2021 College Football Thread: New Year Same Playoff

[BuckeyeRed27]

And do you know why OSU romps in the B1G Championship (IMO)? Look at the teams that comprise the West and the level of competition vs the East. Currently, four teams from the East are ranked (three are top 10), and one from the West (Iowa #9). Three teams are tied for 1st in the East and in the hunt. I don't see anyone touching Iowa, and that includes second-place Minnesota. But they go head-to-head in Iowa in three weeks.

Yeah, it would be nice, as far as the level of competition, to have a simlar "Alabama-Georgia" Championship game in the B1G. IMO, that's not a sign of weakness with the B1G as much as it is division alignment. You don't have the two best B1G teams in the championship game, for the most part, because your "elite" teams are primarily in one division fighting it out. JMO, but I see more "parity" in the SEC when it came to creating the divisions.

Also OSU usually doesn’t romp in the Big Ten Championship game, with one very glaring exception. They’ve won them recently but had to slog through a couple Wisconsin wins and without Trey Sermon going insane last year they may have not beat Northwestern.

[Sea Ray]

Probably. Alabama has done it or come close several times in the last 20 years.

I think what Ohio State has built is special and them winning 22 in a row has more to do with them than the conference. Same for Alabama. Less so for Clemson before this season. They were good but got a lot of breaks from a bad ACC.

A&M would probably be OSUs best win and I think OSU would win by around 28. It is good to see A&M improving though. They were one of the most disappointing teams in the country the first month.

Wrong again. Alabama rarely goes one yr undefeated in the SEC. I can't think of any time that they've gone two straight yrs undefeated in the SEC, let alone 3. Goes to show you folks don't follow the SEC and it's embarrassing for you. You never get out of your Big Ten bubble

[Sea Ray]

Supplant OSU with Alabama.

In the last 10 years, 'Bama has won 6 SEC titles. The Buckeyes appeared in 6 B1G Championship games (5-1). In the SEC, LSU and Georgia have had their "moment". In the B1G, Penn State and Michigan State. And, IMO, in both of these conferences you got some sound, good programs in Auburn, Texas A&M, Miss State.... B1G, Iowa, Wisconsin.

I guess it's gonna have to come down to arm wrestling to see whose conference is stronger/better (lol). The Bowl games gives us the best glimpse. But I don't care.

Alabama has not come close to running 22 straight SEC wins in my memory. Maybe they did it back in Bear Bryant's day.

[Assembly Hall]

Alabama has not come close to running 22 straight SEC wins in my memory. Maybe they did it back in Bear Bryant's day.

I am pretty sure the Bear won 20+ SEC games in a row back in the late 70s.

[BuckeyeRed27]

Wrong again. Alabama rarely goes one yr undefeated in the SEC. I can't think of any time that they've gone two straight yrs undefeated in the SEC, let alone 3. Goes to show you folks don't follow the SEC and it's embarrassing for you. You never get out of your Big Ten bubble

I’m not wrong. They did it between 2015-17. They’ve also had several 13+ win streaks under Saban.

I’m an OSU fan and recognize my bias, but I’m also a huge college football fan, watch a ton of games and feel like I can come at the sport pretty objectively. You on the other hand are a brutal homer that can’t get out of his own way and has popped off twice in the last week, first yelling at someone to check A&Ms schedule about playing Clemson (wrong) and now at me about Alabama not having as long as a conference win steak as OSU (wrong again).

[BuckeyeRed27]

Alabama has not come close to running 22 straight SEC wins in my memory. Maybe they did it back in Bear Bryant's day.

23 straight from 2015-2017. Loss to Ole Miss in 2015, didn’t lose a conference game again until Auburn in 2017. I don’t believe Bear was on the sideline.

[Sea Ray]

23 straight from 2015-2017. Loss to Ole Miss in 2015, didn’t lose a conference game again until Auburn in 2017. I don’t believe Bear was on the sideline.

Fair enough. I expect OSU to blow past that

[Chip R]

And another variable came to mind. If you're a talented, gifted, young athlete, where do you want to go? Obviously where you'll get the most national exposure? The Alabama's, OSU's, Clemson's, etc, have huge edge when it comes to recruiting and the handing out of scholarships.... "Gee. I got a tough decision to make because I got offers from OSU, Rutgers, Northwestern, and Bowling Green" LOL

These schools, for the most part, are not going to draw the best talent. Or at least have an uphill battle. That's why I am always impressed when I see schools, like Cincinnati and others, who are able to acquire this talent. I'm a firm beleiver the talent is out there. I don't think there's a shortage in the pool. Unlike the bigger schools, whch are already high on any recruit's list, the smaller programs have to work harder, put in that extra effort, to discover it.

Perhaps. But this isn't 1975 anymore and there's one game a week on TV. Now pretty much every D1 game is on TV. I can even see my alma mater Northern Iowa, which is a FCS team, every week on ESPN+. So you can get exposure anywhere. And the thing about exposure is that you have to get on the field to get that exposure. If you're a hotshot HS QB and you want to go to somewhere like Alabama or OSU, you're going to have to go against 7 other guys just to make the team. You may be good enough to win the starting job but most likely not. So you probably redshirt a year and meanwhile there are 2-3 other QBs coming in to compete for the job. If you're lucky an upperclassman has either transferred, moved to another position or gone pro. By then you may win the starting job but maybe you're not quite good enough to beat out a QB that is NFL bound. So instead of going to those schools, you may decide to go elsewhere where you have a better opportunity to play sooner. You're still going to be on TV every week and you have less competition at your position. A guy like Buffalo QB Josh Allen went to Wyoming after JC. First round pick and was picked in the top 10. If he'd have gone to one of those other P5 schools with a history of producing NFL QBs, they may have tried to convert him to tight end. So, of course there's a huge advantage playing at schools like OSU or Alabama, there are also disadvantages too.

