College football week 11 is in the books. After every week fans can take away things from what happened on the field. Here are five things learned from college football week 11.
LSU has looked good leading up to the Alabama game before, but in past years it has always fallen apart. This year was different though, as the Tigers defeated the Crimson Tide 46-41. Joe Burrow went 31/39 passing for 393 yards and three touchdowns, furthering his Heisman Trophy campaign. Now, the Tigers look like they will be heading into the College Football Playoff.
Burrow was able to light up an Alabama defense that now allows 18.7 points per game following the game this weekend. They will likely not be tested the rest of the regular season. Against the elite teams in the SEC Championship and beyond, LSU doesn’t look like they will have problems moving the football.
Although they hadn’t played the stiffest competition, Minnesota was undefeated headed into the week. They were not expected to beat Penn State this week though. The Golden Gophers were fired up for this game and brought the fight to the Nittany Lions, winning 31-26.
With the win, Minnesota is one step closer to a Big Ten Championship Game. If they get that far while still undefeated, they will have a chance to win and get into the College Football Playoff, no matter how unlikely it may have seemed. P.J. Fleck and his seven-year extension have some work to do, but now they are legitimized.
It was a close game that went to overtime, but Baylor was able to defeat their rivals, TCU, 29-23. The game was ugly, but Baylor did what they do best, which is grind out wins. Matt Rhule has the team at 9-0 with several close wins. Now, the question becomes, how long can they keep this up.
This sets up Baylor to make a run for the CFP. They get to play Oklahoma this week, which will give them their first marquee game this season. The game could be a foreshadowing of the Big 12 Championship. Winning this week against TCU has kept a lot of possibilities open for Baylor.
With their backs up against the wall in the Big 12 race, Texas won a close game over Kansas State 27-24. The Wildcats came into the game ranked 16th by the CFP committee. With the win, Texas has mad their record 6-3 overall and 4-2 in the Big 12.
The Longhorns still have a chance to make the Big 12 Championship. They have the two conference losses and sit behind Oklahoma and Baylor. Oklahoma has the one conference loss to Kansas State, while Baylor has zero. Those two teams play each other this week, so the result could keep the door open for Texas. The Longhorns still play Baylor too, giving them a real chance to make up some ground and make the Big 12 Championship Game.
The winner of the Wisconsin-Iowa game was still going to have a chance to win the Big Ten West. Wisconsin was able to hold off Iowa 24-22, keeping their Big Ten Championship dreams alive. Minnesota beating Penn State makes things harder, but the Badgers still have decent chances to win the division.
Minnesota still plays Iowa and Wisconsin and could lose both games. If Wisconsin wins out and Minnesota loses two of three games, the Badgers will win the Big Ten West. A team that had a rough two-game stretch, which includes an upset loss to Illinois could be playing for a Big Ten Championship. That’s how crazy college football can get.
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