2014 Season Thoughts: End of November

A great two-day stretch of rivalry games and important matchups!  Much was solidified (conference races, Group of 5 frontrunner), while some questions still remain for another week.

Week 14 full wrap-up

This is the clearest wrap up yet, as all but one conference is decided.

After all of the scenarios and destiny controlling, every team that made it into a conference championship got there by having the best record in their division.

ACC Championship: Florida State (8-0, Atlantic) vs. Georgia Tech (6-2, Coastal)

Bowl eligible:  Florida State, Duke, Louisville, Georgia Tech, Clemson, Boston College, Miami, NC State, UNC, Virginia Tech, Pitt
No bowl:  Wake Forest, Syracuse, UVA

Notre Dame is also bowl eligible and qualifies for the ACC bowl rotation.

SEC Championship:  Missouri (7-1, East) vs. Alabama (7-1, West)

Bowl eligible:  Ole Miss, Mississippi State, Georgia, Alabama, LSU, Auburn, Missouri, Texas A&M, Florida, Arkansas, South Carolina, Tennessee
No bowl:  Vanderbilt, Kentucky

B1G Championship:  Ohio State (8-0, East) vs. Wisconsin (7-1, West)

Bowl eligible: Michigan State, Nebraska, Minnesota, Ohio State, Maryland, Iowa, Wisconsin, Rutgers, Penn State, Illinois
No bowl:  Purdue, Indiana, Michigan, Northwestern

Pac-12 championship:  Oregon (7-1, North) vs. Arizona (7-2, South)

Bowl eligible:  Oregon, Arizona, Arizona State, Utah, UCLA, USC, Stanford, Washington
No bowl:  Washington State, Colorado, Oregon State, California

Big 12 Roulette:  Week 14

Due to the lack of divisions, the Big 12 can have co-champions.  Only three teams remain that can claim at least part of a championship.  If TCU loses next week, then the winner of the Baylor/Kansas State game will be the clear champion.  If TCU wins, then they will share the championship with the winner of Baylor/K-State.

-Baylor (7-1) has a tiebreaker over TCU.  Remaining game:  Kansas State.
-TCU (7-1) lost to Baylor, but has a tiebreaker over K-State.  Remaining game:  Iowa State. 
-Kansas State (7-1) lost to TCU.  Remaining game:  Baylor.

Bowl eligible:  Kansas State, TCU, Baylor, West Virginia, Oklahoma, Texas
Last chance:  Oklahoma State
No bowl:  Iowa State, Texas Tech, Kansas

Week 14: Black Friday update

It's definitely the Christmas season, as the Hokies are victorious and the Wahoos are boo hooing.  Part 1 of the Week 14 update.

Black Friday Football

In years past, Black Friday has been an "under the radar" kind of day, with the most important games coming on Saturday.  But there have been some gems in recent years - some that have made a huge impact on the season as a whole - along with a fantastic slate for today!

Games to Watch: Week 14

After the opening week, it's the week with the most college football.  I can already hear Andy Williams singing in my head.

Plus, rivalries all over the place, and the last pieces needed for conference races.

Week 13 wrap up

I watched a game end regulation in a 0-0 tie.  Fortunately, we still have some conference races to keep me involved.

Saturday OTAs: November 22

These games are available with just an antenna.

12:30 PM
ACC Network:  Virginia Tech at Wake Forest

3:30 PM
ABC:  Boston College at Florida State OR Wisconsin at Iowa
CBS:  Ole Miss at Arkansas
NBC:  Louisville at Notre Dame

7:30 PM
Fox:  Oklahoma State at Baylor

8 PM
ABC:  USC at UCLA

Under-the-Radar Games: Week 13

We’re coming around the home stretch.  This is the “calm before the storm” weekend where many games can be considered “under the radar”.  And while there isn’t a wide selection of ranked matchups this weekend, there are indeed some games that could become huge traps for some top teams.

Games to Watch: Week 13

Some teams have cooled down, but others are heating up as we enter the final two weeks.

Plus, with Thanksgiving only a few days away, we're starting rivalry week.

Week 12 wrap up

Everyone makes fun of the ACC for playing hot potato with their divisional championships, but they are the only conference that has both sides narrowed down to two or fewer teams.

The magic number is going away for several conferences since we're down to only two or three teams in certain divisions, and the divide between in and out of contention is obvious.

Orange Bowl Look-Ahead

After a few key early November games, I think the most realistic combinations for the Orange Bowl have narrowed significantly.  With three weekends of game action left to go, so much can still happen.  Nevertheless, let's look at a few possibilities we may be seeing on New Year's Eve.
 

Under-the-Radar Games: Week 12

Last weekend had a lot of hype going in – and the games certainly lived up to it!  The next 2 weekends have some gems before we get to Thanksgiving Weekend and all of its rivalries, but in the meantime, I’m interested in seeing how teams respond to last week’s shake-ups.  In addition to those highlight games, here’s this week’s set of “lookie here” games that could end up mattering in their own special way.

Week 11 wrap up

Conference races seem to get clearer, but the overall playoff picture keeps getting muddier.

I've added a new category:  Unable to control destiny.  Those are teams who have reached the maximum number of losses that would tie the most potential losses the leading team could achieve.  While that team might still have a chance, they are completely dependent on the other teams mostly losing.

For instance, Ohio State is 5-0 and Michigan is 3-3.  If Ohio State loses out and Michigan wins out (both end at 5-3), Michigan might have a shot with tiebreakers.  However, they won't know that until after they play the final game (which in this case would actually be against each other).

Dumbest play of the week:  Texas A&M backed up to their goalline on 3rd and long, and they decide to pitch the ball backwards to the running back.  They're lucky they got out of the end zone.

Saturday OTAs: November 8

These games are available with just an antenna.

12:30 PM
ACC Network:  Georgia Tech at NC State

3:30 PM
ABC:  Notre Dame at Arizona State
CBS:  Texas A&M at Auburn

7:30 PM
Fox:  Kansas State at TCU

8 PM
ABC:  Ohio State at Michigan State
CBS:  Alabama at LSU

Games to Watch: Week 11

My team's on a bye week, and I'm working in the morning, which means I'll have most of the day Saturday to just flip around the channels.  Or I'll enjoy a fall afternoon with my kid.

Or both.  After all, he does like touchdowns.

Under-the-Radar Games: Week 11

The 2nd Saturday in November has had some huge matchups in recent years – and I’m glad to see this one following form.  A lot of eyes will be on the ranked matchups and playoff contenders, but here are five games that could make some noise from behind the scenes.

Chasing Oranges: ACC Style

Chip and I have both discussed the various possibilities for the Orange Bowl.  While the SEC, Big Ten, and Notre Dame all have a collective say on who plays against the ACC, I thought I'd dig into the teams within the ACC and map out some possible roads to Miami Gardens.
 

Week 10 wrap-up

As we enter November, the landscape of this season is taking shape.  But we're also at the point of the season where there are a number of teams that are likely eliminated, but the math required to figure out every possible situation is just too much work.  (Especially when said team will probably lose another game and make it moot soon enough.)

Apparently I had a lot of wrong numbers in the week 9 post.  Not sure how that happened, but this week should have everything fixed.