College Football

Big Ten's return highlights Super 6 slate

Updated Jul. 14, 2021 12:19 p.m. ET

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By Kevin Cooney

Editor's Note: This content is sponsored by FOX Bet. FOX Bet was developed by a division of Flutter Entertainment in partnership with FOX Sports, a unit of FOX Corporation. FOX Bet is solely responsible for this content and the products and services it provides.

While college football has been playing games for more than seven weeks now, one of the final pieces falls into place this weekend to make the season feel whole.

The Big Ten is back on the gridiron.

After delaying the season until Oct. 24, the conference will start a league-only sprint to the finish that could result in one of its teams entering the College Football Playoff. And it starts with three big games, including a Nebraska-Ohio State contest in Columbus that will be the Big Noon Saturday contest on FOX.

That is the marquee matchup of the weekend in college football and the leadoff game in Fox Bet’s Super 6 contest. Here’s a breakdown of the six games for this week:

Just download the FOX Super 6 app on your phone, pick all six of the college football games listed and the margins of victory in each. If you do that, you could win the jackpot of $25,000. Just download the app in the Apple Store or Google Play. The best part is its free!

Nebraska Cornhuskers (0-0) at No. 5 Ohio State Buckeyes (0-0), noon ET, FOX

No team in the Big Ten is expected to do more big things than the Buckeyes, who made the College Football Playoff last season and are expected to field a potential Top 5 NFL Draft pick in quarterback Justin Fields. Junior Adrian Martinez has been the starting QB for the Cornhuskers for the past two seasons, but more is going to be expected from Scott Frost's squad if Nebraska is going to make some noise.

No. 23 North Carolina State Wolfpack (4-1, 4-1) at No. 17 North Carolina Tar Heels (3-1, 3-1), noon ET, ESPN

The Tar Heels received a jolt last week with a 31-28 loss at Florida State that knocked them from the Top 5 all the way down to No. 17 in the polls. Sophomore Devon Leary has the Wolfpack on the move, winning three games in a row and looking to take a sweep of the "Triangle" games in back to back weeks against Duke and North Carollina.

No. 17 Iowa State Cyclones (3-0, 3-1) at No. 6 Oklahoma State Cowboys (2-0, 3-0), 3:30 p.m. ET, FOXPerhaps the biggest remaining game on the Big XII schedule features two Top 20 teams who can tighten the screws on defense. Iowa State travels to Stillwater, Okla., having only allowed 97 yards rushing per game. The Cowboys, meanwhile, have allowed just 26 points in victories over Kansas, West Virginia and Tulsa.

No. 8 Penn State Nittany Lions (0-0) at Indiana Hoosiers (0-0), 3:30 p.m. ET, FS1

A huge game for the Nittany Lions before Ohio State rolls into Beaver Stadium next week for a matchup that will carry College Football Playoff ramifications. One thing Penn State should be worried about: The Hoosiers made things tight in State College, Pa., last season before the Nittany Lions escaped with a 34-27 victory. Penn State will miss a potential NFL first-rounder in linebacker Micah Parsons, who opted out of the season.

No. 18 Michigan Wolverines (0-0) at No. 21 Minnesota Golden Gophers (0-0), 7:30 p.m. ET, ABC

A Saturday night game with the potential for below-freezing temperatures and snow flurries? Welcome to Minneapolis in late October – not just opening night. Michigan is going to run a lot of fresh faces in there, including quarterback Joe Milton. Meanwhile, Minnesota coach PJ Fleck returns Tanner Morgan at QB, along with dangerous receiver Rashod Bateman. The Gophers finished 11-2 in 2019 and could push their way into the Big Ten title game.

No. 9 Cincinnati Bearcats (1-0, 3-0) at No. 16 SMU Mustangs (2-0, 5-0), 9 p.m. ET, ESPN2

Look at the American Conference getting the big-time treatment as a potential outside shot at the CFP might ride on this contest. The Bearcats will try to slow down SMU quarterback Shane Buechele’s march toward a 4,000-yard season. Buechele has thrown for 12 TDs with just two picks. Cincinnati’s defense has only allowed an average of 171 yards through the air thus far. 

One of the best weekend slates on the college football schedule is a great reason to sign up for the Fox Super 6. Download the app today and start picking these six games for free. You could win $25,000.

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