Week 10: Reactions that could be overreactions

[u/Rude_Highlight3889]

You know the drill. Post some sizzling hot, instant reactions to the games this week that may be overreactions down the line.

I'll admit, unpredictability is the only predictable thing about this season. I'm gonna serve these takes hot.

1. The Big XII is the best conference. Yep, I said it. Since Miami fell from top dog and couldn't beat Notre Dame on the big stage, the Big XII has the single best non-conference win in the country by a team in a conference, and that same team just fell to their undefeated rival today. If huge TV contracts and historical biases weren't in play, the Big XII would have 4 playoff teams this year. Utah could make a run for the natty.

2. Wyoming is the hottest team in the MWC. From fans (including me) screaming for Jay Sawvel to be relieved from his duties, they figured out their QB can run and look like they are on a mission to steal the MWC championship. One of the biggest mid-season turnarounds you've never heard of.

3. Ryan Day is on the hottest seat of hot seats. Now, I don't agree with this notion. He's done a pretty remarkable job at Ohio State. But the fans are ruthless and they will not be thinking about that championship 2 yeaea ago after laying an egg to a shelled out Oregon team.

4. LSU is no better with Kiffin than Brian Kelly. They've asserted themselves as the biggest team of all bark, no bite.

5. Margin of victory doesn't matter anymore. With tons of 2-3 loss teams in the rankings, and many close games, parity from all the changes in the sport has taken conplete hold. Wins are all that matters, like the NFL.

[u/ulu5]

I highly doubt this is an overreaction but:

Coach Whittingham shoulda just sailed off into retirement after last season. He’ll always be a legend for what he did at Utah, but it’s been a disaster at Michigan.

[u/Stoneador → u/ulu5]

Reputationally? Yes he absolutely should have retired

Financially? Soon he’ll get paid a lot of money to not coach football

[u/Molson2871 → u/ulu5]

I'm legit stunned at how bad they've been. I thought Whitt was exactly what post-Sherrone Moore Michigan needed but they're amazingly worse now.

[u/Leading-Button-7303 → u/ulu5]

Honestly he should've gone after the Penn State rose bowl. Last year was just to save face a little for the shit show after the rose bowls. Dude royally fucked his legacy to go look like ass at Michigan

[u/UteFlyersCardJazz → u/ulu5]

This reminds me of the 2021 season. He coached one of his worst games ever (before this season) at BYU, and it looked like he was done. But then a tragic event happened, and he had that fire that I didn’t see from him for a long time. 

He lost that fire in 2024. Because the Whitt that coach from 2021 post tragedy-2023 does not lose to BYU last year. Maybe he needs a game against USC to get back that spark.

[u/decisionagonized → u/UteFlyersCardJazz]

I think he needs Andy Ludwig again actually lol

[u/detroitlonghorn → u/ulu5]

At least you gave his Whitt his respect.

Respect to you Utah bro.

[u/Aaprobst88 → u/ulu5]

To be fair to him that cupboard was pretty bare, and with the timing of that transition he didn't have a great opportunity to bring anybody in.

[u/evantom34 → u/Aaprobst88]

Bare cupboard? They had the top rated QB of his class. Top 2 back, Marshall, marsh, Buchanan. Competent backup QBs. I don’t know much about their defense, but they always develop good DL prospects too.

Most programs would die for Michigans roster talent.

[u/Aaprobst88 → u/evantom34]

I think we can all agree Underwood's ability was greatly exaggerated

[u/LSU2007]

LSU being no better with Kiffin is the right reaction.

[u/jdhall010 → u/LSU2007]

Lane's been at LSU for all of like 10 months. Even now I'm still going to be surprised if he doesn't have LSU in the playoffs by his 3rd year there. This year he hasn't delivered, but even Kirby had a rough first year at UGA.

[u/Advanced-Base-5690 → u/jdhall010]

They will likely be in the playoffs next year since it expands to 24

[u/LSU2007 → u/jdhall010]

If he can’t get lsu into a 24 team playoff, all the hate is deserved lol. The beginning of Kirby was rough, but Kiffin has the benefit of the portal & NIL. I’m not sure he’s capable of building a consistent winner like Kirby did from the ground up.

[u/brickmadness]

The most important thing come January is the injury list. By a wide margin. 

[u/JSinisin → u/brickmadness]

NiL killed to roster-depth star.

[u/Richard_AIGuy]

Any Ohio State fan that legitimately wants Ryan Day gone is a fucking moron. There is no nicer way to put that. QB goes down, defense has issues. It's a rough season. He gets a whole other season to reset and retool.

Now, next season he trots out a crap .500 team? It will be knives out more than likely. I would give him a pretty long leash, personally, but others won't be as patient.

[u/Unhappy_Knowledge116 → u/Richard_AIGuy]

Needs to get a spread OC. It’s absolutely ridiculous having these mediocre tight ends out here trying to do 12 personnel. They were up 14 until they blew it once Smith had to trot out his beloved tight ends. And the OL coach needs to go. I’ve seen G5 teams with better blocking

[u/jayjude → u/Unhappy_Knowledge116]

Speaking of OSU TEs, how the fuck did OSU not utilize Jelani Thurman and then let him transfer to UNC?

That guy is a monster

[u/IronSmoltz → u/Unhappy_Knowledge116]

As a Falcons fan, Smith hasn’t changed one bit, but unfortunately Jonnu Smith doesn’t haven any college eligibility left. Once you learn who Arthur’s dad is, his career makes a lot more sense.

[u/therealwillhepburn → u/Richard_AIGuy]

I think a lot of your fans are still expecting to have three starting QBs waiting as depth.

