Well, the smoke finally cleared of the chaos in the regular season. Now, depending on where some teams are ranked tomorrow afternoon, chaos still looms for conference championship week.

Let me be biased for a moment. If Alabama somehow gets into the playoffs after three losses with two being bad ones, I will lose my mind. The committee are Alabama kiss-asses, and I don’t appreciate it at all.

Anyway, I’m looking forward to the conference championship with five teams playing a conference title game in their first year with a new conference. Here’s the interesting take: Oregon, SMU, and Texas are playing their second straight conference title after playing from their former conference last season. Only SMU and Texas (from their state) won their title last season. Let’s hope Championship Week is anything like the past 15 weeks of great college football we all watched and/or attended in 2024.

12) SOUTH CAROLINA

South Carolina finds ways to ruin their opponents’ day. Special teams, running back Rocket Sanders and quarterback LaNorris Sellers, and defense find ways to make a game-changing impact to put the Gamecocks in winning position. They did it again against Clemson and may have an improbable opportunity for a playoff spot. If they find their way in, don’t overlook South Carolina because they could be the CFP’s Cinderella.

11) ARIZONA STATE

The Sun Devils cook their rival, Arizona, on their way to their first Big 12 title game in their first year with that conference. Running back Cam Skattebo, quarterback Sam Leavitt, and coach Kenny Dillingham made it possible after being projected to finish at the bottom with plenty of offseason drama. This is a gritty, hard-nosed team that will bring the boom as they prep for another gritty team in Iowa State.

10) INDIANA

Welp, when there was a possibility that Indiana might be complacent after that loss to Ohio State, they moved on and took their frustrations out on Purdue for 66 POINTS!!! Jeez, coach Cig must’ve got those boys locked in again. Quarterback Kurtis Rourke went on a tear for six touchdowns while receiver Elijah Sarratt accounted for two touchdowns and 165 reception yards. Despite the one loss, there’s no reason that Indiana doesn’t deserve to be in. They were upended by Ohio State, but they also did the upending to 10 teams as well as defeating Michigan that upset Ohio State.

9) OHIO STATE

Ohio State’s defense did everything possible to keep the team in the game, but the offense failed to respond for most of the game, and Will Howard hurt the team with an interception deep in their own backfield and another deep in the redzone. Special teams also had two missed opportunities that could’ve swung in their favor. Very costly, and that puts Ohio State out of a Big Ten title opportunity. However, they could still qualify for the playoffs with a strong resumé.

8) BOISE STATE

Ashton Jeanty worked himself a week closer for a case as The Heisman, but Travis Hunter will make it complicated for him. No matter. Jeanty ran over 200 yards for the fifth time this season. Boise now awaits UNLV on the Blue Turf in the Mountain West title game for the second straight season for the right to not only win but also qualify for the College Football Playoff.

7) TENNESSEE

Tennessee was slow to pick things up against motivated Vanderbilt. Special teams and defensive plays hurt the Vols early. Eventually, they woke up and responded with a 29-6 run since the second quarter. The Vols finished their season in prime position for an At-Large bid. This is a great thing for them because they don’t have to worry about playing an extra game and just see who and where they play in a few weeks. This team carries behind their defense, running back Dylan Sampson, and Nico Iamaleava surrounded by his receivers.

6) NOTRE DAME

Notre Dame was in a scoring affair with USC from start to finish, but their defense made impact plays to stave off USC’s scoring attack and avoid an upset. After a questionable start to their season, the Irish finish strong and is in position to host a home playoff game. Whoever faces the Irish, they must be ready for a miserable winter matchup in the land of Touchdown Jesus.

5) SMU

SMU trampled other fellow ACC newcomer Cal to finish undefeated in ACC play. They trampled their way to their first ACC title game in their annual season and could join Oregon, Texas, Army, and Arizona State in attempting their first title in their new conference. They play their second straight conference title game, and in a third different conference in school history.

4) TEXAS

Texas struggled with a couple of turnovers against Texas A&M, but they weren’t phased since the Aggies had no offensive success. Quintrevion Wisner tore up the Aggie defense and Arch Manning came in for a 15-yard touchdown run to get the ‘Horns fired up. Texas has a rematch with Georgia and hope things go differently than the first meeting.

3) PENN STATE

Penn State dismantled Maryland on their way to a Big Ten title game without even feeling any pressure. They only had one legitimate team in Ohio State this whole season while cleaning house on the rest of their schedule. They’re a long shot, but this is James Franklin’s legitimate chance to not only play and try winning their second Big Ten title, but to also silence the critics and doubters.

2) GEORGIA

Georgia survived what was one of the greatest games in college football history. The pesky Georgia Tech team wasn’t lying down for no team no matter how good they were. Georgia was under major pressure with so many mistakes, miscues, and miscommunications. All those “mis” included dropped passes by different receivers too. Fortunately, they put their elite level together in the fourth, won the battle of attrition, and went through 8 OVERTIMES to survive and qualify for the playoffs. Now, they have at least an extra day’s rest to prepare for either Texas.

1) OREGON

Washington’s potential confidence of an upset collapsed instantly after Oregon dismantled them in the second half. They’re one of the four conference newcomers to make the conference championship and has a shot of completing their regular season undefeated and lock in the number one seed.