Bowl viewer"s guide: Previewing Saturday"s slate of CFB action

College bowl season officially kicks off Saturday, and College Football 24/7 is providing a daily glimpse at the best players in each game and predictions from writers Gil Brandt, Bucky Brooks, Daniel Jeremiah, Bryan Fischer, Chase Goodbread and Mike Huguenin.

Site: New Orleans
Date: Dec. 20
Time/TV: 11 a.m. ET, ESPN
Matchup: Louisiana-Lafayette (8-4) vs. Nevada (7-5)
NFL teams attending: Buffalo Bills
Top players to watch: Nevada (QB Cody Fajardo, DE Brock Hekking, WR Hasaan Henderson, DE/LB Ian Seau); Louisiana-Lafayette (RB Alonzo Harris, WR Jamal Robinson).
Why NFL fans should tune in: Why not get your bowl season started out right with an intriguing matchup between an up-and-down Wolf Pack team taking on one of the most impressive Sun Belt teams over the years in ULL? Fajardo has put up comparable numbers to Colin Kaepernick during his time in Reno and is among the best dual-threat quarterbacks in the country. The team’s pistol offense gets a lot of the press, but it’s the defense you’ll really want to keep an eye out for with Ian Seau (Junior’s nephew) and wild man Brock Hekking, who might have the best hair in college football and is an equally fearsome pass rusher. As for the Ragin Cajuns, they feature a number of playmakers on the offensive side that could wind up being late Day Three selections.
Game predictions:
Brandt: UL-Lafayette, 24-21
Brooks: UL-Lafayette, 33-30
Jeremiah: Nevada, 28-24
Fischer: UL-Lafayette, 33-23
Goodbread: Nevada, 30-21
Huguenin: UL-Lafayette, 27-24

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Bowl viewer"s guide: Previewing Saturday"s slate of CFB action

NFL declares Week 15 flex scheduling, Week 16 Saturday slate

As the regular season nears its final month, playoff races continue to heat up across the NFL. As a result of adaptive scheduling, more supporters throughout the nation will have the ability to see these significant competitions.

The league on Sunday declared the finalization of both Week 15’s flex program and Week 16’s Saturday doubleheader. The Week 15 1 p.m. ET competition between the Cincinnati Bengals and Cleveland Browns and the 4:25 p.m. ET match between the Minnesota Vikings and Detroit Lions will both be broadcast on FOX.

The reversal of network — a fresh element of the flex scheduling procedure called "cross-bending" — for the Cincinnati-Cleveland game brings an instate competition into a bigger audience as both teams fight for supremacy in a closely contested AFC North.

A classic NFC North matchup between recognizable foes takes the 4:25 p.m. time slot when the Vikings travel to Ford Field to take on the upstart Lions.

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NFL declares Week 15 flex scheduling, Week 16 Saturday slate

Like/Dislike: Here"s how you break the internet

Matchup is not that great

He’s going to smoke us

She makes the world much better

Why are people trying to break the internet? The internet gives us many wonderful things: News, information, and a way to judge and mock people whose ideas are different than ours. So why would somebody try to break something this wonderful?

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Like/Dislike: Here"s how you break the internet

Top Tom Brady vs. Peyton Manning games

Following a 43-21 rout of the Denver Broncos in Week 9 of the 2014 season, New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady owns an 11-5 edge in his matchups against Peyton Manning. Both passers will one day be enshrined in the Pro Football Hall of Fame, and the two have also had a number of memorable showdowns. Here are the finest of those games:

For more great NFL video, NFL NOW is here. Follow your favorite players and teams around the clock with video personalized to you on all of your devices. Start using it now!

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Top Tom Brady vs. Peyton Manning games

Myles Jack triumphs "jogging backer" matchup as UCLA rolls

Jack tackled Shaq. Shaq ran by Jack.

In Case you presume this is the beginning to some Dr. Seuss story, you would not be incorrect per se, but it is also an exact manner to describe UCLA’s 44-30 win over Washington on Saturday night.

>> Can Not-miss Minutes: Top school football plays of Week 11

The competition was billed in advance as a matchup between "jogging backers" — the Bruins’ Myles Jack and the Huskies’ Shaq Thompson — and it more than lived up to expectations most of the night despite the somewhat lopsided score.

