Ohio State breezing along without Urban Meyer — College football week 3 preview

Ryan Day will be the first to tell you it's not easy being an acting head coach. It's just that Ohio State's talent makes it look easy.

Day is 2-0 coaching a team that has outscored its first two opponents 129-34. He will be the head man on the sideline for the final time Saturday night against Texas Christian before Urban Meyer moves back into that spot following his three-game suspension for the way he handled domestic-abuse allegations against one of his assistants.

"The culture Coach has set here with all these guys, it's amazing," Day, a former offensive coordinator at Temple in 2012, said. "The locker room and the character, not just with the players but their families, sticking together, our recruits, the whole thing. So, because of that, we've been able to come through the back end of this thing. Still got a long way to go, but going through that stuff makes us stronger."

TCU will provide a stiffer test than Oregon State and Rutgers, the Buckeyes' last two opponents. A veteran coach in Gary Patterson and a tradition of tough defense will present a challenge.

"They've been together such a long time that you're not going to get anything free," Day said. "You're going to have to earn everything you get."

No matter how you look at it, Central Florida was disrespected by the College Football Playoff selection committee last year during an undefeated season that never saw the Knights rise above 12th in the CFP rankings.

Now, Boise State enters its game at Oklahoma State with a chance to rise as the best Group of Five team in playoff contention. The Broncs have scored 118 points in their first two games and have one of the nation's top quarterbacks in Brett Rypien.

Rypien, the nephew of former Washington Redskins quarterback Mark Rypien, leads all active FBS quarterbacks with 10,543 career passing yards, and an impressive performance against the Cowboys could vault him to the upper tier of Heisman Trophy candidates.

It figures to be an exciting day for senior quarterback Kyle Shurmur, the La Salle College High School graduate who will lead Vanderbilt into Notre Dame Stadium to play the Fighting Irish.

Shurmur has completed 67.3 percent of his passes for 428 yards and four touchdowns in the Commodores' 2-0 start.

"Shurmur has been really efficient, throws the ball well," Notre Dame coach Brian Kelly said. "He's played a lot of snaps in the SEC. He's a guy that's going to come in here with a lot of confidence. The entire team will. They've played in a lot of tough locations."

The Commodores opened 3-0 last year before getting a rude awakening – a crushing 59-0 defeat to Alabama. Coach Derek Mason thinks they'll handle their business a little better this time, against the nation's No. 8 team.

"We're going to take the best team I believe that I've had in my tenure, go to Notre Dame, and try to get a win," he said. "We're confident enough to work hard in practice, but respectful enough to understand who they are and what they've done, to know it's no easy task."

Two new head coaches at Arizona's two major college football programs, and two different outcomes after two weeks.

Herm Edwards, who had not been a head coach in college, is 2-0 at Arizona State. Kevin Sumlin, who was taking over an Arizona program that had a front-runner for the Heisman Trophy in Khalil Tate, is 0-2.

The Wildcats, off to an 0-2 start for the first time since 1981, lost at home to BYU and were routed at Houston on Saturday. Tate, one of the nation's top dual-threat quarterbacks, has rushed for just 19 yards, although he played against Houston with a minor ankle injury.

"When you've lost two games, there's a lot of things you've got to improve," said Sumlin, who came to Arizona after six seasons at Texas A&M. "It's across the board."

It's a tale of two units for Mississippi – an incredible offense that can put points on the board in a heartbeat, and a porous defense that can break your heart.

Going into their home game against No. 1 Alabama, the Rebels average 596 yards of total offense (eighth in FBS) and 61.5 points per game (third), led by quarterback Jordan Ta'amu. But their defense is giving up averages of 557.5 yards (123rd) and 34 points (106th).

"I've got to get them going in the first half," Rebels defensive coordinator Wesley McGriff said. "It wasn't about scheme. We, as a staff, have got to get them going, get them playing fast, playing with some energy. That's our job to get that done."

Mistakes on defense will be telling against a Crimson Tide attack led by sophomore quarterback Tua Tagovailoa, who is second in FBS passing efficiency. He has thrown just 35 passes in two games, completing 25 for 455 yards and six touchdowns.

Quarterback Tom Flacco, an Eastern High School graduate who moved on earlier this summer from Rutgers to Towson as a graduate transfer, leads the CAA in passing yards after two games. Flacco, the younger brother of Baltimore Ravens quarterback Joe Flacco, has thrown for 590 yards and five touchdowns while completing 67 percent of his passes. He completed 35 of 51 for 345 yards and three touchdowns last week against Wake Forest.

Louisiana State at Auburn, 3:30 p.m., CBS3: The winner of this early season showdown of ranked teams will likely be the one to challenge Alabama in the SEC West. The teams share the SEC lead in sacks with nine apiece, so the team with the better offensive line should have the edge.

Boise State at Oklahoma State, 3:30 p.m., ESPN: The Broncs have a great opportunity to beat a Power Five team and show they are worthy of consideration for the College Football Playoff. The Cowboys have scored 113 points in beating up two overmatched opponents, but now they'll feel the heat.

Alabama at Mississippi, 7 p.m., ESPN: The Rebels will unleash a high-powered offense that has averaged 596 yards and 61.5 points in two games. But this is the Crimson Tide they're up against, a team that has scored 108 points in two games and could put up quite a few against Ole Miss' soft defense.

Ohio State vs. Texas Christian at Arlington, Texas, 8 p.m., 6ABC: The Buckeyes have been on cruise control with an offense that's averaging 650 yards and 64 points per game. The Horned Frogs figure to be a stronger opponent, but their young offensive line needs to block Nick Bosa and company.

Washington at Utah, 10 p.m., ESPN: Jake Browning and the Huskies weren't very impressive last week against FCS member North Dakota and need to get their offense going. The Utes will have something to say about that, owning the nation's top-ranked defense, a unit that allows just 2.2 yards per play.

Jonathan Taylor, Wisconsin, RB, 5-11, 221, Soph., Salem, N.J.

Taylor, who starred at Salem High School, established career highs last week of 253 yards and 33 carries. That marked his fourth 200-yard game as a Badger, and he topped 100 yards for the 12th time in his 16 games. Taylor leads FBS in rushing yards, averaging 199 yards per game and 7.8 yards per carry.