No. 4: South Carolina Gamecocks at Clemson Football
The last weekend of the regular season is very far off, so it is difficult to know what games might feature the best matchups this close to the conference championship games.
While this traditional non-conference matchup won’t impact the ACC or the SEC standings, it could still impact both programs if they are jockeying for positions in the playoffs.
How likely is it that this matchup will matter? It’s definitely possible. Clemson is considered one of the favorites for the ACC, and its champion will get an automatic berth if they rank among the top five conference winners.
Most people would not expect the Gamecocks to be pertinent to the SEC standings at Thanksgiving. Even if that expectation comes to pass, South Carolina would still love to play spoiler for their archrival.
Most likely destination: Texas at Texas A&M – this would mean the Aggies would host two GameDays in one year, but stranger things have happened. This game hasn’t been played since A&M left the Big 12 in 2012. It's going to be a spectacle. If one of the teams is absolutely horrid, ESPN could lean elsewhere because there will be plenty of options. Otherwise, they will be in College Station.
Other options: Auburn at Alabama, Florida at Florida State, Oklahoma at LSU, Washington at Oregon, Notre Dame at USC
Note: I did not include Michigan at Ohio State because that is usually the Big Noon game on FOX.
NEXT: No. 3: Clemson Football at Virginia Tech Hokies