Let’s dive into the week that was in college football and hit all the highlights on the SoBros Network’s College Football Roundup.
*It’s hard to believe another college football season is in the books. My, how time flies – it feels like only yesterday I was sitting down with Brandon and Steven at Sam’s in Old Hickory, having a beer, and watching Tulane give Oklahoma fits. Now, here we are preparing for the 2021 installment of Championship Saturday. If it’s anything like this past weekend, we are in store for a classic. Seriously, is there a better stretch of college football than that early week MACtion to the Egg Bowl on Thanksgiving night, Black Friday football, and all of the big rivalry games on Saturday? It is quintessential college football at its finest, with a little bit of everything that makes the sport great. So, now that I’m done being sentimental and reflecting on the quick passing of time, let’s dig into where things stand now.
*It was an Iron Bowl for the ages – the first time in rivalry history that the game had ever gone into overtime. The Auburn Tigers were in full control of that game for about 59 minutes until Bryce Young had a signature Heisman moment and hit Ja’Corey Brooks for a touchdown. Then, after a thrilling four overtimes, Young hit John Metchie III for a two-point conversion attempt that sealed the comeback. Alabama really had no business winning that game, but championship teams find a way, and that’s exactly what the Crimson Tide finds itself playing for on Saturday in the SEC Championship. Now, I’ve been critical of Alabama all season long, and I’m not sure they did anything on Saturday to put those criticisms to bed. The Georgia Bulldogs are 6.5-point favorites in Saturday’s game for good reason, and it certainly looks like this is Kirby Smart‘s year. But, the fact that with their season on life support and less than a minute to go in the game, the Tide was able to gut out a win shows the mettle of this team. Young may have very well clinched the Heisman on Saturday night.
BAMA STRIKES BACK ‼️
— SportsCenter (@SportsCenter) November 28, 2021
The Crimson Tide battled hard to get the 4OT Iron Bowl win pic.twitter.com/64V7UhZqmg
*Speaking of doing the impossible, the Michigan Wolverines pulled off the upset of Jim Harbaugh‘s tenure in Ann Arbor by ending the Big Ten Championship hopes of the Ohio State Buckeyes as 8.5-point underdogs. They did just what they had to do to get the win – pressure CJ Stroud, and run the ball in the snow. They get their first Big Ten Championship bid, and open as 10.5-point favorites over the Iowa Hawkeyes on Saturday. They win, and they’re in the College Football Playoff.
*Absolutely brilliant move by Lincoln Riley to deny deny deny the rumors of his taking the LSU Tigers job only to take the USC Trojans job. No lies detected, and Riley gets to completely dodge Oklahoma’s move to the SEC, which he apparently was not a fan of. The Pac-12 is ripe for the taking right now, too – I mean, outside of the Oregon Ducks, who in that conference is a real threat to Riley building USC back into a dynasty? Chess not checkers, y’all.
*Louisiana head coach Billy Napier takes the Florida Gators job. He’s done fantastic work in the Sun Belt, and we’ve seen other Sun Belt coaches have relative success in the SEC (Eli Drinkwitz). So, maybe he can turn it around. The big thing with that job is getting over the hump of the elites in the SEC, and that’s going to be a challenge given the state of that program. Dan Mullen wasn’t able to do that. Will Florida be patient with Napier? Time will tell.
*Is there anything quite like the Egg Bowl on Thanksgiving night? The Mississippi State Bulldogs. The Ole Miss Rebels. A giant golden egg. It’s the stuff of legend. Ole Miss was able to cap off a special season and get its 10th win. That likely means Lane Kiffin and Matt Corral will be heading to a New Year’s Six bowl game, as they’re clearly the third best team in the SEC behind Georgia and Alabama. Hell, if Alabama wins the SEC Championship, Ole Miss could find itself in the Sugar Bowl.
*After surviving the Civil War, the Oregon Ducks will get their second crack at the Utah Utes in the Pac-12 Championship game. The way the Utah team is put together just seems to be a mismatch for the Ducks, but there’s no doubt that Oregon will be out for revenge with a berth in the Rose Bowl on the line. Utah is favored by 2.5 on Friday night.
*The Cincinnati Bearcats handled their business against East Carolina on Black Friday in convincing fashion. They just have one more game to win and then they’re a likely playoff team. They get the 11-1 Houston Cougars in the American Championship on Saturday. The Bearcats are favored by 10.5.