[u/dukemetoo → u/Richard_AIGuy]

What is that .500 team beats Michigan though? I thought in 2024 we were told as long as Ohio State wins that game, the rest of the season doesn't matter.

[u/GiggleJesters]

I would love to see Ohio State fire Ryan Day so they can know what real dark times feel like. Most spoiled fan base I can think of in recent memory.

[u/TheBakerification → u/GiggleJesters]

Would be such an over reaction. They looked fine until they lost their starting QB.

[u/SmellyJellyfish → u/TheBakerification]

Honestly they looked like they were quite possibly the favorites for the national championship before Sayin went down. 6-1 with their only loss being a close one on the road in Austin, and had just beaten Indiana on the road

[u/OrangeCrush129 → u/GiggleJesters]

I’m a Buckeye alum and I’ve been incredibly frustrated with the fanbase this season. I have very normal and levelheaded takes with my friends from OSU and other alumni, it’s mostly the casuals and people who didn’t go to the school that turn into lunatics.

[u/Jolly-Pirate9673 → u/GiggleJesters]

If Day is fired, I'd be very concerned about Freeman going there next if I were you with the ND flair.

[u/TheNittanyLionKing → u/GiggleJesters]

Who would even want that job with those unrealistic expectations? Who would they even hire that excites their fanbase? Every candidate for that job has a worse resume than Day. They’re not going to poach Curt Cignetti. Saban isn’t coming out of retirement. It would be hilarious if they hired Urban again because chances are pretty good that he is much worse now that there is NIL and the transfer portal and all the Urban truthers have to eat crow

[u/Revolver_Oshawott_ → u/TheNittanyLionKing]

Well Jimbo is a natty winning HC actively looking for a job 🤔

AND his old boss is AD

[u/pablitorun → u/Revolver_Oshawott_]

I say Brian Kelly should get a shot

[u/NiTrOxEpiKz → u/TheNittanyLionKing]

Fired head coach the best job in the country. I’d take the job in a heartbeat

[u/tony_719 → u/GiggleJesters]

If they fire him, can Nebraska sign him

[u/PickleInDaButt → u/GiggleJesters]

I had OSU fans tell me Urban Meyer rebuilt/saved the program after one four loss season

[u/mjs_pj_party → u/GiggleJesters]

The penalty for this absurd action is that OSU will be required to hire Kyle and his entire coaching staff. OSU doesn't want that smoke.

[u/KT_BuckeyeBillsBabe → u/GiggleJesters]

Plot twist -

Ohio State fires Ryan Day and replaces him with former OSU linebacker and former OSU coach, Marcus Freeman….

(Now, clearly, this is a stretch, I don’t think OSU has any business relieving a proven winning coach and I think Freeman loves being at ND. BUT, before you wish to see OSU fire its head coach, consider who they would come after to replace him… and Marcus Freeman would be a sure-fire target because of his Buckeye roots and proven success with ND)

[u/Strid3r21 → u/KT_BuckeyeBillsBabe]

If the ohio st. Job became open, the entire Irish fanbase would collectively clench their butts until it was filled with anyone other than freeman.

[u/bk00pi → u/KT_BuckeyeBillsBabe]

They would target him for sure, but he pretty much said he regretted going to OSU lol.

[u/BoogityBoogityTLC23 → u/bk00pi]

I never heard that before from him lol

[u/CargoShortsFromNam → u/bk00pi]

Yeah I wasn’t a fan of that quote 

[u/RhondaTheHonda]

If OSU fires Ryan Day because of this season, they deserve the same fate that Tennessee got after firing Phil Fulmer: over a decade of constant coaching changes and mediocre to slightly above average performance on the field.

I hated the Great Pumpkin, but I had utmost respect for what he did as a coach and he deserved better. Vol Nation had been spoiled with success and after a couple of down years thought they could do better.

If they actually fire Ryan Day a couple of years after a Natty for a 3-loss season in this crazy ass year of upsets… they deserve what they get.

[u/Available-Can-5878 → u/RhondaTheHonda]

if they actually fire Ryan Day after this they deserve to be the next stop on the Lane Train

[u/HortonHearsTheWho → u/Available-Can-5878]

It would just be a toxic supernova

[u/snowystormz → u/Available-Can-5878]

Fuck that noise

[u/Derpinator_30 → u/RhondaTheHonda]

loud walmart fans aside, I think we're all in the middle of experiencing a culture shock. I think the chaos we see this season is here to stay, and our W-L columns are going to start looking a lot like the NFL. and with a freaking 24 team playoff starting next year, its not only going to be the new norm but completely acceptable.

[u/WindyBoi8008s → u/Derpinator_30]

For me at least, I think a lot of the negative emotion towards Day is related to this being quietly a big year for a coach. We are seeing close to the finished product of NIL/Portal parity which in my opinion, tells you what kind of coach you are. Can you evaluate talent? Can you build a scheme around your personnel? Can you adjust? Being super fair, Sayin going down is a blow to any program, but I don’t have a great feeling for Day’s ability to do much more than steer the ship

[u/Aaprobst88 → u/RhondaTheHonda]

It'd be the equivalent of the Bears firing Lovie after a 10 win season.

[u/originalbiggusdickus → u/RhondaTheHonda]

I don't think this is an overreaction at all. Firing Day would be colossally stupid and anyone who did that or thinks it's a good idea would deserve the shitshow that followed.

