This is it. We find out what happens after Friday and Saturday’s conference championship games. While it sounds like a few of the Friday games have no bearing on the CFP bracket, I’d take that into slight consideration. I’d also recommend watching the ACC title game because that will heavily weigh on whether the ACC gets in or a 2nd Group of Five team gets in. Yes, it’s possible and it could be an unspeakable reality that no one expected but would also be good for the little guys that finally have something to hope for moving forward. I’m all for the little guys and chaos, and baby we need plenty of it!

FRIDAY

Kennesaw State was a nice story last season when it came to EA Sports College Football. Plenty of games played as them as a program builder. In Year 2, that same team became very competitive and now appear in their first C-USA title game. Jacksonville State acclimated to the FBS level smoothly thanks to former coach Rich Rodriguez. It looks like their foundation is steady and they’re on the verge of claiming their 2nd straight title.

Both faced each other a few times at the FCS level and the last 2 seasons at the FBS level. Pre-FBS, Kennesaw State was 3-1. Post-FBS, Jax State won the last 2. Earlier this season, Jax State was in control of that matchup thanks to their 4 forced turnovers along with QB Caden Creel and RB Cam Cook dominating the ground game. Kennesaw State’s defense isn’t bad, but with their struggle against the run and turnovers last time, it might happen again.

MY PICK: JAX STATE

2 years ago, their last meeting was a barn burner in favor of James Madison. Things are different now, but James Madison’s still the same team competing at a high level while Troy’s going through new management and changes on their roster.

We all know what James Madison’s capable of on all sides of the field. They have 2 capable quarterbacks with starting experience, running back Wayne Knight who’s over 1,000 rushing yards, and a defense that’ll clamp down and expose offenses for one little mistake. Troy went through a tough early schedule before they cooked. A lot was on quarterback Tucker Kilcrease after original starter Goose Crowder suffered an injury, but Kilcrease got it done and kept Troy’s Sun Belt title hopes alive. Once Crowder returned, they closed with 2 wins, including upsetting Southern Miss to steal their West division title.

My assumption is that James Madison should win but I won’t be surprised if it’s close. If Crowder can cook to keep things close, the last few minutes will get really hairy for the Dukes.

MY PICK: JAMES MADISON

First off, I’m glad to see Jake Retzlaff still find his way to a conference championship with a new team. I really hoped he would’ve done it with BYU, but now we are. Secondly, I’m very proud of seeing one of my favorite quarterbacks in Drew Mestemaker also get North Texas to their first 11-win season in program history. This could be one of my favorite conference championship games to watch this weekend.

This is Tulane’s and North Texas’s 4th meeting all-time. North Texas has yet to beat Tulane, and this is their 3rd time playing in NOLA. With how great North Texas’s offense was under Mestemaker, their defense isn’t that great and gave up yards, big plays, and points consistently to even middle tiered offenses. Tulane’s defense had moments of success and moments of failures. When they’re on, they’re hard to succeed against. When they’re not, like North Texas, they’re susceptible to big plays too. Since Tulane’s at home, I think it complicates things for North Texas and outplays their offense with the ground game torching them.

MY PICK: TULANE

Boise State and UNLV collide for the 4th straight time and 3 straight in 2 seasons. UNLV’s transfer quarterback Anthony Colandrea was a such a difference maker under Dan Mullen. He’s a good mobile quarterback like he was during his time at Virginia. Unleashing him makes this offense so lethal, which is why the Rebels are the Mountain West’s best offense. Boise State is balance per usual, but we weren’t sure how they would fare without Ashton Jeanty. After Maddux Madsen got hurt, we really weren’t sure the Broncos would be right. However, their resilient with roster balance. Backup Max Cutforth prospered in Madsen’s absence and could be the future starter.

We’ve been down this road four times and all ended in Boise State’s victory. The only closest margin was the epic regular season game last season where Boise won 29-24. UNLV’s 0-7 all-time at Boise and that likely won’t change.

MY PICK: BOISE STATE

SATURDAY

Welcome to Round 2 of BYU and Texas Tech as expected. I mean, who else would be there besides these two? Texas Tech felt like the best Big 12 team and potentially one of the Top 10 teams in the nation since this season started. They’re physical, they’re mean, and they’re paid well to play well. Despite losing leader and captain Jake Retzlaff to Tulane, BYU played to their expectations and are a win away from making the CFP. The team is balanced, but quarterback Bear Bachmeier fit the bill as a tough, gritty true freshmen that Kilane Sitake’s happy with. Most importantly, a healthy LJ Martin makes a huge difference on offense.

