A Look Around The Country

Down goes Frazier! Down goes Frazier! Down goes Frazier! It was arguably the craziest weekend in college football history as a number of top ranked teams went down. To quote Ian Malcolm from Jurassic Park, “You see a Tyrannosaur doesn’t follow a set pattern or park schedules, the essence of chaos.” Malcolm’s Chaos Theory would be the best way to describe the weekend that was. So how does all of this shape the playoff picture into the second weekend of October? The teams that lost (especially Alabama, Oregon, and Oklahoma) still have a chance to sneak back into the discussion. I have a feeling one of them will. So let’s get our hands dirty to recap last week and preview this week, but remember to wash your hands before you eat anything!

Notable Games Last Week

Ohio State 52 Maryland 24

The Buckeyes played well in every facet of the game as they dispatched Maryland in their Big Ten home opener. Welcome to the conference, Turtles. J.T. Barrett had another 5 touchdown game and it is exciting to see this offense start to come together. The secondary also saw some improvements while limiting the number of big plays Maryland could gain, especially with Stefon Diggs. Ohio State will be idle this week for the last time until after the Big Ten Championship Game. This stretch will determine our fate.

Ole Miss 23 Alabama 17

Suck it Saban. The Rebels, or as I wish to call them, the Admiral Ackbar’s were able to get the upset over the Crimson Tide. Alabama has been flirting with an upset all season and not it has finally happened. Now Ole Miss controls its own destiny in the SEC West race but I don’t think they win out. Alabama will end up sneaking back into the discussion (both the AP and Coaches Polls dropped them to 7) and the Iron Bowl will once again decide the SEC.

Notre Dame 17 Stanford 14

Here come the Irish! Notre Dame was able to hang on to the W over Stanford and have set themselves up to be in the heat of the Playoff Discussion. This win puts them into the top 5 and sets up a mega showdown with Florida State in two weeks. Gholston and the offense is starting to come together at the right time. They play North Carolina this week so we’ll see if there is a letdown before heading to Tallahassee.

Michigan State 27 Nebraska 22

The Huskers were almost able to cap off a crazy Saturday by coming back with the upset win but Sparty was able to hold on. Michigan State has struggled with closing out a game (see Oregon game) and this one wasn’t any different. Nebraska still looks like the team to beat in the West after Wisconsin lost to Northwestern so I think we’ll see them in the Big Ten Title Game. Michigan State’s next big test is against the Buckeyes on November 8. I couldn’t be more amped for that one. Payback’s a bitch.

Big Games This Week

Texas vs Oklahoma

Who doesn’t love the Red River Rivalry at the State Fair in Texas? This has always been one of my favorite rivalry games outside of the Big Ten. The Sooners will try to bounce back after their loss to TCU against a struggling Longhorn team. We’ll see how Charlie Strong handles the big stage against their biggest rivals. Oklahoma should win big and it is certainly possible for them to get back into the playoff picture. Still a lot of football to be played.

Saturday, October 11 at 12:00pm on ABC

Auburn at Mississippi State

2 weeks ago this was just another game but now that Miss. State has vaulted from unranked to 3 (I still laugh at that fact) it is much more important. Nick Marshall and the Tigers got an easy victory over a struggling LSU squad and it’s safe to say that the Bulldogs (is that what they’re called?) pose a much tougher threat. But I have Auburn by a couple touchdowns.

Saturday, October 11 at 3:30pm on CBS

Texas Christian at Baylor

In now a wide open Big 12, this game between the Horned Frogs and Bears is now holding a lot more weight. Expect a great environment in Waco as there fans are starting to see that a Playoff berth is very possible after Upset Saturday. TCU is on cloud nine after knocking off Oklahoma but this could turn out to be an even tougher test. Bryce Petty and Baylor will be too much for TCU and they’ll win by 10.

Saturday, October 11 at 3:30pm on ABC or ESPN 2

Oregon at UCLA

Both teams are coming off devastating losses that severely hurt their playoff chances. But if either one is able to win out, I believe that could be enough to find themselves in the final four. If Marcus Mariota is the leader I think he is, he’ll rally this Duck team to make a final push. Bret Hundley on the other hand does not have that competitive quality in my opinion. That’s the difference in this one. Oregon gets back on track with the W.

Saturday, October 11 at 3:30pm on FOX

Ohio State (Idle)

I hate bye weeks so much. But this will provide an opportunity to regroup one last time before getting into the meat of our schedule. Our next 4 games feature Rutgers (on the rise), Penn State (in Happy Valley at night- white out), Illinois (ok, they suck), and Michigan State (let’s be 10,000 Persians for a day). I cannot begin to express how bad I want to beat Sparty. And I’m thrilled we have the opportunity to embarrass them in their stadium, in front of their fans, in primetime. Be afraid East Lansing, be very afraid.

Michigan Update

This seems to just get worse and worse every week. Michigan lost to Rutgers in East Rutherford and there seems to be no end in sight. There is some talk that many of the students will be boycotting the game against Penn State which will be broadcast at 7pm on ESPN 2. So we’ll see how that goes. But there really isn’t much else to say for this team. They better start praying they can get either a Harbaugh or Les Miles.

My Playoff if the Season Ended Today

1. Florida State (beat Wake Forest 43-3, plays at Syracuse this week) Well, the Seminoles are back into my number 1 spot after every other team in front of them went down. I still have a feeling they lose before the ACC championship but just not sure when.

2. Auburn (beat LSU 41-7, plays Mississippi State this week) The Tigers are a great football team. And if it wasn’t for a lackluster performance against Kansas State (they should have lost) they would be my number one. Once again, I see the Iron Bowl deciding the fate of the SEC.

3. Baylor (beat Texas 28-7, plays TCU this week) The Bears roll into this one with a lot of confidence. But they haven’t been in this sort of position in a long time. I’m not sure they can handle it. A date with Oklahoma on November 7 will decide a lot. TCU could sneak up on them though.

4. Notre Dame (beat Stanford 17-14, plays North Carolina this week) Yes, I have the Irish in my Playoff. Brian Kelly has this team rolling while finding ways to win in crunch time. That’s a recipe for a dangerous team. There game at Florida State in 2 weeks will be ginormous, as long as they don’t overlook the Tar Heels in South Bend.

Just Missed the Cut

5. Michigan State
6. Ole Miss
7. Mississippi State
8. Oregon
9. Oklahoma
10. Alabama
13. Ohio State

Comments

  1. This week will be another crazy one, I’m really excited for some of these games! Thanks for the article

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