After a few weeks of creampuffs, out-of-conference rivalries, over-hyped underdogs and semi-resurging powerhouses, the meat of the college football season is in full swing.

It’s conference football time.

Games like Alabama-Virginia Tech and Ohio State-USC were great and all, but the few weeks since have proven that a loss in those games won’t keep you out of the national championship game if you run the table in your own conference. After all, Non-conference games are for conference prestige; conference standings are what determines bowl placement. It doesn’t matter that Texas is 4-0 and Oklahoma is 2-1, both still have an even chance to win the Big 12 (and in reality, the BCS title).

Game of the Week: (8) Oklahoma at (17) Miami (FL)

That being said, the game of the week is a non-conference game (whoops!). This is not quite the match-up we expected to see back in August, but it’s more exciting than we anticipated, so I don’t think anyone is complaining.

Earlier this week, we discovered Sam Bradford will be out at least another week, leaving backup Landry Jones to be under center on Saturday. This won’t be too big of a deal – Jones is one of the seemingly many true freshman who have stepped up in big positions this year, along with Michigan’s Tate Forcier and USC’s Matt Barkley. He’s got a passer rating of 159.55, completes 60.5% of his passes and threw a school record six touchdowns against Tulsa two weeks ago – bringing his two-and-a-half game total to nine. Oklahoma’s running game is okay, too. They’ve posted 589 yards in three games, led by DeMarco Murray and Chris Brown, who have around 200 each. With the ability to throw or run (and have two strong backs to rotate in), the Hurricane defense will have its hands full.

Jacory Harris is Miami’s great hope though, showing lots of promise in his sophomore year, even being touted as a sleeper Heisman pick before being rendered useless last week against Virginia Tech’s stifling defense. But against that VT D, he suffered (9-25, 150 yards and an interception).

This week’s contest doesn’t get any easier for Harris. Oklahoma’s defense has allowed only 14 points in their first three games, all to a high-powered BYU offense, even shutting out a Tulsa team that has scored over 37 points in each of their other three games. This will be Miami’s fourth game in a row against a ranked opponent, and it’s their toughest one yet.

Winner: Oklahoma. With an average running game and a still-developing quarterback who is susceptible to aggressive defenses, it’s hard to see Miami surviving this one. Oklahoma would be at the top of the early national title discussion if Bradford had finished the BYU game, or Jones had started it, and unless they get spooked by The U’s re-energized fan base and Harris learned how to deal with tough defense in one week’s time, this will prove that Miami is just as finicky and more clutch than Florida State – nothing more, nothing less.

Other good stuff:

(7) USC at (24) California – Matt Barkley is back at the helm for the Trojans, and Cal comes off an embarrassing loss to the Oregon Ducks. Neither Barkley or Cal RB Jahvid Best are unstoppable, and USC’s run defense is pretty stellar (238 yards, 3 TDs in four games so far). Look for Cal to make some adjustments on offense after being held to three points last week, and if the Bears learned their lesson, they could pull off home upset. But probably not.

Washington at Notre Dame – If Steve Sarkisian can pull off a road win in South Bend, Charlie Weis is out of a job before December ends and Washington is well on their way to being bowl-bound. The Huskies come off a tough loss at Stanford and Notre Dame comes off two skin-of-their-teeth wins versus two 1-3 Big Ten opponents (Michigan State, Purdue). Watching the quarterbacks in this match-up will be fun, as they’re both finally coming into their own in their junior years. Jimmy Clausen has better athletes around him than Jake Locker does, though, so look for the Irish to pull out a win, perhaps again by the skin of their teeth.

(4) LSU at (18) Georgia – LSU’s defense hasn’t been what it was when Bo Pelini was around, and the Joe Cox-A.J. Green combo has an opportunity to tear the Tiger secondary apart. After all, Jake Locker threw for over 300 yards in a near-upset in Week 1. The game is being played in Georgia, so look for another Top 10 team to fall this week.

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