NFL announces kickoff time for Week 18 Saints-Falcons game

The NFL announced its kickoff time for Week 18’s penultimate Saints-Falcons game, along with other matchups fans should be monitoring:

There it is: the NFL announced that the New Orleans Saints and Atlanta Falcons will kick off in Week 18 at noon CT on Sunday, Jan. 7. There are a couple of paths the Saints can take to get to the playoffs, but everything starts with a win at the Caesars Superdome. The game will be broadcast on CBS.

So what other games should be on Saints fans’ radar? The most important matchup is the Tampa Bay Buccaneers-Carolina Panthers tilt which will be broadcast in the same window on FOX. If the Saints and Panthers both win, New Orleans clinches the NFC South and a home playoff game.

But if the Buccaneers win, they’ll take the division for themselves and send the Saints scurrying for a wild-card seed. If that’s the case, here are the games to watch, and who fans should be rooting for marked in bold text:

  • Chicago Bears (7-9) vs. Green Bay Packers (8-8); 3:25 p.m. CT on CBS
  • Seattle Seahawks (8-8) vs. Arizona Cardinals (4-12); 3:25 p.m. CT on FOX

If the Packers win and the Seahawks lose, Green Bay gets the seventh playoff seed. The reverse is also true. Both teams need to lose for the Saints to clinch that seventh playoff seed. The Saints dug themselves quite a hole. They’ll  need help getting out of it, but their season isn’t over just yet.

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Breaking down Saints fans’ rooting interests during Week 11 bye

Breaking down Saints fans’ rooting interests during Week 11 bye

The New Orleans Saints are on bye this week, so who should fans root for? Some choices are easier than others when you consider local ties, playoff implications, and the Saints’ schedule of upcoming opponents down the stretch.

But we’ve broken down each individual matchup and made our picks for Saints fans’ rooting interests in Week 11. Here’s where we stand:

Week 17 Saints fan rooting interests: Who to pull for in every game

The NFL’s Week 17 schedule features many games that can shake up the playoff picture, with the New Orleans Saints in flux in the standings.

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The NFC playoff picture is far from set, and the New Orleans Saints are at the heart of that instability — not to mention all of the potential changes that hinge on other games in Week 17. We’ve put together a game-by-game list of Saints fan rooting interests, giving you the inside angle on each matchup. All odds are sourced from BetMGM.

Around the NFC South

New Orleans Saints at Carolina Panthers. Saints by 12.5. Obviously root for the Saints here.

Atlanta Falcons at Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Buccaneers by 1.5. There’s two ways to look at this: a Falcons win guarantees their second consecutive 7-9 season, while a Buccaneers win makes it that much more difficult for them to part ways with Jameis Winston in the offseason. Both scenarios benefit Saints fans, so take your pick. Personally, we’re rooting for a Buccaneers loss (to hurt Atlanta’s draft positioning).

Painting the NFC Playoff Picture

San Francisco 49ers at Seattle Seahawks. 49ers by 3.5. Root for the Seahawks to beat the 49ers, and to win the NFC West. That would go a long way to help the Saints in the playoff standings. A 49ers win isn’t the end of the world, but it shuts the door on the Saints getting the first seed.

Green Bay Packers at Detroit Lions. Packers by 12.5. Long as the odds may be, Saints fans have to pull for the Lions. And there’s reason to think Detroit can do the dang thing — they’ve won four of the last five in this NFC North rivalry series. Here’s hoping.

Chicago Bears at Minnesota Vikings. Bears by 3.5. The Vikings are probably going to rest their starters here, which would do a lot to guarantee a Bears win. That’s great news for the Saints, who would get another game against awful Bears quarterback Mitchell Trubisky next year because of it.

Washington Redskins at Dallas Cowboys. Cowboys by 10.5. The Saints are going to visit the NFC East winner next year, and it might be the Cowboys, if they win this game. If that appeals to you, root for them to win.

