If there’s one thing that casual fans like, it is an underdog story.

If a team can pull off an upset, that team becomes the story of the week.

If there is an off the field subtext to the plot, then the story becomes even juicier.

That is why quite a few eyes (Irish and others) will be turned towards the Pacific Northwest on Saturday afternoon.

Notre Dame and their new coach, Charlie Weis, will travel to Husky Stadium to face their old coach, Tyrone Willingham, and his new team, Washington (3:30 p.m. EDT, ABC).

Let’s be honest. Washington is not that good. The team has been bereft of talent for at least the last two seasons, and it is going to be a major rebuilding project to get the Huskies competitive again.

Notre Dame was thought to be somewhat bereft of talent, yet have managed to start the season 2-1, including an impressive win over Michigan and a heartbreaking loss in overtime against Michigan State.

But Charlie Weis has come in and done what some thought was going to be impossible. He has managed to win with Tyrone Willingham’s players.

Much like Willingham did four years ago when he came in and won his first eight games with Bob Davie’s players, before he made the bold (and in hindsight awful) decision to pull out the famed and fabled green alternate jerseys before a loss against Boston College.

Without a doubt, Weis has put life back into the Notre Dame program. However, let us not get ahead of ourselves. Let’s see Charlie put together three seasons of success, not just three games. Let’s see the offense put up points on a team with a solid defense. Remember, this offense and its offensive coordinator, struggled in the Big House after a great opening drive. That, to me, does not bode well for the USC game in a few weeks.

The attention this week, though, is on Willingham. Does he hold a grudge against the Notre Dame administration and boosters? Doesn’t he want to win this one so badly, to thumb his nose at those same people that ran him out of South Bend towards Puget Sound?

Willingham won’t say, as he rarely reveals his emotions to the media and the public. But I think that deep down, Tyrone Willingham is human. And although he recruited the players that will be standing on the opposite sideline on Saturday, deep down, he wants this one. He wants it badly.

Sadly, it just doesn’t appear likely. Notre Dame has too much offense, and Washington may not have enough defense to win. Look for the game to be close early because of emotion, but the Irish will pull away in the end to win the "Ty Bowl."

Final Score: Notre Dame 31, Washington 16.

The other game to watch this weekend is also out on the West Coast, five hours south of Seattle. It’s a Pac-10 match up between the number one team in the country, USC, and the Ducks of Oregon (7 p.m. EDT, ABC and ESPN Gameplan).

USC has hardly broken a sweat this year in their two games, winning by an average score of 66-17. They put up 70 points on Arkansas last week, holding the ball for only 25 minutes.

However, this is not Hawaii or Arkansas that the Trojans are facing this weekend. Oregon has a veteran quarterback (Kellen Clemens) who has struggled in his career, but appears to have put it together this season, completing about 66 percent of his passes for 955 yards and 8 touchdowns. He has also rushed for 137 yards, so he is something of a dual threat.

So, Oregon can put points on the board. However, what the Ducks need to do to win this game is maximize their possessions. They need to hold the ball and put touchdowns on the board. USC has shown that they can score in (literally) seconds. Oregon cannot afford to waste any possessions.

What makes me wary about Oregon pulling this upset off, however, is the fact that they gave up 34 points to Fresno State last week. Fresno State is a great team, and they will get the chance to prove themselves against USC later this season. But if Oregon couldn’t slow Paul Pinegar down, what chance do they have against Matt Leinart? The Ducks need Autzen Stadium to be as rowdy as it can be, but they will come up just short this time.

Final Score: USC 41, Oregon 35.