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Even though there are only a handful of games kicking off on Saturday, there are plenty of CFB Playoff contending teams worth monitoring, including TCU and North Carolina State who are both priced as longshots to play in the postseason. USC on the other hand is far more established, yet needs to address their lingering question marks before being labeled as a team who can actually compete in the top heavy Big Ten.
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CFB Playoff Picture Games to Watch Entering Week ‘Zero’
- TCU vs. UNC – 12:00 p.m., ESPN
- San Jose State vs. USC – 3:00 p.m., NBC
- NC State vs. Virginia – 3:30 p.m., ESPN
TCU vs. North Carolina
With Josh Hoover taking his talents to Indiana, TCU dipped their toes into the transfer portal and landed Jaden Craig, Harvard’s dynamic dual threat QB who is just as efficient with his arm as he is as lethal with his legs. Craig will find himself surrounded by a productive group of skill players, a unit who led the Horned Frogs to top-50 marks in Success Rate, Explosiveness, and in Finishing Drives.
In an international matchup against the North Carolina Tar Heels, TCU will have a great opportunity to iron out the kinks early by taking advantage of a defense who struggled to create disruptions per their below league average mark in Havoc. Speaking of Havoc, taking care of the ball has been an issue for the Tar Heels, residing near the bottom of the board in Havoc Allowed which makes it difficult for them to sustain their drives down the field.
Avoiding a loss to the lowly Tar Heels is critical if the Horned Frogs want to keep their hopes of playing in the playoffs alive, especially with the back half of their schedule ramping up with Texas Tech looming large. If TCU’s offense can continue to play at a high level with a new face under center, don’t be surprised if they are in contention for one of the wildcard spots by the end of the year.
San Jose State at USC
Since Lincoln Riley took the job as the head coach of USC, the Trojans have had championship aspirations, yet have consistently fallen short. While their offense has thrived, their defense has let them down, residing in the bottom half of the board in Success Rate and in Havoc.
Heading into this season, the Trojans offense will be under a microscope after their starting center Killian O’Connor suffered a season ending injury. While San Jose State will hardly pose as a threat, how their front five operates while integrating a new face at a key position will give us a good indication on how they will fare in a conference that is loaded with stalwart defensive lines.
On the other side of the ball, the Trojans defense must step up their level of play should they want to avoid playing in highly volatile contests, improving their probability of winning when the quality of their opponent ramps up. Should USC’s defense show signs of improvement, then they will possess all the tools that are needed to weave through their schedule and secure a spot in the playoffs.
North Carolina State at Virginia
The stakes are high for North Carolina State and Virginia, kicking off the new year with a conference game after the ACC shifted to a nine game conference schedule. Luckily for the Cavaliers, they get to host the Wolfpack after their plans of playing in Rio de Janeiro fell through.
If North Carolina State can rattle off the upset, then their path to making the playoffs will look far more favorable, getting the benefit of an easy schedule to help stamp their ticket to the ACC title game. Outside of a highly anticipated matchup against Louisville, the Wolfpack are projected to be the favorite in six of their last seven conference games.
In order to avoid falling into an early hole, North Carolina State’s secondary must quickly round back into form after finishing last season ranked outside the top-100 in Def Pass Play Explosiveness. If the Wolfpack can stall out their opponents early on in their drives, then their own offense will receive a bump in their total number of possessions which will make it easier for them to pull away on the scoreboard.
Photo Credit: REUTERS