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Myles Jack triumphs "jogging backer" matchup as UCLA rolls

Ohio State"s Joey Bosa raises season sack total to 10

Ohio State sophomore defensive end Joey Bosa recorded two sacks Saturday to get to be the very first Big Ten player this season with 10 sacks as the Buckeyes tuned up for next week’s showdown with Michigan State by hammering Illinois, 55-14.

Ohio State’s single-season sack record is 14, by Vernon Gholston in 2007.

Bosa (6-foot-5, 278 pounds) had sacks in the first and third quarters and now has 18.5 in his 22-game school career. He’s 6.5 sacks in the previous three matches, and his one on one matchup with Michigan State left tackle Jack Conklin next week will be possibly the most interesting individual challenge of the match.

Illinois came in having permitted a league-high 25 sacks. Michigan State has allowed a league-low five.

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Ohio State"s Joey Bosa raises season sack total to 10

Le"Veon Bell vs. C.J. Mosley among top Week 9 matchups

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In this episode of "Bucky’s Finest," former NFL player and lookout Bucky Brooks emphasizes the can’t-miss matchups to watch in Week 9:

New Orleans Saints at Carolina Panthers, Thursday, 8:25 p.m. ET, NFL Network

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Le"Veon Bell vs. C.J. Mosley among top Week 9 matchups

Blocked PAT for Northern Colorado turns into 6-lateral play

Maybe the wildest blocked extra-point attempt ever occurred Saturday when Sacramento State beat Northern Colorado in a FCS matchup.

Take a look — and make sure you watch until the end:

Sacramento State kicker Brad Cornish is the guy who had his PAT attempt blocked — and Northern Colorado linebacker Dominick Sierra is the unfortunate soul who fumbled at the goal line.

» Can’t-miss Moments of Week 7 in college football

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Blocked PAT for Northern Colorado turns into 6-lateral play

Watch: Unbelievable ending to a blocked extra-point attempt

Maybe the wildest blocked extra-point attempt ever occurred Saturday when Sacramento State beat Northern Colorado in a FCS matchup.

Take a look — and make sure you watch until the end:

Sacramento State kicker Brad Cornish is the guy who had his PAT attempt blocked — and Northern Colorado linebacker Dominick Sierra is the unfortunate soul who fumbled at the goal line.

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Watch: Unbelievable ending to a blocked extra-point attempt

NFL Week 5 viewer"s guide

The Green Bay Packers made easy work of the Minnesota Vikings on Thursday, but there’s still a full slate of games on Sunday. Around The NFL’s Kevin Patra fills you in on the key storylines for each matchup. Here’s your guide as you settle into your couch for all the NFL action.

Cam Newton admitted this week he hasn’t been as mobile as he thought following offseason ankle surgery. One area he has improved is the deep ball. With rookie Kelvin Benjamin stretching defenses, the Panthers already have nine receptions of 20-plus yards in the air — last season they had 12 total. Expect more of that against a shaky Bears back end.

Jay Cutler has played well on the road this season, throwing for six touchdowns and zero interceptions. However, he’s thrown for 300-plus yards only once in his last 25 road games. The Bears need Good Jay verses a Panthers defense that knows it must bounce back from two poor performances.

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NFL Week 5 viewer"s guide

NFL Week 5 game picks: Bengals stay perfect; Cardinals fall

It’s usually around Week 5 when we identify the quality teams and learn which matchups are most important. My Week 4? Always stinks. Having done the NFL.com picks for the last three years, I can tell you that this week is usually the time of the season when your friendly writer starts to get an idea of what he’s talking about … although, like the picks below, that is up for debate.

Speaking of …

"@HarrisonNFL: So who wins Alex-Kaep I? #KCvsSF" Alex Smith is gonna carve that secondary up!

Wait, you’re a Seahawks fan, but that’s your Twitter avatar? I think it’s time to change your pic, @Lucks_neckbeard, especially now that Kyle Orton is back slingin’. And we shall see on your prediction — Nick Foles couldn’t do it, after all.

