FAVORITE TEAMS

My college football takeaways from Week 9:

Oklahoma’s loss opened opportunities for others to make the playoffs.

The Big Ten and the SEC could have two teams making playoffs depending on the aftermath between the Penn State/Minnesota game and LSU/Alabama game on November 9th.

The AAC continues to make themselves heard with Memphis breaking the Top 25 prior to the marquee matchup with SMU on Saturday.

Kansas State and TCU’s win gives them, Baylor, Iowa State, and Oklahoma State a chance at a Big 12 conference title appearance. Oklahoma’s slightly favored, but their November schedule could be their toughest finish to the season.

The Pac-12 looks stronger right now. UCLA’s finding their form. I’ve talked about them awhile back when I was at the Rose Bowl for the UCLA/Oklahoma game. Oregon State’s looking a bit more dangerous and will play a part in Oregon’s run to the end of their regular season. Utah and Oregon have a tough November schedule starting with trap games coming up this weekend.

For the first time in the playoff era, I’m happy with the AP Top 25, especially with Oklahoma not severely punished over the loss. They lost to Kansas State that lost to two other teams that are good in the Big 12. The Big 12 overall isn’t as bad as some people assumed in the past few seasons. They all look competitive this season.

Finally, here’s my opinion on what to expect in November. Minnesota’s 8-0 but they’re playing their first true schedule in November. I expected them to start strong before playing Maryland at least. Let’s see where they are after playing Penn State next weekend. Baylor gets the benefit of the doubt because they defeated Iowa State, Kansas State, and Oklahoma State. They’ll play TCU, Oklahoma, and Texas back-to-back-to-back after West Virginia. This will determine if they’re legitimate contenders for the playoffs. As for Ohio State, we all knew who we thought they were, but come around November 23rd, they’ll have the biggest two-game finish to their regular season. If Penn State survives, it’ll likely come down to that game for the Big Ten East champions. Finally, the SEC’s top teams will have the toughest stretch in November. Alabama, LSU, Georgia, Florida, and Auburn all have a tough finish. Auburn’s the only team that benefits because they’re at home for the rest of the season. If Missouri comes to terms with their season whether they’re banned from a bowl or not and just play football, they could end Georgia or Florida’s second chance at a playoff opportunity. The Tigers have a week off to resolve this, but hopefully they have quarterback Kelly Bryant healthy.

5) VIRGINIA (5-3 OVERALL; 3-2 ACC) AT UNC (4-4 OVERALL; 3-2 ACC) – 4:30PM PT / 7:30PM ET [ACC NETWORK]

While North Carolina was in flux over their program under Larry Fedora, Virginia won the last two matchups against them. Virginia also lost seven straight to the Tarheels prior to that. Coach Mendenhall improved this roster in four seasons to make them serious Coastal contenders. One problem, they’re awful on the road.Virginia hasn’t had a positive road season since 2011. From 2012 to now, they’re overall road record is 6-34. I wasn’t kidding when I said their first road game against Pitt was a defining season for them. The Tarheels were competitive all season long despite their 4-4 record. They fight all four quarters with any opponent they faced, ranked or unranked. Their quarterback Sam Howell is the future of this squad and his touchdown/interception ratio reflects it. This matchup is for control of a wide-open Coastal division. Virginia has one more chance to win a road game while UNC could have a surprising season under coach Mack Brown.

4) #15 SMU (8-0 OVERALL; 4-0 AAC)AT #24 MEMPHIS (7-1 OVERALL; 3-1 AAC) – 4:30PM PT / 7:30PM ET [ABC]

This is the most underrated marquee matchup that everyone should watch. How can you not be interested in undefeated SMU battling a consistently good Memphis squad? The Ponies are hitting their stride and not slowing down. Quarterback Shane Buechele is the right guy for Sonny Dykes and it’s making the offense so dangerous to compete against. Memphis is also dangerous and is looking to return to the AAC conference championship for the third straight season. They have the offensive roster to blow by anyone and the defense makes enough stops to give this team a chance to win. SMU is looking a bit like the SMU of the early 1980’s and are looking for their first 9-0 start since 1982. However, their three road games finished by a touchdown or less and Memphis has owned SMU for the last five years. The winner has total control of the AAC West and could go to the conference title game.

3) #8 GEORGIA (6-1 OVERALL; 3-1 SEC) AT #6 FLORIDA (7-1 OVERALL; 4-1 SEC) – 12:30PM PT / 3:30PM ET [CBS]

This is not a likely or a maybe. It is a do-or-die game for the SEC East because Georgia and Florida both have a loss. Georgia’s loss was a bit worse against South Carolina. They have a good, young defense but their offense struggled the last two games. They could still win out, but Jake Fromm must improve and his receivers must help him. Florida progressed better under Kyle Trask the last few weeks. They’re moving the ball a little more efficiently, which this team needed over the past few seasons. Georgia has a good, young defensive squad, but what happened to their offense over the past couple of weeks? This game’s either a defensive game or an offensive game. They’re capable of scoring but mistakes and miscues by both teams makes this matchup much closer.

2) #9 UTAH (7-1 OVERALL; 4-1 PAC-12) AT WASHINGTON (5-3 OVERALL; 2-3 PAC-12) – 1PM PT / 4PM ET [ESPN]

Washington and Utah meet for the fourth straight time in three seasons. All four were fairly close, but the last two were low scores and it’s likely to happen for the third straight time with two good defenses. Utah had two chances to upset Washington but failed to move the ball on offense. Injuries to quarterback Tyler Huntley and Zack Moss definitely affected them, so they’re proven difference makers. Washington’s first two losses threw some people off, including me, but the Huskies’ offense were awful against California and Stanford. They played better and nearly upset Oregon last weekend. Utah’s on upset alert due to their last four losses to Washington. They’re also on the road and they previously struggled in their loss to USC. They must overcome their big road game struggles if they want to compete for the conference title game again.

1) #7 OREGON (7-1 OVERALL; 5-0 PAC-12) AT USC (5-3 OVERALL; 4-1 PAC-12) – 5PM PT / 8PM ET [FOX]

Oregon’s road to the conference title game gets tougher. Their first challenge is at the Coliseum, where Oregon lost 45-20 in 2016. That’s when quarterback Justin Herbert was a freshmen at the time when he played. After their loss against Auburn, they went on a tear the rest of the way and surviving against the state of Washington. Prior to them, they allowed under 10 points per game and one measly touchdown between September and after Colorado. Their last two, their defense allowed 30 plus points against the state of Washington. USC could force their third 30-point game because their offense is all-around talented no matter who their starting quarterback is. Quarterback Kedon Slovis will be heavily relied on to attack Oregon’s defensive backs beaten up defensive backs. Utah’s not the only Pac-12 team playing a trap game. Both them and Oregon have a tough road ahead and this weekend could either make or break their chances for a playoff spot. USC’s currently 4-0 at home so Oregon must look to Herbert to lead this team to another big win.

*red indicates my underrated team