College football Week 6 viewing guide: What happens if Oklahoma loses?

Welcome to Week 6 of the 2018 college football season. Unless things goes haywire in Monroe, La. on Saturday — AND THEY MAY VERY WELL WILL GO HAYWIRE — you’ll soon be tuning into the happenings of college football elsewhere. We’re here to help guide your eyes to the more meaty match-ups of the week, be they absolute blowouts or cringing nail-biters.

This week, we’re focusing mainly out of conference, though some real weirdness will go down in Gainesville, Fla. no doubt. As the Shutdown Fullcast astutely pointed out, LSU and Florida are essentially the same this year. They’re both anemic on offense, but somehow competent and indeed shutdown on defense. BET THE UNDER and go get the house pressure-washed or something.

We have eyes on the Big 12, Pac 12 and ACC. There are a handful of G5 games that may be worth your time (looking at you, Eastern vs. Western Michigan), but the global landscape of the season could gain some knifey twists after Week 6 is all said and done.

Our weekly watchability metrics include mere game interest, upset possibility, and POTENTIAL SHITSHOW factor. This last factor is far and away the most salient.

SATURDAY, OCTOBER 6 (EARLY GAMES)

No. 19 Texas “at” No. 7 Oklahoma

11 a.m. CT on FOX and streaming online at FOXSportsGO

The Red River Rivalry Shootout always requires at least an annual look-see, because it’s very, very stupid. Oklahoma may well ruin their season on Saturday with a loss, which would be hilarious. No matter what betting lines in any direction you see, STAY FAR AWAY.

No. 5 LSU at No. 22 Florida

2:30 p.m. CT on CBS and streaming online at CBS Sports

If you lay money on this game, you might have a problem. It’s going to be ugly, it’s going to include at least one fight, and they will fail to achieve the over. I have watched no fewer than 42 games in the Swamp — three of which included LSU — and I can guarantee that something from either or both sidelines will gum up the works.

Watch this game, if only because it will be so incredibly unwatchable.

Florida State at No. 17 Miami

2:30 p.m. CT on ABC and streaming online at WatchESPN

Two things: 1) Florida State upsets Miami and the bottom half of the peninsula falls into the ocean, or 2) Miami obliterates the ‘Noles and everyone laughs at Tallahassee. Both are good.

NIGHT GAMES (DOES NOT INCLUDE THE #PAC12AFTERDARK; THEY ARE A DIFFERENT SUBHEADING)

No. 13(?) Kentucky at Texas A&M

6 p.m. CT on ESPN and streaming online at WatchESPN

It’s almost basketball season. Go ‘Cats.

No. 10 Washington at UCLA; Vanderbilt at No. 2 Georgia

6:30 p.m. CT block that will be very interesting on respective channels and streaming online at respective streams

We’ll here block this into a single subheading because you should keep an eye on both of these games simultaneously. Two top-10s with squirrelly opponents? Sure, why not.

No. 6 Notre Dame at No. 22 Virginia Tech

7 p.m. CT on NBC and streaming online at NBC SportsNet

Notre Dame is playing with house money right now (lol No. 6 right now, okay), with wins above the Irish’s realistic punching weight. Brian Kelly’s bunch will get picked off at some point this season — and picked off bad, mind — and Virginia Tech might just be the shop to do it. The Hokies have played uneven to this point, but live in primetime in Blacksburg may just be the motivation needed to smash this Irish bunch back into unaffiliated irrelevance. For the betterment of us all, please may this happen.

PAC-12 AFTER DARK

Utah at No. 14 Stanford

9:30 p.m. CT on ESPN and streaming online at WatchESPN

College football’s unofficial official motto is “All hell could break lose at any moment,” and Utah could keep this interesting for a time. The Utes will drive Vegas wild, though Stanford will probably win, but that backdoor cover is certainly on the table. Never ghost on the late game, because it will always turn out interesting.