Cap clash preview: UConn at Louisville

The season-long FP struggle all boils down to three games this weekend as Coach Bando and Coach Woody each seek to avoid the dreaded hat. Leading up to the action on the field this weekend, Coach Rob will take a look at all three of these critical matchups in the order that they will take place.

Coach Bando (43-16) currently has a half-game lead on Coach Woody (42-16) in the FP standings because he has played one more game. Bando holds both tiebreakers (best record and ranking among #1 teams in Ohio State and best record and ranking among bonus teams in Purdue), so Woody must finish with a better overall record to escape the hated headgear.

Magic numbers: Bando (1) needs either to win his last game or have Woody lose one of his final two games. Woody (3) needs to win his final two games and have Bando lose his last game.

The first matchup to kick off Saturday will be Woody's Louisville Cardinals (10-1) hosting the Connecticut Huskies (4-7) at 11 a.m. on ESPN. UConn is coming off a heartbreaking loss to Cincinnati and has only one once in its last five games, a 46-45 win over Woody's bonus Pitt Panthers that came in double OT.

The Huskies are a rush-heavy team that has been on the losing end of a few blowouts this season. The Cardinals are thinking BCS bowl (if they get a little help from West Virginia, help that Woody hopes they don't receive) and they are currently a 27-point favorite. It's safe to say that we won't learn much about next year's hat bearer from this one as Louisville is likely to coast and help Woody land dead even with Bando at 43-16.

Stay tuned for previews tomorrow and Friday as the drama continues to build.