http://www.sportsonearth.com/article/57132064/ Sleeper: Kent State at LSU The Golden Flashes will almost certainly get blown out, but their trip to Baton Rouge provides a nice chance to see what all-purpose back Dri Archer, one of the most explosive players in college football, can do against a top SEC defense. The Path To Pasadena Clemson-Georgia and Stanford-Oregon are among the biggest games to watch as the 2013 college football national title race takes shape. (USA TODAY Sports) In less than two weeks, we'll finally be celebrating the return of college football and the end of the offseason nonsense that comes with it. Fifteen Saturdays (and Thursdays, and Fridays and then some Tuesdays and Wednesdays) lie ahead on the road to the final BCS National Championship Game in Pasadena, and as always they're full of heated rivalries, top-10 clashes and surprising traps. So before play begins, let's lay out the path the season will take and help you decide if you can actually attend that October wedding and which Saturdays should be spent locking yourself inside with a pizza. The biggest weekends are obvious, but then again it's always important to remember that chaos usually occurs when we least expect it. *Notes: Upset Alert selections below are not necessarily upset predictions; they're trap games for contenders that could potentially result in upsets. Sleeper games are under-the-radar matchups that have some sort of intriguing angle, whether it's a rematch of a classic from last year or a matchup of two high-powered offenses that will undoubtedly provide three hours of entertainment. And the dates listed after each week refer to Saturdays; non-Saturday games are noted in parentheses. * * * Week 1, Aug. 31 What you'll be watching: Georgia at Clemson, Alabama vs. Virginia Tech (in Atlanta), LSU vs. TCU (in Arlington, Texas), North Carolina at South Carolina (Thursday), Florida State at Pittsburgh (Monday), Ole Miss at Vanderbilt (Thursday), Boise State at Washington, Oklahoma State vs. Mississippi State (at Houston), Ohio at Louisville (Sunday) Upset Alert: Toledo at Florida A frequent thorn in the side of BCS conference opponents, Toledo took Arizona to overtime last year, lost by five at Ohio State in 2011, won at Purdue in 2010 and won at Michigan in 2008. It's the Rockets' first ever game against an SEC opponent, and despite an 11-2 record Florida's stagnant offense caused it to receive home scares from both Bowling Green and UL Lafayette in 2012. Sleeper: Texas Tech at SMU (Friday) What have we come to expect on Friday nights? Passing and points. Former star Air Raid quarterback and Johnny Football play-caller Kliff Kingsbury returns to the Red Raiders for his head coaching debut at age 33, while SMU debuts new offensive coordinator and Air Raid guru Hal Mumme alongside run-and-shoot guru head coach June Jones. Also, you might remember SMU QB Garrett Gilbert from the national title game four years ago. Grade: A. The first weekend of the season can't make a big impact on the national championship race, because major conference teams who lose one game are much better off losing that one game early so there's time to recover in the minds of voters who care most about what happened recently. While it will be difficult for a one-loss ACC team like Clemson to get into the national title game with a weak schedule, with a lot of help a close loss to Georgia can still be overcome. Even if the first weekend won't do much to decide the ultimate fate of the season, it is the first slate of games with games five days in a row, capped by the debut of Florida State freshman Jameis Winston on Labor Day. It's a glorious thing. * * * Week 2, Sept. 7 What you'll be watching: South Carolina at Georgia, Florida at Miami, Notre Dame at Michigan, South Florida at Michigan State, San Diego State at Ohio State, Oregon at Virginia Upset Alert: Texas at BYU Is Texas back might be the closest college football can get to golf's incessant is Tiger Woods back every time he plays well. The richest team in the land is loaded with talent but trying to escape a three-year run of disappointment. This is an early-season test visiting a sneaky-good BYU team with a tough defense led by Kyle Van Noy and a promising mobile QB in Taysom Hill. Sleeper: Arkansas State at Auburn The Gus Malzahn Bowl features Malzahn coaching his second game at Auburn after one year at Arkansas State … after three years as Auburn's offensive coordinator. The Red Wolves went 9-3 under Malzahn last year, and 10-2 in 2011 under Hugh Freeze. Both coaches are now in the SEC West. Win this, and maybe new coach Bryan Harsin will follow them. Grade: B-. We love the SEC for scheduling games like South Carolina-Georgia (a week after both play ACC favorites in their openers) in Week 2, but come November we'll hate their late-season tilts against Coastal Carolina and Appalachian State. Still, there's enough to satisfy the college enthusiast on the first weekend of the NFL season, so long as Michigan and Notre Dame top last year's 13-6 debacle in what should be a good barometer for quarterbacks Devin Gardner and Tommy Rees. * * * Week 3, Sept. 14 What you'll be watching: Alabama at Texas A&M, Wisconsin at Arizona State, Tennessee at Oregon, Ohio State at California, UCLA at Nebraska, Ole Miss at Texas, TCU at Texas Tech (Thursday) Upset Alert: Nevada at Florida State A week after his national debut against Pitt, Jameis Winston returns home to face a smaller name but a better team. Coach Chris Ault may be gone, but Nevada will still score plenty behind QB Cody Fajardo. He'll at least challenge a talented but green Seminoles defensive front that lost six starters. Sleeper: Kent State at LSU The Golden Flashes will almost certainly get blown out, but their trip to Baton Rouge provides a nice chance to see what all-purpose back Dri Archer, one of the most explosive players in college football, can do against a top SEC defense.
