Gut reactions to College Football Week 13 as playoff takes shape

College Football Week 13 was always going to have some defining moments but it’s about more than just Michigan beating Ohio State. 

Going into ‘The Game’ between Michigan and Ohio State, you knew it was going to have a big impact on the College Football Playoff race.

But few expected the Wolverines to dismantle the Buckeyes as they did. It’s one thing to lose to a top-five team but to drop a game at home and lose the second 28-3 doesn’t bode well.

However, one positive for the Buckeyes is that Clemson, LSU, and Oregon — other potential contenders all dropped games too.

At this point, the College Football Playoff race has become pretty clear, and here is where it stands after College Football Week 13 plus other gut reactions.

The College Football Playoff race is clear

Georgia. Michigan. TCU. USC. It’s that simple. As long as those teams keep winning, that will be the College Football Playoff field.

LSU had a chance to crash the party as a two-loss team but that hope ended against Texas A&M as Jimbo Fisher maybe saved his job. A 5-7 season sucks but beating the No. 5 doesn’t hurt.

USC is going to jump into the top four after knocking off Notre Dame. The most interesting part of the ranking is where will Ohio State end up? The top four spots seem pretty clear but the committee has already ranked Alabama ahead of another one-loss team (Clemson).

I get Bama has two losses but is two plays away from being undefeated. Ohio State got run out of its own building. It’s not a good look but we’ll see what the committee says.

That being said, as long as TCU and USC keep winning, they will be in and frankly, I don’t see Georgia or Michigan missing the playoff at this point, regardless of what happens.

At this point, there are five teams with less than two losses in college football. Say Michigan goes down to Purdue and the rest of the teams win. Who would pass the Wolverines? Ohio State? No, and I don’t see Alabama doing it.

Michigan’s wins are better (Ohio State, Penn State, and Illinois). Nobody has a better win than the win over Ohio State and that includes Georgia. The Bulldogs should stick at No. 1 but the Wolverines are right them in and both of their berths are probably locked up.

My thought is that it will be Ohio State and Alabama in close order waiting and hoping for USC or TCU to stumble and with the Horned Frogs, they might not be out with a loss either and if you need further proof of that, look at Ohio State.

Rivalry Week led to chaos

Going back to Black Friday, a number of teams with “nothing” to play for changed the trajectory of the College Football Playoff or conference title races.

Nebraska knocked Iowa out of the Big Ten title game with a win, while Oregon State may have done the same to Oregon — it depends on what happens tonight. If Washington State pulls an upset over Washington, Oregon would still be the team to go based on its win over Utah.

If there is a three-way tie, the Utes would go and try to ruin USC’s chance at making the College Football Playoff.

But Texas A&M really pulled off the shocker of College Football Week 13, ending LSU’s playoff hopes. Oregon State beat Oregon, NC State beat North Carolina, South Carolina beat Clemson and Kentucky beat Louisville.

It was wild.

All of those rivalry games wins were by teams that were either ranked lower than their opponent or not ranked at all. That’s what keeps college football interesting.

The ACC is terrible

After Clemson lost at home as a two-touchdown favorite to an unranked SEC team, we can’t say with confidence that the ACC is terrible. It’s a shame that someone needs to win the league but Clemson and North Carolina will battle it out in an ACC championship game next week that nobody is going to want to watch.

And also, the ACC is a reminder of why divisions need to end forever. The Big Ten West is an example too. We should be seeing Florida State vs Clemson for the ACC title game because the Noles are the best team in the conference and won’t be playing in the championship game.

Clemson beat the Seminoles and if the Tigers beat UNC they will deserve the ACC championship but that’s not saying much.

Caleb Williams is the new Heisman leader

C.J. Stroud would have two Heisman Trophies maybe if the Buckeyes didn’t have to play Michigan. But after throwing two touchdowns and losing against to Michigan, Stroud can’t win the award.

Caleb Williams had another spectacular performance (267 yards and 4 total touchdowns) against Notre Dame and as long as he plays well and the Trojans win next week, he’s a lock to win the award.

Blake Corum could have a chance I supposed if he had some sort of miracle recovery and has a great game next week in the Big Ten championship game, but I don’t see it.

Williams, Stroud, Corum, and Hooker could be the final four. It’s hard to read and it’s disappointing to see how injuries have impacted the race but the ball is in Williams’ court.