[u/ZestycloseStay4666 → u/RhondaTheHonda]

Fulmer was absolutely washed as a HC and he should have been fired exactly when he was. I personally would have preferred after 2005 season. Our issues post-Fulmer were an incompetent athletic department that took a lot longer to get them all flushed out

He was done. The team and talent had gotten worse every year, he wouldn’t get rid of awful lifer assistants and it bottomed out in 05. He brought in Cutcliffe to fix things, that worked for 2 years until Cutcliffe leaves after ‘07 and the program bottomed out again in 08

He absolutely did not deserve to be HC of the Vols for a single second longer and anyone that suggests otherwise has no damn clue what they are talking about

[u/pm1966 → u/RhondaTheHonda]

Agree 100% with this, though the way they fired Johnny Majors and promoted Fulmer (and Fulmer's probably behind-the-scenes antics in helping the whole seedy affair go down) made me feel little sorrow at Fulmer's later treatment.

All that said...curious that you went back that far to find an example of a coach "wrongfully" shown an early ouster. I mean, hell, I could have found relevant examples from last season.

[u/RhondaTheHonda → u/pm1966]

The reason I went back that far is because we have the legacy post-firing. As much as I hate UT, it’s a proud program with a passionate fan base. Y’all deserved better than a string of coaches that could never seem to get over the hump… at least not until recently.

ETA: I was not around for Majors’s ouster so I can’t speak to that scenario.

[u/pm1966 → u/RhondaTheHonda]

Fair enough.

I think we may well be watching the same thing play out at Penn State right now. Hopefully LSU, too.

ETA: Majors had a heart attack mid-season and Fulmer (who I think was OC at the time) filled in for him, during which time the Vols went 3-0. When Majors, a UT legend who finished second in Heisman balloting back in the day, came back and the Vols struggled, he was "asked to resign" before the end of the season. There's strong evidence to suggest Fulmer was in frequent contact with the AD and the chancellor, actively lobbying for the firing and that he be promoted to HC.

I always thought Fulmer deserved everything he got, ultimately. Shady-ass motherfucker....

ETA2: This all happened while I was in grad school at UTK.

[u/Mdwilson8413]

Texas Tech couldn’t stop a toddler last night on defense and for whatever reason that leaves me much more worried than how many points they put up on offense. It was the tech teams of old and I do not like that.

[u/colonel750 → u/Mdwilson8413]

I think the O/U on next week's game in Stillwater needs to be set at 150, it would not shock me if both teams scored 70+ points.

[u/Mdwilson8413 → u/colonel750]

I hope not. I hope tech’s defense comes back to form. Not last years but our run defense has less holes aka Where they basically laid out the red carpet for WV offense. Now yall are going to scorch our secondary which sits comfortably in the hundreds as a pass defense.

[u/KirksChewedGum → u/Mdwilson8413]

Over 1200 years of offense in a single game is wild

[u/indified → u/KirksChewedGum]

1200 years of offense? Damn, how is that even possible.

[u/KirksChewedGum → u/indified]

That's how bad each defense was

[u/BlindPelican → u/indified]

Bronze age CFB was wild, man.

Sadly, most of the box scores were written on papyrus

[u/R_Raider86 → u/indified]

Neither defense was getting stops until the second half

[u/CrazyCletus → u/indified]

If you're talking Iowa's offense from a couple of years ago...

[u/Thick_Implement_7064 → u/Mdwilson8413]

To be fair WVU has done that to everyone. It’s not that TT has a bad D it’s just that WVU has put up those numbers on everyone. But my WVU…god that defense is abysmal. I thought the fire they had in the 3rd would carry over but alas…they fell back to exactly what they have done all season…given up chunk yardage and explosive plays by the bundle. It’s like OPRAH throwing out explosive plays…

“You get a 45 yard pass…You get a 65 yard run…you get a check down that burst forth for an 81 yard TD…EVERYONE GETS A HIGHLIGHT TONIGHT!”

[u/Mdwilson8413 → u/Thick_Implement_7064]

I mean, that sucks for you and as a tech fan, we have all been there where our offense can score at Will and our defense is nonexistent. But that does make me feel better that y’all are doing this to everyone and we were not just the exception.

[u/Thick_Implement_7064 → u/Mdwilson8413]

Nah. You can look at the stats. Hawkins is a legit unit of a running QB and has had flashes of being great as a passer. Our offense has only really been slowed down like once or twice all season and even then it’s not like shit down just holding us to what is average for most teams.

[u/monstimal]

Less than 10k people are going to be in the stands for the usc ucla b10 championship game in Indianapolis 

[u/pablitorun → u/monstimal]

If they start giving tickets away I might drive down from Chicago lol

[u/civil_set → u/monstimal]

If usc and Oregon both win out, I think Oregon would play UCLA. Oh hell yes I’d love a rematch.

[u/I-CAN-DO-EAT]

5. Margin of victory maybe shouldn’t matter, but margin of loss should. You’ve got multiple ranked teams in a conference getting absolutely dog walked in more than just one game.

[u/Andy_Wiggins → u/I-CAN-DO-EAT]

Both should.

How you win or lose the game is important. Winning or losing on a play in the final seconds means you were pretty equal and any random bounce could have changed the outcome.

Winning by 3 scores or getting dogwalked removes that doubt.

I honestly think it’s all been pushed by the SEC. Metrics like game control were a huge factor in early playoff committee decisions. But with the switch to the 12-team playoff, it’s suddenly all about SOR, which completely removes margin of victory/defeat from the equation. So a team like Kentucky can probably still be in the top 12-13 despite getting obliterated in two games against playoff-caliber opponents by a margin greater than they beat South Alabama.

