Saturday offers consequential and compelling college football action.

Oklahoma plays Texas in Dallas. LSU faces Florida in Gainesville. Oklahoma State comes to Columbia to face Mizzou. Penn State tries to validate its standing against Wisconsin.

Come Sunday, the BCS picture could look much different.

“College football fans wanting a playoff will get at least a taste of winner-takes-all this weekend,” ESPN.com’s Mark Schlabach wrote. “Along with the Big 12 showdown at the Cotton Bowl, an SEC showcase might go a long way in determining which teams play for the national championship in Miami on Jan. 8.”

But, as FoxSports.com’s Michael Rosenberg warns, this tremendous slate won’t necessarily define the season.

“Just a few short weeks ago, Southern California-Ohio State was supposed to be the most important game in the history of football or college, effectively a national championship semifinal,” he wrote. “Instead, USC crushed the Buckeyes, who don’t appear to be quite as good as we thought, and then the Trojans lost their very next game to Oregon State, and did we all learn our lesson here?”

Yeah, we get it – the college football season is long and winding. Saturday will be a big day, but not the last day.

MYSTERIES OF THE UNIVERSE

Questions to ponder while gearing up for the Blues home opener:

• A year late, will Paul Kariya finally live up to the hype?
• How did the Red Wings lose their opener to the Maple Leafs, of all teams?
• How did Mike Keenan enjoy Calgary’s season-opening 6-0 loss at Vancouver? How many players will Iron Mike want to unload after that fiasco?

ANATOMY OF A NASCAR FEUD

So why did Carl Edwards and Kevin Harvick rumble Thursday in Nationwide Series garage at Lowe’s Motor Speedway? Various media outlets broke down the story.

The fun started during the AMP Energy 500, when Edwards tapped Greg Biffle and triggered a multi-car wreck on lap 174.

Edwards owned up to the mistake. “I always worry about the idiots when I come here,” he told reporters, “and today it was me.”

Still, he wasn’t amused when Harvick had this to say after the race: “I know that his fans won’t be very proud of him sitting back there riding around like a pansy. If he had been racing all day, maybe he would have known how long the front of his car was.”

Edwards responded by leaving this note in a seat on Harvick’s airplane: “I was really trying to screw up everyone’s day. Love, Carl.”

Funny stuff, for sure, but Harvick was still steaming Thursday. So the two drivers staged an impromptu mixed-martial arts bout.

QUIPS ‘R US

Here is what some of America’s leading sports pundits have been writing:

Mark Kriegel, FoxSports.com: “Kimbo Slice’s 13 seconds of infamy is the biggest embarrassment for CBS since the network sent LaToya Jackson, Erik Estrada and Wee-Man to Muncie, Ind. to become cops in ‘Armed and Famous.’”

Mike Bianchi, Orlando Sentinel: “Did you see where Travis Henry, the former University of Tennessee running back, was arrested by the feds earlier this week following an alleged cocaine deal? Sounds eerily similar to what happened to another former Vols running back, Jamal Lewis, a couple of years ago when he, too, was arrested and charged with intent to distribute cocaine. Who knew ‘Introduction to Drug Trafficking’ was a required course at UT?”

Bill Simmons, ESPN.com: “Look, I want to like the NHL again. It looks magnificent in HD, and really, that’s all that matters in life. For the umpteenth straight year, I’m going to advocate a 22-team league: two 11-team conferences, one in Canada, one in America, only in cold-weather cities (no ifs, ands or buts). That will give us more rivalries, deeper teams and a higher quality of play. Every Stanley Cup Finals would feel a little Ryder Cuppy, with the Canada vs. America subplot. Besides, warm-weather cities don’t need the NHL. Why? Because it’s warm there! Believe me, I live in LA—there’s plenty to do here. But in Winnipeg? You guys can have the Kings. Please. I insist.”

MEGAPHONE

“It’s a hitter’s park, but that doesn’t mean you can’t pitch a good game. You know, hindsight in this game will make you not sleep at night. You’re thinking, ‘Why did I throw that pitch? Why didn’t I try something else?’ This was a what-if game.”

Dodgers pitcher Derek Lowe, on wasting a 2-0 lead in Game 1 of the NLCS.