OK we might have to finally agree that what Sam Pittman has done so far this season at Arkansas has been remarkable. I mean they should be 3-1 if it wasn’t for an absolutely all-timer of an atrocious call. They looked good against Ole Miss on Saturday and it feels like it has been a long time since the horrific Chad Morris days. Now I’m not saying they are ready for Alabama (almost no one is) but they could cause some serious issues for other SEC teams this season. It’s nice to see the Hogs back to playing well. It’s been too long. It was also nice to see someone like Stewart Mandel, who made light of the fact that there were six elite coaches in the SEC West and then Pittman, have to eat crow (especially since The Athletic, by and large, have become a bunch of sanctimonious pricks). Alright let’s get on to the rest of the recap:
Man, that offense is for real: Alabama had the biggest win in the biggest game as they beat Georgia in a rivalry that is quickly becoming the SEC’s best. And, man did you see that Bama offense? No matter what teams put up against the Tide, they can’t seem to stop their offense. Ole Miss failed as did the Dawgs. Saying that, I am sure it was a coup for CBS as they had by far the biggest game of the year so far and had it in primetime. CBS has been quite brilliant with putting their primetime game early on in the season (Notre Dame-Georgia was the other one) getting massive ratings. As for UGA, don’t count them out. Just know that they are a tier below the Fighting Nick Sabans (who got to coach after three negative COVID-19 tests).
CHANTS! That is pronounced “Shawnt”. The Coastal Carolina Chanticleers were able to pull out a huge victory over #21 Louisiana and will almost certainly be ranked this week. It’s now a definite that their game against Appalachian State, if both teams keep this up, will be for the Sun Belt East, the Sun Belt (essentially) and perhaps a look at the New Year’s Six. That would be a boon to the Sun Belt who is still looking for their first NY6 representative.
Can we blame Gus Malzahn for this one? Auburn never seemed in this one. South Carolina wasn’t dominating play but it felt like it was just a matter of time before they pulled this one out. And it’s not like Auburn didn’t have chances to win. They did, and they could never capitalize on those. Many will want to blame Gus but Bo Nix has been nothing short of awful so far this season. What Malzahn does next with the quarterbacking situation is what will determine his fate after this season.
OK so what does Mike Leach do now? Not that I thought they would absolutely win but they looked dreadful on offense again. I honestly thought the Bulldogs would at least be able to move the ball. Boy was I ever wrong. Texas A&M keeps on rolling and very little seems in their way that could stop them…from getting to the New Year’s Six.
The Pittening: It has happened and with no divisions we can pretty much safely say that Pitt will not be going to the ACC Championship. The Canes have played well (except against teams that rhyme with Blemson). Even though it was only a 12-point win for The U, this did not feel close. The Canes are still trying to keep pace in second place to try and get that other spot opposite Clemson in the ACC title game (to get their asses kicked again, probably).
Time to watch the Cougars: Of the BYU variety. For three quarters it looked like Houston was ready to pull the rug out from the BYU party (with no alcohol or caffeine). Then Zach Wilson decided to declare himself a Heisman contender with a bonkers fourth quarter. BYU’s 22 fourth quarter points put away the Fighting Holgorsens and kept them undefeated. Even with the rest of the conferences starting shortly, you have to watch out for this team. Can you keep them out of the New Year’s Six when they’re undefeated? I don’t think you can but it will put The Committee in an interesting position.
You just got LAWRENCED! That sounds disgusting but may be true for some women on the campus at Clemson University. This game was rough to watch. Trevor Lawrence, Travis Etienne and the vaunted Clemson offense absolutely annihilated poor Georgia Tech. Clemson keeps on chugging and really has no roadblocks now to get to the CFP until they face Notre Dame in November. Georgia Tech still has work to do but they are, this game notwithstanding, on the right track now under Geoff Collins.
Is Notre Dame’s defense that good? Their defense could be what keeps the Irish going this season. They had to be as their offense sputtered against Louisville, of all teams. Only 46 points allowed through 4 games so far and I can’t see Pitt or Georgia Tech putting up a boatload of points against them. Geez. Their game in three weeks with Clemson could be something special. Interesting to see how Trevor Lawrence does against his first truly good defensive opponent this season (no offense to Miami).
SMU? SMU! I am sure there are some people who thought SMU would be 5-0 at this point but not many. Will they finish undefeated? I doubt it. But to be honest, they are, right now, the Group of Five favourite to go to the NY6 despite Cincinnati ranking higher than them. It wasn’t easy to keep that unblemished record as Tulane gave them all they could handle and took them to overtime. Next week’s game against Cincinnati could decide one of the entrants in the AAC Championship game.
