The Food Network Programming Interest Level Guide to What I'm Watching This Week...

...or "Todd finally finds a way to bring his disturbing love for both college football and celebrity cooking together in a completely ridiculous manner!

Iron Chef America is one of only two shows that I make sure I watch every single week (the other being The Office). I watch new episodes, I watch reruns, and I watch every last second of it, because it's awesomenicity defined and there is no excuse for missing it. Similarly, these are the games that I know will be great and absolutely will not miss a second of.

NC State at South Carolina
Thursday - 08/28/08
Williams-Brice Stadium - Columbia, SC - ESPN - 7:00pm

Virginia Tech vs East Carolina
Satuday - 08/30/08
Bank of America Stadium - Charlotte, NC - ESPN - 11:00am

Utah at Michigan
Satuday - 08-30-08
Michigan Stadium - Ann Arbro, MI - ESPN2/ABC - 2:30pm

Alabama vs Clemson
Satuday - 08/30/08
The Georgia Dome - Atlanta, GA - ABC - 7:00pm

Colorado State vs Colorado
Sunday - 08/31/08
Invesco Field - Denver, CO - FSN - 6:30pm

I watch 30 Minute Meals because I am obsessed with Rachel Ray, just like I will watch these games because I am obsessed with college football, and just like I've watched plenty of episodes of 30 Minute Meals where Rachel Ray made something I would never want to eat, I will be watching these games for no other reason than they are college football. Look for a lot of mid-week games between mid-majors who couldn't get on TV otherwise and the early Saturday scrub SEC and Big Ten games that Raycom and ESPN always kick off with in this section.

Wake Forest at Baylor
Thursday - 08/28/08
Casey Stadium - Waco, TX - FSN - 7:00pm

Oregon State at Stanford
Thursday - 08/28/08
Stanford Stadium - Stanford, CA - ESPN2 - 8:00pm

SMU at Rice
Friday - 08/29/08
Rice Stadium - Houston, TX - ESPN - 7:00pm

Florida vs Hawaii
Saturday - 08/30/08
Ben Hill Griffin Stadium - Gainesville, FL - Raycom - 11:30am

Mississippi State at La. Tech
Saturday - 08/30/08
Joe Aillet Stadium - Ruston, LA - ESPN2 - 5:45pm

Kentucky at Louisville
Sunday - 08/31/08
Papa John's Cardinal Stadium - Louisville, KY - ESPN - 2:30pm

Fresno State at Rutgers
Monday - 09/01/08
Rutgers Stadium - New Brunswick, NJ - ESPN - 3:00pm

Tennessee at UCLA
Monday - 09/01/08
Rose Bowl Stadium - Los Angeles, CA - ESPN - 7:00pm

I find Alton Brown both educational and entertaining, but more times than not Good Eats tends to wander into the boring territory of homemade vinegar and whatnot that even he can't save, much like these games have the potential for fireworks but will likely only fizzle out quickly and have me changing channels.

USC at Virginia
Satuday - 08/30/08 Scott Stadium - Chalottesville, VA - ESPN2/ABC - 2:30pm

LSU vs Appalachian State
Saturday - 08/30/08
Tiger Stadium - Baton Rouge, LA - ESPN - 4:00pm

Michigan State at Cal
Saturday - 08/30/08
Memorial Stadium - Berkeley, CA - ABC - 7:00pm

I do have a, uh, certain fondness for Giada de Laurentis, but I generally find that, after a few seconds of, uhm, appreciation I'm not really into what she's cooking, much like these games have a certain attraction factor given the teams involved yet they will likely end up being something I'm not really interested in watching.

Illinois at Mizzou
Saturday - 08/30/08
Edward Jones Dome - St. Louis, MO - ESPN - 7:30pm

No way in hell am I watching this...unless nothing else good is on.

Syracuse at Northwestern
Saturday - 08/30/08
Ryan Field Stadium - Evanston, IL - ESPN2 - 11:00am