College football isn’t done throwing curveballs just yet. Week 14 started with No. 7 Georgia nearly tumbling in its rivalry game on Friday, but Saturday delivered some extra twists in the race for the playoff bracket.
Here are some knee-jerk reactions to the action:
Ryan Day will be coaching Ohio State in the CFP on borrowed time
Even if he were to run the table and win a national championship, it’s not guaranteed Ohio State head coach Ryan Day will return to the Columbus sideline in 2025. Four straight losses to Michigan in as many years is unacceptable in a rivalry as big as The Game and for a brand as internationally known as the Buckeyes.
Losing to Michigan when it was a national championship favorite is one thing, but losing when it was a shell of its former self is another. Ohio State will have to wait and see if the selection committee is brutal in its judgment, but there’s a significant chance the Buckeyes will be on the road if they qualify for the first round of the playoff.
Miami completed the worst collapse in CFP history
All the Hurricanes needed to do was take care of business and then berths to the ACC Championship Game, and likely the playoff would have been clinched. Instead, Miami played with fire and got burnt yet again at the worst possible time with a regular season finale loss to Syracuse. Now, there will be no playoff football in South Florida and the conference’s title and sole bid to the bracket will be decided between SMU and Clemson.
The loser of the ACC title game won’t make it into the CFP anymore
Speaking of SMU and Clemson, the loser of the ACC title game was once thought to be in playoff contention before Miami’s loss to Syracuse. With Clemson losing its third game of the season to South Carolina, it doesn’t have a clear path to the playoff if it cannot clinch the conference title outright. Neither does SMU, even with one loss due to how low the selection committee has ranked it in previous weeks. That opens the door for a scenario not many will be happy about…
The final bracket will include a three-loss SEC team by default not merit
With the last-minute chaos in the ACC, the dreaded three-loss SEC team has a clearer path to the bracket than it did before Saturday. Of course, the clearest path would be three-loss Georgia being selected after falling to Texas in the SEC Championship Game.
However, Alabama defeated Auburn in the Iron Bowl, a team that took down Texas A&M in Week 13. The Crimson Tide’s resume will look just compelling enough to the selection committee for it to slip into the 11 or 10-seed and drive ratings through the roof for the playoff networks.
Cam Skattebo is the best non-Heisman finalist in college football
Only three players get to go to New York City as Heisman finalists, but if a fourth could be included, then Arizona State running back Cam Skattebo would be that player. He put on yet another show in the Territorial Cup victory over Arizona, racking up 177 yards and three touchdowns.
He sits second in the FBS in all-purpose yards, trailing only Boise State rusher and likely Heisman finalist Ashton Jeanty. Without Skattebo, ASU would be nowhere near contention for a Big 12 title and is truly one of the major MVPs of the season.
Flag-planting will be banned after multiple midfield brawls
Baker Mayfield created a monster. When his flag-planting antics went viral in 2017 after Oklahoma defeated Ohio State, every player and his mother wanted to copy him. That’s led to years of rivalry taunts and post-game skirmishes that finally boiled over in multiple locations this year.
There were punches thrown after Michigan-Ohio State, where pepper spray was deployed by police officers, and even a battle over a pitchfork in Arizona State-Arizona, among many others. The pettiness is only entertaining for so long before it becomes dangerous behavior and a bad example. It would not be surprising to see conferences or even the NCAA ban the on-field celebrations in the wake of Saturday’s violence.
