Briggs' picks: For Toledo and BG, is it basketball season yet?

Oct. 22—It might be the lightest weekend on the college football calendar, with no games matching two ranked opponents on the Saturday slate.

But a light weekend doesn't mean a bad weekend.

As Alfred Lord Tennyson once wrote, "'Tis better to have watched football — even if your team loses — than never to have watched at all."

Indeed, I think back to what Toledo coach Jason Candle said in 2017 about the overload of bowl games: "I would tell anyone who's annoyed by there being too many, just don't watch it — watch some bad basketball."

Of course, if Toledo falls to 1-3 in the Mid-American Conference with a loss to Western Michigan on Saturday, Rockets fans will ask: "When does basketball season start?"

But you get the drift.

Let us savor another autumn Saturday in a season that is going by way too quickly. Here are our college football picks of the week ...

Western Michigan (5-2, 2-1) at Toledo (3-4, 1-2), 3:30 p.m., Saturday, CBS Sports Network

—Line: Western Michigan by 2

OK, when does basketball season start? In a must-win game to keep alive their MAC West title hopes, I expect the Rockets to deliver a strong effort. But will it be enough? Simply, the Broncos look like the better, more complete team, with the best scoring offense in the league and a defense — which allows just 116.9 rushing yards per game — that threatens to turn UT into a one-dimensional mess.

—Pick: Western Michigan 35, Toledo 27

Eastern Michigan (4-3, 1-2) at Bowling Green (2-5, 0-3), noon, Saturday, ESPN+

—Line: Eastern Michigan by 3

On paper, the Eagles are nothing to write home about, ranking 93rd nationally in total offense and 82nd in total defense. But they have a smart, senior quarterback in Ben Bryant — who completes a MAC-best 68 percent of his passes — and a knack for hanging around (Eastern beat Miami and stayed within a touchdown of Ball State and Northern Illinois). Give me the steady-Eddie Eagles, not to be confused with Eddie the Eagle.

—Pick: Eastern Michigan 24, Bowling Green 21

No. 5 Ohio State (5-1, 3-0) at Indiana (2-4, 0-3), 7:30 p.m., Saturday, ABC

—Line: Ohio State by 21

These schools might have played a one-score thriller last year, but these aren't your slightly older brother's Hoosiers. As quarterback C.J. Stroud and the Buckeyes begin to round into championship form — Ohio State is now a comical 4-9 favorite to win its fifth straight Big Ten title — undermanned Indiana continues to recede. The Hoosiers have scored one offensive touchdown in conference play.

—Pick: Ohio State 38, Indiana 14

Northwestern (3-3, 1-2) at No. 7 Michigan (6-0, 3-0), noon, Saturday, Fox

—Line: Michigan by 23

A trap game for the Wolverines in advance of their top-10 showdown in East Lansing? Not unless Northwestern breaks the law (it is illegal to trap wolverines in Ann Arbor). On second thought, no one would accuse the Wildcats of knowing the rules of the road. In their two road games this season, they lost 30-23 at woeful Duke and 56-7 at Nebraska.

—Pick: Michigan 34, Northwestern 14

No. 8 Oklahoma State (6-0, 3-0) at Iowa State (4-2, 2-1), 3:30 p.m., Saturday, Fox

—Line: Iowa State by 7

I can't tell you the last time we saw an unranked, two-loss team as a touchdown favorite over an unbeaten top-10 team, but I suppose Matt Campbell and his annually slow-starting Cyclones have earned the benefit of the doubt. At least in Vegas. In a battle of the top two defenses in the Big 12, I'm seeing more of a down-to-the-wire slog.

—Pick: Iowa State 20, Oklahoma State 17

No. 16 Wake Forest (6-0) at Army (4-2), noon, Saturday, CBS Sports Network

—Line: Wake Forest by 3

Speaking of former area coaches who are winning in traditionally difficult jobs ... how 'bout Dave Clawson and the Demon Deacons? The former Bowling Green coach has Wake Forest off to a 6-0 start for the first time since 1944 and — as the lone remaining unbeaten in the Atlantic Coast Conference — in good shape to capture just its second league title since 1970. With the schedule giving them an extra week to prepare for Army's option offense, bank on the Deacs to keep the momentum rolling at West Point.

—Pick: Wake Forest 31, Army 20