2024-12-04 08:19

That was a fun rivalry week, at least for me.

It had the typical results, the blowouts, the close games but the favorite won and the upsets, not many did expect, but did happen.

The expectations and hopes of several teams were crushed this week, we saw tears of joy and tears of sadness.

I will start with the reviews this week, since the final standings will tell too much.

The BLOCK OF GRANITE TOP GAMES FOR WEEK 14

Fri. Nov 29
Mississippi State @ #14 Ole Miss
The 1st quarter was open and exciting, but then did Ole Miss took control of the game and pulled slowly away.
Mississippi State had their moments when you thought 'oh, when they get THIS done now, they might still stand a chance', but too many errors and a too inactive offense lead to another EGG BOWK loss by the Bulldogs.
For the Rebels, this win was a good season end, they can still dream of an outside chance to sneak into the relevant playoff rankings spots, but they need help, since they won't play the upcoming week in any of the Championship games.
Mississippi State 14 @ #14 Ole Miss 26 -> Jacks TOP GAMES Score: 32-11

Sat. Nov 30
#16 Arizona State @ Arizona
THIS was one of those rivalry games, which was no fun to watch, if you are not a fan of the Sun Devils.
The Wildcats were just awful and did ASU do whatever they liked.
The Sun Devils knew, they need to win to get into the BIG-12-Championship game and boy, did they deliver.
The DUEL IN THE DESERT ended with a 40+ margin in favor of ASU.
They DID get to the Championship game, and they HAVE a good chance to even make the playoffs, of they might lose that game.
But with that performance, they have also a good chance to win the BIG-12 in the 1st season of membership.
#16 Arizona State 49 @ Arizona 7 -> Jacks TOP GAMES Score: 33-11

Michigan @ #2 Ohio State
And here the other end of the expectation spectrum.
Ohio State had invested a ton of money to overcome their rival from Michigan and to win the BIG10.
THE GAME was a crucial one, but the path was clear.
Win and you are in. At home. End the losing streak.
Well ... an error prone Ohio State team did have their problems with Michigan. INT, sure, missed FG, why not?
At the half the game was tied at 10.
Not good, but also not bad.
Still at home, still the favorite did OSU come back on the field and sucked big time.
Michigan was unable to get something out of this, but at the end of the 4th quarter, after a lot of errors on both sides, did Michigan hit a field goal to take the lead.
Ohio State got the ball back, with 45 ticks left on the clock.
And the team was not even able to move the ball for a 1st down. At home!
All said afterwards that they know they have to win this game and they did let the fans and everyone down, but I doubt they really understand it.
You do NOT lose with that kind of team at home in that situation THE GAME.
Well, the Buckeyes will unfortune only drop a few spots in the playoff ranks and will likely still get a playoff spot they don't deserve.
For the BIG10 Championship will different teams play, and I hope that this will have an impact on the OSU ranks as well.
Michigan 13 @ #2 Ohio State 10 -> Jacks TOP GAMES Score: 33-12

#3 Texas @ #20 Texas A&M
All hyped up to be the return of the LONE STAR SHOWDOWN, but at the end it was not really interesting (at least for me).
Texas led 17:0 at the half.
Then did A&M score a defense TD to close the gap a bit and then did nothing more happen.
The A&M offense was not on the field; hence Texas had no problem to control the clock and the game.
Seriously, this was basically a semifinal for the SEC Championship game and A&M does deliver THIS?
Texas advances to the SEC Championship game well regarded, while A&M is likely not even on the playoff list anymore.
The only good thing for the A&M fans is, that was season 1 of the Elko era, so hopefully and likely, the team will become better next year.
A bowl ahead for A&M, Texas will play for the SEC and the National Championship
#3 Texas 17 @ #20 Texas A&M 7 -> Jacks TOP GAMES Score: 34-12

And some other interesting games:

Fri. Nov 29
Minnesota @ Wisconsin
This season PAUL BUNYAN'S AXE goes to Minnesota. Wisconsin needed 3 quarters to finally score something, and Minnesota was already 21:0 ahead at that point.
At the end did Minnesota win 24:7 and did by that deny the rival a bowl spot.
Jacks interesting games Score: 28-18