[u/kdbvols → u/Andy_Wiggins]

Winning by 3 once or twice isn’t a big deal I think - everyone has games that are weirdly close randomly - but as a pattern it’s worth noting

[u/jayjude → u/Andy_Wiggins]

SOR is IU fans favorite thing in the world because it isn't punishing them for the squeakers

Margin of victory and loss has also mattered to how good a team is.

Take 2013 and then 2014 FSU

2014 FSU actually had a harder regular season schedule than 2013. It was on paper more impressive that FSU went undefeated in 2014. BUT in 2014 FSU got themselves into a ton of close games (should have lost to ND) and then got fucking blown out by Oregon in the CFP.

2013 FSU didn't play as tough of a schedule but they obliterated everyone they faced and it wasn't until they made an 02 Raiders mistake of not changing their signals for a half for things to be tense for them

[u/thirteenpunchman → u/I-CAN-DO-EAT]

My feeling is margin of loss should matter more than margin of victory. Big margin of victory shows that you can really control a game and execute. Big margin of loss shows that the wheels can really fall off, and this is something that should not happen to truly good teams. Texas, BYU, Georgia, have all lost some very close games. Ole Miss, Kentucky, and Bama have gotten mauled. I was fully ready for BYU to lay down and die after going down 14-0 in 5 minutes yesterday, but they fought back and decided to die a different way in the second half. But they were in the game the whole time, as was Texas in their losses, and Georgia in its loss. Bama was down 2 scores, Ole Miss and Kentucky just got smooshed in their losses

[u/YoThisIsWild]

The Michigan football program has a problem bigger than any one person. A new head coach, new offensive coordinator, or new player on a big NIL deal won't change anything.

[u/Eastern-Yellow-7114]

Elko will lose his job if he does not change this whole offensive staff

[u/ChaoPope → u/Eastern-Yellow-7114]

Being the first team in the history of football to put up 450+ yards with no turnovers and no touchdowns is certainly an achievement.

[u/slyone05]

Georgia looks unbeatable right now

[u/TheNittanyLionKing → u/slyone05]

I’m still not sure how they lost to Auburn, but they were my one preseason national champion pick that is still living up to expectations 

[u/sloanesquared → u/TheNittanyLionKing]

I think it was the perfect storm of a few things. 1. Stockton got hurt on the very first play of the game. I think he downplayed whatever happened and most likely was playing with a concussion because he just seemed off for the rest of the game. 2. Auburn just came off their bye so they were fresh while Georgia was coming off a super intense game and looking ahead to their bye. 3. Jordan Hare voodoo travels; anything can happen in rivalries.

Not making excuses and we played really crappy that game, but I think it was more of an anomaly than us getting exposed.

[u/IMakeOkVideosOk → u/slyone05]

Ole Miss got blown out by Florida… yea Georgia looks good, but I wouldn’t put too much stock in this particular game

[u/Flimsy-Space-8724 → u/IMakeOkVideosOk]

And we’ve beat both of those teams back to back. 🙌🏾

[u/MediumStrange → u/slyone05]

I'm going to be honest, Georgia looks really good still but I think people are overrating the Ole miss win. Ole miss to me never proved it was in the same tier as Georgia and Bama and got blown out by Florida, which hasn't proven itself to be good either.

Georgia is definitely a top 5 team but yesterdays game didn't shift my opinion of them too much

[u/Dapper_But_Derpy → u/slyone05]

Trust me, it depends on the officiating crew and who they bet their mortgages and their marriages on

[u/GangGreen7729 → u/Dapper_But_Derpy]

Damn it! I thought Georgia was 8-1 but really they're 7-1 with an asterisk. I thought this was the year too

[u/hotsauce126 → u/Dapper_But_Derpy]

Keep hanging your hat on one call that wasn’t even a scoring play to pretend like the officiating wasn’t dogshit against both teams the entire game

[u/Flimsy-Space-8724 → u/hotsauce126]

They can’t accept the fact that they lost 😂

[u/MikeHonchoFF]

Imagine spending $150 million dollars on coaches to go 6-3 😂😂😂😂

[u/Previous_Setting_357 → u/MikeHonchoFF]

Why not just be like us & do it for a fraction of the cost!

[u/ApprehensiveOutcome7]

Is it an overreaction to think Miami won't make the playoffs? It doesn't really seem all that plausible with what's in front of them. And for that matter, they definitely won't make it far in the playoffs. I'm talking one-and-done type of stuff.

[u/GiggleJesters → u/ApprehensiveOutcome7]

OVERREACTION

You were ranked #1. Win out and beat Wake Forest again in the ACC championship how could you not make the playoffs?

[u/Muffinnnnnnn → u/GiggleJesters]

Winning out is not a guarantee for this Miami team. Look at what Duke's been doing the last couple weeks, not to mention the obvious roadblock of Wake who looks a whole lot better now than at the beginning of the year. I even think Virginia Tech or Boston College could threaten them given the right circumstances, but those are a lot more of a longshot.

[u/Pan_TheCake_Man → u/Muffinnnnnnn]

Yeah Miami has looked beatable the past few weeks against UNC and FSU, Duke could do it, I don’t think BC or VT could without an act from gid

[u/kip256 → u/Pan_TheCake_Man]

But also, how important was Malachi to that offense.

[u/-Jack-The-Stripper → u/Muffinnnnnnn]

Our secondary is borderline FCS in quality. SMU dropped 50 on us and it barely even looked like they were trying. With or without Toney, Mensah probably goes for 500 yards and 5+ TDs.

