This past weekend was one to remember in college football.
How about Miami’s big win over Virginia Tech, where they announced to the rest of the college football world that it is back? Ditto for Clemson reminding everyone it is still among the best in college football with a Textile Bowl win over my alma mater N.C. State.
Then there is “Bedlam”, which certainly lived up to its billing. Oklahoma 62, OK State 52. Over 110 points scored between them — defense be damned.
And who can forget about Alabama beating rival LSU, nor Auburn and Georgia winning their tune-ups leading up to their epic clash next week. Same with Notre Dame heading into next week’s match-up against Miami.
(Hell, next week could even be GREATER!)
But I’m really thinking about those big upsets in the Big Ten.
Penn State losing to Michigan State on a last second field goal. Ohio State getting curb-stomped by Iowa.
That leaves Wisconsin as the lone unbeaten team in the Big Ten. Wacky, wacky, wacky all the way around.
You know what, that is BAD news for the Big Ten in terms of its College Football Playoff candidacy.
Can someone give me Wisconsin’s big non-conference win? Anyone? Bueller??? (Hell, one could ask that of the conference as a whole.)
Wisconsin’s weak-ass non-conference slate and lack of quality conference wins hurts its candidacy big time. And facing a two-loss team in the Big Ten championship will not help the Badgers’ cause at all.
So if the Big Ten hopes to land a team in the College Football Playoff, this is what it has to hope for: chaos, lots of it.
It has to hope for Clemson to lose again. Ditto for Notre Dame, Oklahoma (ESPECIALLY the Sooners) and Washington (though the Pac-12 is virtually out of it).
The Big Ten also has to hope for Georgia to lose to Auburn next weekend AND Alabama in the SEC title game. And the mother of all unlikely scenarios: Alabama not only to lose to Georgia in the SEC title game, but an earlier along the way (Auburn, anyone?).
This is not to say it’s impossible for the Big Ten to break through. But it is one uphill climb that no one — and I mean NO ONE — saw coming…
Categories: college football, college sports
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