Georgia Tech @ #7 Georgia
The most exciting game of the gameday, at least it seems for me.
Georgia Tech came to Athens and wanted to end the 6-game-losing streak of CLEAN, OLD-FASHIONED HATE. They started strong, lead 17:0 at the half.
Georgia did wake up a bit in the 3rd quarter, 17:6.
GT scored a FG start of the 4th, Bulldogs a TD, 20:13.
When then the Yellow Jackets did strike again with a TD, several fans did start to leave the stadium, less than 6 minutes to play, 27:13 for GT at that point.
But Georgia did not give up, scored a TD, 27:20, gave GT the ball and the hero of the game, the GT QB, who did guide the team so far to THAT result, did fumble the ball and Georgia used the field position to score a game tying TD a bit later.
The game went into OT and if you are not familiar with OT rules on college football, it's not like the NFL. Each team gets the ball close to the endzone and then it counts, what the teams do score. After some iterations, only 1 try is given to score or to fail for just 2 points.
And that happened here.
The 1st OT ended with TD each, 2nd OT, TD each. Here already a kick is not allowed, and GT failed the 2-pointer, but Georgia also. Now down to forces 1-play tries the game went on to the 8th OT, at that point 42:42. GT had to play 1st and failed, and the Bulldogs went in the endzone and won 44:42.
The Bulldogs will play for the SEC next week and likely they will also play in the playoff regardless they win or lose that game.
GT will play in a bowl.
Jacks interesting games Score: 29-18

Sat. Nov 30
#5 Notre Dame @ USC
The Irish used a great 3rd quarter (21:7 in that quarter) to elevate the team away from the Trojans.
until that it was quite even, but after that quarter, USC had to play catch up and failed big time with 2 pick-six in a row in the 4th.
The Irish won 49:35 and the right to add a sticker on THE JEWELED SHILLELAGH and did make a strong case for their playoff participation.
USC will play in a bowl.
Jacks interesting games Score: 30-18

Florida @ Florida State
This was a joke.
FSU lost clearly, 11:31, but what I dislike is, that the immature kids of the Gators had to plant a flag on the logo (did happen also on other games), leading to brawls and fights.
The sport does not need such stuff.
Brag afterwards as much as you like, but don't start a fight between 100+ people for an immature joke.
The SUNSHINE SHOWDOWN did throw a bad light on Florida this week.
Jacks interesting games Score: 31-18

#15 South Carolina @ #12 Clemson
This game was fun, even the offense production was bad.
Very evenly matched did the PALMETTO BOWL get into gear in the 4th quarter, when South Carolina did score a field goal to get closer to Clemson, still trailing by 4 and then the Gamecocks were able to stop the Tigers and get the ball back, with 5 minutes to play.
South Carolina did march over the field and scored a TD with a minute left to play, taking the lead.
Clemson took the ball and marched over the field in that last minute and was already in the red zone, were in position to tie the game, but wanted to take a shot for a game winning TD and the pass was (in a great way) intercepted.
South Carolina did win, boosted their case to eventually sneak back into the relevant playoff spots and did kick Clemson deep down the playoff spots.
The only good for the Tigers on that weekend was, that because of the results of other teams inside the conference, they did sneak into the ACC Championship game and by that still have a chance for a playoff spot.
Jacks interesting games Score: 32-18

Auburn @ #13 Alabama
And the IRON BOWL, this season more the boring kind of game.
Alabama was in the lead most of the game and Auburn was unable to get something done to close the gap.
At the end did Alabama win 28:14 and will eventually sneak into the playoffs, while Auburns season is over, since they needed that win here to get to a bowl and are now 5-7.
Jacks interesting games Score: 33-18

And some more funny result of week 14:

