Teams went down like crazy. Funny thing is, I had Tennessee at #3 and Georgia at #2, so I guess my thinking was better than the CFP committee. I wonder if I should look at something like that in the off-season…how often my lower ranked teams beat higher ranked teams (versus the AP or CFP). Be a decent way to measure my rankings.
- Georgia (9-0)–#2–W 27-13 #3 Tennessee–The Bulldogs proved a point that they are the superior team in the SEC East. That win helped propel them to the top.
- Ohio State (9-0)–#1–W 21-7 Northwestern–The weather was a factor, plus there were some Ohio State players out, but damn. This was an ugly game for the Buckeyes.
- Michigan (9-0)–#4–W 52-17 Rutgers–People thought there might be a chance for an upset in this one. Yeah, that did not last very long.
- TCU (9-0)–#6–W 34-24 Texas Tech–The Horned Frogs just continue to score points and win. I cannot justify keeping them out of the top four, they have defeated four ranked teams (I think three of them were in the top 15).
- Tennessee (8-1)–#3–L 27-13 #2 Georgia–This score ended up closer than the game felt. They have an easy schedule to end the year. They should finish 11-1. They really need that Ohio State/Michigan game to be a blowout.
- Oregon (8-1)–#8–W 49-10 Colorado–If they run the table and continue crushing opponents, the debate of who is the best 1-loss team will be interesting.
- USC (8-1)–#9–W 41-35 California–They gave up 21 pts in the 4th quarter. The Trojans are not going to finish with one loss.
- UCLA (8-1)–#10–W 50-36 Arizona State–They also gave up points in the 4th quarter, but they were playing backups at that point. At least the two future Big Ten schools face each other in two weeks.
- LSU (7-2)–#16–W 32-31 OT #7 Alabama–It was a great game. And it helped propel the Tigers back into a conversation. I do not see how they could be in the playoff conversation. Unless tons of craziness happens.
- Alabama (7-2)–#7–L 32-31 OT #16 LSU–I guess I was a bit wrong about LSU being ranked that low compared to the CFP committee.
- Ole Miss (8-1)–#12–BYE
- Clemson (8-1)–#5–L 35-14 Notre Dame–Not only did they lose, but it was a loss to an unranked Notre Dame team. Oh and they got absolutely destroyed. Not good. Not good at all.
- Penn State (7-2)–#13–W 45-14 Indiana–The Nittany Lions looked pretty great against Indiana. Yes, the Hoosiers are bad this year, but you know what? These are the games in the past that give PSU trouble. Instead, they looked great in all aspects.
- UNC (8-1)–#11–W 31-28 Virginia–I just do not think they are that good. I decided to drop them for having troubles in just about every game. Minus the Pitt game, they did win that one easily.
- Tulane (8-1)–#17–W 27-13 Tulsa
- Utah (7-2)–#18–W 45-20 Arizona
- Liberty (8-1)–#21–W 21-19 Arkansas–The Flames beat an Arkansas team that was ranked fairly high at one point. Just a reminder, their only loss was by one point to Wake Forest. They are a good team.
- NC State (7-2)–#24–W 30-21 #20 Wake Forest
- Washington (7-2)–#25–W 24-21 Oregon State
- Texas (6-3)–NR–W 34-27 #14 Kansas State–The Longhorns enjoy making the Big XII interesting. They finish with TCU, Kansas, and Baylor. Not an easy road, but they are not actually eliminated from a conference championship. Kind of crazy.
- Notre Dame (6-3)–NR–W 35-14 #5 Clemson–The Irish were one of my teams to watch. I said they could upset Clemson. I should have put some money on that one. Losing to Marshall and Stanford is so bad and hard to rank them any higher.
- Kansas State (6-3)–#14–L 34-27 Texas
- Baylor (6-3)–HM–W 38-35 Oklahoma
- Kentucky (6-3)–NR–W 21-17
- Florida State (6-3)–NR–W 45-3 Miami–The Seminoles have quality wins (LSU and Louisville) and their losses were to ranked teams (WF, NCSU, Clemson). I still think they are a good team.
Honorable Mention
Coastal Carolina (8-1)–HM–W 35-28 Appalachian State
Louisville (6-3)–NR–W 34-10 James Madison
UCF (7-2)–NR–W 35-28 Memphis
Illinois (7-2)–#15–L 23-15 Michigan State
UTSA (7-2)–HM–W 44-38 OT UAB
Watch List
Troy (7-2)–NR–W 23-17 Louisiana
Oklahoma State (6-3)–#19–L 37-16 Kansas
Oregon State (6-3)–HM–L 24-21 #25 Washington
Kansas (6-3)–NR–W 37-16 #19 Oklahoma State
South Alabama (7-2)–NR–W 38-31 Georgia Southern
Not a ton of great games next week. If you like an interesting Friday night game, check out East Carolina at Cincinnati. The biggest game is #10 Alabama at #11 Ole Miss. I am going to say that if #12 Clemson does not figure out the QB situation, they could lose this week when Louisville comes to town. If you like fun rivalry games? Check out Appalachian State at Marshall. #1 Georgia heads to Mississippi State, and it feels like the perfect time for Mike Leach to pull off an upset. #19 Washington heads to #6 Oregon, #20 Texas hosts #4 TCU, while #14 UNC tries to stay at one loss while going to Wake Forest. Syracuse will attempt to stave off the losing when #25 Florida State visits. The game I am highlighting this week though is UCF at #15 Tulane. The Green Wave need another quality win.