*I am so hyped that we are actually getting an ACC Championship between the Pittsburgh Panthers and the Wake Forest Demon Deacons. I’ve been talking about this potential match-up on the College Football Roundup podcast for weeks, and to actually see it happen is going to be awesome. This is going to be some arena football type shit – the Panthers opened as three-point favorites, but this is going to be an electric factory…points galore…an absolute fireworks show. I can’t wait.
*Y’all know by reading this column all season that I’m not a big proponent of storming the field for every victory, but I absolutely am an advocate of storming your opponent’s field and making them take on that fine, like the Washington State fans did in the Apple Cup at Washington:
WASHINGTON STATE RUSHED WASHINGTON’S FIELD pic.twitter.com/AyJRzWGrqT
— RedditCFB (@RedditCFB) November 27, 2021
*The Nebraska Cornhuskers finishing the season at 3-9 is amazing. They lost to the Iowa Hawkeyes 28-21 on Black Friday, marking the EIGHTH time this season that they’ve lost by a single possession. This team has fought hard, even against Ohio State, losing just 26-17, but man…that’s a heartbreaking run for Huskers fans. This team could conceivably be 11-1, and that is mind-boggling to think about.
*The dream run for the UTSA Roadrunners has officially been ended at the hands of the North Texas Mean Green. I thought North Texas stood a chance. It’s hard to keep a winning streak such as UTSA’s going for as long as it was going, and the Mean Green can move the ball pretty well on offense. But, to get blown out like that? Crazy – it sets us up for what should be an epic C-USA Championship against the Western Kentucky Hilltoppers, who are favored by one, on Friday night.
*Shout out to my alma mater, the MTSU Blue Raiders, for getting that sixth win and becoming bowl eligible. At 2-4, it didn’t look like that was going to happen, but going 4-2 down the stretch got the job done and might’ve saved Rick Stockstill‘s job. Whether or not they actually get into a bowl game remains to be seen – this is a team that has been bowl eligible and left out of the party before, so who knows? But, for this team to get to a bowl game feels like an accomplishment.
*Also, shout out to the Kansas Jayhawks for two things this season – beating Texas and plugging Applebee’s:
JARED CASEY JUST PLUGGED APPLEBEES pic.twitter.com/mCOtQHwvF0
— RedditCFB (@RedditCFB) November 28, 2021
*Eliminated from CFP contention: I honestly don’t know that anyone was eliminated from College Football Playoff contention – I think there’s still a crazy scenario that would at least open the door for an argument for Ohio State getting in. I think we’re still at seven teams – Georgia, Alabama, Cincinnati, Michigan, Ohio State, Notre Dame, and Oklahoma State – competing for those four spots. Let’s say Georgia, Iowa, Houston, and Baylor all win on Saturday. That’s going to give Alabama, Michigan, and Oklahoma State a second loss, and it’s going to effectively end Cincinnati’s case for a playoff spot. A two-loss team is going to HAVE to take up at least two of those spots in this scenario, and I could totally see this committee sneaking Ohio State back into the top four. My best guess in that scenario would be Georgia, Notre Dame, Alabama, Ohio State/Michigan. But, what I think is most likely is Georgia, Michigan, Cincinnati, and Oklahoma State.
*And now, the conference championships are SET:
- AAC: Houston vs. Cincinnati
- ACC: Wake Forest vs. Pitt
- Big 12: Baylor vs. Oklahoma State
- Big Ten: Michigan vs. Iowa
- C-USA: Western Kentucky vs. UTSA
- MAC: Kent State vs. Northern Illinois
- MWC: Utah State vs. San Diego State
- Pac-12: Oregon vs. Utah
- SEC: Georgia vs. Alabama
- Sun Belt: Appalachian State vs. Louisiana
*Personally, my top college football top 10 would look like this:
- Georgia
- Michigan
- Cincinnati
- Alabama
- Notre Dame
- Oklahoma State
- Ohio State
- Ole Miss
- Baylor
- Oregon
If you haven’t already, be sure to go subscribe to the College Football Roundup Podcast, on which Steven McCash and myself break down all the action from the college football world and look ahead to the week to come.
Stoney Keeley is the Editor in Chief of The SoBros Network, and a Dogs Playing Poker on velvet connoisseur. He is a strong supporter of Team GSD, #BeBetter, and ‘Minds right, asses tight.’ “Big Natural” covers the Tennessee Titans, Nashville, Yankee Candle, and a whole wealth of nonsense. Follow on Twitter @StoneyKeeley
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