- Akron did beat Toledo in OT, 21:14. That shows a 2-win increase to 4-8 for the Zips compared to last season, which means likely the HC in his 3rd season will get another try next year.
- Memphis finished strong and did beat AAC Championship team Tulane, 34:24. That is a big thing for Tulane, which will likely drop out of the playoff rankings now, 1 week after they did look like the might even be able to push the BIG-12 out of the playoffs in certain scenarios. Now I think it is quite certain any AAC Champ won't be higher ranked as any BIG-12 Champ (if even ranked at all) and therefore will not play in the playoffs.
- Miami (OH) did win against Bowling Green, 28:12. By that, they did seal a trip to the MAC Championship game.
- Sam Houston won against Liberty, 20:18. The game on Friday did spark likely a lot of love towards Jacksonville State from Sam Houston fans, since if the Gamecocks would have won against WKU, Sam Houston would have played for the CUSA crown, but you guess right, WKU won.
- Texas State won against South Alabama, 45:38. By that did Texas State already send Louisiana to the SEC Championship game.
- Syracuse did win against Miami, 42:38. With that upset did the Orange push Miami out of the ACC Championship game and maybe even out of the relevant playoff ranking spots. What a bad ending for Miami.
- Indiana did win the OLD OAKEN BUCKET against rival Purdue with an almost record setting 66:0 win. That did end the 3-game-winning streak of Purdue, did boost Indianas playoff case and did also seal the season for the Purdue HC, who was fired after 2 seasons.
- Boston College won against Pitt, 34:23. Both teams are already bowl eligible, but for BC it's a great result under their new HC in the 1st season.
- North Carolina State did beat rival UNC, 35:30. NC State has now won 4 in a row. After the game it was announced that the UNC HC will NOT coach in the bowl game.
- As already said, WKU did win against Jacksonville State, 19:17. And by that earned a trip to the CUSA Championship game to play again against Jacksonville State.
- Wyoming was able to beat Washington State, 15:14. Wazzu was until mid-season in the chatter to eventually getting into the playoffs as at-large-team, but 3 losses in a row will only open up a bowl spot somewhere. Wyomings season is over.
- Virginia Tech won against rival Virginia, 37:17. The Hokies can take the COMMONWEALTH CUP back home, now winning the game the 4th time in a row. Vt got a bowl spot by that win.
- Marshall did win against James Madison, 35:33 in 2OT. By that, Marshal did win the division and will play for the Sun Belt crown.

The final top teams in the conferences are:

American Athletic Conference
The Conference Championship will be played at Army, since Tulane lost their last game and are now 2nd in the standings. So, Tulane @ Army.

Atlantic Coast Conference
SMU kept winning, but Miami did stumble big time and by that did give Clemson the 2nd place in the standings.
So, SMU vs Clemson for the ACC title.

BIG-12 Conference
The leading teams did all win, so a 4-team-tie did happen.
Arizona State and Iowa State did get #1 and #2 in that tiebreaker scenario and will play for the BIG-12 title.
BYU and Colorado will only play for a bowl.

BIG10 Conference
That's to THE GAME did the BIG10 get a big shuffle.
Oregon was already set, but Ohio State did drop out and Penn State and Indiana did remain for the 2nd participant.
Here Penn State did win the tiebreaker with the cumulative opponent conference record, which means, they had a tougher schedule inside the conference that Indiana.
So, Oregon vs Penn State.

Conference USA
Jacksonville States loss to WKU in Kentucky did open up the rematch in the Championship game, WKU @ Jacksonville State.

Mid-American Conference
The MAC did finish with 2 clear 1-loss teams, so it is Miami (OH) vs Ohio for the title.

Mountain West Conference
Boise State kept winning, so did UNVL.
That results in a rematch between both teams, this time on the surf turf. UNLV @ Boise State.

Southeastern Conference
Texas did not take the chances away from them and sealed the ticket to play against the already set Georgia team.

Sun Belt Conference
Marshal won their game and the East division; Louisiana won their game and the West division.
The championship game will be played at Louisville.

That's it for the conferences.

Bowl eligible teams
5 more teams got their 6th win this weekend, which sums up now to 82 teams being bowl eligible.

