Welcome to Four Down Territory.
So, I’ll give you three thoughts on Missouri football or college football in general. Then, the last thought will be whatever I want it to be.
1. It’s conference championship weekend.
In my two seasons on this beat, I’ve only gotten a total of eight opportunities to enjoy a college football Saturday. So, four last year and four this year. That’s Week 1 when Mizzou starts the season on a Thursday night, the bye week, the Saturday after Black Friday and conference championship weekend.
Now, we were a couple of plays away from me working this Saturday, which I would have enjoyed.
This job is a lot of work but it’s so fun. It really is. So, that would’ve been a blast, too. But hey, Missouri still has cool things in front of them.
However, I’ll get back to them in a moment.
For now, I want to go over the slate of Power 5 conference games this weekend and rank them by the ones I’d like to see the most. (Will I get to actually watch them? TBD.)
I do think Oregon is the better team, and in the rematch I expect them to win. However, Washington has found a way to win, and to be honest, when it gets down to this point in the season, as long as you win, the style points don’t matter. Well, they don’t matter if you have a donut in the loss column.
The winner gets into the College Football Playoff (at least that’s what should happen).
Georgia and Alabama for what seems like the 17th time for the SEC title will still be good no matter how many times we repeat it. Alabama keeps finding ways to pull wins out of thin air but it’s actually cool in a way. It’s like someone doing a magic trick and you just stare at them trying to figure out how they do it. If you pay attention long enough, you may see how the trick is performed but it takes plenty of focus for that to happen.
For Georgia to be nearing a 30-game win streak not much has been made about them. I'm guessing because of the chaos that sits below the Bulldogs in the rankings? However, what happens if Georgia loses to Bama in the SEC title game and then Texas wins the Big 12 title game?
Presumably, Michigan would have defeated Iowa, Florida State defeated Louisville and secured spots in the CFP, with the winner of the Oregon-Washington game getting the third spot. So, does Texas get in because they have a win over Bama? Does Bama get in because it has the best win of the season over Georgia? Or do the Bulldogs get in because it is legitimately one of the top four teams even with a loss in the title game?
I think Georgia will win the SEC title but that’s a fun little scenario to talk about.
The last three games are really tied for third. The Oklahoma State-Texas game is placed in third for two reasons. One, it’s the morning game. So, it will be on just because nothing else will be on. I do like Texas receiver Xavier Worthy and tight end Ja’Tavion Sanders. Oklahoma State's Ollie Gordon is the nation's leading rusher. I haven't seen him play yet but if he's doing better than Cody Schrader I'd like to see for myself. But I’m not too interested in seeing Texas likely cruise to a conference championship versus the Cowboys. I would’ve enjoyed a Red River Rivalry rematch.
Without Jordan Travis, I am no longer interested in Florida State for the time being. Until its quarterback proves he’s Cardale Jones, I don’t want to see them. The thing is, behind Missouri, I’ve probably “watched” Florida State more than any other team. And by watch, I mean its game has been on in the background and I glance at the TV sometimes as I prepare to leave for Mizzou’s game.
Time for a wrestling analogy because I know how much people enjoy them.
The Seminoles are the champion that has to defend their title against someone and they win the match, but they get hurt pretty badly. This then leads to Mr./Ms. Money in the Bank cashing in on the wounded champion. That’s what’s probably going to happen to them. Florida State will probably beat Louisville, but if I’m one of the other three teams in the CFP I'm licking my chops to face that Florida State team with no quarterback. I want the committee to put them as one of the four teams for sure.
The only thing about Iowa-Michigan I want to see is maybe a couple of Michigan offensive drives. I saw the end of the game versus Ohio State a little bit, but I had just driven back from Arkansas, so I didn’t get a chance to actually lock-in. Other than that, there’s nothing about the Hawkeyes that yells must see. Sounds like a 24-6 game in favor of Michigan.
So, I’ll give you three thoughts on Missouri football or college football in general. Then, the last thought will be whatever I want it to be.
