And this week could be all about location.

This was the mob scene the last time Nebraska went to Manhattan -- a 40-30 K-State victory in 1998.(Allsport)

We'd all like to see a Nebraska-Oklahoma rematch in the Big 12 game, but instead we could be looking at Kansas State-Texas A&M if the home teams in Saturday's big games defend their home turf with their usual vigor.

Nebraska at Kansas State is likely to decide the conference's North Division and potentially impact the national title chase. Still, the majority of the attention has headed south, to College Station, Texas, where top-ranked Oklahoma plays No. 23 Texas A&M.

The Sooners will have to overcome A&M's Kyle Field advantage -- the Aggies are 64-6-1 there under R.C. Slocum -- while the Cornhuskers play a team that had a 25-game home winning streak until last month, a streak that included a victory over Nebraska in 1998.

"College Station is a wild place from what I've heard," said Sooners quarterback Josh Heupel. "But we've been in big-time atmospheres before and we'll be extremely confident and prepared."

The Sooners have carved up every ranked team they have played this season -- then-No. 1 Nebraska, then-No. 2 Kansas State and getting a 63-point effort vs. then-No. 11 Texas -- so there's no really good reason to think the Aggies will find the magic formula.

But if A&M is to pull off the upset, it will have to do so with that Wrecking Crew thing, especially because star receiver Robert Ferguson is questionable after suffering a knee injury last week against Oklahoma State.

A&M, led by a fantastic group of linebackers (Jason Glenn, Roylin Bradley, et al.), is the stingiest team in the Big 12, yielding 13.1 points per game. That average has been shrinking, as A&M has allowed a piddling 27 points in its past four games, which includes the 26-10 rout of Kansas State.

The Aggies were lucky to avoid a loss at Oklahoma State on Saturday, vowing things will be different when they return to play in front of 76,000 screaming fans.

"We're going home to Kyle Field and the 12th Man," said quarterback Mark Farris, "which is what it's all about."

Keep an eye on ...

• Miami's firepower. Miami's best weapon in the race to catch Florida State in the BCS rankings is its quick-strike capability (read: blowout city, baby!). Check out what the 'Canes have done in the past three weeks: Nine touchdowns of more than 40 yards. Santana Moss has six of those -- three on passes, two on punt returns and one on a run. Miami will look to pour it on Pitt, which counters with two very fine receivers of its own -- Antonio Bryant and Latef Grim.
• Florida State's firepower. Knowing that margin of victory factors into the BCS computers, just when does Bobby Bowden go to the bench this week against Wake Forest? When it's 35-0 after the first quarter? Or 52-0 at half? Or 66-0 at the end of three? FSU might be on its best offensive roll ever -- 612-yard average in its past four games -- while Wake Forest finally won its first game of the season last week, barely beating nearly equally hapless Duke. Deacs coach Jim Caldwell summed up that 28-26 victory perfectly: "We're happy we won, but it wasn't the Super Bowl."
• Florida's firepower. Nobody can stop freshman receiver Jabar Gaffney, who is so good that he wins games even when he drops passes (remember Tennessee?). Gaffney has five consecutive 100-yard games, has at least one TD catch in the past seven games, and is a huge reason why the Gators have scored at least 34 points in all but one contest this season. Great matchup this week against South Carolina, with the SEC East at stake: The Gamecocks have allowed more than 19 points only once.
• The Pac-10's firepower: There's not one weak sister in the Pac-10, which is why the league is producing college football's finest entertainment. There have been six overtime thrillers in the past four weeks; average score last Saturday: 36-32. What it means is that none of the teams still chasing the Rose Bowl -- Oregon, Washington, Oregon State -- will have an easy time in their final two games, no matter the opponent.
• Not much firepower at all. The end of the season is here -- sad for us, mercifully for Arkansas State. The winless Indians bring the curtain down on their 2000 season this Saturday, and they've got an excellent chance to get that elusive victory -- Arkie State plays host to North Texas.

Games of the week