Week 6: Miami, Indiana
Week 7: Army, Pittsburgh, BYU, Iowa State, Oregon, Penn State and Texas
Week 8: Clemson, Duke, SMU, Memphis, Navy, Illinois, Kansas State, UNLV, Washington State, Texas A&M, LSU, Georgia, Tennessee, Missouri, Louisiana and Notre Dame
Week 9: Tulane, Ohio State, Colorado, Sam Houston, Boise State, Alabama, Ole Miss and James Madison
Week 10: Louisville, Syracuse, Texas Tech, Arizona State, Iowa, Minnesota, Western Kentucky, UConn, Toledo, Colorado State, Vanderbilt and Georgia Southern
Week 11: Georgia Tech, TCU, Jacksonville State, Liberty, Ohio, San Jose State, South Carolina and Marshall
Week 12: East Carolina, North Carolina, Baylor, Washington, Rutgers, Miami (OH), Bowling Green, Buffalo, Northern Illinois, Texas State and Arkansas State
Week 13: South Florida, UTSA, Boston College, California, West Virginia, Michigan, USC, Nebraska, Fresno State, Arkansas, Florida, Oklahoma and South Alabama
Week 14: North Texas, NC State, Virginia Tech, Western Michigan and Coastal Carolina

Somehow did Western Michigan vanish from my list as potential teams, but they did win their 6th game this weekend.

78 bowl spots are available, and 82 teams are now here with 6 wins. That will mean, that 4 teams will be left out, usually that means some team from MAC, Sun Belt or CUSA will not get an invitation.

Based on the results of the season and because it is now end of the season for all teams with less than 6 wins, several coaches changes did happen already.

Gus Malzahn, the HC of Central Florida, did step down after 4 seasons (28-24, 4-8 this season), because he was hired by Florida State to become the OC. Likely he could have stayed at UCF, but it got hotter there for him, so this move does eventually help both parties.

Ryan Walters was fired by Purdue after 2 bad seasons (4-8 and 1-11). Prior to that he was the DC of Illinois, but it seems he was unable to do something with the Boilermakers. The heavy loss against Indiana at season finale did seal his fate.

Then there is Mike MacIntyre, who got fired at Florida International after 3 seasons, each had 4-8 as record. MacIntyre had some success at San Jose State and Colorado, but failed mid-term at Colorado and had to take that step backwards to FIU, only to get fired here after 3 seasons. FIU has some structure programs, as it seems, so they need a good coach to get the program back into winning something.

Next on the chop block is Neal Brown, the now former HC of West Virginia. He did lead West Virginia for 6 seasons, and it did look all good last year (9-4, including a bowl win), but the team did take a step back this season and barley got the 6 wins needed for a bowl trip. Overall is Brown 37-35 with the Mountaineers. At age of mid-40, he can still succeed elsewhere.

Appalachian State did fire their HC Shawn Clark after 5 seasons. He was promoted to HC for 2020 for this 1st gig and had up and down seasons. He won the division twice, but failed on the Championship game and guided the team to 3 bowls. Plus, he coached the team as interims coach in 2019 in a bowl.
Overall, his record was 40-24, which is not too bad, but I think App State had championship ambitions and Clark did not deliver. His predecessor won the Sun Belt 3 times in a row, so not winning 1 in 5 seasons was for sure not according to the plans and hopes. We will see whether the next guy will do better.

A positive news for Temple fans, not a positive one for Sam Houston fans is, that the new HC of Temple is former HC of Sam Houston K. C. Keeler. Keeler will take over immediately and the OC of Sam Houston will coach in the potential bowl game of the Bearkats. Keeler guided Sam Houston for 11 seasons, won conference championships as FCS team 4 times (with 2 different conferences) and 1 time even the National Championship. After the transition to FBS he did elevate the team back into a winning team, highlighted this season with a 9-3 record.
Overall, his record at Sam Houston is 97-39. It will be interesting to see, how he will do at Temple. At age of 65, this is likely his last spot to excel.

And Rice found their guy, hiring Scott Abell, the now former HC of Davidson (FCS). He is mid-50 and had 7 seasons with Davidson, winning the conference twice and a record of 47-28. Rice is a tough place, more known for losing football games but getting a good education.