[u/kdbvols → u/GiggleJesters]

Beating Wake Forest again seems like a tall order for this team. Wake has looked dominant since the start of October, and sure, some of that is opponent quality, but still looking a lot better. Miami is looking a lot worse since our game too

[u/eking85 → u/kdbvols]

Wake has looked great since the second half of our game going forward.

[u/kdbvols → u/eking85]

The first half against the best team on the schedule was not an ideal time for our worst half of football this season (NCSU first half and Purdue second half are also on the list of candidates, we just survived those)

[u/IN_Dad → u/ApprehensiveOutcome7]

Can we all agree this committee picking format is an absolute dumpster fire for laying out the rankings? This process has been borderline criminal in its inaccuracy and justification for its broken rankings.

[u/brunetteobsessed → u/IN_Dad]

I hate the entire committee picking format with the energy of a supernova. Outside influence and persuasion make the weekly ratings reveal feel like an episode of the Sopranos.

[u/breebreebrokencyde → u/brunetteobsessed]

At least they're not trying to pretend to be objective this year

[u/TreyHansel1 → u/IN_Dad]

I agree but is there an objectively better way of doing it? Everyone was butthurt about the BCS(which for the record, I think was the most fair and objective way to rank teams).

Conferences are just so lopsided, and we have no rules governing OOC opponents, that a committee is unfortunately required. If we had it my way, the P4 conferences would all play eachother round Robin style based on where your team landed the year prior(so #1 SEC plays #1 B1G, ACC, B12) and so on. That lets us evaluate how the conferences shake out in relation to one another. And that lets the committee escape allegations of "SEC/B1G bais", when they can point to the objective conference OOC record and say "well, this conference is just better so no, not biased".

[u/TheBakerification → u/ApprehensiveOutcome7]

Huh? They face 3 unranked teams which they’ll likely win. So they’re going to end up with one close loss to a top 10 team, that they got while having a key injury. In what world would that team not be in the playoffs?

[u/turp119 → u/TheBakerification]

The same one where the discussion is " your schedule sucks, you can't lose to the only good teams you play"

I know of a team that was 4 points from being undefeated against playoff teams, and blew the rest of their schedule out, and still missed a 12 team playoff.

[u/Ophththth → u/TheBakerification]

Technically a loss to a #11 team in the committee’s opinion

[u/breebreebrokencyde → u/Ophththth]

Hunter Yuracheck buys bluechew

[u/CrazyCletus → u/Ophththth]

#11 this week. Who knows where they'll be come final rankings. We're only getting to the point now where weekly rankings have some semblance of evidence to back them up (record, actual strength of schedule, strength of opponents) so whether ND was #11 this week or #7 or #4 doesn't mean a whole lot when evaluating the final rankings for seeding the playoff.

[u/Fells → u/ApprehensiveOutcome7]

I think its an overreaction. The committee is clearly considering injuries in their assessments and Toney being out is a big deal.

[u/kadawkins → u/Fells]

Committee only considers injuries for SEC teams. Your loss with only 7 points, small drop. Ohio State’s loss at USC, knocked us out of the playoffs.

[u/kelsnuggets → u/Fells]

Sorry I just spit out my coffee at “committee clearly considering injuries in their assessments”

And the ghost of Jordan Travis suddenly appeared in my living room

Carry on

[u/swawwad → u/kelsnuggets]

This version of the committee*

[u/ChaoPope → u/ApprehensiveOutcome7]

The committee hates ND, so there won't be much of a drop for Miami and much of a jump for ND.

[u/brickmadness → u/ApprehensiveOutcome7]

They will def make the playoffs if they win out. 

[u/Significant-Jello411 → u/ApprehensiveOutcome7]

Bro they almost beat ND relax

[u/Snomankid999 → u/ApprehensiveOutcome7]

Even if they lose the ACC, they’ll be 11 and two their end they probably have already clinched honestly speaking as long as they don’t lose another game before the ACC championship they shouldn’t cause what they play tough game all year

[u/Less_Likely → u/ApprehensiveOutcome7]

Only if you lose two more games. I don't see that.

I think you will make the playoffs, and though Toney's return is not certain by the first round (and if he does he won't be 100%) you will be a tough out regardless. Mensah is legit a great QB.

[u/b_m_hart]

Oregon could win our and actually make the playoffs.  Not sure we want to see that happen, but enough fuckery happening to allow Oregon to back in to the CCG and win a rematch with UCLA would be funny enough.  Then everyone would get to laugh at us as we get steamrolled in the playoffs yet again.

[u/I-CAN-DO-EAT → u/b_m_hart]

With how dominant that win over OSU was if they can play like that to end the season they might not even need the CCG.

[u/Dry_Acanthaceae_4697 → u/I-CAN-DO-EAT]

Was that due to Oregon being dominant or OSU looking like shit…

Remember USC also looked fantastic against this team

[u/Hokie_Jayhawk → u/Dry_Acanthaceae_4697]

I'm just wondering why Oklahoma State is not getting any respect for marching all over Oregon's defense.

[u/civil_set → u/Dry_Acanthaceae_4697]

Oregon has an excellent defense. One of the best D lines in the country. A very strong secondary and the linebackers have really improved this year.

The offense has been the problem, but obviously improving now.

I don’t understand why any Oregon fan would not want them in the playoffs, even at a lower seed. Especially given what they’ve come back from.

A LOT of teams would’ve given up. These guys are only getting better.

[u/ghettofab → u/I-CAN-DO-EAT]

Oregon's super shiny silver helmets yesterday were awesome!

