National “Three To See,” Game Two

#9 Vanderbilt (7-1) at #20 Texas (6-2), Sat., noon (ABC)

Let’s start this one with a crazy Fun Fact about the SEC, where league officials and school representatives have been using the motto “It Just Means More” as part of their football branding for almost a decade now.

There are 16 teams in the SEC, and right now nine of them — including both #9 Vanderbilt and #20 Texas in this game — are ranked in the national Top 25. Whether you love or hate the SEC, that must be viewed as a mighty impressive accomplishment.

Meanwhile, among the seven schools that are not in the Top 25, three have fired their head coach during the 2025 season: Arkansas (Sam Pittman), Florida (Billy Napier) and most recently LSU (Brian Kelly).

Hugh Freeze, who’s in his third season at Auburn and hasn’t posted a winning record yet, could be next, and all three of the other guys near the bottom of the standings — Shane Beamer at South Carolina, Mark Stoops at Kentucky, and Jeff Lebby at Mississippi State — have gotten absolutely ripped by their own fans on a regular basis this season.

So, in all the good ways and bad, it probably does “just mean more” in the SEC, especially when it comes to matters of the gridiron.

Regarding this Vandy-Texas matchup, there is the fascinating, and there is the unpredictable.

When Vanderbilt has the ball, it will be a fascinating chess match, because the Commodores have one of the best offenses (38 points per game) in the SEC, and Texas has one of the best defenses (14 points per game) in the conference.

Vandy’s sixth-year senior quarterback, 24-year-old Diego Pavia, is a phenomenal leader and a hard-to-defend dual threat who, like Haynes King at Georgia Tech, is most likely to beat you with his legs and his super-high football IQ, but he can usually throw it just well enough, too.

The “unpredictable” element in this one comes when the Longhorns have the ball. Fifth-year Texas coach Steve Sarkisian is an offensive guy, and he’s now been working with the big-name redshirt sophomore Arch Manning for three years, but the Longhorns have been really shaky on the offensive line, they don’t typically run the ball well, and Manning — like Cade Klubnik at Clemson — just hasn’t been very good overall this season.

Manning finally did have many brilliant moments last week, in Texas’ come-from behind victory at Mississippi State, but he’s also been in the concussion protocol because of a hit he took in that game.

Final note on this one: These programs have played each other only once in nearly 100 years; the Longhorns won that one (27-24) in Nashville last year. Now Vandy (a two-point underdog) looks to return the favor in Austin.

National “Three To See,” Game Three

#8 Georgia Tech (8-0) at NC State (4-4), Sat., 7:30 p.m. (ESPN2)
(An Old North State Tailgate & Traveling Sports Circus Game)

Despite the obvious disparity in these teams’ records, there are three main reasons NC State (a five-point underdog) has a legitimate chance to upset undefeated and highly ranked Georgia Tech.

First, the Wolfpack’s biggest weakness — defending the pass — is not something that this year’s Yellow Jackets are built to exploit.

When you can’t put consistent pressure on the quarterback and you don’t cover all that well downfield, teams such as Duke, Notre Dame and Pitt are going to be able to take advantage of that, and that’s exactly what happened in three of the Pack’s four losses this season.

Tech’s quarterback, sixth-year senior Haynes King, is an off-the-charts leader and a very accurate thrower for fourth-year coach Brent Key, but the Jackets’ offense is built for them to try to beat you with their offensive line, their tailbacks and their run-first quarterback, and not nearly as much with NFL-style throws downfield.

Second, the Wolfpack’s offense is well-balanced and dangerous, and Tech’s defense is only OK and can be especially vulnerable to a strong rushing attack.

State has an outstanding passer in sophomore CJ Bailey, one of the best running backs in the ACC in redshirt sophomore Hollywood Smothers, one of the best tight ends in the league in senior Justin Joly, and some talented young wide receivers.

If the NC State line can just avoid getting overwhelmed, the way Notre Dame dominated the Pack’s blockers, there will be high hopes for some offensive explosions at Carter-Finley Stadium on Saturday night.

Finally, the State players are plenty aware that their leader, 13th-year head coach Dave Doeren, is fielding questions about his future during his weekly press conferences, they understand that beating an undefeated, top-10 opponent in front of the home fans in November is an extremely rare opportunity, and they’ve seen enough video to know that they have enough talent to compete with this Georgia Tech team.

Could the Pack pull off this upset? Definitely. Will they pull it off? We’ll be there with our Old North State Tailgate crew to find out, under the lights, on Saturday night at Carter-Finley.

NOTE: For the in-state edition of our Week 10 college football preview, including analysis on the highest-profile games, plus schedules and TV/streaming options for all 32 teams (FBS, FCS, Division Two, Division Three) in the Bold North State, please click HERE.