And Kennesaw State found their guy already in Jerry Mack, until now he was the RB coach of the Jacksonville Jaguars and had several position and coordinator spots in the past, but also a HC gig with FCS team North Carolina Central (4 seasons, 3 times conferences champs).

Florida Atlantic did not wait long and hired Texas Tech OC Zach Kittley to become their next HC. He is 33 and by that now the youngest HC in FBS. Of course it's his 1st HC assignment, prior to that he did climb the ladder as OC from a FCS team to WKU to Texas Tech. 12 years ago he started coaching as student assistant at TTU. Not a bad career so far.

And the Committee did give us the last adjustment prior the Championship gameday.

That means, the ranks are not final yet, but several teams, not playing in the championship games, do have a hint, where they can land in the final rankings, and also it gives a feeling what could happen if that one team wins the conference, or that other.

The BIG10 was adjusted, thanks to the Buckeyes loss. #1 Oregon, #3 Penn State, now #6 Ohio State and #9 Indiana.
At #21 is Illinois lurking, but that is not important any longer for the playoffs, eventually for some other bowl invites.

The SEC got again a small shuffle, now #2 Texas, #5 Georgia, #7 Tennessee, #11 Alabama, #13 Ole Miss and #14 South Carolina. At #19 Missouri is very likely irrelevant.

With #4 is Notre Dame the only team left ranked out of the group of teams, which can only get an at-large-spot.

The ACC is now with the highest ranked team at #8 SMU, thanks to Miamis loss this weekend.
At #12 is Miami, which is discussed heavily, because Alabama is ahead of them, and at #17 is Clemson.
Syracuse got back in the rankings at #22, but that is irrelevant for the playoffs.

The Mountain West stayed on a bye-week slot with #10 Boise State and at #20 is #20 UNLV.

The BIG-12 has their finalists at #15 Arizona State and #16 Iowa State, while #18 BYU and #23 Colorado will likely be irrelevant.

Army did get back into the ranks for the American at #24 and Memphis did get into the mix the 1st time at #25.

What does this all mean?

The Championship game participants will face each other of each conference and the winner will rise in the ranks (if possible and likely only a bit) and the loser will sink in the rankings.
That will give other teams, not playing more games, eventually the chance to get back in the deciding places.

Inside the BIG10 I think regardless the result, all 4 teams will be in. Penn State or Oregon won't drop too deep, and Ohio State and Indiana will likely more rise than fall by playing no game.

The SEC championship game teams are also in, I think. None will drop to #11 or #12. The rest MIGHT more rise than fall when the weekend is over and that might open rooms for Alabama, Ole Miss and as long shot South Carolina.

Now we get to the fun parts. The ACC has SMU high up, and they play Clemson, right now deeper in the ranks. A SMU win will not change much, Clemson will just sink deeper, and Miami might get a spot, but that's a big MIGHT. A Clemson win would send SMU likely out of the top 11 to 12 spots and Clemson will rise and would also even get a spot, if not in the top 11 or 12 spots. THAT is the scenario teams like Ole Miss, Miami and South Carolina are waiting for.

Next is Boise State playing UNLV. If the Broncos win, they are in and have a bye. If the Rebels win, the Broncos will likely sink deeper than top 11 to 12 and would be out. UNLV would rise a bit and would likely play 1st round as 5th conference champ.

The BIG-12 will send only 1 team to the playoffs, the champ. The losing team of the championship game will send deeper, and the rest is likely too deep to rise to top 11 and 12. There is just not enough room for that. They will root for UNLV for the bye week spot, they would likely get, of UNLV wins the MWC.

And the AAC? Regardless of who wins, likely the champ will not rise THAT much, they would rise over the BIG-12 (very unlikely, since both teams from the BIG-12 are already higher ranked) nor will they rise over the MWC champ, if UNLV wins, since even UNLV is higher ranked now and would rise further.

I skip the seating stuff until the final rankings, since it makes no sense.

