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There isn't much less exciting in college football than big time FBS schools taking on FCS schools, and unfortunately there are three match-ups between Pac-12 teams and FCS teams this weekend. Since we know that most of these games should be somewhat unentertaining, we won't be devoted entire previews to them, but here are some notes about this weekend's Pac-12/FCS showdowns.
Northern Arizona at Arizona - Friday, August 30 7 p.m. p.t. - Pac-12 Network
What's the story? Who will be the Wildcats' starting quarterback and will he be able to lead Rich Rodriguez' high-speed offensive as effectively as Matt Scott would have?
It looks like senior B.J. Denker will get the call and it would be imperative of him to rack up a ton of stats against the Lumberjacks to get people excited about him as the next Wildcat quarterback. He lit up Colorado (Who was basically a FCS team in 2012) last season, in a rolling win for Arizona, can he do it again?
Why watch? To see what Denker can do, and if any of the other quarterbacks that the Wildcats have can come in and get some good reps.
Nicholls at Oregon - Saturday, August 31 1 p.m. p.t. - Fox Sports 1
What's the story? How will the Ducks look in Mark Helfrich's first game as head coach?
It might be against a small school from Louisiana that they should easily roll, but this will be the world's first chance to see the Ducks coached by Helfrich.
Why watch? Even if it's a blowout, it will be interesting to see just how the Ducks run under Helfrich, and possibly if they can get to 80 points.
Eastern Washington at Oregon State - Saturday, August 31 3 p.m. p.t - Pac-12 Network
What's the story? It's likely that the Beavers will play both Sean Mannion and Cody Vaz extensively at quarterback, which one will look better?
Both of the Beavers' quality options will probably play quite a bit at quarterback and it's possible that the game, if the Beavers can make it comfortable enough, may be an audition for keeping the job full-time.
Why watch? The Eagles are one of the best FCS programs in the country and took Washington down to the very last play of the game in 2011,and Washington State down to the very last play in 2012. This could be a better game than everyone thinks.