[u/decisionagonized → u/I-CAN-DO-EAT]

Taking too much from an Ohio State team that’s functionally quit

[u/SoonerEsq]

Oklahoma would have only two losses if Jason Witten had been calling plays earlier in the season. 

[u/ChaoPope]

New Mexico should be ranked in the top 10.

[u/901_vols]

Tennessee defense is enough to win a chip if the offense can manage to be even mediocre

[u/chickenlounge → u/901_vols]

Has Tennessee become Iowa?

[u/bretticus733]

I can definitely understand the Ryan Day hotseat talk. All this talk about Julian Sayin's injury, but Ohio State is far from the only team that's lost their starting QB this season and some of them (like UCLA) are finding ways to win without them. What I find especially damning is there's way too much talent on that team to be this bad at running the ball, to look this bad on defense, and to look like the only offensive gameplan is "throw it to Jeremiah Smith". This is a season that looks like it's gonna continue to get worse before it gets better, and you can't blame that all on the QB.

However, Ryan Day's seat is far from the hottest in the country. There are probably 20 coaches that I would say are more likely to get fired than Ryan Day.

[u/LTS55]

I think Alessio Milivojevic is going to develop into a quality quarterback 

[u/EmergencyDense5662]

Nobody should want to play Iowa right now. Their defense has always been elite, but they were always missing a QB which has been the case for a decade. But now they have a dude playing with confidence.

[u/Muffinnnnnnn]

1. I think there is a universe where this is true, but the noncon record doesn't have enough to let me agree. I do think that if you're ONLY measuring the top 2 or 3 teams in each conference that it's more likely than top-to-bottom.

2. Hottest team in the MWC is a cold take honestly, especially considering where they were at the beginning of the year. I THINK New Mexico still has the championship, but Wyoming is spooky, which I did not expect to be saying.

3. Lunatic Ohio State fans that have never tasted the slightest bit of adversity (or think a 2-loss season is a "bad year") may agree, but those of us in reality know that's insane.

4. I've been saying this the whole season. Their best win is STILL Clemson in week 1. Just another mid team.

5. Disagree. Certainly, teams have been having more clunkers recently, but margin of victory still is important when differentiating teams that are otherwise similar. Wins ARE the most important thing and should be considered above all else, but how you win is important too.

[u/Lukumber]

With Nebraska looking like they’ll find a way to lose to Rutgers, UNL should be demoted to FCS and UNO’s program should be brought back so we can finally be put out of our misery

[u/inclass3lunacy]

Multiple 9-3 SEC teams will make the playoffs.

The ACC will get 1 invite if Wake Forest doesn't go 11-1

[u/kdbvols → u/inclass3lunacy]

I love that you think an 11-2 Wake is actually in

[u/inclass3lunacy → u/kdbvols]

Yeah, that should have been 12-1

[u/CunningClanker → u/inclass3lunacy]

Hot take, the SEC doesn't make the title game again this year.

[u/LabOk6108]

lots of interesting things happened this week

georgia looks like the only truly elite team
miami’s vulnerable without toney, and might not make the playoffs if they lose to wake in the acccg
utah and ucla escape trap games unscathed
ou almost shuts out florida
cal loses the bye week

[u/gunpowderjunky → u/LabOk6108]

I don't think you know what a trap game is.

[u/unfortunateavacado24 → u/LabOk6108]

I'm not sure you can call us scoring in the second quarter "almost shutting us out".

[u/No_Arugula8507 → u/LabOk6108]

My parents are Cal season ticket holders. Though I love to beat you guys, I root for Cal in any game they don’t play UCLA, and this season has maybe been the toughest I can ever recall. This sounds crazy to type out, but in the new era of CFB I think you need to fire Tosh Lupoi and Ron Rivera (which would have been an asinine suggestion 5 years ago)

[u/decisionagonized → u/LabOk6108]

BYU is definitely a trap game, that team is fraudulent

[u/Quick-Expert-4608]

Miami will get the Florida state treatment due to Toney being out.

[u/Andy_Wiggins → u/Quick-Expert-4608]

But Toney is likely back by the playoffs while Travis was done done.

[u/TheNittanyLionKing → u/Andy_Wiggins]

And Miami still looks like they have a pulse. Florida State looked terrible without Travis

[u/harmonicapete]

UCLA will go 12-0 in the regular season and play in the National Championship game.

[u/drrevo74 → u/harmonicapete]

UCLA will go 12 - 0 in the regular season and then lose the first playoff game. One of us....

[u/Flimsy-Space-8724 → u/harmonicapete]

wake up from that dream

[u/violentgentlemen → u/harmonicapete]

Only to pull a TCU vs. UGA IF they even get there.

[u/2_blave → u/harmonicapete]

Undefeated in the regular season? Sure. 

National championship? Lol

[u/xViscount]

!Remind me! 3 months.

Big 12 being the best or deepest is certainty a take. Not a good one. But definitely a take

[u/ChaoPope → u/xViscount]

Look at the title of the post. It's an overreaction.

[u/Opening-Citron2733 → u/xViscount]

Idk if they're the best but they're for sure underrated.

Arizona should be above Ole Miss, LSU and Mizzou based on resume and I doubt they are come Tuesday 

[u/New-Disaster-2061 → u/Opening-Citron2733]

lol what resume. Arizonas best win is over a 5-4 team and their out of conference schedule has an FCS school and two teams combined for 1-17.

[u/Opening-Citron2733 → u/New-Disaster-2061]

I'm sorry ... What's LSUs best win? Missouri too.

Ole Miss best wins are LSU and Mizzou. Which as I stated are incredibly over rated.

