It’s rivalry week.
Aside from the traditional turkey, ham and mashed potatoes you can expect to eat on Thanksgiving, there will be plenty of college football to help you stay on the couch from Thursday through Saturday.
Five games featuring ranked teams will highlight the weekend: the Big-10 East and West, Pac-12 South and SEC East and West divisions should all be decided by the time the Sunday morning sun rises.
Here are the games to watch this weekend (predicted winners in bold):
1) No. 1 Alabama vs. No. 15 Auburn (ESPN, 4:45 p.m.): The Iron Bowl gives Auburn the opportunity to spoil the Crimson Tide’s stellar season for the second year in a row. Expect the momentum from last year’s missed-field-goal-touchdown-return to give Alabama a little more gusto in the fight.
2) No. 19 Ole Miss vs. No. 4 Mississippi State (CBS, 12:30 p.m.): The Egg Bowl, for the first time in long time, has a lot on the line. While neither team controls its own destiny in the SEC East, an Ole Miss win eliminates the Bulldogs from the running for the SEC championship and the College Football Playoff.
3) No. 11 Arizona vs. No. 13 Arizona State (Friday, FOX, 12:30 p.m.): If UCLA loses to Stanford on Saturday, the winner of this game will become the Pac-12 South champion and face Oregon in the championship game. Scooby Wright is one of the best defensive lineman in the country but was left off the Butkus award finalist list. He’s a scary thought for Arizona State’s Taylor Kelly and DJ Foster.
4) No. 14 Wisconsin vs. No. 18 Minnesota (Big-10 Network, 12:30 p.m.): Melvin Gordon is chasing Barry Sanders’ season rushing record, so another big game by the Badgers’ running back will not only get him closer to the record, it could lead Wisconsin to the Big-12 championship. A Minnesota win sets up a championship rematch against the Buckeyes. The stakes will be high with the Big-10 West division on the line.
5) No.3 Florida State vs. Florida (ESPN, 12:30 p.m.): If anything can happen in a rivalry game, why can’t the Gators pull off the upset of the decade in taking down the Seminoles? Florida State is playing for a spot in the playoff and the Gators are playing for pride. Florida has the athletes to keep up with and shut down the Seminoles but it remains to be seen if they can play a complete game.
Every week, The Emerald will feature a different sports bar from the Eugene/Springfield area where students can watch the games. This week, it is Sideline’s Grill and Sports Bar in Eugene.
What makes Sidelines so special is the amount of activities it has available to its patrons. Combine all the pool tables, foosball tables, darts, human jenga and shuffleboard with the amount of drinks and food available, your time at Sidelines is sure to be memorable.
Here are the best reasons to check out Sideline’s this week:
1) Happy Hour is every single day. Cheap prices for great food and drinks is something that will never go wrong
2) While the amount of TV’s is a little low, Sidelines has all sorts of games for everyone so there’s virtually no wait if you want to get your competitive juices flowing.
3) Mac and Cheese Wedges (basically, deep-fried macaroni and cheese.) Enough said.
4) The location, 77 W. Broadway, is located in the middle of downtown, making it easily accessible.