Oh North Carolina, no! Mack Brown looked like they had a relatively easy road to the ACC Championship (as long as they took care of business against Notre Dame later in the season). They had everything going for them and Florida State, yes, FLORIDA STATE snuffed that all out. The Seminoles got out to a huge 31-7 lead going into halftime and held on to beat the Tar Heels by 3. Embarrassing on the Heels’ part to allow FSU to get that far out in front for sure. Despite there being no ACC Coastal division, most of the conference IS the ACC Coastal division (apart from Clemson and Notre Dame at this point).
Is this considered an upset? I don’t know. Honestly, I am leaning towards no. Yes, Tennessee was ranked and it was in Knoxville but Kentucky’s defense has been pretty dominant this season. They continued that trend by catching a lot of passes from Jarrett Guarantano. Problem for the Volunteers is that’s their quarterback. Not good.
Hey what about the Hokies? Not saying Boston College is horrible but they were pretty much boatraced by Virginia Tech. It was kind of close early but the Hokies blew it wide open in the third. They don’t have a super easy schedule the rest of the way but all the games are winnable until they host Clemson in early December. Look, if they end up with two losses, both to Top 10 teams at the time, and somehow win the ACC Championship that could make for some fun chaos. The Big Ten and Pac-12 are watching this team closely hoping they shit the bed just once more to ease their minds.
Good lord Kansas: So Les Miles has COVID so he couldn’t show up to coach the Jayhawks against West Virginia. This meant the spread changed from the Mountaineers as 23 point favourites to just 21.5. Fucking hilarious. Not that it mattered since they still lost. Well it may have mattered to degenerate gamblers but other than that, yeah, nobody gives a shit.
Thoughts and prayers to the Orange: The Orange of Syracuse lost to Liberty. No I am not lying. And Liberty ran roughshod over Syracuse. This wasn’t really that close at all. So now what does the Cuse have up next? Well it’s the ACC so it can’t be too b…oh my god. They play Clemson next. Pray for Dino Babers. As for Liberty, they are 5-0. Hugh Freeze is doing an amazing job in Lynchburg. This means next year he will be back in the SEC. Vanderbilt, perhaps?
A palette cleanser: Alright we aren’t looking at the Memphis or UCF of the past few years. But when they face each other, you just have that feeling it will be special. No exception here. This game was fucking amazing. UCF took the lead. The Tigers roared back with a big third quarter and then the fourth was absolute drugs. Memphis scored two touchdowns in the final 3:45 to win this one. It’s amazing how often that it’s the American conference that just blows everyone away with a fantastic game that people keep talking about.
Well all in all it was a fun weekend of college football. So now let’s get to the Bossman Top 25:
| #1 | Clemson |
| #2 | Alabama |
| #3 | Notre Dame |
| #4 | Ohio State |
| #5 | Oklahoma State |
| #6 | Georgia |
| #7 | Florida |
| #8 | Miami |
| #9 | Cincinnati |
| #10 | BYU |
| #11 | Texas A&M |
| #12 | Penn State |
| #13 | Oregon |
| #14 | North Carolina |
| #15 | SMU |
| #16 | Wisconsin |
| #17 | Virginia Tech |
| #18 | Michigan |
| #19 | Iowa State |
| #20 | Marshall |
| #21 | Kansas State |
| #22 | Coastal Carolina |
| #23 | NC State |
| #24 | Minnesota |
| #25 | USC |
Not a ton of movement in the Top 25 to be honest. Really though, past #1 and #2 (and maybe the Irish at #3) you could put almost any combination and you could be considered somewhat correct (well, unless you put Kansas in your Top 25). Some may bristle at me putting BYU at #10 but let’s be honest: this may be as high as they get. Their schedule will not help them and any hope of them getting to the New Year’s Six hinges on chaos above them (which I am fully for). This weekend helped but they need much more. Also, I get that there is a Top 25 match between Michigan and Minnesota this coming weekend (welcome back, Big Ten by the way…oh yeah and the Mountain West). But there are no fans at College Gameday so why go there? Instead, head to Myrtle Beach. Coastal Carolina is in the Top 25 for the first time and there is probably not a better chance to go there than now. Nothing against Minnesota but this is another mark against the Group of Five and college football’s perception of those programs.
Alright, in the end, it was a good weekend of college football. Let’s hope for a lot more the rest of the way. Enjoy your week everyone!
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