[UKFlounder]

Mac Jones originally committed to Kentucky,(great scouting by our staff) and when he changed his mind to Alabama, a. lot of fans ssid he would never see the field because of Tua xnd hic brother snd how Bama recruits, but Jones stayed, worked and likely was drafted much higher because he was at Alabama. He didn’t have great physical size or talent but his production hot him drafted

He might be the unicorn of th9se situations, but that’s what every kid thinks they can go if they just get the chance.

And with transferring being do much easier now, why not at least give it a shot at a big school?

Perhaps. But this isn't 1975 anymore and there's one game a week on TV. Now pretty much every D1 game is on TV. I can even see my alma mater Northern Iowa, which is a FCS team, every week on ESPN+. So you can get exposure anywhere. And the thing about exposure is that you have to get on the field to get that exposure. If you're a hotshot HS QB and you want to go to somewhere like Alabama or OSU, you're going to have to go against 7 other guys just to make the team. You may be good enough to win the starting job but most likely not. So you probably redshirt a year and meanwhile there are 2-3 other QBs coming in to compete for the job. If you're lucky an upperclassman has either transferred, moved to another position or gone pro. By then you may win the starting job but maybe you're not quite good enough to beat out a QB that is NFL bound. So instead of going to those schools, you may decide to go elsewhere where you have a better opportunity to play sooner. You're still going to be on TV every week and you have less competition at your position. A guy like Buffalo QB Josh Allen went to Wyoming after JC. First round pick and was picked in the top 10. If he'd have gone to one of those other P5 schools with a history of producing NFL QBs, they may have tried to convert him to tight end. So, of course there's a huge advantage playing at schools like OSU or Alabama, there are also disadvantages too.

[oregonred]

The 9-game B1G, Pac-12 and Big 12 schedules while the SEC plays 8 games is a major issue. Also the protected Tenn-Bama game (we can no longer count that as a rivalry as it has somehow become Ohio State/Rutgers level of competitive imbalance over 15 years) continues to benefit Saban each and every season at the expense of the other major SEC powers.

Almost guarantees Alabama can never lose more than one SEC conference game every year (ensuring a playoff appearance) while the actually competitive LSU/Florida and Auburn/Georgia protected games gives two of those programs an extra loss every year. It's ridiculous and I can't believe the Presidents of those four schools let it happen every year.

The top four playoff teams right NOW based on eye test

1) Georgia
2a) Bama/OSU
2b) OSU/Bama
4) Cincinnati

That would be a great playoff right there...

Need Oklahoma to lose

Incomplete: Michigan and Michigan State

Not dead yet: Oregon

WTH? Clemson. What is going on with that offense and program this year.

[WVRed]

In non Big-10 SEC news, Matt Wells fired by Texas Tech.

What’s going on in Lubbock?

[adkindo]

In non Big-10 SEC news, Matt Wells fired by Texas Tech.

What’s going on in Lubbock?

I never like the hire. He basically got hired off one good season at Utah State after several years of being bad/mediocre @ Utah State. Sadly, Neal Brown/WVU is the only team he has had consistent success against since arriving at Tech. They are 5-3, but will have a hard time winning any of their last 4 games. Have not seen any lists, but maybe Graham Harrell? Assume he will need a job after this season as OC at USC.

[adkindo]

The top four playoff teams right NOW based on eye test

1) Georgia
2a) Bama/OSU
2b) OSU/Bama
4) Cincinnati

That would be a great playoff right there...

Need Oklahoma to lose

Incomplete: Michigan and Michigan State

Not dead yet: Oregon

WTH? Clemson. What is going on with that offense and program this year.

Oklahoma could slip up based on this past week, but I would not bet on it. I think they win out, get in the playoffs and lose in the semi-final. Since I have no dog in the fight, I hope Bama beats UGA in the SEC Championship game, Ohio State, Cincy and Oklahoma win out. I want the committee to have to make a tough decision.

Btw, if UTSA wins out....they are my National Champion!

[BuckeyeRed27]

Oklahoma could slip up based on this past week, but I would not bet on it. I think they win out, get in the playoffs and lose in the semi-final. Since I have no dog in the fight, I hope Bama beats UGA in the SEC Championship game, Ohio State, Cincy and Oklahoma win out. I want the committee to have to make a tough decision.

Btw, if UTSA wins out....they are my National Champion!

Oklahoma could slip up based on their entire season. I’ll be stunned if they win out. I think it’s more likely they lose twice than win out.

[adkindo]

Oklahoma could slip up based on their entire season. I’ll be stunned if they win out. I think it’s more likely they lose twice than win out.

I have heard others doubt them over the past couple weeks, but I am not sure if that is based on 3 of the final 4 games being against ranked teams....or the actual teams. I personally do not see any of those teams beating Oklahoma. I do not really think their season matters before Caleb Williams, and outside a half against Kansas, their offense has been rolling pretty well with Williams. It is also as much about not thinking Baylor, Ok State or Iowa State are legit high level teams.