Philadelphia Eagles at New York Giants. Eagles by 4.5. Would you rather visit Philadelphia next year? If so pull for them to steamroll the Giants. The choice is yours, because the Saints have handled both the Eagles and Cowboys well in recent matchups.

Leftovers and Lagniappe

Arizona Cardinals at Los Angeles Rams. The Cardinals may not have Kyler Murray in this one, so it would be extremely funny if the Rams found a way to lose to them. Root for that.

Cleveland Browns at Cincinnati Bengals. Browns by 2.5. Pull for ex-LSU Tigers Odell Beckham Jr., Jarvis Landry, and Greedy Williams to have something to feel good about in a long, cold offseason.

Miami Dolphins at New England Patriots. Patriots by 15.5. The Patriots won’t lose this game, but Saints fans should root for breakout pass rusher Vince Biegel (who was sent to Miami in the Kiko Alonso trade) to get another sack against Tom Brady.

New York Jets at Buffalo Bills. Bills at 1.5. Offseason Jets drama is always entertaining, so pull for New York to end its year with a loss.

Los Angeles Chargers at Kansas City Chiefs. Chiefs by 8.5. The Chiefs are a sneaky-bad playoff team, having made a paper-tiger defense out of a schedule featuring some of the worst offenses in the NFL. Root for them to beat the mismanaged Chargers and then get embarrassed in the postseason

Tennessee Titans at Houston Texans. Titans by 4.5. Deshaun Watson and the Texans are more fun to watch than the Titans, so pull for them to win and advance deep into the playoffs.

Indianapolis Colts at Jacksonville Jaguars. Colts by 3.5. Neither of these teams are very good or very watchable,

Pittsburgh Steelers at Baltimore Ravens. Steelers by 2.5. The Ravens are resting a bunch of starters, so the Steelers just might win and get into the playoffs despite being down to their fourth-string quarterback (Ben Roethlisberger and Mason Rudolph were injured, and Josh Dobbs was traded away). That’s an impressive accomplishment for Mike Tomlin, which he deserves after putting up with all those injuries and the departures of Antonio Brown and Le’Veon Brown in the past year. He should get a playoffs appearance tacked onto his resume before taking a long Bahamas vacation early in January.

Oakland Raiders at Denver Broncos. Broncos by 3.5. The Saints have to visit both of these teams next year. Take your pick of which one you’d rather see build momentum going into the offseason; we’ll be pulling for the Raiders, because their fans deserve a better hand than they’ve been dealt, which is all too familiar a feeling for Saints faithful.

Gannett may earn revenue from audience referrals to betting services. Newsrooms are independent of this relationship and there is no influence on news coverage.

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Saints fan rooting interests, Week 16: Know who to pull for in each game

New Orleans Saints fans have plenty of rooting interests in the NFL’s Week 16 games, with big games like the Packers-Vikings matchup on tap.

The NFL’s Week 16 games are full of implications for the New Orleans Saints and the NFC playoff picture. Here’s your game-by-game list of rooting interests, so that Saints fans will know which team to pull for in each matchup. All odds are sourced from BetMGM.

Around the NFC South

New Orleans Saints at Tennessee Titans. New Orleans by 2.5. A Saints win keeps them in the conversation for a top-two playoff seed. They won’t finish worse than third, but could really use a bye week to rest up.

Houston Texans at Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Houston by 7.5. The Buccaneers might be stuck with Jameis Winston if he finds a way to win here. Root for a Texans loss.

Jacksonville Jaguars at Atlanta Falcons. Atlanta by 7.5. A Falcons victory increases the chances of Dan Quinn sticking around, which would help the Saints. Pull for the Jaguars to lose.

Carolina Panthers at Indianapolis Colts. Indianapolis by 7.5. The Panthers can hurt their draft positioning by falling backwards into a win, so root for it to happen.