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NFL Week 5 game picks: Bengals stay perfect; Cardinals fall

Su"a Cravens outshines Leonard Williams in USC success

LOS ANGELES — With Oregon State’s Sean Mannion being talked about as possibly the top senior quarterback in college football and USC’s defense coming off a lousy performance in a loss to Boston College, I was fascinated to see how that matchup would play out Saturday night in the Coliseum.

That conflict turned out to be a one sided event. Here are my observations on a few of the best prospects in the game:

USC DL Leonard Williams gets mentioned as one among the best defensive prospects in college football, but Trojans outside linebacker Su’a Cravens stole the show vs. the Beavers.

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Su"a Cravens outshines Leonard Williams in USC success

Sky Sports expands deal with NFL five years

LONDON — The NFL is getting set to play its ninth regular season match in London on Sunday when the Oakland Raiders play host to the Miami Dolphins at their adopted home of Wembley Stadium.

While the long term target for international growth said by Commissioner Roger Goodell is a long-term team in London, the NFL took a critical short term measure in britain on Thursday with the announcement of a brand new TV deal.

Sky Sports, which has broadcast live NFL games in britain since 1995, has extended its deal by five years, adding the rights to air Monday Night Football. Together with the inclusion of Monday Night Football (played in the first hours of Tuesday morning to get a UK audience), the broadcaster will give British NFL enthusiasts the opportunity to look at as many as 80 live matches annually.

Sky Sports’ coverage may also contain all matches in the NFL’s International Series as teams go to great britain for regular season match ups, which has seen sell out competitions at Wembley since 2007.

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Sky Sports expands deal with NFL five years

Amari Cooper similar to Jordy Nelson, but more volatile

On a typical Saturday, I am bouncing around from channel to channel, getting a look at NFL possibilities in a number of different college football matches. This Saturday was distinct, though.

I focused only about the Florida-Alabama match since I was so intrigued by the matchup between Tide WR Amari Cooper and Gators CB Vernon Hargreaves III.

There Is nothing a scout loves more than to see two players which might be the very best at their various positions go head to head. It is the closest thing to repeating what they will find at another degree, and we had the opportunity to watch only that when Cooper and Hargreaves met on Saturday. One player was the clear winner because matchup. Here are my observations on this conflict and other interesting possibilities in the sport.

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Amari Cooper similar to Jordy Nelson, but more volatile

Seahawks owner Paul Allen to give $9M to resist Ebola

SEATTLE — Microsoft cofounder and Seattle Seahawks owner Paul Allen has declared he’s enlarging his attempts to aid fight the Ebola outbreak in Africa with a $9 million contribution to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Allen’s contribution Thursday to the CDC Foundation will soon be utilized to construct and equip emergency operations facilities and train staff in the three most affected states.

In August, the Paul G. Allen Family Foundation announced a $2.8 million gift to the American Red Cross to supply gear, train workers and create instruction materials in Liberia, Sierra Leone and Guinea.

His foundation also set up a $100,000 matching grant system through GlobalGiving to support others to help prevent the virus.

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Seahawks owner Paul Allen to give $9M to resist Ebola

Seven things you need to know from Week 2 CFB action

It was a feel-good week for much of college football in Week 2, as a seemingly endless supply of lopsided matchups provided some of the top programs in the country with more self-esteem than a therapist with a full-length leather couch.

To wit:

» Clemson forgot all about Georgia in beating South Carolina State 73-7.

» Alabama trounced Florida Atlantic 41-0 in just 52:07 of play. A lightning delay that became a lightning cancellation mercifully ended that one.

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Seven things you need to know from Week 2 CFB action

CFB Social: Week 2 in college football through social media

Week 2 of college football is underway and social media is buzzing at the action. Here are the best tweets, vines, videos and more from across the country.

Always fashion-conscious, Oregon tweeted out a pic of its uniform combination for today’s epic matchup vs. Michigan State.

Today’s uniform: ‘Sonic Boom’ helmet, silver/yellow gloves, yellow jersey, pants, socks & cleats #GoDucks #MSUvsUO pic.twitter.com/bMvetxe9jn

Great sight in Berkeley as California honors fallen teammate Ted Agu.

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CFB Social: Week 2 in college football through social media