One more full regular season week of college football, dear friends. As the Irish prepare to win in Palo Alto for the first time in ages as heavy favorites they will be taking a back seat to a busy weekend across the country. But first, let’s recap the last week.

This Week’s Winner: Chase Young, DE, Ohio State

Suspended for two meaningless games that Ohio State won by a combined 129-35, Young returned to the lineup in a big way notching 3 sacks, 4 tackles for loss, a forced fumble, with 9 total tackles. Even with the missed action, Young leads the country with 16.5 sacks and should earn an invite to the Heisman Trophy presentation.

This Week’s Loser: Oregon Ducks

It was all right there for Oregon who faced a relatively easy road down the stretch until the Pac-12 Championship. Instead, they tripped over themselves, lost on the road to Arizona State, and officially exited the playoff race.

18 Stripes Top 20 Poll

RANK TEAM RECORD LAST WEEK
1 LSU 11-0 56-20 Win vs. Arkansas
2 Ohio State 11-0 28-17 Win vs. Penn State
3 Clemson 11-0 BYE
4 Georgia 10-1 19-13 Win vs. Texas A&M
5 Alabama 10-1 66-3 Win vs. Western Carolina
6 Oklahoma (+1) 10-1 28-24 Win vs. TCU
7 Utah (+2) 10-1 35-7 Win vs. Arizona
8 Florida (+2) 9-2 BYE
9 Baylor (+3) 10-1 24-10 Win vs. Texas
10 Minnesota (+1) 10-1 38-22 Win vs. Northwestern
11 Penn State (-3) 9-2 28-17 Loss vs. Ohio State
12 Michigan (+2) 9-2 39-14 Win vs. Indiana
13 Wisconsin 9-2 45-24 Win vs. Purdue
14 Notre Dame (+1) 9-2 40-7 Win vs. Boston College
15 Oregon (+9) 9-2 31-28 Loss vs. Arizona State
16 Auburn 8-3 52-0 Win vs. Samford
17 Memphis 10-1 49-10 Win vs. USF
18 Cincinnati 10-1 15-13 Win vs. Temple
19 Boise State 10-1 56-21 Win vs. Utah State
20 Iowa 8-3 19-10 Win vs. Illinois

 

OUT: N/A

IN: N/A

Rank 18S/AP/CFP

LSU 1/1/2
OSU 2/2/1
Clemson 3/3/3
Georgia 4/4/4
Alabama 5/5/5
Oklahoma 6/7/7
Utah 7/6/6
Florida 8/8/11
Baylor 9/11/9
Minnesota 10/9/8
Penn State 11/12/10
Michigan 12/10/13
Wisconsin 13/13/12
Notre Dame 14/15/16
Oregon 15/14/14
Auburn 16/16/15
Memphis 17/17/18
Cincinnati 18/18/19
Boise State 19/20/20
Iowa 20/19/17

So, the playoff committee clearly loves the Big Ten.

They moved Ohio State into the top spot, they have Minnesota two spots higher than us, Penn State and Wisconsin one spot higher, and Iowa three spots higher. The only exception is Michigan being one spot lower. I get the feeling keeping Ohio State in the top spot will be important so as to avoid a 1 v. 4 all-SEC matchup in the semi-finals.

I felt like Oklahoma’s resume anchored by their Baylor win moves them ahead of Utah who currently has zero wins over ranked teams.

No surprise as the playoff committee is settling into sorting by losses (Florida behind Minnesota, for example) with the exception of Baylor who isn’t getting that respect.

Week 14 Games to Watch

Virginia Tech (-2.5) at Virginia – The Cavaliers have only won this game once since the Clinton Presidency and now have the pressure of the ACC Coastal Division being on the line for the winner here. Dare I say Virgnia Tech has looked great lately (back-to-back shutouts) as they wrap up the career of Bud Foster. I think they do it Virginia again. Hokies 23-21.

Cincinnati (+11) at Memphis – I told you in the past respect Memphis when they play at home. It’s a tough place to play and they usually cruise in front of a frantic crowd. Cincinnati has already clinched their division but of course still have major bowl dreams if they keep winning. I’m taking Memphis at home. Tigers 37-29.

Ohio State (-9) at Michigan – There are a ton of road favorites in this week’s featured games and you’d think there will be a few outright upsets. With some crappy weather expected can Michigan do it twice in the rain this season? No. Buckeyes 29-23.

Clemson (-27) at South Carolina – Clemson hasn’t lost to this bad of a South Carolina team since 1992, although the Gamecocks seem a little more feisty (just ask Georgia) than their 4 wins would lead you to believe. This feels like it’ll be a cover. Tigers 35-13.

Alabama (-3.5) at Auburn – We know so little about quarterback Mac Jones which makes this a scary pick for Alabama. It’s possible Auburn completely stifles the Bama offense. On the other hand, it’s also possible a couple screens go for touchdowns from Alabama. I don’t think Auburn’s offense is quite efficient enough to take advantage in this one. Crimson Tide 20-17.

Wisconsin (-3) at Minnesota – GameDay finally makes the trip up to Minneapolis and a bid to the Big Ten Championship Game is on the line. This one for me comes down to the Wisconsin defense which was stifling early in the season but has given up a less stellar 25.8 points per game over their last 5 games. I like the Badgers in this big spotlight but I’ll keeping rowing with P.J. who seems to shine when challenged. Gophers 27-24.

Texas A&M (+17) at LSU – This is the Aggies second straight week to spring a massive upset. Although they’re 0-4 against their ranked opponents they’ve generally stayed really competitive. I really want to call the upset here although I don’t think nice enough things are going to happen to Mike Elko. Tigers 38-27.

Navy (-8.5) at Houston – If Cincinnati wins and Navy takes care of business in this one on the road those two teams will face each other in the AAC Championship Game. This could cap off one heck of a turn around year for Coach Ken and the Middies. This should also cap off a really weird, and frankly disappointing, year for Coach Holgo’s debut in Houston. Midshipmen 41-30.

Florida State (+17.5) at Florida – I’m including this game only for the reason that college football is extremely weird and, well, let’s get weird! Seminoles 28-24.

Oklahoma (-13) at Oklahoma State – For an outsider such as myself I was surprised to see Oklahoma own so much of this rivalry. I figured the Sooners would’ve lost a few times in Stillwater in recent years. Well, not so much. They’ve won their last 3 visits and 7 out of the last 8 visits. It’s asking a lot for the Cowboys to upset their in-state rivals with their backup quarterback. Sooners 47-24.