Three And Out, Week 3: LSU Will Have A Fight And What's The Deal With Oregon?
Week 3 is upon us and, on the surface, it isn’t necessarily loaded with intriguing matchups.
There are only two ranked-on-ranked matchups on the slate, one of which is Friday night. So, Saturday is destined to be a snooze-fest, right?
Wrong. These are the weeks where all hell breaks loose in our beautifully dysfunctional sport. What are the big storylines heading into the weekend? Let’s break them down in this week’s edition of Three and Out.
LSU, South Carolina Set For a Fist Fight
I’ll be honest, I was actually floored when I saw South Carolina take Kentucky to the woodshed last week in the 31-6 win. How did they do it? Defensive linemen Kyle Kennard and Dylan Stewart acted like UFC fighters against a Kentucky team that is founded on its strength in the trenches.
LSU coach Brian Kelly. (Credit: Getty Images)
They’ll have to do it again against an LSU team that, in my opinion, has the best offensive line in the country. The Tigers have only given up four tackles for loss through two games and haven’t given up a single sack yet.
Can South Carolina make another statement? If it does, it’ll be time to consider the Gamecocks a threat to make the College Football Playoff.
What’s up with Oregon?
If you just look at the Ducks offensive output, you’d think that all is right in the world in Eugene. You’d be wrong. They narrowly escaped the clutches of Idaho in Week 1 and needed a walk-off field goal to avoid the upset by Boise State last week. This despite quarterback Dillon Gabriel averaging 311.5 passing yards per game.
EUGENE, OREGON - SEPTEMBER 7: The Oregon Ducks warm on the field before their game against the Boise State Broncos at Autzen Stadium on September 7, 2024 in Eugene, Oregon. (Photo by Tom Hauck/Getty Images)
So what’s the problem? They are losing the battle in the trenches. The Ducks have given up 13 tackles for loss this season - 102nd in the nation. That’s right, an Dan Lanning-coached team is playing soft. I can’t believe the previous sentence is accurate.
Watch out this weekend. The Ducks will travel to Corvallis to take on a gritty Oregon State in the rivalry formerly known as the "Civil War." That will be a pissed off Beavers team that not only wants to prove that they are worthy of playing in a major conference, but out for revenge after last year’s 31-7 debacle.
Oh, the disrespect
David Hookstead, my colleague here at Outkick, wrote yesterday that oddsmakers are disrespecting Wisconsin after making the Badgers 16.5-point home underdogs to No. 4 Alabama. As Chris Farley succinctly said in Billy Madison, "that is correct."
This is a Crimson Tide team that ranks 125th in the country in penalties with 20 and lost three fumbles last week in the narrow win over South Florida (the 42-16 score doesn’t indicate how close it was).
Wisconsin is a major underdog against the Alabama Crimson Tide. (Credit: Getty Images)
The last thing any team needs is to play undisciplined football and struggle with ball security going into Camp Randall Stadium to take on a Wisconsin team that is known for punching teams in the mouth early and often.
Can Wisconsin spring the upset? It isn’t the most outlandish prospect after what we saw Alabama do last week. At the very least, keeping it within two touchdowns in a game that should be played very conservatively on both sides is as disrespectful as Kamala Harris avoiding press conferences.