No. 5 Ohio State vs. No. 1 USC
Los Angeles, Calif.
Saturday, ABC 8:00 p.m.

Simply put: This game is the battle for No. 1. Yes, if Ohio State beats USC, it will be ranked at the top of both polls and deservedly so. However, Ohio State – who put in a lethargic and uninspired performance against Ohio last week – will have its hands full with USC’s balanced offense, led by quarterback Mark Sanchez. USC also had a bye week to prepare for the Buckeyes, and you don’t want to give USC coach Pete Carroll an extra week to prepare. Ohio State hopes to have running back Chris “Beanie” Wells back from injury this week but it looks like he’s doubtful. The Buckeyes need Wells to play if they want to fly back to Columbus with a win.

No. 13 Kansas vs. No. 19 South Florida
Tampa, Fla.
ESPN2
Tonight, 8:00 p.m.

Both of these teams were huge surprises last year, and now both meet in an early top 20 showdown. Kansas shut out Louisiana Tech last week, who upset Mississippi State a week before, and South Florida is coming off an overtime win over Central Florida. This game pits two of the nation’s best quarterbacks against each other in Kansas quarterback Todd Reesing and South Florida’s Matt Grothe. Reesing has completed 76.1 percent of his passes while the South Florida offense is averaging 43.5 points per game. This game could come down to which defense can stop the other late in the game.

UCLA vs. No. 18 BYU
Provo, Utah
Vs.
Saturday, 3:30 p.m.

BYU, which has dreams of being an undefeated BCS buster, has to get past UCLA if it wants to crash the party in January. UCLA, which looked to be a Pac-10 bottom feeder before coach Rick Neuheisel’s boys upset Tennessee two weeks ago, will do its best to spoil those chances. UCLA quarterback Kevin Craft, who didn’t look like a third string quarterback in second half of the Tennessee game, will look to find the same success he did against the Vols in that half. But he will need to not find the kind of misfortune he found with the four interceptions he threw in the first half of that contest.

No. 10 Wisconsin vs. No. 21 Fresno State
Fresno, Calif.
ESPN2
Saturday, 10:30 p.m.

Fresno State found itself in the top 25 after beating Rutgers in the first week 24-7. The Bulldogs’ defense was strong against Rutgers, picking off Scarlet Knights’ quarterback Mike Teel twice and keeping them scoreless for three quarters. Wisconsin has come out slow in its first two games against Akron and Marshall, but managed to pick up the pace and win big as each game moved long. Fresno State will need to steal the momentum early or Wisconsin running back P.J. Hill will make the Bulldogs pay later.

Michigan vs. Notre Dame
South Bend, Ind.
NBC
Saturday, 3:30 p.m.

You either want to watch this game for the tradition this rivalry brings to the table or you may want to stay as far away from this game as possible due to what each offense brings – which is nothing. Notre Dame’s Jimmy Clausen has the tools to be a good quarterback one day, but needs an offensive line to protect him. Rich Rodriguez’s spread offense will be effective in a few years but the Wolverines need a quarterback and a healthy offensive line. Michigan will look for freshman running back Sam McGuffie to have his breakout game while the Fighting Irish will hope wide receiver Golden Tate will have another big outing. This game will most likely be a defensive struggle as it might be asking too much for either offense to break double digits. And for the loser, it might be time to look towards 2009.