Three to watch

1) No. 5 Notre Dame at No. 8 Oklahoma, 8 p.m. (ABC)

Before Notre Dame (7-0) finalizes its national title plans, it has to beat the Sooners (6-1) in Norman, where coach Bob Stoops is 79-4 and has not lost twice at home in the same season.

2) Michigan State at Wisconsin, 3:30 p.m. (ABC)

Neither team is as good as it was in 2011, but the two schools played two classic games last year and there might be some leftover magic. The Badgers (6-2) have rebounded from a slow start and are back on track for a third consecutive Rose Bowl.

3) No. 15 Texas Tech at No. 4 Kansas State, 3:30 p.m. (FOX)

The Wildcats (7-0) suddenly have the inside lane to meet the SEC champion in the BCS title game with its biggest in-conference hurdles in the rearview mirror. That doesn’t mean they can’t stumble at home on Saturday against the Red Raiders (6-1), but they have defied the odds thus far.

Inside the BCS

•  Do you think it’s going to get ugly at Oregon? Not Oregon’s uniforms…the score. Colorado has given up 69 points to Fresno State, 51 to Arizona State and 50 to USC. The Ducks rank second in the country in scoring with an average of 51 points per game.

The second-ranked Ducks’ schedule picks up next week with a visit to No. 10 USC and meetings with No. 19 Stanford and No. 7 Oregon State in the final two weeks of November.

•  What does $300 million buy? Not the affection of Mack Brown. The Texas coach whined about his obligations to the Longhorn Network, the ESPN creation that will pay the school $15 annually for the next 20 years, and said the network provides a “true advantage” for Texas opponents.

“I didn’t ask for it,” Brown said. “We were given a deal we had no input in.”

There are 118 other teams who would trade places, Mack.

Heisman watch

1) Collin Klein, QB, Kansas State: Klein shredded West Virginia’s defense for seven total touchdowns and 323 passing yards. Texas Tech, one of the few teams in the Big 12 with a decent defense, will give the Wildcats’ quarterback a tougher time today.

2) Manti Te’o, LB, Notre Dame: If the Irish senior linebacker is really going to be a factor, as some straw polls indicated, then he’s going to have to have big games against Oklahoma Saturday and next month at USC.

3) Matt Barkley, QB, USC: The preseason favorite has played his way back into the conversation with a 19-of-20, six-touchdown game last week against Colorado. And with high-profile dates with Oregon (maybe twice) and Notre Dame still to come, the door is still open for the Trojans quarterback.

Number to know

1907 The last time Oregon State started 6-0.

Upset alert

No. 3 Florida vs. No. 12 Georgia, 3:30 p.m. (ABC)

Florida’s defense is really, really good, but this is a bad spot for a young team. Three weeks ago, Florida edged LSU, 14-6, in the equivalent of a brawl. Then last week the Gators had a dream game, a 44-11 whipping of South Carolina. Now, everyone and their mother is telling the Gators, who have a limited offense, how great they are. They can’t afford to believe their own hype.