Painting the NFC Playoff Picture

Los Angeles Rams at San Francisco 49ers. San Francisco by 6.5. This is tough — a Rams win keeps the door (narrowly) open for them to get into the playoffs. A 49ers win would keep them in the race for the NFC West title and a top-two seed, ahead of the Saints. Root for the Rams to win this week and lose next time.

Dallas Cowboys at Philadelphia Eagles. Dallas by 1.5. Neither of these teams are good. The Saints can run either one of them off the field, in the playoffs or next season (they’ll have to visit the NFC East champions in 2020). But the Cowboys have given the Saints more trouble than the Eagles lately, so root for an Eagles upset.

Arizona Cardinals at Seattle Seahawks. Seattle by 9.5. A Seahawks loss would help the Saints get back into the race for a top-two seed, so root for it (assuming the 49ers slip up first against the Rams on Saturday).

Green Bay Packers at Minnesota Vikings. Minnesota by 3.5. The Saints need the Packers to lose and break their three-way tie with the Seahawks. It’s fine if you can’t stomach rooting for the Vikings, so think of it has pulling for a Packers loss more than anything.

Leftovers and Lagniappe

Buffalo Bills at New England Patriots. New England by 6.5. Never root for the Patriots, unless the Falcons have a 28-3 lead over them in the Super Bowl. Go Bills.

New York Giants at Washington Redskins. Washington by 1.5. The “Chase Young Bowl” should be sloppy as two rookie quarterbacks to try make magic without much around them. Just be happy you don’t have to watch this game. Root for the Giants, because Washington owner Dan Snyder is the worst.

Pittsburgh Steelers at New York Jets. Pittsburgh by 2.5. The Steelers have battled through a ton of adversity this season — injuries, personnel shakeups, a tough schedule — and it would do a lot to silence the ridiculous idea that Ben Roethlisberger may be a stronger Hall of Fame candidate than Drew Brees if they make the playoffs without him.

Cincinnati Bengals at Miami Dolphins. Cincinnati by 1.5. This game might be the “Joe Burrow Bowl” given the Bengals’ draft positioning and the Dolphins’ war chest of draft picks to trade up with. But root for ex-Saints linebacker Vince Biegel to get a late-season win for Miami after his breakout season.

Baltimore Ravens at Cleveland Browns. Baltimore by 9.5. It still hurts that the Saints couldn’t keep Mark Ingram in town, but it’s been great to see him living his best life with the Ravens. Root for him to keep it rolling in the AFC.

Detroit Lions at Denver Broncos. Denver by 6.5. The Saints will visit the Broncos next year, and they don’t nee Denver to build any momentum to carry over into the next season. Root for the Lions.

Oakland Raiders at Los Angeles Chargers. Los Angeles by 6.5. This stadium might feel like a home game for Oakland, and those fans have endured enough this year as it is. Pull for the Raiders to help end their year with a win.

Kansas City Chiefs at Chicago Bears. Kansas City by 4.5. The Bears are eliminated from the playoffs, but it would be great to see them tethered stronger to bad quarterback Mitchell Trubisky with an inopportune win.

Gannett may earn revenue from audience referrals to betting services. Newsrooms are independent of this relationship and there is no influence on news coverage.

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Saints fan rooting interests, Week 15: Know who to pull for in each game

New Orleans Saints fans can kick back and relax on Sunday, but they have plenty of rooting interests during the NFL’s Week 15 schedule.

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New Orleans Saints fans have a nice, easygoing Sunday of football ahead of them, because their team won’t play until Monday night. So that game with the Indianapolis Colts is out of sight and out of mind.

But who should Saints fans root for in every other game on the NFL’s Week 15 schedule? To find out, we surveyed each matchup and made our take as to who deserves your support. All odds are sourced from BetMGM.

Around the NFC South

Indianapolis Colts (6-7) at New Orleans Saints (10-3). Saints by 9.5. Obviously pull for the Saints here, as they look to bounce back from last week’s loss.

