazzu QB John Mateer has flashed his dual-threat skills, setting a program record for rushing yards by a QB with 197 against Texas Tech.

Night

Key game: No. 1 Georgia vs. Kentucky. Let’s think back to the last time Georgia went to Lexington … the 10-0 Bulldogs survived a 16-6 scare that was far too close for comfort. This year, it should be more lopsided. Wildcats QB — and former Georgia reserve — Brock Vandagriff was limited to 30 passing yards against South Carolina. Meanwhile, Georgia’s 34-3 win over Clemson in Week 1 may be more impressive than we initially thought.

Most Underrated Game: Colorado vs. Colorado State (7:30 p.m., CBS). We have another intrastate rivalry coming into the night window, and this one comes with a lot of emotion. Colorado State WR Tory Horton said this week that the Rams “should have killed” the Buffs in last week’s double OT thriller in Boulder, won by Deion Sanders’ team. With the Rams playing at home this year, they’ll be looking to get the rivalry revenge that Nebraska exacted on the Buffs last week. Colorado safety Shilo Sanders won’t be in the game with a broken arm, but the Buffs still enter the matchup as touchdown favorites.

Need tickets to games? Go here. Watch games on Fubo.

Best Bets

What to look out for

I asked again The Athletics‘s Austin Mock for three of his best bets this weekend. Here’s what he told me:

• LSU -7 (-110): South Carolina’s offense has had a slow start to the season, barely getting past Old Dominion before rebounding against an overrated Kentucky team. LSU will prove too efficient on offense to keep the Gamecocks in the limit.
• Texas A&M at Florida under 47.5 (-110, 3:30 p.m., ABC): Florida struggled on offense against Miami two weeks ago, and now it’s going to face a similar defense in Texas A&M. As for the Aggies, the offense looked completely lost against Notre Dame in the opener. I don’t expect either offense to show up on Saturday.
• TCU money line (+110) (UCF at TCU, 7:30 p.m., Fox): UCF has gone 2-9 over the last two seasons against Power 4 opponents that didn’t advance from the Group of 5. I’m not much of a trendsetter, but that doesn’t give me confidence that UCF is a favorite going into a road game against a solid TCU team.

Read the rest of Austin’s best bets for Week 3 here.

Until Saturday’s Upset Special (1-0): Tulane 21 (+13.5) at No. 15 Oklahoma 16

I’m 1-0 on upset specials after Syracuse QB Kyle McCord threw for four TDs (his second straight week) in the Orange’s 31-28 win over Georgia Tech. This week, I’m picking Tulane over an Oklahoma team that looked vulnerable last week against Houston. The Sooners offense has sputtered a bit in the first two weeks with first-year starting QB Jackson Arnold still adjusting to the system behind a shaky offensive line. The Green Wave are never easy outs; they’re on a 10-game winning streak (their last straight regular-season loss came at Memphis on Nov. 27, 2021). Let’s make it 11.

Quick Snaps

Alabama coach Kalen DeBoer was a guest on the “Until Saturday” podcast this week to discuss Jalen Milroe’s development, GM Courtney Morgan’s strengths (like attention to detail and relationship building), and more.

Boise State RB Ashton Jeanty leads the nation in yards rushing (459), rushing touchdowns (nine) and forced missed tackles (22) through two games. Chris Kamrani has the story behind the early Heisman frontrunner.

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(Top photo: Ali Gradischer/Getty Images)