College Football

Week 15 college football primer: Schedule, odds and more for conference title week

Missouri-Auburn and Stanford-Arizona State highlight what should be an exciting conference championship weekend.

by Pete Volk

Dec 1, 2013, 4:54 PM UTC

Shanna Lockwood-USA TODAY Sports

Head over to OddsShark for all your betting information.

Thursday, December 5

Louisville (-6.5) at Cincinnati

7:30 p.m. ET, ESPN

A win here coupled with a UCF loss to SMU could send one of these teams to a BCS bowl. That would be Cincinnati, not Louisville. It would take an unlikely turn of poll events, as the now 9-2 Bearcats would have to rank higher than the No. 19 Golden Knights, but it’s a possibility still in play in the inaugural year of the AAC. The Cardinals, meanwhile, are looking to continue their march through their schedule with no possible reward in sight.

As for the game itself, anything is possible as the Ohio River rivals compete over the Keg of Nails, which Louisville took last year after UC took the last four straight. Even with a win here and an 11-1 record, Louisville seems destined for a berth in the Russell Athletic Bowl.

Friday, December 6

MAC Championship: Bowling Green vs. Northern Illinois (-3)

8 p.m. ET, ESPN2

After Fresno State’s sudden defeat to San Jose State, Northern Illinois looks on track to become a BCS-buster for the second straight year, thanks to the phenomenal play of possible Heisman-finalist quarterback Jordan Lynch. First, they have to get through a very good nine-win Bowling Green team coming off a big win over Buffalo.

Saturday, December 7

Oklahoma at Oklahoma State (-10.5)

12 p.m. ET, ABC

A win here for the Cowboys would give them the Big 12 title and a berth in the Fiesta Bowl (likely against Northern Illinois), capping off a great season despite their highly mysterious loss to West Virginia. Oklahoma was outclassed by both Texas and Baylor this season, and Oklahoma State has run those teams out of town in back-to-back weeks.

Conference USA Championship: Marshall vs. Rice

12 p.m. ET, ESPN2

Marshall has one of the best quarterbacks in the country that you’ve never heard of in Rakeem Cato, and these two teams did well to escape out of what has been a competitive Conference USA field this season. The Thundering Herd are coming off a blowout win over a good East Carolina team, while Rice has won three in a row.

UCF at SMU

12 p.m. ET, ESPNU

After a scare against South Florida, UCF emerged unscathed, and a win here would secure the first-ever AAC crown with a perfect 8-0 conference record. A win would also send Blake Bortles, Storm Johnson and the all-name crew into a BCS bowl, but beware of Garrett Gilbert and the SMU offense.

Memphis at UConn

1 p.m. ET, ESPN3

Do not, I repeat, do not watch this game.

Texas at Baylor (-13)

3:30 p.m. ET, FOX

The Oklahoma State hangover was in full effect for Baylor against TCU, as the Bears struggled out of the gate after their blowout loss to the Cowboys, taking advantage of three Casey Pachall interceptions en route to the close win. The Bears still have a shot at the Big 12 crown if they can beat Texas and if the Cowboys fall to the Sooners.

SEC Championship: Missouri (-2) vs. Auburn

4 p.m. ET, CBS

The Tigers have pulled off two miracles in must-win games this season, against Georgia and Alabama. Do they have another trick in store against a very good Missouri team, whose only loss came on a shanked gimme field goal in overtime? This should be the highlight of the day, and it’s hard to imagine it can be any better than the Iron Bowl we were just treated to.

South Florida at Rutgers (-7)

7:30 p.m. ET, ESPN2

The AAC really, really needs to stop getting in the way of our football.

Pac-12 Championship: Stanford at Arizona State (-3)

7:45 p.m. ET, ESPN

No Oregon, no problem. It will be a clash of styles for this year’s Pac-12 title game, but that’s nothing new. This time, David Shaw’s knock-‘em-down, beat-‘em-up Cardinal will face Todd Graham’s upstart Sun Devils, who play legitimately exciting football and should be feared.

UL Lafayette at South Alabama

8 p.m. ET, ESPN3

This will be better than either of the non-UCF/Louisville AAC games, but with the Sun Belt title already wrapped up, only one team has something major to play for (South Alabama is a win away from bowl-eligibility).

ACC Championship: Duke vs. Florida State (-27.5)

8 p.m. ET, ABC

It’s hard to remember a spread for a major conference title game ever being this wide but, well, it’s equally as hard to argue with it. Florida State has dominated all year, while Duke just went out and won their last eight games. The Blue Devils never won by an extravagant final score (with the exception of against Navy), but they capitalized on opponent errors and simply scored more points than everyone else they played. Meanwhile, the Seminoles have been simply brutalizing every single one of their opponents, and are expected to do so again in the conference title game (and in the national title game as well, if they come up against Ohio State).

Big Ten Championship: Ohio State (-6.5) vs. Michigan State

8:17 p.m. ET, FOX

The Buckeyes survived a last-second two-point conversion attempt by Michigan to win a one-point game and keep their national title hopes alive, and will need to defeat the Spartans and their excellent defense in order to get their shot at the crown. Braxton Miller does things that not many other human beings can, and watching him go up against Pat Narduzzi's defensive unit should be an absolute treat.