Sports Weekend Preview

The race for the four spots in the College Football Playoff may turn out to be more exciting than the CFP’s games. As no team with two defeats has ever played in the CFP, every one team with a loss is playing for its future every Saturday.

Prepare your recliner to host your heiner. This is going to be fun.

The gem of Saturday is No. 3 Notre Dame (8-1) visiting No. 7 Miami (8-0). This brings back memories of a great and nasty rivalry from the 1980s, well before any of the current players were born. Miami took a big step last week by smacking around Virginia Tech, so here’s a chance for the Hurricanes to truly prove themselves. ABC has this at 8 p.m. ET.

Sadly, Fox will be showing – at exactly the same time – a key Big 12 clash. No. 6 TCU (8-1) plays at No. 5 Oklahoma (8-1). The winner stays in the CFP hunt, though these teams could meet again in the Big 12 Championship game.

You can pass the afternoon with No. 1 Georgia (9-0) at No. 10 Auburn (7-2). The Bulldogs have owned the Tigers for the better part of the last 15 years. CBS, 3:30 p.m.

Ever wonder what would happen to the Dallas Cowboys if Ezekiel Elliott’s suspension ever stuck? You can find out Sunday. Elliott’s luck in court ran out on Thursday and he’s beginning his six-game suspension as the Cowboys (5-3) take on the disappointing Atlanta Falcons (4-4), who have lost four of their last five. Fox, 4 p.m.

Five drivers are fighting for the remaining spot in NASCAR’s Monster Energy Cup in Sunday’s race in the Can-Am 500 at Phoenix. NBC has the race at 2:30 p.m. Martin Truex Jr., Kyle Busch and Kevin Harvick have locked up three of the four slots for the final run at Homestead-Miami a week hence.

Middleweight Daniel Jacobs (32-2, 29 knockouts), who narrowly lost a title fight with Gennady Golovkin in his last outing, returns to the ring against Luis Arias (18-0, 9 KO) on Saturday night on HBO at 10 p.m.

Enjoy the visual buffet.

 
 
Post By: Larry Weisman, a longtime sportswriter for USA TODAY, blogs for Twistity.com. Follow him on Twitter @MrLarryWeisman