Several big college football games this Saturday have many Redskins players excited about watching their former schools fight off, especially against current teammates' universities.

This week's Redskins College Football Connection features two big matchups that multiple Redskins will be keeping their eyes on Saturday to see how their former teams' fare.

First up is Duke (1-2) vs. Notre Dame (1-2).

The Fighting Irish started off the season with a dramatic loss on the road to Texas, 50-47, that caught much of the nation's attention. Despite winning over Nevada two weeks ago, a tough loss to Michigan State has left Notre Dame in a very difficult position for the College Football Playoffs.

But Redskins safety David Bruton Jr. is holding out hope for his college team.

"We're not getting off the field on defense. We have weapons on offense but we're starting slow," Bruton Jr. said. "Last week vs. Michigan State we started slow. But it's tough, we kind of put ourselves behind the eight-ball as far as getting into that playoff. Hopefully the guys are still motivated to go out and win games. … We need to come out and thrash them boys. I'd like to see us put up at least 30 points and keep them to a cool 14."

For wide receiver Jamison Crowder's Blue Devils, this matchup is a chance to defeat an opponent that on paper appears to be quite a challenge. Duke is coming off a two-game losing streak, falling to Wake Forest and Northwestern by at least 10 points in each game.

"I saw [Bruton Jr.] yesterday and told him we play Notre Dame. We're not going to put any bets on it or anything," Crowder said with a smile. "These last two games for us have been kind of tough. I got the feeling Coach [David Cutcliffe] will get them right and we'll go up there and compete and hopefully come away with an upset. That would be big for the program."

For Crowder, keeping in touch and following Duke is still important.

"I try to watch all of (the games)," Crowder said. "I've still got some guys that I played with when I was there that are still playing. One of the guys from my home town I played high school ball with him, so I always try to check them out."

While both players have high hopes for their schools, Bruton is glad he isn't out there covering Crowder on Saturday.

"Man, I'm putting a corner there. That boy is shifty," Bruton Jr. said on defending Crowder. "I'm putting the corner there and I'm helping over top."

The other matchup of the week features No. 17 Arkansas (3-0) vs. No. 10 Texas A&M (3-0) in a battle to remain undefeated.

Safety Deshazor Everett will certainly be rooting on his Aggies to get a strong win to move up into the single digit portion of the college polls. But linebacker Martrell Spaight is confident that the Razorbacks, who have had an impressive start to the season, will come out on top.

"These last few games I have (been watching)," Spaight said. "They're looking pretty good. I feel like if we get a little more excited on defense, we can really have a good run going."

In his mind, Everett's squad won't have a chance.

"I'm feeling 20-7 [Arkansas]," Spaight said.