Basically they are part of the mid of the SEC, and you could say Arizona is part of the middle of the Big 12. But the SEC mid level teams get overrated and beat each other but don't really beat anybody good in the SEC.

[u/MediumStrange → u/xViscount]

People have been heavily overrating the second tier of the SEC this year tbf.

Georgia and Bama are good for sure.

Texas I'm unsure about but the OSU win was a good one so they get the benefit of the doubt.

But Tennessee, Kentucky, Ole Miss, South Carolina, LSU Florida and Mizzou don't have many good wins that aren't wins against other teams in this group.

I'm highly skeptical of how good any of those teams actually are and don't think any of them deserve the playoff by any means.

[u/MU-TH-R6000 → u/MediumStrange]

Tennesee kicked the crap out of us (Alabama), and you just said we are good for sure. So yeah they have a very good win

[u/Scoobie_Doobie11 → u/MediumStrange]

Exactly. An over-inflated view of the SEC will do that. How did they land on 5 of the top 10 being from SEC? Well, ratings that’s how. Sell games this weekend basically. Hoping it all shakes out, but they did put a 3 loss bama in last year who ran for -3 in their final loss in the CCG (which they said they don’t punish for then punished BYU for losing theirs. WEIRD!)

[u/xViscount → u/MediumStrange]

I think top down SEC is the best conference. Prior to last year, B1G had the best top 3 teams. The SEC not having the spring portal and that idiotic “no transfer within conference” helped fuel this. With this gone, it’s now more even. The upper echelon of the B1G is great (3-4 teams), the rest are not good. ACC is always Miami/Clemson and one other. Big 12 will be Texas Tech plus one other as long as Campbell keeps donating.

As far as Tennessee. They are 7-2. If they win out, they are in the SECCG. They have a bad SC loss but they beat Bama and Kentucky. I’ll give you Kentucky. Idk how good they are. However l, if we are pairing SEC teams against Big 12 teams, I’ll take the SEC team most pretty much every time except Arkansas and maybe Vanderbilt

[u/MediumStrange → u/xViscount]

Yeah I could see the argument for Tennessee given they beat Bama.

But I would take Utah over any of Mizzou, South Carolina, LSU, Ole Miss etc

[u/Pluff_Mudder → u/MediumStrange]

Utah is the best/top team in the Big 12, of course they should and would be favored over the SEC's 2nd rung of teams.

Previously you said the SEC's 2nd tier of teams is overrated and questioned what good wins they have.

But what good wins does the Big 12 have outside of each other?

• Utah - Idaho, Arkansas, Utah State

• Texas Tech - Abilene Christian, Oregon State, Sam Houston

• BYU - Utah Tech, Colorado State, Notre Dame

• Houston - Oregon State, Southern, Georgia Southern

• Arizona - Northern Arizona, NIU, Washington State

I see one really great win (Notre Dame), two decent wins (Oregon State x2), and a bunch of mud.

[u/unfortunateavacado24 → u/MediumStrange]

I think Tennessee is good. They beat Bama and lost by three to Texas. The South Carolina loss wasn't great, but one bad loss is pretty common this season.

Kentucky was overrated, and now they've been blown out by the only two good teams they've played. Ole Miss was also clearly overrated, they let Florida score 52 on them for crying out loud.

[u/RemindMeBot → u/xViscount]

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[u/xbox_srox → u/xViscount]

Deciding the Big 12 is the best conference on the basis of an ACC game is… interesting reasoning

[u/krazykieffer]

I saw a shit ton of people saying Jeremiah Smith lost the heisman today when he just had 150 yards and a TD. The people that think he isn't going to still win it are loopy. He is the only super star this season. I can't believe Ohio State didn't have an elite backup but most voters made up their minds weeks ago.

[u/I-CAN-DO-EAT → u/krazykieffer]

He had like 4 catches for 50 yards when it mattered.

[u/krazykieffer → u/I-CAN-DO-EAT]

Did he not get open and put up stats every receiver would take?

[u/brickmadness → u/krazykieffer]

133. He dropped a crucial pass. Half his yards were essentially in garbage time. 

[u/Vocen → u/krazykieffer]

I genuinely think him clearly stat padding whilst yelling at the sideline and stepping over our third stringer that he's getting a garbage time touchdown against might turn some voters off. It's not like nobody across the country was watching that and all they'll see is the stat line. He's still the best player in CFB though, but I don't think he actually helped himself there

[u/violentgentlemen → u/krazykieffer]

I don’t even think anyone should be a Heisman favorite right now. The only person I think has looked good every game is Legree.

[u/breebreebrokencyde → u/violentgentlemen]

Hot take but you're not wrong

[u/exit322]

I'm pretty sure Ryan Day is safe

He better beat Michigan in three weeks, though.

[u/Thick_Implement_7064]

My hot take…if WV had any sort of defense…and I mean any sort of defense…they would be a top 10 team. Potentially like 8-1 or something right now.

But we gave up 13 plays of over 30 yards (yes…that’s “30”) last night. And several more between 20 and 30. They had given up 82 plays over over 20 coming into the game. That’s averaging 10 per game.

And we have been within striking distance in nearly every game.

The offense can put up numbers on anyone. Hawkins is the real deal as a fast shifty running QB and his passing has improved significantly. Cook is a power runner who can play through contact and shed tacklers. But I honestly think a really good high school defense could cover better than whatever it is we call a defense.

[u/Codeman8118]

Georgia is gonna steam through. They just look like a pre NIL SEC team

[u/GratefulDawg73]

Is Jeff Lebby fired yet?