Atlanta Falcons (4-9) at San Francisco 49ers (11-2). 49ers by 10.5. Don’t think of this as rooting for a Falcons win so much as hoping for a 49ers loss. If San Francisco trips up, the Saints get right back into the hunt for the first playoff seed.

Seattle Seahawks (10-3) at Carolina Panthers (5-8). Seahawks by 5.5. A Seahawks win helps keep the Los Angeles Rams out of the playoffs, which would be hilarious after their implosion in last year’s Super Bowl. Root for that.

Tampa Bay Buccaneers (6-7) at Detroit Lions (3-9-1). Buccaneers by 3.5. Tampa Bay is eliminated from playoffs contention, so this is a great game for them to keep stacking wins and worsen their draft positioning. It would also help ensure they’re stuck with Jameis Winston.

Painting the NFC Playoff Picture

Minnesota Vikings (9-4) at Los Angeles Chargers (5-8). Vikings by 1.5. A Vikings win keeps them in the playoffs, and helps deny the Rams a spot, which we’ve established would be entertaining. Root for that.

Los Angeles Rams (8-5) at Dallas Cowboys (6-7). Rams by 1.5. It’s understandable if you’ve sworn off every rooting for the Cowboys, but hear us out: there’s a scenario where they win today (pushing the Rams further down in the hunt for the playoffs) but lose the rest of their games, and end up hosting the wild-card Vikings or Seahawks in the playoffs despite having a losing record. That’s objectively funny, so pull for the Cowboys.

Chicago Bears (7-6) at Green Bay Packers (10-3). Packers by 4.5. Any Packers losses down the stretch help the Saints’ chances of getting a top-two playoff seed and the bye week that comes with it. A late-season win at Lambeau Field would help Mitchell Trubisky’s staying power, which is good for every other NFC team. Root for the Bears.

Philadelphia Eagles (6-7) at Washington Redskins (3-10). Eagles by 5.5. The Eagles are not a good football team, so it would be great if the Saints draw them at some point in the playoffs. They have just as good a shot at winning the NFC East as the spiraling Cowboys. Root for them to take that race down to the wire.

Leftovers and Lagniappe

Houston Texans (8-5) at Tennessee Titans (8-5). Titans by 2.5. The Titans are the Saints’ next opponent, so this game is definitely worth watching (call it advanced scouting). The winner of this game could take an insurmountable lead on the AFC South, and more Deshaun Watson is better for football. Root for a Texans upset and playoffs push.

Miami Dolphins (3-10) at New York Giants (2-11). Giants by 3.5. It’s been quite a year for former Saints linebacker Vince Biegel, who was traded to the Dolphins before the season and converted to his college position of a hand-in-the-dirt pass rusher. He’s ranked third on the Dolphins defense in sacks (2) but leads the team in quarterback hits (11), so root for him to get a win on Sunday.

Cleveland Browns (6-7) at Arizona Cardinals (3-9-1). Browns by 2.5. The Browns don’t have much to hang their hats on, but a win over Arizona would be fun for ex-LSU Tigers like Odell Beckham Jr., Jarvis Landry, and Greedy Williams. Root for them to beat the Cardinals.

Buffalo Bills (9-4) at Pittsburgh Steelers (8-5). Steelers by 1.5. The Steelers are closing in on a playoff berth and the first-round exit they’re destined for. At least the Bills are fun to watch. If you tune into “Sunday Night Football,” root for the Bills as slight underdogs.

Denver Broncos (5-8) at Kansas City Chiefs (9-4). Chiefs by 9.5.  The Saints have to play both of these teams next year, but there’s not much to be done for the playoff-bound Chiefs. Root for the Broncos to win and hurt their draft positioning.

Jacksonville Jaguars (4-9) at Oakland Raiders (6-7). Raiders by 6.5. This is the final Raiders game to be played in Oakland, and the choice is clear: root for the silver and black to send their home fans out with a memorable victory.

