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College Football Championship Week: TV Schedule, game preview, prospects to watch

We take a look at the big games going on today and the prospects to watch.

John David Mercer-USA TODAY Sports

Championship week in college football has finally arrived! These games always have huge ramifications, but even more-so this year with a four team college playoff. Four conference championship games have both teams ranked, with four of the top six ranked teams playing today. Happy Saturday! Today is a good day to lounge around and watch some big games that could provide an upset or two.

No. 1 Alabama vs. No. 16 Missouri - 1 P.M. PT

Missouri will have their hands full against a dangerous Alabama team that can score points and play tremendous defense. The Crimson Tide are lead by receiver Amari Cooper, who is the best receiver to come out of 'Bama since Julio Jones. Cooper has smashed receiving records this season, piling up 103 receptions, 1,573 yards, and 14 touchdowns. Cooper always seems to get open and has good hands to haul in contested balls as well. On the defensive side of the ball is safety Landon Collins. Collins has played both strong and free safety in his college career, and plays special teams as well. He is able to play well when asked to be in man coverage, and is an aggressive tackler with great closing speed  in the open field. Traits such as those will make Collins a first round pick.

If Missouri is to have a chance in this game, defensive end Shane Ray must have a lights out performance. Normally Ray is able to wreak havoc against both running back and quarterback, recording 20.4 tackles for loss and 13.5 sacks. His sack total is the most ever in a season, surpassing Michal Sam and Aldon Smith's mark of 11.5. With speed that is top tier, Ray could be a prime candidate for a switch to a 3-4 outside linebacker. While his run stopping and pass-rush skills will need fine tuning before he has a successful leap to the NFL, Ray should be a top 20 pick in the 2015 draft.

No. 4 Florida State vs. No. 11 Georgia Tech- 5 P.M. PT

Jameis Winston and the Seminoles have had a very up and down season for a team that is undefeated. Florida State finds ways to win, but in seven games this year they have won by just six points or less. The law of averages would state that eventually Florida State will be on the losing end of one of those games. Could it be today? Winston, after having a great Heisman season last year, has only shown flashes of the same play this year. All too often Winston has forced the ball into tight windows and and zone coverages, leading to a whooping 17 interceptions on the year. He is still considered to be one of the top quarterback prospects, but not for me. Currently, I would stay far away from Winston in the first round, he's too big of a gamble right now and the speed of the NFL will only create more interceptions for him. The Seminoles have a good cornerback prospect in P.J. Williams. While Williams isn't a good tackler at this point, he is a very sound player coverage wise and can play both man and zone effectively against speedy receivers and tall wideouts with physicality as well.

No. 13 Wisconsin vs. No. 5 Ohio State- 5:17 PT

Ohio State comes into the game with yet another new quarterback at the helm, their third of the season. Urban Meyer will undoubtedly have his team ready to play despite the change, as he has a 42-6 record in November and December since 2003.

This game is all about Heisman candidate Melvin Gordon. The Wisconsin running back showed flashes of his excellent play in years past, but the Wisconsin pipeline of running backs had guys ahead of him such as Montee Ball and James White. This year was Gordon's turn to shine, and shine he has. Gordon has nearly all the attributes an NFL team would want in their running back of the future. Gordon has speed, he has vision, elusiveness, break tackling ability, he's got it all. Running backs haven't been valued as highly in the draft in recent years, and I say this is the year that ends. Expect Gordon to be a first round pick. This season Gordon has rushed for 2,260 yards and 26 touchdowns. Take that, Adrian Peterson.

Saturday, December 6
TIME (ET) MATCHUP TV
3:30 PM Oklahoma State at No. 20 Oklahoma FOX Sports 1
4:00 PM No. 1 Alabama vs. No. 16 Missouri* CBS
7:30 PM Temple at Tulane ESPN2
7:45 PM No. 9 Kansas State at No. 6 Baylor ESPN
8:00 PM No. 4 Florida State vs. No. 11 Georgia Tech* ABC ESPN 3
8:17 PM No. 13 Wisconsin vs. No. 5 Ohio State* FOX
10:00 PM Fresno State at No. 22 Boise State CBS