Merry (football) Christmas: 6 college matchups feature clash of top 25 teams

College football fans can unwrap an early Christmas present this weekend as there are six matchups of top 25 teams in the College Football Playoff rankings, highlighted by two showdowns of top-10 teams in Ohio State-Michigan State and Oklahoma State-Baylor.

The loaded Saturday slate also features Notre Dame taking on Boston College at Fenway Park and UNLV hosting San Diego State.

Cap off your weekend TV sports feast with a "Sunday Night Football" battle between the high-flying Arizona Cardinals and stingy Cincinnati Bengals.

FRIDAY

Chicago Bulls at Golden State Warriors (7:30 p.m., ESPN (30)): The Warriors entered Thursday's game against the Los Angeles Clippers with a 12-0 record, which was the NBA's best start since 2002, when the Dallas Mavericks opened 14-0. The best start in league history is 15-0, a feat accomplished by the 1993-94 Houston Rockets and 1948-49 Washington Capitals. The Bulls are 8-3.

BEST OF REST: College basketball: No. 5 Duke vs. Virginia Commonwealth (4 p.m., ESPN2 (31)); Football: Cincinnati at South Florida (5 p.m., CBSSN (333)), Air Force at Boise State (6:30 p.m., ESPN2 (31)); NHL: Los Angeles Kings at Detroit Red Wings (4:30 p.m., FSW (49)).

SATURDAYNo. 9 Michigan State at No. 3 Ohio State (12:30 p.m., ABC (13)): The defending national champion Buckeyes have won 23 straight games but haven't faced a ranked opponent this season. Ohio State (10-0) has won 30 consecutive regular-season Big Ten conference games since Urban Meyer became coach in 2012, but the Spartans (9-1) dealt him his only league loss with a 34-24 win in the 2013 Big Ten title game.No. 10 Baylor at No. 6 Oklahoma State (4:30 p.m., Fox (5)): The Cowboys (10-0) have owned this series in Stillwater, Okla., where they've averaged 53.1 points in their eight wins over the Bears since 2000 and have won 11 consecutive meetings at home dating to 1939. Baylor (8-1), coming off a 44-34 home loss to No. 7 Oklahoma, has lost all three road games against top-5 opponents since coach Art Briles arrived in 2008, getting outscored 149-55.BEST OF REST: Football: No. 24 USC at No. 23 Oregon (12:30 p.m., ESPN (30)), No. 15 LSU at No. 22 Ole Miss (12:30 p.m., CBS (8)), No. 4 Notre Dame vs. Boston College (4:30 p.m., NBCSN (38)), No. 18 TCU at No. 7 Oklahoma (5:05 p.m., ABC (13)), San Diego State at UNLV (7:30 p.m., CBSSN (333)).

SUNDAYGreen Bay Packers at Minnesota Vikings (1 p.m., Fox (5)): The Vikings (7-2) have won five in a row to wrest the NFC Central lead from the Packers (6-3), who are looking to avoid their first four-game skid since dropping five in a row in 2008 — Aaron Rodgers' first year as the starting quarterback. Rodgers has won nine of his last 10 starts against the Vikings, including playoffs, throwing 31 TDs and four interceptions in the past 12 meetings. Minnesota is riding its longest win streak since 2009, when it started 6-0.

Cincinnati Bengals at Arizona Cardinals (5:20 p.m., NBC (3)): Cardinals quarterback Carson Palmer said "its not just another game" in advance of this possible Super Bowl preview against his former team. Palmer, who left Cincinnati after the 2010 season, will try to solve a Bengals' (8-1) defense that leads the league in points allowed (16.9 per game). Palmer is the NFL's No. 2-rated passer behind Tom Brady and Arizona (7-2) is one point behind the New England Patriots (303 points) for the league lead in scoring. Cincinnati quarterback Andy Dalton will try to avoid shooting his eye out after Texans defensive end J.J. Watt compared the Red Rifle to the Red Ryder BB gun from "A Christmas Story" following Houston's 10-6 win Monday night.

BEST OF REST: NASCAR: Sprint Cup Series, Ford EcoBoost 400 (noon, NBC (3), NBCSN (38)); NFL: Dallas Cowboys at Miami Dolphins (10 a.m., Fox (5)), Denver Broncos at Chicago Bears (10 a.m., CBS (8)).

Contact reporter Todd Dewey at tdewey@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-0354. Follow him on Twitter: @tdewey33