New England Patriots (10-3) at Cincinnati Bengals (1-12). Patriots by 9.5. Never root for the Patriots, especially in the wake of Spygate 2: Spy Harder. A Bengals upset would be the funniest sports moment of the year.

Gannett may earn revenue from audience referrals to betting services. Newsrooms are independent of this relationship and there is no influence on news coverage.

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Know who to root for: Saints fan watching guide to NFL Week 13

There are many NFL games for New Orleans Saints to watch during Week 13, including the San Francisco 49ers’ visit with the Baltimore Ravens.

The New Orleans Saints handled their business on Thanksgiving with an NFC South-clinching win over the Atlanta Falcons, and they received some help in the earlier games considering the greater scope of the NFC playoff picture. The visiting Buffalo Bills ran roughshod over the Dallas Cowboys, who are hanging onto the NFC East title by a thread, while the Chicago Bears outlasted the Detroit Lions, guaranteeing a longer stay for inconsistent quarterback Mitchell Trubisky.

Now, Saints fans get a long, stress-free weekend of football. Here’s who you should hope wins every game left on the Week 13 schedule, with some serious playoff implications on the line. All odds come from BetMGM.

Around the NFC South

Washington Redskins (2-9) at Carolina Panthers (5-6). Panthers by 9.5. It’s time for the other NFC South teams to start playing for draft position, which means it’s in their interest to lose out and get better players next year. Don’t let that happen, and root for Washington to pull off an upset.

Tampa Bay Buccaneers (4-7) at Jacksonville Jaguars (4-7). Jaguars by 2.5. If Tampa Bay wins, they’ll have worse draft positioning and maybe talk themselves into sticking with Jameis Winston at quarterback. Root for that.

Painting the NFC Playoff Picture

San Francisco 49ers (10-1) at Baltimore Ravens (9-2). Ravens by 5.5. Root for the Ravens to win and force the 49ers into a tough spot before their game with the Saints next week.

Minnesota Vikings (8-3) at Seattle Seahawks (9-2). Vikings by 2.5. These teams are playing for playoff seeding, so root for the Seahawks to defend the fifth seed and keep the Vikings a guaranteed road team.

Green Bay Packers (8-3) at New York Giants (2-9). Packers by 6.5. The Packers have a tenuous hold on the NFC North; root for chaos, and a big Giants upset.

Los Angeles Rams (6-5) at Arizona Cardinals (3-7-1). Kyler Murray may not play this game due to an injury, but root for the Cardinals either way. The Rams can’t afford another loss and still hope to reach the playoffs.

Philadelphia Eagles (5-6) at Miami Dolphins (2-9). Eagles by 9.5. The Eagles would easily be the worst NFC playoff team if they displace the Cowboys, so root for them to win here.

Leftovers and Lagniappe

Tennessee Titans (6-5) at Indianapolis Colts (6-5). Colts by 2.5. New Orleans has to play both of these teams down the stretch, so it can be hard to pick one or the other in this game. A Colts loss would decrease their playoff chances and maybe make them throw in the towel ahead of their Monday Night Football game with the Saints in a few weeks. Root for Tennessee.

New England Patriots (10-1) at Houston Texans (7-4). Patriots by 3.5. Never pull for the Patriots. Root for the Texans and young star quarterback Deshaun Watson.

Oakland Raiders (6-5) at Kansas City Chiefs (7-4). Chiefs by 9.5. Raiders fans can use a win after their strange loss to the Jets, so root for that despite their long odds.

Los Angeles Chargers (4-7) at Denver Broncos (3-8). Chargers by 2.5. The Broncos are auditioning rookie quarterback Drew Lock, so root for him to thrive and keep Denver from drafting another rookie highly next year (when the Saints are scheduled to visit).

