All you non-BCS conferences? Attention. Your Christmas has arrived.
It’s Texas Christian (9-0, 5-0 Mountain West), third in the BCS rankings, at Utah (8-0, 5-0), No. 5 in BCS, for an elimination of what could be a national championship berth. Yes, the Mountain West is as bottom-heavy as Mark Mangino, but this might be its best chance to reach a national title game.
Saturday’s winner will need top- ranked Oregon or second-ranked Auburn to stumble and hope the likes of No. 6 Alabama either loses again or doesn’t get kicked upstairs by the computers.
With a win, Utah should leapfrog No. 4 Boise State, which hosts Hawaii.
But forget the ramifications for a moment. For pure theater, this will be Broadway in the Wasatch. TCU, a 4 1/2-point favorite, leads the nation in total defense (217.33 yards per game) for the third year in a row and also leads in scoring defense (8.67 points per game) and passing defense (119.0 ypg).
Only Oregon State and Southern Methodist have scored more than one touchdown versus TCU, and the Horned Frogs have given up all of two TDs in their last five games.
Meanwhile, the surprising Utes are scoring 45.25 points a game, third in the nation, and have the nation’s most dangerous punt returner in — and we are not making up his name — Shaky Smithson (23.33 yards per return).
With BYU leaving the Mountain West for oblivion, TCU could become a major rival for the Utes, though they’re leaving for the Pac-12. The Frogs rolled last year 55-28 but lost in Salt Lake City two years ago, when the Utes went on to stun Alabama in the Sugar Bowl.
Utah has won 21 straight at home.
Colorado (3-5, 0-4 Big 12) at Kansas (2-6, 0-4)
Noon, Memorial Stadium
CU has lost 16 straight games outside the state of Colorado. The Buffs are favored by 8 1/2 points. Will this be the one? Of the road skid, CU senior cornerback Jimmy Smith said: “It’s sickening to me. . . . We go on the road, and it’s like we can’t tie our shoes together for some reason.” Count on this: Like other CU opponents in recent weeks, KU figures to load the box on defense to stop the run and dare the Buffs to throw. Cody Hawkins completed just 17-of-44 passes last week against Oklahoma. “We’ve got to find a way to get the ball out of there,” CU assistant coach Darian Hagan said. Tom Kensler
Colorado State (3-6, 2-3 MWC) at San Diego St. (6-2, 3-1)
8 p.m., Qualcomm Stadium, MTN
San Diego State is the top passing offense in the MWC and ranks 19th nationally at 283.1 yards a game. This could be a classic strength vs. weakness matchup between the Aztec passing game vs. CSU’s pass defense efficiency woes. The Rams remain healthy, but SDSU QB Ryan Lindley had a sore ankle early in the week, and freshman running back Ronnie Hillman has been hampered by a hip pointer. San Diego State’s schedule is backloaded with MWC heavyweights TCU and Utah following CSU. Aztec starters from Colorado are S Andrew Preston (Arapahoe) and OG Alec Johnson (Mullen). Natalie Meisler
Air Force (5-4, 3-3 MWC) at Army (5-3)
10 a.m., Michie Stadium, CBSCS
Senior Bradley Connor has stepped into the middle of Air Force’s defensive line, replacing the injured Ryan Gardner. He has played in all nine games, and his priority against Army is disrupting the fullback game in the option offense. FB Jared Hassin has 100-plus yards in each of Army’s past three games. In last week’s win over VMI, Hassin gained a career-high 154 yards on 14 carries. If he hits the century mark today, he would tie the school record for consecutive 100-yard games. The Black Knights’ defense has limited six opponents to less than 125 yards on the ground, and four to less than 100. Irv Moss
N. Arizona (4-4, 2-3 Big Sky) at Northern Colorado (2-7, 1-5)
1:30 p.m., Nottingham Field
The Bears will face the conference’s top two receivers in junior Austin Shanks and Daiveun Curry-Chapman. Shanks leads the Big Sky in receptions (54) and receiving yards (468), and Curry-Chapman is second in the league with 47 receptions for 427 yards. UNC’s pass defense is solid, allowing 225.3 yards per game. And the Bears have two of the most dangerous players in the Big Sky in the secondary — cornerback Korey Askew and safety Max Hewitt. They will need to get back to the success they had at the beginning of the season if the Bears want to win this game. Greeley Tribune
Colorado Mines (8-1, 7-0 RMAC) at Chadron State (6-3, 5-2)
Noon, Elliott Field
The Mines offense continues to put up big numbers (466.7 yards per game), and sophomore Cody Renken has helped plenty. Renken is ranked second in the RMAC in all-purpose yardage (161.2 ypg), and last week against Adams State he caught eight passes for 91 yards and amassed 233 all-purpose yards. Chadron TB Dominic Morris is coming in on a roll. He had 195 yards on 10 carries (TD runs of 74 and 64 yards) in a win at Fort Lewis. Senior CB Jed Herblan (Arvada West) got tuned up last week for the Mines’ offense with two pass breakups and 34-yard interception return against Fort Lewis. Denver Post staff
Players to watch
Julio Jones, WR, Alabama
Jones is among the top receivers in the SEC, with 669 yards and three TDs, and he’ll go against LSU CB Patrick Peterson, who is widely regarded as the best cornerback in college football, although he doesn’t have the stats to show for it. 1:30 p.m., KCNC-4
Keith Price, QB, Washington
While Jake Locker recovers from a broken rib, Price gets thrown into the fire with his first career start. The draw for the freshman heir apparent to Locker: top-ranked Oregon. 1:30 p.m., KMGH-7
Ryan Broyles, WR, Oklahoma
Broyles is third in the nation with 1,018 yards receiving, and Texas A&M’s pass defense is 101st in the country, allowing more than 250 a game. Broyles needs nine receptions to break Mark Clayton’s school record of 221 catches. 5 p.m., FSN
Ricky Elmore, DE, Arizona
The Wildcats’ defense leads the Pac-10 with 27 sacks, and the senior leads with seven. Stanford has allowed just three sacks this season. 6 p.m., KMGH-7