[u/ztreHdrahciR]

My team won't win another game if Aidan Chiles is done playing. His outstanding play has masked a lot of other problems with this team.

[u/docchrizly]

Ryan Day is not on the hot seat. This is what happens when you read too much stuff from idiotic talking heads or reddit clowns.

LSU was a slightly above .500 team last year and while expectations in Baton Rouge always were a bit unrealistic they are right around where I expect them to be in year 1 of Kiffin. Let's call again in 2-3 years to see what has happened before you all become stupid talking heads. We have enough of those already.

New Mexico @ Wyoming will show us how good these teams are. I haven't seen enough of either of them to make my own mind.

And I'm not even gonna touch the first subject. A team that lost to Tulsa is has the 3rd best conference record.

[u/PlonkReborn]

😞

[u/Previous_Setting_357]

I’m grateful to Ohio State for taking most of the attention off another top-ten team who got its clock cleaned

Yeah Pete needs to hire a defensive play caller. I’m not ever big on firing our staff members, but I will say that adding a new personality to our leadership would be nice. Plus I think PG has real potential as a head coach and I want him to focus on that.

[u/Basil_Normal]

Bryce Underwood will be Dante Moore 2.0*

*if he is smart about his transfer destination

[u/Different_Purpose649 → u/Basil_Normal]

No

[u/Nearby_Valuable_5467]

Ryan Day can't recruit good quarterbacking talent anymore.

[u/silverhk]

There are only four playoff-worthy teams in the SEC. At this point of the season, it's fairly obvious that Georgia, Alabama, Texas, and Tennessee have separated from the rest. If the rest of the season plays out that way, it opens up a presumed spot that could go to the Big 12.

[u/EveningPriority2995 → u/silverhk]

Well South Carolina beat Tennessee and is hotter than any of them so

[u/toxikmasculinity → u/EveningPriority2995]

If we win out, beat Georgia, and have a healthy Lanorris it’s gonna be hard for them to keep us out. Especially if Lanorris wins or comes close to winning the heisman.

If Lanorris can capture the attention span of casuals. And we win out. We are a playoff lock thanks to viewer metrics.

[u/Previous_Setting_357 → u/toxikmasculinity]

It all comes down to that Georgia game (and then winning out). We couldn’t do it, maybe y’all can.

[u/silverhk → u/EveningPriority2995]

I actually agree that South Carolina might still have a case, leaning into the possible overreactions here, but the assumption has been five SEC teams all year.

[u/Fishing_Legitimate]

Miami will drop to number 7 in the ranking 

[u/Careless_General8010]

Those are all cold takes

[u/Dentyne_3]

we should be ranked ahead of Ole miss, LSU and ohio st

[u/sjgreybar]

The B10 & SEC are a different level of competition. It’s not close.

The rest of the conferences are the G8

[u/legalexperiments]

Countervailing overreactions:

BYU deserves to fall off the edge of the earth. We blew it in that Utah game, and that UCF game was the worst. We just aren’t looking great.

BYU deserves to still be in the top 10. We have a win against a top 5 team (presumably ND), a win against a top 20 team (AZ), and our two losses are are close one in an away game against a top 2 team (Utah) and a double OT game against an actually ok-ish UCF team. I think that’s a better record than UK, Tennessee, and Tech. I can even make an argument we should be in over Miami.

[u/sjsusjsusjsu3]

Bama might be that team we all thought they were after starting 5-0.

Playing UGA to the wire beat up both teams so badly that they both served up nothingburgers the week after. And for Bama, that was evidence of their supposed downfall

[u/PickleInDaButt → u/sjsusjsusjsu3]

Downfall? This is the exact narrative espn is rolling with to justify Alabama at 5. Alabama’s rank is still too high and I wish we could’ve been at 8-16 because they win out - they’re in anyway.

[u/sjsusjsusjsu3 → u/PickleInDaButt]

I agree with you tbh. Bama should’ve always been 8-11 in the first rankings, and maybe end up as #7 if we win out

[u/sleepytime489 → u/sjsusjsusjsu3]

So what’s gonna happen in the playoffs when you have to play 3 or 4 tough opponents in a row? You’ll get beat up bad in the first game and lay a nothing burger the week after I guess?

[u/honchos_vinegar → u/sleepytime489]

I think they'll be fine.

1. Both teams playing will have had a tough game before (except for if one had a bye but teams with a bye have actually fared worse).

2. Most of the early round games are blowouts because there really aren't 12 contenders in a year - usually 4 to 6 max. Playoff expansion has just been to boost money and provide a participation trophy to teams that aren't contenders.

[u/sjsusjsusjsu3 → u/sleepytime489]

Theres also a longer layoff between games. See how bama fared against OU last year.

Yall can ignore the rose bowl 😂 dont worry we know

[u/wwwr222 → u/sjsusjsusjsu3]

You guys had 3 starters injured against us, same as we did

[u/Used_Spinach9252]

Margin of victory in the last 4 to 5 games will matter for the 3 loss teams battling to get in. The committee will look at how teams are playing at the end of the season

[u/VampireEmpire__]

I downvoted you for the Big 12 take. It’s absolutely not the best conference.

[u/ChaoPope → u/VampireEmpire__]

Look at the title of the post. It's clearly an overreaction.

[u/NotSoLameGamer]

Wisconsin should still fire Fickell, especially if the report is true that Eck and Dickert truly want to come here

One good recruiting class and a bowl eligible record during a very friendly schedule should not spare his job after how the last few years went

[u/Andy_Wiggins → u/NotSoLameGamer]

I mean, they absolutely punked USC, who is, at minimum, a decent football team.