I will keep you updated.

And here it is, the Championship Games week with 9 games.

The BLOCK OF GRANITE TOP GAMES FOR WEEK 15

Sat. Dez 7
ACC CHAMPIONSHIP GAME
#17 Clemson vs #8 SMU
Played on neutral site in the stadium of the Carolina Panthers in Charlotte, North Carolina.
SMU is favored here by 2.5 points.
It's their 1st season inside the ACC and they did walk through this conference like an unstoppable force, losing only to non-conference-opponent BYU in September in a close game.
The only flaw on the SMU schedule is, they did not play any top team of the final standings.
Miami? No. Clemson? No. Syracuse? No.
Louisville is the strongest team they did play and that game was also close, but a win.
So, a quite soft schedule inside the conference with the knowledge of today.
Clemson on the other side did lose 3 times this season, against Georgia in week 1, against Louisville in October and against South Carolina last weekend.
The Cardinals game is likely the most embarrassing game, since they did finish 5-3 inside the conference and it was in Death Valley.
The same argument as for SMU does work for Clemson.
SMU? No. Miami? No. Syracuse? No. And then Louisville with a loss.
I think the teams will be quite equally matched.
The Tigers program brings in more experience with tough games than SMU, but on the other hand did SMU last season just win the AAC in their 2nd season with no mercy, so maybe that argument falls short.
I hope for a close game, but favor SMU to play more consistent.
Mustangs win.

BIG10 CHAMPIONSHIP GAME
#3 Penn State vs #1 Oregon
Played on neutral site in the stadium of the Indianapolis Colts in Indianapolis, Indiana.
The HC of Penn State did downplay the chance to play for the BIG10 Championship prior last gameday.
Understandable, since Ohio State had to face a quite weak Michigan team at home with a boosted-up roster and Penn State needed a Buckeyes loss to get here.
Well, they are here now and will face the Ducks.
The Ducks on the other hand did join the BIG10 and did not wait for adjusting, they just stormed the conference and did win every game.
They did not play Penn State so far but did play Ohio State and won by 1. They did play not Indiana, but Illinois and did win that one by a lot of points.
Beside the Ohio State game, I think the Ducks were close to lose against Wisconsin, a very defense driven game, but did win that one.
Penn State did lose only 1 game in the season, against Ohio State by a score, and did play also Illinois.
If the Lions want to win in this game here, their defense needs to be sharp.
If the Ducks can score, often, the Lions will lose.
Oregon is favored by 3.5 points, which is on one hand fair, since the teams seemed to be quite close, but on the other hand was Oregon so far almost perfect and Penn State not, so 3.5 points seemed to be a bit too few to show the respect the Ducks might deserve.
Played in a dome, this will be in favor of the Ducks, I think.
Penn State had trouble with big games in the past, so I do not trust the team to be as sharp as needed for this, hence ...
Ducks win.

BIG-12 CHAMPIONSHIP GAME
#16 Iowa State vs #15 Arizona State
Played on neutral site in the stadium of the Dallas Cowboys in Arlington, Texas.
A nice matchup, likely nobody did see coming starting the season.
Iowa State was so often so close to lose track.
They almost lost to UCF, then lost to Kansas and Texas Tech and it did look like, they would sink like a stone.
But they finished strong, won 3 in a row, and got the spot.
Strongest team of the final standings they did play is Baylor, 5th place. No BYU, no Colorado.
Arizona State looked like a mediocre team, losing to TTU and later to Cincinnati until mid-season, but finished with a great run of 5 wins, including a signature win against BYU.
Beside BYU, the teams they won against are quite low in the standings, so how to deal with all that?
Vegas gives Arizona State the favorite role, but by just 2.0 points.
I'm torn between a Sun Devils team, which looks strong and confident, and a Iowa State team, which I always see as stubborn and relentless.
I like the matchup and I like both teams to play for the Championship, unfortune only one can prevail.
I think the site is a bit in favor of the Sun Devils, but I might be wrong.
I go with my head and call ...
Sun Devils win.

