Week 12 college football TV schedule and open thread

This week’s college football schedule is... not great. With only two weeks of the regular season left, it seems almost unfair to criticize the offerings, but it appears that all the best match-ups are being saved for last. Still, there are things to find on the schedule to watch, and you never know when a game that isn’t supposed to be interesting or close suddenly turns out to be.

So, while you’re waiting for the Florida Gators to return to The Swamp to host UAB at 4:00 p.m. on the SEC Network, or coming through afterwards to see what is on the rest of the evening, feel free to hang out in this thread while watching any of today’s games.

Here are our picks for the remainder of today’s viewing windows:

Early (12:00 p.m. to 3:30 p.m., Eastern)

Michigan at Wisconsin (12:00 p.m., FOX): The No. 5 Badgers have clinched the Big Ten West division title, remaining undefeated and with their College Football Playoff hopes intact. The No. 24 Wolverines are Wisconsin’s next hurdle to clear on that path. In a day of games which seem largely devoid of drama, this contest between two ranked teams is billed as the premier match-up.

Virginia at Miami (12:00 p.m., ABC): The No. 3 Hurricanes, fresh off eviscerating Notre Dame, will look to avoid a letdown against a decent Cavaliers squad. Miami has notched two victories in a row over ranked teams, but could potentially feel disrespected by being ranked behind a one-loss Clemson in the latest CFB Playoff rankings. Virginia actually started the season 5-1, before dropping three of their last four games.

UCF at Temple (12:00 p.m., ESPNU): Chip Kelly ain’t the coach yet kids, so watch the other favorite candidate of Gator fans - UCF head coach Scott Frost - lead the No. 15 Knights against former Florida defensive coordinator and current Temple head coach Geoff Collins. Tune in to see the offense Gator fans covet against the defense that just left Gainesville.

In other games: No. 1 Alabama and No. 6 Auburn both have tune ups for next week’s defacto SEC West championship Iron Bowl (both 12:00 p.m.), No. 12 TCU travels to Texas Tech (12:00 p.m.), and No. 16 Mississippi State goes to visit a dismal Arkansas team (12:00 p.m.).

Afternoon (3:30 p.m. to 7:00 p.m., Eastern)

You’ll of course be watching Florida host UAB, at 4:00 p.m., on the SEC Network.

In other games: Also in Florida’s time slot, No. 7 Georgia hosts Kentucky (3:30 p.m.); and No. 4 Oklahoma, No. 9 Ohio State, and No. 13 Oklahoma State all have games they should win easily (all at 3:30 p.m.).

Evening (7:00 p.m. to 10:00 p.m., Eastern)

LSU at Tennessee (7:00 p.m., ESPN/WatchESPN): I forgot what Tennessee interim head coach Brady Hoke’s voice sounded like until I heard him speak words on television this past week. I bring that up to remind you that the Butch Jones era has come to an unceremonious end in Knoxville - and yet, the conference win-less Vols will take the field against the No. 20 Tigers on Saturday.

Texas A&M at Ole Miss (7:00 p.m., ESPN2/WatchESPN) / Missouri at Vanderbilt (7:30 p.m., SECN/WatchESPN: Here are two more somewhat unappetizing SEC match-ups for you to watch tonight. In the SEC West tilt, you may be surprised to know that the Aggies only have one more win than the Rebels, as Ole Miss has been getting better of late while Texas A&M has lost two of their last three. In the SEC East battle, the Tigers should dominate the Commodores, who have lost six of their last seven.

Florida International at Florida Atlantic (7:00 p.m.): There is actually a game in the Sunshine State today which means something to the teams involved, as Lane Kiffin’s Owls play for a spot in the Conference USA title game against the rival Panthers. FIU is coached by Butch Davis, who has guided the Panthers to their first over .500 record since 2011, a year before Florida International inexplicably fired Mario Cristobal.

In other games: If you still care about Willie Taggart being a contender for the Florida job, Arizona plays at Oregon (7:00 p.m.). California visits Stanford (8:00 p.m.) as well, which could be worth the watching just for Heisman Trophy hopeful Bryce Love.

And here’s your schedule table.