The halfway point of the work week has come and gone, and I have taken you around the S.E.C. and forecast the national games of interest. This brings us to the weekend's most ignominious outing, which I call . . . the national game of disinterest.

Sam Waterston believes the elderly should not watch the national game of disinterest unless they purchase Old Glory Insurance.

While I find college football inherently intriguing, sometimes a game comes along that is so singularly underwhelming, so totally lacking even in the potential for being consequential, that I have no choice but to throw up my hands and declare that I will not pick it due to the appalling absence of any possible significance to the outcome. That game is the national game of disinterest.

This week, that dubious distinction devolves upon . . .

Notre Dame at Michigan

Yes, I know. These are the two winningest programs in college football history, both in terms of total victories and in terms of overall winning percentage. They are two of the four most storied programs in the heritage of the sport and they boast arguably the most recognizable fight songs in all the land.

Yeah, fine. Between 'em, they're 0-4 and they've given up a combined 137 points this season. I'm no math whiz or anything, but that's nearly five touchdowns per game.

It probably will be a competitive game---the first two national games of disinterest this season have been---but "competitive" and "good" are not synonymous when two opponents are evenly matched due to equal degrees of ineptitude.

Next year, this will get back to being an historic showdown between traditional powers. Right now, though, it's a game between physically challenged contestants whose only intrigue is the possibility that Charlie Weis may turn into a robot. I'm not picking it because that would mean I'd have to watch it to learn the outcome.

Go 'Dawgs!