College football games of note: Week 9

I can’t believe we are just five short weeks away from the end of the regular college football season. Thank you, guys, for sticking with me on this crazy journey. Instead of droning on and on about how crazy/mind-blowing/drunk this past weekend of college football was, let’s just stick to the facts. Here are some things we learned from Week 8:

There is justice in the world — Purdue’s 29-point victory over Ohio State gave us all the feel-good story we have been craving since the unpleasantness surrounding the Buckeyes broke. It was the Boilermakers first win over a top-two team since 1984, providing us with all the field-storming feels.

Pullman is still standing — it did not burn to the ground after Washington State’s 34-20 win over Oregon and all the "GameDay" antics leading up to it. The excitement surrounding the Cougars and quarterback Gardner Minshew refuses to quit, much like a Mike Leach text message.

Michigan’s defense is for real, for real. In the Wolverines 21-7 win over Michigan State, Michigan held the Spartans to just 94 yards with zero third-down conversions.  

What will we learn in Week 9? Only God and Kirby Smart know. Here are some games to keep your eye on.

No. 23 Utah at UCLA

The battle for the Pac-12 South’s soul used to run exclusively through L.A., but not anymore. The Utah Utes now lead the charge with a 3-2 conference record and wins over Stanford, Arizona and USC. Utah is led by quarterback Tyler Huntley, who has completed 65.7 percent of his passes for 11 touchdowns and only three interceptions, and his No. 1 receiver, Britain Covey, who is averaging 6.1 receptions per game and nearly 70 yards per game. UCLA’s defense has been successful in the last two games, forcing turnovers and creating general chaos. If that trend continues, Utah will need to be extra careful. The Utes defense, which ranks seventh in the nation in total defense and first in rushing defense, will pose a problem for the Bruins, specifically running back Joshua Kelley, who has five rushing touchdowns on the season while averaging 94.8 rushing yards per game. Both teams have momentum, but Utah has put up 40-plus points in each of its last three games. Don’t be surprised if UCLA pulls off the upset at home, though. This is the Pac-12 after all, where no ranking is sacred.

Purdue at Michigan State

Everybody will be eagerly watching this game to see who has the worse hangover – the Boilermakers, coming off an exciting 49-20 win over Ohio State, or Michigan State, reeling from a devastating 21-7 loss to Michigan. This was supposed to be a safe game for the Spartans, but timing is everything in football and Michigan State is catching a Purdue team that is currently living its best life. The Boilermakers also have scored 40 or more points in their last three games, but MSU’s defense will be the best the Boilermakers have faced. Purdue’s defense is a different story, regularly allowing 500 or more yards of opposing offense a game and 200 or more in rushing yards alone. MSU needs to take advantage of that, but the Spartans are suffering from some serious injuries, particularly to quarterback Brian Lewerke, who admitted to a shoulder injury sustained in the Penn State game. If MSU’s defense can limit Purdue’s quarterback David Blough, the Spartans will have a fighting chance. But if Purdue wide receiver Rondale Moore has a day, the Boilermakers could come out on top.

No. 20 Wisconsin at Northwestern

This is the biggest game of the season for Pat Fitzgerald’s Wildcats. And with this big game comes the huge task of stopping Wisconsin running back and Heisman Trophy candidate, Jonathan Taylor, who is averaging 158 rushing yards per game and 6.5 yards per carry. Northwestern’s defense has been giving up an average of 143 yards per game. So there’s that. Luckily for the Wildcats, Wisconsin’s’ rush defense is nothing special and its secondary struggles against good competition. If Wildcats quarterback Clayton Thorson can find a rhythm, Northwestern could come away with the win which would help clear a path for the Wildcats to the Big Ten championship game, a place no Wildcat fan thought the team would be 10 years ago. This game is primed for an upset — Badgers fans beware.

No. 9 Florida vs. No. 7 Georgia

This game is about to be extremely lit — the Gators defense is all jacked up on Mountain Dew, and Georgia has been stewing over its loss to LSU for the past two weeks. The neutral site moniker is deceiving (the game is in Jacksonville), as it’s essentially a home game for the Gators, which makes me think it will be closer than the line is letting on. Yes, Georgia is known for being dominant after bad losses, but Florida has a way of bogging down teams, slowing down play and creating turnovers — which is the perfect foil for Kirby Smart’s sloppy squad. It will likely come down to late-game plays, where UGA’s Jake Fromm has an advantage over Florida’s Feleipe Franks, in my opinion. Fromm may not make big, deep plays against Florida corners, but he will move the chains, and that’s all Georgia needs to wear down the Gators.

Hall over the place

Over the course of the 2018 season, Emily Hall Van Buskirk will be traveling across the country, attending as many college football games as humanly possible. In this sacred section, she will share with you the details of her travels as she embarks on this adventure. Follow along as she makes her way across the country, bringing back tales of glory and memoirs of misfortune.

This past weekend I returned to my traveling ways and did the unthinkable: I covered three college football games, in three days, in three different states. And I lived to tell the tale!

First, a Thursday night knife fight in the desert as Stanford took on Arizona State. Neither team played particularly well, and Bryce Love got hurt again. But we did see more running from Cardinal quarterback K.J. Costello (told you so). Sun Devils QB Manny Wilkins, a proud San Marin product, got in on the running too.