College football week 10 is in the books. After every week fans can take away things from what happened on the field. Here are 5 things learned from college football week 12.
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Oklahoma has had a gauntlet of a schedule this season and had to deal with an injury to quarterback John Mateer. They came into week 12 with two losses and a tough schedule ahead. The Sooners left Alabama with a narrow win of 23-21. Oklahoma only had one offensive touchdown, but they made field goals and had a pick six by Eli Bowen to help put them over the top.
With the win, Oklahoma could still make the CFP. They were ranked 11th in the CFP rankings heading into the week, but the daunting schedule had most figuring they would be on the outside looking in. Now, they have just Missouri and LSU left. Winning out will put them in the CFP, while one loss may still have them in contention if they get enough help.
Texas had thin margins for the rest of the season after losing two games early in the year. This week, they traveled to Georgia, which would really test their ability on the road. The Longhorns ended up being outmatched, as their offense couldn’t get anything going, despite the defense holding strong for most of the game.
With the loss, Texas now has three losses on the season. A three-loss team could make the CFP, but it is going to require a lot of help the rest of the way. There are now seven SEC teams with just two losses on the year and it is hard to see a world where a three-loss Texas jumps any of them. The Longhorns will need to win out and hope for some help down the stretch for any hope of making the CFP.
Notre Dame lost their first two games of the season to Texas A&M and Miami. They have since won eight straight games to put themselves in a good position to make the CFP. This week they squared off with Pittsburgh, a team ranked 22 by the CFP Committee. The Fighting Irish had no issues with Pitt, as they won 37-15.
The team that started the year has vastly improved, specifically on the defensive side of the ball. Since their third game, they have allowed just 12.3 points per game. On offense, they have utilized Jeremiyah Love more, but the real reason the offense has improved is the progression of C.J. Carr. The beginning of the season were the first starts of his young career, but he is now playing more efficient football, for the most part. Notre Dame is getting better and will be a team no one wants to see in the CFP.
Indiana and Ohio State keep winning, as they stayed undefeated after this week. But there are other teams who have some CFP hopes who stayed alive this week. Oregon defeated Minnesota easily on Friday night. Their lone loss is to Indiana and the win keeps them firmly in the CFP for now, where a loss would’ve made things dicey.
On top of Oregon, Michigan survived a scare from Northwestern, as they won a close game. The Wolverines will have to win out, which includes a game against Ohio State, but it is possible for them to make the CFP. USC defeated a tough Iowa team in bad weather this week, leaving them with just two losses on the season, like Michigan. Those five teams all have paths towards the CFP, while the rest of the conference is eliminated.
The ACC and American Conference both have crazy conference championship races going on right now. First, the ACC had plenty of teams still in contention heading into the week. Virginia beat Duke to eliminate them from ACC contention, despite the Blue Devils having four losses (three of them in the nonconference schedule) before the week began. Pittsburgh lost to Notre Dame in a nonconference game, so they stay alive, while Georgia Tech does as well after surviving a close game to Boston College. The last one-loss team in conference is SMU and they were off this week. If these five winners slip up somehow, there are plenty of worthy teams with two-loss teams waiting in the wings.
The American may have lost its stranglehold on an automatic qualifying spot in the CFP, as James Madison is surging, but there is still a solid chance a team from the American makes it. USF was the frontrunner in the conference, but they lost to Navy. That game, along with ECU knocking off Memphis, has left the conference with four one-loss teams in conference play. Along with ECU, Tulane, North Texas and Navy all have just one loss and none of these teams play each other down the stretch, which could lead this conference championship to be decided by tiebreakers.
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