1. It’s conference championship weekend.
In my two seasons on this beat, I’ve only gotten a total of eight opportunities to enjoy a college football Saturday. So, four last year and four this year. That’s Week 1 when Mizzou starts the season on a Thursday night, the bye week, the Saturday after Black Friday and conference championship weekend.
Now, we were a couple of plays away from me working this Saturday, which I would have enjoyed.
This job is a lot of work but it’s so fun. It really is. So, that would’ve been a blast, too. But hey, Missouri still has cool things in front of them.
However, I’ll get back to them in a moment.
For now, I want to go over the slate of Power 5 conference games this weekend and rank them by the ones I’d like to see the most. (Will I get to actually watch them? TBD.)
- Oregon at Washington, 7 p.m. CT in Las Vegas on Dec. 1
- Georgia at Alabama, 3 p.m. CT in Atlanta on Dec. 2.
- Oklahoma State at Texas, 11 a.m. CT in Arlington, Texas on Dec. 2.
- Louisville at Florida State, 7 p.m. CT in Charlotte, North Carolina on Dec. 2.
- Iowa at Michigan, 7 p.m. CT in Indianapolis, Indiana on Dec. 2.
I do think Oregon is the better team, and in the rematch I expect them to win. However, Washington has found a way to win, and to be honest, when it gets down to this point in the season, as long as you win, the style points don’t matter. Well, they don’t matter if you have a donut in the loss column.
The winner gets into the College Football Playoff (at least that’s what should happen).
Georgia and Alabama for what seems like the 17th time for the SEC title will still be good no matter how many times we repeat it. Alabama keeps finding ways to pull wins out of thin air but it’s actually cool in a way. It’s like someone doing a magic trick and you just stare at them trying to figure out how they do it. If you pay attention long enough, you may see how the trick is performed but it takes plenty of focus for that to happen.
For Georgia to be nearing a 30-game win streak not much has been made about them. I'm guessing because of the chaos that sits below the Bulldogs in the rankings? However, what happens if Georgia loses to Bama in the SEC title game and then Texas wins the Big 12 title game?
Presumably, Michigan would have defeated Iowa, Florida State defeated Louisville and secured spots in the CFP, with the winner of the Oregon-Washington game getting the third spot. So, does Texas get in because they have a win over Bama? Does Bama get in because it has the best win of the season over Georgia? Or do the Bulldogs get in because it is legitimately one of the top four teams even with a loss in the title game?
I think Georgia will win the SEC title but that’s a fun little scenario to talk about.
The last three games are really tied for third. The Oklahoma State-Texas game is placed in third for two reasons. One, it’s the morning game. So, it will be on just because nothing else will be on. I do like Texas receiver Xavier Worthy and tight end Ja’Tavion Sanders. Oklahoma State's Ollie Gordon is the nation's leading rusher. I haven't seen him play yet but if he's doing better than Cody Schrader I'd like to see for myself. But I’m not too interested in seeing Texas likely cruise to a conference championship versus the Cowboys. I would’ve enjoyed a Red River Rivalry rematch.
Without Jordan Travis, I am no longer interested in Florida State for the time being. Until its quarterback proves he’s Cardale Jones, I don’t want to see them. The thing is, behind Missouri, I’ve probably “watched” Florida State more than any other team. And by watch, I mean its game has been on in the background and I glance at the TV sometimes as I prepare to leave for Mizzou’s game.
Time for a wrestling analogy because I know how much people enjoy them.
The Seminoles are the champion that has to defend their title against someone and they win the match, but they get hurt pretty badly. This then leads to Mr./Ms. Money in the Bank cashing in on the wounded champion. That’s what’s probably going to happen to them. Florida State will probably beat Louisville, but if I’m one of the other three teams in the CFP I'm licking my chops to face that Florida State team with no quarterback. I want the committee to put them as one of the four teams for sure.
The only thing about Iowa-Michigan I want to see is maybe a couple of Michigan offensive drives. I saw the end of the game versus Ohio State a little bit, but I had just driven back from Arkansas, so I didn’t get a chance to actually lock-in. Other than that, there’s nothing about the Hawkeyes that yells must see. Sounds like a 24-6 game in favor of Michigan.