New York Jets (4-7) at Cincinnati Bengals (0-11). Jets by 3.5. Bengals fans don’t deserve this after all their team has put them through. Root for them to finally get a win.

Cleveland Browns (5-6) at Pittsburgh Steelers (6-5). Browns by 1.5. Many LSU Tigers fans can sympathize with embattled Browns wideouts Odell Beckham Jr. and Jarvis Landry, and cornerback Greedy Williams. Root for them to win and keep their playoff hopes alive.

Gannett may earn revenue from audience referrals to betting services. Newsrooms are independent of this relationship and there is no influence on news coverage.

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Week 13 Ohio State football rooting interests

What should Ohio State football fans root for this weekend? Let’s break it all down, from the SEC to the Pac 12.

Before we get into our third-to-last Rooting Interests of the season, we have to point out exactly what scenarios we are dealing with. With so few weeks left in the season, we can be more precise about the scenarios we’re pinning down. For example, Ohio State has no reason to care if it loses the Michigan game (unless the Buckeyes also lose a second game). Go 12-1 with a Big Ten title and a loss to Michigan, and the Buckeyes are in. So there’s no need to discuss that. Therefore, when looking an Ohio State’s potential rooting interests this week, recognize that we’re looking at what keeps the Buckeyes in the Playoff if they lose to either Penn State, or against Minnesota or Wisconsin in the Big Ten Championship Game.

So, with that conversation out of the way, let’s look at the games. Miami of Ohio’s win over Akron was awful, and probably hurt Ohio State in some of the fancier SOS metrics. That shouldn’t matter much. Nor should Georgia Tech’s win over N.C. State, though it does make Clemson’s weak resume even worse.

As we get to the weekend, don’t bother looking at the SEC games. This is the penultimate week of the regular season, which is now officially called SEC Cupcake Week (trademark pending). The SEC West teams face opponents like Western Carolina, Samford, Abilene Christian, and Arkansas. Texas A&M beating Georgia won’t hurt the Buckeyes, but it does also help Alabama’s resume a bit. Missouri taking out Tennessee won’t mean much, but it would lock Alabama into beating a maximum of two P5 teams with winning records.

If Ohio State wants to stay ahead of Oklahoma (or Baylor, but I think that’s locked in already), root for the Big 12’s overall profile to look weaker. That means West Virginia upsetting Oklahoma State, and Kansas taking out Iowa State if possible. Kansas State losing to Texas Tech probably helps as well. And, of course, either Oklahoma or Baylor losing would go a long way to making this conversation moot; both losing would end the Big 12’s Playoff hopes.

In the ACC, it’s better if Pitt beats Virginia Tech, because that would strengthen Penn State’s overall profile. Virginia losing to Liberty seems unlikely, but would further weaken Clemson’s resume if Virginia reaches the ACC Championship Game by winning next week. Syracuse beating Louisville and Duke beating Wake Forest would also hurt Clemson’s resume. Any gain that Alabama might get from a Duke win is easily offset by what Clemson loses. Then again, Clemson is very likely going 13-0, so it might be too late to root against its resume.

And, of course, there is the Pac 12 to discuss. Washington and USC losing will wipe at any chance of multiple ranked wins by the Pac 12 champion, but at this point it looks like the Buckeyes might need a loss by either Utah or Oregon (or both) to feel safe about staying in front of a Pac 12 champion.

At night, Cincinnati gets a national spotlight against Temple. The Bearcats have really struggled the past few weeks, and they need to impress if they want their ranking to move back up. Also in the AAC, it’s probably a little better if SMU beats Navy, but that doesn’t matter too much. Lastly, keep an eye on Conference-USA. FAU should have no trouble with UTSA, but if the Buckeyes want three nonconference opponents that win their conferences (or divisions), Marshall has to lose a game. That means either this week at Charlotte or next week at home against FIU. Neither of those upsets is impossible, but they are upsets.