It’s crazy finding both BYU and Texas Tech in their first Big 12 title game together. This is huge. I’m rooting for BYU, but this looks like a Texas Tech win unless Behren Morton somehow gets hurt again. BYU’s chance of victory literally comes down to LJ Martin running the ball to open up BYU’s offense, which they failed to do the first time. Otherwise, Tech closes out with a Big 12 title.

MY PICK: TEXAS TECH

Miami (OH) managed to find their way back to the MAC title game after an up-and-down season with their roster. Meanwhile, Western Michigan torched the MAC with ease with their only loss coming from their MAC title opponent. In their last meeting, Miami needed the 4th quarter to rally from 17-9 to win thanks to Dequan Finn. However, Finn left the team for NFL preparation. They’re left with freshmen quarterback Thomas Gotkowski, who was solid in 2 wins as the starter.

Western Michigan trusts their quarterback Broc Lowry to get the job done. He’s carried this offense well and is expected to do it again. Can the same be said for Gotkowski, who’s making his 3rd start with Miami (OH)? I’m not so sure. What’s bad is, he’s facing a good Western Michigan scoring defense that’s allowed 14.5 points per game in the MAC.

MY PICK: WESTERN MICHIGAN

We roll right back to this matchup when it was one week away from not being Alabama vs Georgia: Round 2. After Round 1, Georgia slightly improved while Alabama was ebb-and-flow…a lot. While both vie for an SEC championship victory, there’s so much more on the line.

Georgia’s for sure in the college football playoff, but they’re likely playing for a bye. Their defense improved and are looking fiercer each week. They also have an identity in running the ball and putting more on Gunnar Stockton to attack the field. Alabama looks murky with questions in several areas. It’s either Ty Simpson or nothing on offense. The run game is so-so (try using Daniel Hill, PLEASE!!!). Ryan Williams lost some credibility in the last few weeks of the season. Defense looks better, but they’re still struggling against the run and mobile quarterbacks.

I feel like this pick is a cliche, but why do I feel that the result might surprise me? I’ve mentioned that Alabama struggles against the run and Gunnar Stockton’s a mobile quarterback, so I think I know where I’m going with this pick. The last time Georgia defeated Alabama was in the National Championship after Georgia lost to Alabama in the SEC title game that same season. It’s possible that Georgia can figure it out again to defeat Bama.

MY PICK: GEORGIA

Duke vs. Virginia in the ACC Championship Game doesn’t have a ring to it. This is a problem for the ACC because their fate as a conference representative in the CFP is solely in the hands of Virginia. A loss eliminates the ACC altogether, and there’s no way 7-5 Duke will get into the CFP unless the committee pulls a huge, huge, HUGE rabbit out of their tiny hat.

Both teams make their second appearance all-time in the ACC Championship and they faced each other a few weeks ago. Virginia handled Duke in Chandler Morris’s return from injury. Duke struggled to stop him in all facets of the game. Duke isn’t a bad team, but they seem to struggle against good competition. They failed against Illinois, Tulane, Georgia, and UConn along with Virginia. This might have similar result as long as Chandler Morris is on the field. If Duke wants this cataclysmic upset, Darian Mensah must play his tail off to shake up Sunday morning’s announcement.

MY PICK: VIRGINIA

This is by far the most anticipated matchup of the weekend, the season, the decade, and even The Century!

Indiana quickly surged into a dominant team in 2 seasons under Curt Cignetti. Quarterback Fernando Mendoza is the key cog to the offense and the team, and a win could cement himself as a Top 2 Heisman finalist. As for Ohio State, their expectation’s the same as it always was every season, but they finally played up to it and got the monkey off their back that is Michigan. Julian Sayin led the charge as a Heisman-contending quarterback should.

Both teams have a dominant defense, and it could be one of those hard-nosed, physical, gritty, bleeding of the face type of game. In this case, the game very likely comes down to a team that can execute their offense efficiently against their stingy defense. I’ll give the edge to Ohio State because of their confidence in their quarterback and skills positions.

MY PICK: OHIO STATE