SEC CHAMPIONSHIP GAME
#5 Georgia vs #2 Texas
Played on neutral site in the stadium of the Atlanta Falcons in Atlanta, Georgia.
Texas did play an almost perfect season and deserves a spot here, Georgia ... I'm not sure.
But to be fair, Texas lost only 1 game in the season and that was against Georgia.
Georgia on the other hand did lose against Alabama (against which Texas won) and Ole Miss, while almost losing to Kentucky, Florida and Georgia Tech.
But if you ask me, who would deserve the spot in this game ahead of Georgia, I cannot name a team, since all other teams behind Georgia did lose also some stupid games and did also lose almost to other weaker teams.
So, it is Georgia vs Texas.
No wonder, Texas is favored, but only by 2.5 points.
Texas has a good chance to win here, if they can make the live of the Georgia QB, who is turnover prone, miserable.
Georgia can win, if they keep their QB alive and enable him to be great.
It will come down to the Texas offense, to attack that strong defense and keep them guessing what comes next.
I believe Georgia is beatable and I think they will get beaten here.
Longhorns win.

And some other interesting games:

Fri. Dez 6
AAC CHAMPIONSHIP GAME
Tulane @ #24 Army
Played at the home turf of Army, this will help Army to eventually win against Tulane.
If Tulane wouldn't have dropped the game against Memphis last weekend, they would be highly favored to win here, but instead they are only favored by 6.0 points.
Let's face it, Army did not play strong teams this season and I think they did wiggle themselves into this spot.
Tulane did play a tougher schedule and lost several games, including that one crucial game against Memphis, but overall did from my point of view always looked stronger than Army.
No wonder, my pick is ...
Green Wave win.

CUSA CHAMPIONSHIP GAME
Western Kentucky @ Jacksonville State
Jacksonville State did secure the homefield by an almost flawless season. Only the loss last week on the road against WKU does leave a stain on the schedule.
But the rematch is at home, they are now favored by 4.5 points, and I think they will crush WKU.
If not, they deserve the setback, but I believe they will take the best of last game and will exploit at home whatever is possible to win big.
Gamecocks win.

MWC CHAMPIONSHIP GAME
#20 UNLV @ #10 Boise State
Boise State was a force so far this season and they are not done.
UNLV is surprisingly in this match, despite losing the starting QB to self-pity and losing to Boise State mid-season.
They can send some flowers to Fresno State, who did beat Colorado State late in the season, which did open the spot for UNLV.
Boise State is favored by just 4.0 points at home after an almost perfect season and with a Heisman hopeful close to beat Barry Sanders single season rushing record.
I don't get it.
Broncos win.

Sat. Dez 7
MAC CHAMPIONSHIP GAME
Ohio vs Miami (OH)
Played on neutral site in the stadium of the Detroit Lions in Detroit, Michigan.
Miami (OH) is favored by 2.5 points.
Ohio lost inside the conference only 1 game, against Miami (OH), while Miami did lose only 1 game quite early in the season on the road against Toledo.
It feels like a coin toss game.
I have a slightly better feeling with Miami, but that's just the gut feeling.
Redhawks win.

SBC CHAMPIONSHIP GAME
Marshall @ Louisiana
Played at the stadium of the team with the best playoff ranking or if none is available, the best score from several computer metrices. Louisiana did get the advantage here.
The East division, which Marshall won at the end, did look like, nobody wanted the title.
Marshall lost to Georgia Southern, who then lost crucial games afterwards, while James Madison had good and bad days.
At the end was Marshall likely more stubborn than the rest and won the division that way.
And Louisiana did look like a lock for almost the whole season, like the champ already set but not played out.
But then they lost late in the season to South Alabama, and it was at least in theory still possible that the Cajuns would not win the West.
Well, they did and are favored by 5.5 points to win this.
Not arguing their favorite status, since they DID look like the best team over the season.
But they ARE beatable and maybe that stubborn team out of West Virginia at the river Ohio can beat them.
I don't think so, but you never know.
Ragin' Cajuns win.

'Til next time
Jack6 on BLOCK OF GRANITE

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