The Southeastern Conference’s West division might as well be a junior version of the NFL. It is college football’s powerhouse and every game influences the eventual lineup for the inaugural postseason playoff and championship.

The SEC West has five teams: Auburn, Mississippi State, Ole Miss, Texas A&M and Alabama. At No. 14 in the AP poll, A&M is the lowest ranked of the bunch. The others occupy four of the top seven spots. There’s no easy road to the SEC Championship Game.

The rankings certainly will get another shakeup because of Saturday’s match-ups. Were there more hours in a day, we’d watch them all.

No. 2 Auburn (5-0) at No. 3 (tie) Mississippi State (5-0): A fun duel between quarterbacks Nick Marshall of the Tigers and the Bulldogs’ Dak Prescott. Prescott passed for three touchdowns and ran for two in last week’s dismantling of A&M. Marshall passed for two and ran for two in a drubbing of LSU.

No. 5 Baylor (5-0) at No. 9 TCU (4-0): Baylor’s offense struggled in an unimpressive win over Texas. These two up-tempo teams could combine for 100 points.

No. 3 (tie) Ole Miss (5-0) at No. 14 Texas A&M (4-1): The Rebels come off an emotional win over Alabama that snapped a 10-game losing streak to the Crimson Tide. Ole Miss hasn’t won the SEC since 1963.

No. 12 Oregon (4-1) at No. 18 UCLA (4-1): Both come off surprising losses. UCLA has underperformed expectations all season, even before falling to Utah.

Duke (4-1) at No. 22 Georgia Tech (5-0): Tech is the lowest-ranked unbeaten team. Maybe fans don’t enjoy watching a team that runs the triple option and throws so little, but Tech piled up 318 yards on the ground in physically beating beleaguered Miami last week.

Today’s question

Which game will you be watching, and why?

Answers in the comment box, please.
 
 
Post By: Larry Weisman, a longtime sportswriter for USA TODAY, blogs for Twistity.com. Follow him on Twitter @MrLarryWeisman .