Here we are. The halfway point of the 2023 college football season. The season has been exciting to watch as 11 undefeated teams in the top 14 are vying for their right to the college football playoff.
This week, we have some important matchups between top NFL draft prospects that could shape not only the college landscape, but their narrative heading into draft season. Here are a few of the matchups to look forward to this week:
- Syracuse @ #4 Florida State (11 AM CST, ABC)
- Indiana @ #2 Michigan (11 AM CST, Fox)
- Arkansas @ #11 Alabama (11 AM CST, ESPN)
- Iowa State @ Cincinnati (11 AM CST, FS1)
- #8 Oregon vs. #7 Washington (2:30 PM CST, ABC)
- Texas A&M vs. #19 Tennessee (2:30 PM CST, CBS)
- Illinois @ Maryland (2:30 PM CST, NBC)
- Florida @ South Carolina (2:30 PM CST, SECN)
- Arizona @ #19 Washington State (6 PM CST, Pac-12)
- Auburn @ #22 LSU (6 PM CST, ESPN)
- #10 USC @ #21 Notre Dame (6:30 PM CST, NBC)
- #25 Miami @ #12 North Carolina (6:30 PM CST, ABC)
- Missouri @ #24 Kentucky (6:30 PM CST, SECN)
- #18 UCLA @ #15 Oregon State (7 PM CST, Fox)
- NC State @ #17 Duke (7 PM CST, ACCN)
Florida State QB Jordan Travis
Jordan Travis needs a signature process. It’s not like he hasn’t played well through five games. FSU is undefeated, Travis has almost 1,200 yards passing with 12 touchdowns to only one interception. He has used his legs better this year to extend plays and keep the Seminoles’ offense on the field.
With all this attention to the Pac-12 quarterbacks, there isn’t much room to talk about a quarterback that has been solid through the next four games. He’s continuously stepped up to the moment when FSU has needed it.
But there needs to be another performance that looks like LSU. A performance where Keon Coleman, Johnny Wilson and Jaheim Bell were all utilized in the passing game. A performance where the running game and passing game were in concert with one another.
South Carolina QB Spencer Rattler
There are some intriguing matchups, so this is the last underrated quarterback for this exercise. We all remember Spencer Rattler, right?
Former Oklahoma quarterback who transferred to South Carolina? Insane arm talent, but couldn’t put it all together last season? After his disappointing outing last season, he’s decided to return to school and come out with a much more talented crop of quarterbacks.
With that extra year comes another year of development as well. Rattler has quietly had a solid year but has been let down by his supporting cast. Rattler has been sacked 22 times through five games. Actually, if you listen closely, you can hear Tennessee and North Carolina’s defenses hitting him again.
Despite that, he’s been productive with over 1400 yards but only seven touchdowns and three interceptions. Now, he faces the top passing defense in the SEC in Florida, and this is a chance to impress with a quality game against a difficult opponent.
Washington QB Michael Penix Jr.
Now to get to the matchups that we’ve been waiting for. The first one starts in Seattle, Washington as the Huskies host the Oregon Ducks. For Washington, they have one of the leading Heisman candidates in Michael Penix, Jr. calling the shots for their offense.
Over the course of the season, Penix has won in a multitude of ways, but mostly has won with explosive plays down the field to his talented receivers. That should not be minimized that he’s playing with one of the better wide receiver pairings in the country in Rome Odunze and Jalen McMillan. But somebody has to get them the ball and Penix has time and time again. He’s got 1,999 yards, second in the country only to Colorado’s Shedeur Sanders. His 16 touchdowns have him tied for third in the nation behind only Jayden Daniels and Caleb Williams. His 196.5 quarterback rating has him fourth behind Williams, Daniels and Michael Pratt of Tulane.
Penix has had a stellar season and has been the driving force of the Huskies having the most productive offense in the nation.
Oregon QB Bo Nix
On the other side of Saturday’s mid-day showdown is Oregon’s quarterback Bo Nix. I will admit that I am not the biggest fan of Bo Nix after his play at Auburn. I thought that he was too scattershot with his throws and his decision-making was putrid.
But this season, he has looked night and day from the quarterback that graced Jordan-Hare every week. He is currently first in completion percentage among quarterbacks with at least 50 attempts this season, completing 80.4% of his passes. He has 15 touchdowns to only one interception on the season and a quarterback rating of 184.7 has him among the most efficient in college football.
The showdown between him and Penix should make for a ton of fireworks. These are the two most productive offenses as far as yards and are two and three in points per game behind only USC.
North Carolina Drake Maye
The next head-to-head matchup may not be as competitive on the surface. In one corner, we have the quarterback deemed either the second-best, or the 1b to a certain USC quarterback in Drake Maye. Coming off of one of his more impressive performances, Maye and the North Carolina Tar Heels will host #25 ranked Miami.
Drake Maye showcased everything that you wanted to see from him in last week’s game against Syracuse. He showed off the touch to put it over linebackers and defensive backs’ heads, the ability to send it 40-50 yards downfield, the laser to put the ball in the intermediate. Not to mention the confidence and savvy to be able to look off safeties and make these throws.
Maye is a special quarterback prospect and that should be on display Saturday.
Miami QB Tyler Van Dyke
In the other corner, if there is a team that needs a solid win right now, it is the Miami Hurricanes. After having their heart stomped at Hard Rock, Miami is looking to bounce back against a North Carolina offense that has been firing on all cylinders.
Van Dyke is coming off a three-interception game and it will be interesting to see how he bounces back from such an uncharacteristically reckless performance from him. He had 288 yards passing but three interceptions on the day. He only had one in the first four games. One thing about Van Dyke is that he won’t turn any heads as far as big plays, but he has been a solid quarterback. He’s completed 72.6% of his passes, has 12 touchdowns and even with that putrid performance is still in the top-ten as far as quarterback rating.
If Miami’s defense can limit Maye, this could be a chance for Van Dyke to take center stage and lead his team to a much-needed victory against a stellar opponent.
Notre Dame QB Sam Hartman
Ladies and gentlemen, the main event of the evening. At 6:30 PM CST on NBC/Peacock, the USC Trojans go to South Bend to face the Notre Dame Fighting Irish in a long-standing rivalry.
For the home team, they have seasoned signal-caller Sam Hartman who had a rough go of it last week against Louisville. He threw his first interception on the first drive and followed those up with two more and two fumbles throughout the game in a losing effort to the Cardinals.
This is a chance for Hartman to prove that this was just a off night, an anomaly in what has been a good season for him thus far. With how bad the USC defense has been recently, it has all the makings of a certified shootout.
USC QB Caleb Williams
If you have a shootout though, it’s better to have the bigger gun. And there isn’t a bigger gun in the country right now than USC quarterback Caleb Williams.
What more needs to be said?
Williams has led the USC offense to a whopping 51.3 points per game through five games and doesn’t appear to be slowing down anytime soon. His confidence and leadership are apparent every time he plays. Not to mention the throws that he is able to make are just absurd.
Drake Maye is a special talent, but there is a reason that Williams has been considered 1a in this process and that hasn’t wavered for a majority of draft analysts.
