HYPE INDEX: Your guide (and predictions) for Week 8 in Texas college football

This is the Texas College Football Hype Index, where Dave Campbell’s Texas Football managing editor Greg Tepper ranks the FBS college football games in Texas from least-watchable to most-watchable.8: Rice at UTSA, 6 p.m. Saturday in San Antonio The Roadrunners are coming home after a pair of close losses to quality teams, and they get to face what may be the worst FBS team in the nation. Barring something totally unforeseen — like Rice figuring out something offensively — UTSA should be able to name its score here. Watchability Rating: 2 out of 10 Tepper’s Prediction: UTSA 37, Rice 107: Kansas at No. 4 TCU, 7 p.m. Saturday in Fort Worth Believe it or not, Kansas has played TCU pretty close in every one of their meetings since the Frogs joined the Big 12 — their average margin of victory is just 7 points. That said, everything points to a bloodbath here, as TCU is a walking mismatch against Kansas’ overmatched defense. Watchablity Rating: 2 out of 10 Tepper’s Prediction: TCU 58, Kansas 176: SMU at Cincinnati, 3 p.m. Saturday in Cincinnati, Ohio Cincinnati is a team that doesn’t do much of anything well, but they’ve played a tough schedule. If SMU, coming off a bye week, is able to play its game, they should coast in this one. But if the Ponies are flat-footed, especially defensively, then things could get dicey. Watchability Rating: 3 out of 10 Tepper’s Prediction: SMU 45, Cincinnati 285: North Texas at Florida Atlantic, 4 p.m. Saturday in Boca Raton, Florida A suddenly very interesting matchup in Conference USA, Lane Kiffin’s Owls are not the bottom-feeders they once were. FAU is the kind of team that needs to play from ahead — their strengths are running game and in the secondary — so it’s imperative that the Mean Green jump out early. This one could get fun. Watchability Rating: 6 out of 10 Tepper’s Prediction: North Texas 35, Florida Atlantic 314: No. 23 West Virginia at Baylor, 7 p.m. Saturday in Waco A night game in Waco? Let’s get wacky. Baylor took a sizable step back last week against Oklahoma State, and they’ll have to bounce back against a team that is, in many respects, a Diet version of Oklahoma State. West Virginia hits a lot of home runs in the passing game and has a sneaky-good running game to boot. If Baylor can prevent the big play and establish the run against the Mountaineers’ vulnerable rushing defense, they’ll have a shot. But at this point, we have to see it to believe it. Watchability Rating: 6 out of 10 Tepper’s Prediction: West Virginia 41, Baylor 313: Iowa State at Texas Tech, 11 a.m. Saturday in Lubbock This is the secretly fun game of the weekend. Iowa State has been upgraded from Bad Team to Actually Good thanks in large part to a competent passing game and a squad that absolutely refuses to beat itself. Tech will have to dink-and-dunk against a talented Cyclones secondary, and they have to do what no other team has done this year: force ISU into turnovers. Keep an eye on this one. Watchablity Rating: 7 out of 10 Tepper’s Prediction: Texas Tech 45, Iowa State 352: No. 25 Memphis at Houston, 7 p.m. Thursday in Houston TDECU Stadium should be rocking on Thursday night despite the egg that the Cougars laid in Tulsa last week. They’ll be facing a Memphis team with a high-powered offense that can hit the big play in the passing game, but is a bit susceptible to the run. But will it matter? Houston’s offense absolutely has to show signs of life if they hope to pull this one out. Another thing to watch: no team in America takes the ball away more than Memphis. Watchability Rating: 7 out of 10 Tepper’s Prediction: Memphis 33, Houston 281: No. 10 Oklahoma State at Texas, 11 a.m. Saturday in Austin For the second consecutive week, the Longhorns will take aim at a ranked squad from across the Red River. Opinions vary wildly on Oklahoma State — some believe they’re fatally flawed; others believe they’re a bona fide national contender — but their strengths are well-documented: they hit a lot of big plays in the passing game and they put up points. The key for Texas here is establishing the run: can Chris Warren III and the beleaguered offensive line get going? Expect a typically fun Big 12 game to kick off your college football Saturday. Watchability Rating: 8 out of 10 Tepper’s Prediction: Oklahoma State 38, Texas 30