Even more mayhem ensued on Saturday as Week 9 of college football provided for some heroics and fanfare. What are some of the main takeaways?
The 2018 college football season is starting to come down to the wire and wins remain a top priority moving forward as several teams are still in contention to lock up a division title and/or a playoff spot.
With each passing week, the standings become a little clearer and gain clarity, but there are always certain games that end up muddying the waters.
At this juncture in the season, it is plausible to say there have been some surprises –– mostly when it has come to the projected team to win a conference not exactly playing up to that par.
The year will only gain more headway from here but for now, here are some takeaways from Week 9 action that resulted from the weekend action.
5. The Big 12 race got much more interesting
Teams like Oklahoma and West Virginia were expected to be among the top slots in the Big 12 –– and they certainly have.
Texas was a team that shocked some with a midseason surge, however, their momentum was halted after suffering a loss to Oklahoma State on Saturday, a team on the mend from a two-game losing streak prior to its bye week and meeting with the Longhorns.
Donning throwback 1980’s jerseys as a homage to the Barry Sanders era, the Cowboys came away with a tight 38-35 win at home, proving to shake things up in the conference.
Texas, who seemed to be full steam ahead now faces one of its toughest tests of the season against West Virginia next week.
It’s make it or break it time for the Longhorns, a team that ascended the rankings because of its string of wins. A loss to the Mountaineers next week may, in fact, doom Texas’ season and hopes of winning the Big 12. However, there is still a chance for teams to continue to beat up on each other to complicate the leaderboards even further.
Meanwhile, Oklahoma strolled to an easy win against Kansas State in a similar fashion that West Virginia blew out Baylor.
One conference is bound to be excluded from the playoff and the Big 12 has been represented over the past few years due to Oklahoma’s electric performances.
It is yet to be determined if a Big 12 team will compete for college football supremacy but for now, the first College Football Playoff Top 25 rankings are set to be revealed this coming Tuesday.