1. The Winner of Ole Miss-Mississippi State will make the playoff
Anybody who remotely follows college football knows about the Magnolia Madness sweeping through the country. These two teams rank in the top three, and anybody that says they say this coming is flat out lying to you. I was slow to hop on the bandwagon for both of these times. Mississippi State has been the Dallas Cowboys of college football ever since Dan Mullen was hired. Every year a handful of analysts declare this is the year the Bulldogs are finally going to break through. Then, come January, they're sitting at 8-5 after beating Northwestern or Minnesota in some New Years' Day bowl game and winning only three of four SEC games. How fitting that in the same year, both teams might finally break through and win something meaningful. MSU's quarterback, Dak Prescott, is living up to the Tim Tebow billing, the defense is forcing turnovers, and they've already beaten Texas A&M, Auburn, and LSU soundly. Meanwhile, in Oxford, Ole Miss is winning games in a very Alabama fashion: Dominating defense and a game-managing quarterback with a nice mop of 'Bama Bangs. Hugh Freeze has done a marvelous job of building a program during his short time down in The Grove, and his highly ranked recruiting classes are responsible for the success this season. Back to the defense though. Appropriately nicknamed "The Landsharks", the Rebels' defense leaves opposing offenses more battered come Sunday morning than any case of Landshark Lager ever could, and Kenny Hill might still be having nightmares soundtracked by the theme from Jaws. Ole Miss might have the best front seven in college football, and their secondary attacks the ball ferociously. The last Saturday of November these two schools will meet in the Egg Bowl. There's a chance both teams enter the game undefeated. Even if one of the teams suffers a setback, whoever wins will not only get the delight of playing in the SEC Championship, they will get the arguably sweeter delight of cracking their opponent's dreams. Right now? Give me the team with the better defense and better tailgates getting to Atlanta, beating Georgia, and getting the #1 seed in the inaugural college football playoff. Hotty Toddy!
2. Florida State gets a chance to defend their national title, barring a suspension to Jameis Winston
I could argue that Notre Dame got robbed with the pass interference call in the final seconds of their game against the Seminoles this past Saturday. I could show you they ran the same exact play for their first touchdown, and a penalty didn't get called (Grantland does a great job of that). I could make the case Florida State has been less dominant and played a weaker schedule than Michigan State. This is all pointless though. Given Florida State's remaining schedule, I simply don't see a loss. They SHOULD waltz right into the College Football Playoff. However, I'd like to discuss why Jameis Winston should not still be suiting up for Jimbo Fisher's bunch. A few years ago, Pennsylvania State University was rocked by one of the most horrific scandals ever faced by a university. A lesson learned from the Jerry Sandusky ordeal was one man (Joe Paterno in that case) should not rise above the rest of the football program or the university as a whole. Down in Tallahassee, this is exactly what is happening. Winston has shown on multiple occasions he lacks the maturity to be given the privilege to play college football (Say what you will about Johnny Manziel, the kid possessed enough intelligence to not yell a sexual innuendo in the student union). In addition, not only is he facing possible discipline from a sexual assault case, there are also investigations into items he has autographed possibly having being done for pay. Oh, and evidence tampering has also been thrown around in regards to the investigation of Winston's possible sexual assault. Todd Gurley, also under investigation for receiving money for autographs, was suspended indefinitely by the University of Georgia. The Bulldogs have gone on to dominate and win their next two football games. Both Gurley and the school have stayed quietly out of the media for the most part as the school completes their investigation. Notre Dame kicked Everett Golson out of school last year for academic misconduct. Golson took the punishment in stride, however, and he has returned to lead the Irish once again. I bring these points up for the following reason: Florida State likely would have not beaten Notre Dame without Winston, and they've done nothing but give Winston a slap on the wrist. So now, the school finds itself in the precarious position, should Winston be found guilty, of valuing wins for the football program over the integrity of the university. Jimbo Fisher was seen pleading with Winston to keep his antics down following the win Saturday night. It might turn out Winston is innocent of all charges, and Florida State has just enough talent to win consecutive national championships. However, another misstep by Winston or one of these allegations proven true, and Fisher and Florida State's administration might be pleading for their jobs.
