College Football Week 12: This won't be the first time Kenjon Barner burns trees

This week's top games, featuring the SportsJournalists.com poll, Sportsbook.ag's early lines and p.m. Eastern times:

Wednesday, Nov. 14

Ohio at Ball State (-4), 8, ESPNU
The Bobcats went from one of the last undefeateds to giving points on a Wednesday.

Toledo at Northern Illinois (-10½), 9, ESPN2
The Huskies are lucky the won't be relying on Michael Turner at the goal line.

Thursday, Nov. 15

North Carolina (-3½) at Virginia, 7:30, ESPN
Other Thursday night viewing options: Dolphins-Bills on NFL Network; Celtics-Nets and Heat-Nuggets on TNT; Baylor-Boston College and Oklahoma State-Akron basketball on ESPNU; sitcoms galore on NBC and FX; and The Big Bang Theory on CBS. Hell, we might even recommend the last one above this game.

Friday, Nov. 16

Florida International (-1) at Florida Atlantic, 8, ESPNU
Both of these teams were impressed by Florida's win against Louisiana-Lafayette.

Hawaii at Air Force (-23½), 9:30, ESPN2
So, when the Falcons play on the island, do they stay out there for training? That would make sense.

Saturday, Nov. 17

No. 8 Florida State (-31) at Maryland, 12, ESPNU
The Seminoles have the best passer in the Atlantic Coast Conference. The Terrapins have a freshman linebacker under center.

No. 21 Rutgers at Cincinnati (-6½), 12
This is a rare Big East Conference game that borders on compelling, so of course it's not on national TV.

Iowa at No. 22 Michigan, 12, ESPN
There is no line because the Hawkeyes are playing like an FCS team.

Northwestern at Michigan State (-6½), 12, ESPN2
The Wildcats are the Little Engine that Can't Win Shit, except in women's lacrosse.

Indiana at Penn State (-17), 12, Big Ten Network
Hoosiers fans have already forgotten they have a football team.

Western Carolina at No. 4 Alabama, 12:20
AJ McCarron liked that whole throwing-interceptions thing and may add it to his repertoire permanently.

Jacksonville State at No. 7 Florida, 1
Keep your Gators quarterbacks straight: The black guy is more of a pocket passer with a huge arm, and the white guy always is scrambling.

Wofford at No. 12 South Carolina, 1
Steve Spurrier should make Jadeveon Clowney his top running back.

Georgia Southern at No. 5 Georgia, 1:30
Aaron Murray is a compiler.

No. 21 Southern Cal (-4) at No. 17 UCLA, 3, Fox
That sound is the gagging of thousands of Alabama and Georgia fans, vomiting at the thought of having to root for Lane Kiffin for the next three weeks.

Wake Forest at No. 3 Notre Dame (-24), 3:30, NBC
Jim Grobe loves those reverses. Maybe that will do something. More likely, the Demon Deacons will lose by two on a safety in the fourth quarter. But every Fighting Irish fan will be convinced the result never was in doubt.

No. 5 Ohio State at Wisconsin (-3), 3:30, ABC/ESPN2
There is at least a 50 percent chance Urban Meyer never loses a Big Ten Conference game. That is only partly because he may retire again after this season.

Mississippi at No. 9 LSU (-19), 3:30, CBS
Zach Mettenberger is getting his shit together in time to cause idiot prognosticators to name him a Heisman Trophy favorite for next year.

North Carolina State at No. 11 Clemson (-17½), 3:30, ABC/ESPN2
That seven-point win against Auburn to open the season looks really weird now for the Tigers.

Minnesota at No. 15 Nebraska (-18½), 3:30, Big Ten Network
Cornhuskers fans will cheer for Ameer Abdullah every Saturday but are scared about our Muslim president.

No. 24 Texas Tech at Oklahoma State (-10½), 3:30
Take the over.

Duke at Georgia Tech (-13), 3:30, ESPNU
Included for the absurdity of national TV decisions.

Utah State (-3) at No. 19 Louisiana Tech, 4
Hipster college football fans will tell you this is the best game of the afternoon.

No. 13 Oklahoma (-10½) at West Virginia, 7, Fox
Blake Bell: still better than Landry Jones.

No. 2 Kansas State (-11½) at Baylor, 8, ESPN
These two schools will have produced consecutive Heisman Trophy winners. Dick Whitman is certain there are college football traditionalists clubbing baby seals at the thought.

No. 14 Stanford at No. 1 Oregon (-21), 10:30, ABC
The Cardinal are calling upon the same ghosts of John Elway that Peyton Manning's voodoo doctor is summoning for a protection spell.

California at No. 16 Oregon State, 10:30
There will be no more In-N-Out for these Beavers.

 

Wait. They're going to play the rest of the season?

 

It's OK. Everyone knows it's not a real national title game without an SEC team.

 

Utah State is favored at La Tech?

 

I did a double-take as well. Utah State is very good, but Louisiana Tech is at least as good and at home, where there's no altitude advantage for Utah State.

 

Added line....

Finebaum Callers After An Alabama Loss (-39348476465353637) vs. Everyone Else

Also, if you're not betting against Maryland on the first-half line each week, you're really not doing it right.

 

Northwestern is The Little Engine That Covers.

 

Indeed. 9-1 overall, 6-0 at home, 3-1 on the road.

For those interested, here's the ATS breakdown for each team, sorted by conference....

http://www.betvega.com/college-football-ats-standings/

Fresno State is 10-1 ATS. Utah State is 9-0-1. Kansas State is 9-1.

Florida State and Louisville are two teams that have good overall records, but poor ATS records. Notre Dame is 5-5 ATS.

 

Yes, because my team still making the Sugar Bowl and potentially finishing at No. 2 at the end of the season will piss off 90 percent of the country. Sounds like fun to me.

 

Oh come on, you know you are going to watch Phillip Sims play and wonder "what if..."

 

That wouldn't piss anyone off. That would just make us laugh harder at hearing "you know, we really were the best."

 

I really don't see what all the negative stuff about Landry Jones is for. Guy is the winningest quarterback in school history and that's saying a lot.

Clemson continues to fly below the radar. Maybe it will take a win over South Carolina to get the one-loss Tigers the respect they deserve.