Next… Who to root for in Big Ten games

Ohio State football rooting interests for week 12

Looking forward to Week 12 of the college football season, what should Ohio State fans root for in all of the games.

We’re back for another week of Rooting Interests. Remember, the goal of this exercise is to look at what will give the Buckeyes the best possible resume in case they lose a game. 13-0 Ohio State is a Playoff lock, so there isn’t much to root for there. But if the Buckeyes drop a game to Penn State, Michigan, or in the Big Ten Championship Game, what will best help the Buckeyes get in to the College Football Playoff.

The first game Buckeye fans should pay attention to is Friday night’s Conference-USA showdown between Marshall and Louisiana Tech. Two of Ohio State’s nonconference opponents (Miami of Ohio and Cincinnati) have already essentially wrapped up division titles. FAU has a decent chance of making it three-for-three, but Marshall needs to lose a game for that to happen. This game is Marshall’s most likely loss in the final three weeks.

On Saturday, there are a ton of important games. As always, Alabama losing wouldn’t hurt, though is obviously unlikely. And while usually upsets always help, Florida has the weakest resume of any SEC contender right now. So as long as Georgia can lose the SEC East, Florida winning is better. Then again, if Miami (Fl) wins its final two games, Florida’s resume could be on par with Georgia’s. And, of course, a Florida loss isn’t a bad outcome, especially if Georgia beats either Auburn or Texas A&M.

In the afternoon, root for Navy over Notre Dame. Not only does an Irish loss hurt Georgia’s resume, but Navy could be 10-1 and meet Cincinnati in the AAC Championship Game. That would be a battle of Top 15 teams, and Cincinnati winning that would only make Ohio State look better. Speaking of Cincinnati, the Bearcats travel to face South Florida at 7 PM. Staying in the AAC in the afternoon, root for Memphis to beat Houston and keep its high ranking.

Moving over to ACC games, it’s always good to root for Clemson to lose. The Tigers, with a loss, should be ranked behind even a one-loss Ohio State team, so them losing to Wake Forest would be good. If they beat Wake Forest, though, pull for a blowout. The worst-case scenario would be Wake Forest being viewed as a more valuable win solely on the back of keeping it close against Clemson. Also, pull for Virginia Tech to fall to Georgia Tech. The Hokies could still be a decent opponent in the ACC Championship Game at 9-3, but a loss to Georgia Tech would erase that completely.

In the evening, don’t waste too much time on LSU at Ole Miss. The Tigers almost certainly won’t lose two games, and even if they do, they still have an incredible resume. LSU winning would help Ohio State by not making any of Alabama’s wins look more valuable.

There are pros and cons for both Baylor and Oklahoma winning. Baylor going undefeated is a bigger issue for Ohio State than 12-1 Oklahoma is, though, so you may as well root for the Sooners here. Either way, though, this game should be a close one, and preferably not a pretty one. Mistakes and turnovers winning the day makes both teams look bad, which is the goal here.

Two other 7:30 games matter, but in contradictory ways. Root for Georgia State to beat Appalachian State so that South Carolina looks worse. At the same time, though, root for South Carolina to beat Texas A&M–because Texas A&M not being a valuable win is more important than South Carolina being an even worse opponent. (Remember, Alabama beat South Carolina but Georgia lost to the Gamecocks.)

Later in the evening, Utah and Oregon losing don’t hurt. It’s better for Oregon to lose, though, for two reasons. First of all, Utah has a weaker overall resume than the Ducks. Secondly, especially if Oklahoma beats Baylor, remember that Oklahoma beat UCLA earlier in the season. Right now, the Sooners only have two decent wins (Texas and Iowa State). UCLA winning out–or at least upsetting Utah–would make Oklahoma look better. And speaking of Iowa State, root for the Cyclones to upset Texas. Not only would that help Iowa stay ranked (more on that in the next section), but it would take the luster off Oklahoma’s best win so far.

Next… Who to root for in Big Ten games