Ohio State passed its first legit road test of the season. Though Penn State may not be measurably better than the Terrapins team Ohio State manhandled in College Park, the stadium atmosphere was much less inviting for the Buckeyes. Ohio State passed with what amounted to a C or C- grade, which may be a metaphor for why Ohio State dropped a spot in the Coaches Poll.
While Ohio State holds steady, other teams did more this week to solidify themselves as legitimate aspirants for the inaugural College Football Playoff. This feature looks at the week that was in college football with an eye toward what it means for Ohio State's playoff aspirations.
S-E-C. S-E-C. S-E-C.
This feature starts in the Southeastern Conference, which, by birthright, will have at least one team in the playoff. The treatment of the weekend's games and discussions will be somewhat brief, building toward what I think are important lessons from the week.
First, Mississippi State beat Kentucky by two touchdowns in a tight and competitive game. This is fine. I would be contradicting myself in saying conference road games are the most difficult games in college football in excusing Ohio State's win if I did not afford that same benefit of the doubt to Mississippi State.
Second, Alabama rocked Tennessee and looked good for the most part. It was what I thought it would be: a "nip-tuck" game where Alabama does some great things and sloppy things before winning by two touchdowns.
Third, LSU knocked off Ole Miss from the ranks of the unbeatens. Les Miles is an easy guy to whom to give grief, but I feel good for him on what was otherwise a dark time for him personally.
Finally, Auburn stayed afloat in holding off a South Carolina team that was oddly feisty this game. Auburn won 42-35, but not without some officiating screw-ups.
My judgments follow.
Tailback Josh Robinson and Mississippi State got the job done on Saturday, though I think its ranking exceeds its quality of play.
Mississippi State is a good team with some nice features that is being heralded as a great team for reasons that elude me. That win over Texas A&M is meaningless now and it was obvious to me Auburn would beat Mississippi State nine times of ten on a neutral field free of those annoying cowbells. Mississippi State has road tests at Alabama and at Ole Miss that it is unlikely to survive. The Bulldogs are not the best team in the country.
Projections of the SEC having three teams in the playoff are among the most idiotic post-season projections I have heard in the past 15 years of following college football. I don't think that's hyperbole either. Alabama, Auburn, Mississippi State, Ole Miss, and Georgia are legitimate contenders, all with one loss. However, only Alabama-Ole Miss and Auburn-Mississippi State are games that have been played among those five contenders. Ole Miss will play Auburn this week.
There are still several games left (including Georgia hosting Auburn and playing one of those teams in the SEC Championship Game) that could lead to all but one team of that group having two or more conference losses.
When that conversation (of three SEC teams in the playoff) is treated as reasonable and as having merits, skepticism about ESPN's duplicity becomes much louder and more plausible. Chris Fowler can dismiss this, but conversations broadcast on the network that employs him undermine his message. Talking heads on the network can profess to having an internal bias toward the SEC or engaging in logically fallacious argumentation. At least one of those two is true.
Ole Miss still controls its destiny in the SEC West (and, thus, a playoff berth). The tie-breaker over Alabama, which might be the best team in football beyond the loss at Ole Miss and iffy road win at Arkansas, could be the difference in Ole Miss securing its first SEC Championship Game berth. Ole Miss' last road game is at Arkansas. It hosts Auburn (this week) and Mississippi State.
Alabama may not control its destiny in the SEC, but it controls its destiny in the College Football Playoff picture. No one is as well situated as the Crimson Tide right now. It's also why Ohio State fans should root hard for an LSU upset of Alabama in two weeks. Both teams have byes this week.
It matters less going forward, but Arkansas is still your designated chaos team. Root for the Hogs in its upcoming games at Mississippi State and at home against LSU and Ole Miss. LSU could plausibly (see: previous point about ESPN/SEC) jump Ohio State if it wins the rest of its games and the SEC. Arkansas won't.
Maybe It's Time to Fret the Frogs
Last week, I mentioned that Texas Christian might have the best shot to win the Big XII of the remaining contenders. Its schedule, at least, is the most favorable.
Hidden in that statement was an implicit assumption that Texas Christian would not be a hard team to leapfrog (pardon the pun) in the rankings if it came to it. I may have been mistaken.
TCU hung 82 points on Texas Tech in a 55-point victory. Hammering Texas Tech isn't surprising; Texas Tech sucks this season. However, 82 points is eye candy to pollsters.
Further, it's not exactly an aberration either. Trevone Boykin's transformation from 2013 to 2014 has almost been night and day. We can accuse Texas Christian of running up the score on a crappy football team, but we can't accuse TCU of not having a potent offense and not being a great football team this year.
The Horned Frogs have won its past two games by a combined 88 points. Oklahoma State is in freefall and Texas Tech sucks out loud, but this is still impressive.
Importantly, the playoff committee would love it and I wouldn't fault it.
Sparky Making Moves Out West
Am I too bullish on Arizona State? Possibly, but the Sun Devils are in as good a position as Ohio State right now.
Am I crazy to think Arizona State is a team that could be in a great position to shoehorn its way into the playoff in December?
The Sun Devils won by two touchdowns late last night as everyone east of the Mississippi River was asleep. The win itself wasn't overly impressive though, again, it was a conference road win. These are tough games, all else equal. Washington isn't a great team, but it's not bad either.
Arizona State has just one loss on the season, a 62-27 obliteration by UCLA. This is bad, but the playoff committee will purportedly be forgiving of losses with easy off-the-shelf explanations. In Arizona State's case, Taylor Kelly, the starting quarterback, missed the contest due to an injury. That's not exactly why Arizona State lost that game, but it's convenient.
Further, Arizona State's schedule going forward includes home games against Utah and Notre Dame, a trip to Arizona, and a possible berth in the Pac-12 Championship Game.
The game against Notre Dame will be big too. Notre Dame is in a position similar to Arizona State. Its one loss on the season is partially justifiable.
Elsewhere in College Football
Florida did not play this week. Thank heavens.
USC is mastering the art of fourth-quarter collapses.
UCLA and Clemson's respective falls from grace are outstanding stories this season. UCLA needed two overtimes to beat Colorado. Clemson struggled to beat a limp Syracuse team, 16-6, on Homecoming. In its past three games against Louisville, Boston College, and Syracuse, Clemson's offense has produced a combined three touchdowns.
Stanford cruised to a 24-point win over Oregon State. Oregon is next for the Cardinal in what should be the de facto Pac-12 North championship game.
Pitt tied a college football record with five first-quarter fumbles lost, all on its first five drives of the game. It lost 56-28 to Georgia Tech.