3. Oregon controls their destiny for a playoff spot, but I'm not sure how
Entering the season many analysts were making the argument that the Pac-12 was a stronger conference from top to bottom than the SEC. The basis of this was the superior quarterback play from household names like Brett Hundley, Connor Halliday, Sean Mannion, and Marcus Mariota. However, at this point in the season, it looks like Mariota and the Ducks are the conference's best, and possibly only, shot at getting into the playoff. I'll be the first to admit I don't know much about Oregon this year. Outside of Mariota, I'd have to look up names for playmakers on this team. Part of the reason is I don't think this team is as talented as ones in years past. A more substantial reason seems to be the less flashy program following the departure of Chip Kelly. Oregon's track reminds me a lot of Apple. Kelly (thanks to Phil Knight's deep pockets) was able to become the Steve Jobs' of Oregon. He constructed a household name with a strong brand identity. Everybody knew to expect bright uniforms and lightning tempo on offense when the Ducks took the field. Now, with the respective brainchildren gone, people have been left to fill their shoes, and while both entities are still successful, some of the luster has definitely been lost. Don't get me wrong- Enough Americans have iPhones that Apple could probably sell their multitude of GPS tracking information to a shady, Eastern European businessman for the equivalent of a small nation's GDP. Meanwhile, every college football fan knows Mariota is a Heisman candidate and Oregon is a top ten program. At the same time, the competition is catching up, so both organizations need to establish themselves as the dominant player in their industry. For Apple, I'm not sure how a multibillion dollar tech company goes about accomplishing this task. For Oregon, I'm positively sure the best way to do that is by winning out the rest of the way, claiming a spot in the playoff, and winning a national championship. Considering that's something Kelly was never able to accomplish, the new era of Oregon football could ensure Ducks' fans the team will continue to "Win the Day" for years to come.
4. The final spot? I have no idea... And I've got news for you: No college football guru does either.
For the past few weeks, ESPN's rotating college football talking heads have been offering their insights and opinions on who belongs in the College Football Playoff. In case you didn't know, Kirk Herbstriet, Lou Holtz, and David Pollack won't be one of the twelve people deciding the teams that make the playoff. That's why I find all the speculation so hilarious. Just like music, no person appreciates, enjoys, and critiques contending teams the same way (That's right Danny Kanell, you're not a committee member- Your opinion means just as much as mine!). Plus, there's absolutely ZERO historical precedent for knowing how the committee will ultimately decide to go. Nobody knows if the committee will value a Big 12 title over a team that went 11-1 in the SEC West, but failed to make the conference championship game. Nobody knows if Notre Dame deserves a spot because they're Notre Dame and they had a good season. Nobody knows if the committee will value a team that made significant improvements during the season over one that lost in November. And at the end of the day, that is what is going to make these next few weeks of college football so entertaining. Teams like Baylor, TCU, and even Kansas State are going to have an argument because of the surprisingly strong play of the Big 12. Notre Dame might boast one of the strongest resumes in the country should they get past Arizona State and USC unscathed. Michigan State could be sitting at 12-1 with their only loss coming in Autzen Stadium to the team talked about a section earlier. Gun to my head, what team would I say deserves the spot right now? I'd say Notre Dame. With no computer element this time around, every HUMAN BEING on the committee can relate to the heartbreaking circumstances the Irish endured in their loss this past Saturday. Should they win out, an 11-1 Notre Dame is going to be tough to turn down. Plus, their biggest advantage is they won't be forced to endure the ongoing cannibalization in both the SEC and Big 12 over the coming weeks.
Finally, consider this: The most interesting scenario to play out would be Ohio State winning out and ending up at 12-1. Yes, the loss to Virginia Tech was undoubtedly the worst loss of any team mentioned in the paragraph above. The Buckeyes have improved significantly on both sides of the ball since the September debacle and crushed everything that has gotten in their way. Right now, I don't think they are one of the four best teams and deserve a spot. Talk to me on November 9th, and I might be shouting from the rooftops a completely different story. One guarantee about Ohio State should the Buckeyes win out? J.T. Barrett will be in New York for the Heisman Trophy presentation. With Gurley's suspension, and a lack of public support for Winston's off the field antics, Barrett's production can't and won't be ignored if Ohio State continues to climb up the polls. But who knows: If the dominoes keep falling like they have, Barrett and the Buckeyes might find themselves in a position many would have never dreamed of without Braxton Miller.
J. Nave
No comments:
Post a Comment