WEEK 3 VIEWER'S GUIDE

THURSDAY

Cincinnati at N.C. State

When: 7:30 p.m., ESPN

The line: Cincinnati by 1

Why you should watch: Cincinnati rediscovered what led to back-to-back Big East championships in the second half last week. Then again, the Bearcats did that against pitiful Indiana State, a FCS program that is 3-56 since 2005, so why did it take Cincinnati two quarters to find its footing? The Bearcats will need to do better than that against North Carolina State. Although the Wolfpack went 5-7 last year, they did defeat Pittsburgh early in the season. After allowing eight sacks to Fresno State in the opener, Cincinnati tweaked its offensive line against Indiana State but still gave up two sacks. The Bearcats' offensive line and quarterback Zach Collaros will be put to the test again when it faces an aggressive Wolfpack defense. Jon Tenuta technically isn't the coordinator he's the linebacker coach but the Wolfpack have become more blitz-happy this season. LB Audie Cole had 3.5 tackles for loss, a sack and an interception against UCF last Saturday.

FRIDAY

California at Nevada

When: 10 p.m., ESPN2

The line: Cal by 3.5

Why you should watch: Cal slipped under the radar in the preseason talk about the Pac-10. Maybe that was a mistake. The Bears outscored their first opponents by a margin of 104-10. Granted, one opponent was FCS member UC Davis and the other was a struggling Colorado team. Inconsistent in the past, senior quarterback Kevin Riley is off to a hot start, going 29-of-44 for 455 yards and seven touchdowns in the first two games. The defense also has been formidable, allowing 320 total yards this season. Nevada relies on quarterback Colin Kaepernick and running back Vai Taua. They are the active leaders in career yards per carry at better than 6.9 yards per rush each. The next highest is West Virginia's Noel Devine, at 6.37 yards per carry.