College football

[Vrede too]

Drop is legit considering our qb has a broken ankle that he played on for at least a quarter.
No one is giving the back up, tj, much credit.

Chickens are next

So Auburn is 6-4, next to last in the conference, and has a reasonable likelihood of ending the season at 7-5. The team played mostly valiantly in a very tough schedule. But in retrospect, would you have enjoyed the season better with a bit easier schedule giving you maybe a 10-2 or 9-3 record and probably a better bowl trip?

Or, frivolously, would you trade either for a 1-11 record if the "1" was Bammer and the loss bumped them out of the championship?

The iron bowl is the only important game left for us, but I'm wondering if we will have anymore wins.

QB is out with a broken ankle and they announced today that our kicker is also out for the rest of the year.

magic is all that's left

Better count on defensive and special teams scoring/field position.

Who are the highest-paid college football coaches? These are the five top salaries.

The inflation of college football coaching salaries appears to have no end in sight. In the latest research done by USA TODAY Sports, 21 coaches will make at least $5 million this season, despite athletics departments cutting annual pay to staff amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

It should be no surprise that the biggest and richest conferences are the ones spending the most on their coaches. Eighteen of the 28 highest-paid coaches in this year's survey reside in the Big Ten and SEC. All of the 28 coaches earned compensation of more than $4 million. Just 15 years ago, only one surpassed $3 million....

No. 1 Nick Saban, Alabama ($9,753,221)
9-1, PSC (last week) and AP #2
No. 2 Ed Orgeron, LSU ($9,012,917)
4-6, unranked, unlikely to get a Bowl invite
No. 3 David Shaw, Stanford ($8,924,683)
3-7, unranked, won't get a Bowl invite
No. 4 Dabo Swinney, Clemson ($8,370,775)
7-3, unranked, unlikely to play in the ACC Championship
No. 5 Lincoln Riley, Oklahoma ($7,672,710) ...
9-1, just tumbled to AP #12, could still get knocked out of the Big 12 Championship

There's a link to "COACHES' PAY DATABASE: See what every public-school coach earns", but it's behind USA TODAY's paywall.

[Vrede too]

College Football Playoff Rankings

No change in the Top 7.

1 Georgia 10-0
2 Alabama 9-1
3 Oregon 9-1
4 Ohio State 9-1. Oregon has the edge since it beat Ohio State.
5 Cincinnati 10-0. I'll bet it never gets in.
6 Michigan 9-1
7 Michigan State 9-1 Controversial since it beat Michigan.
8 Notre Dame 9-1 up1
9 Oklahoma State 9-1 up1 Does the Big 12 have any path to the playoffs?
10 Wake Forest 9-1 up2 Back in the Top 10 after beating NCSU.
11 Baylor 8-2 up2
12 Ole Miss 8-2 up3
13 Oklahoma 9-1 down5 Ouch. Too bad, so sad.

19 San Diego State 9-1 up3 Top 20, congrats!
20 NC State 7-3 down4. Oh well.

Dropped from rankings: Auburn 17, Purdue 19

[billy.pilgrim]

I'm seeing my best chance for a win being in a different sport.

[Vrede too]

I'm seeing my best chance for a win being in a different sport.

It's not that bad. Beating Bama in Auburn in 2 weeks is unlikely (would be great, though), but you're favored by 7.5 @SC on Sat and may get a beatable Bowl opponent . . . like also 6-4 UCF.

On Sat 5-5 UNC may get its Bowl bid by beating 1-9 FCS Wofford in Chapel Hill . It's then likely to lose @ 7-3 NCSU in the regular season finale.

[billy.pilgrim]

I'm seeing my best chance for a win being in a different sport.

It's not that bad. Beating Bama in Auburn in 2 weeks is unlikely (would be great, though), but you're favored by 7.5 @SC on Sat and may get a beatable Bowl opponent . . . like also 6-4 UCF.

On Sat 5-5 UNC may get its Bowl bid by beating 1-9 FCS Wofford in Chapel Hill . It's then likely to lose @ 7-3 NCSU in the regular season finale.

Some are saying


GATOR BOWL vs. North Carolina

Matchup: A bowl showdown with UNC would bring back to life a nonconference game between the programs to open the 2020 season in Atlanta that was canceled when conference-only schedules were implemented last year. A preseason top-10 team, Mack Brown's Tar Heels are 5-5 on the year after three straight games against ranked opponents.

[Vrede too]

Some are saying

GATOR BOWL vs. North Carolina

Matchup: A bowl showdown with UNC would bring back to life a nonconference game between the programs to open the 2020 season in Atlanta that was canceled when conference-only schedules were implemented last year. A preseason top-10 team, Mack Brown's Tar Heels are 5-5 on the year after three straight games against ranked opponents.

I think we can all agree that North Carolina would lose to Auburn.

Dec. 31 Gator: North Carolina vs. Auburn
https://www.cbssports.com/college-footb ... edictions/

Outback Bowl (January 1): Wisconsin vs. Auburn
Holiday Bowl (December 28): North Carolina vs. Oregon State
https://bleacherreport.com/articles/295 ... p-rankings

Gator Bowl (Dec. 31): Auburn vs. Clemson
Holiday Bowl (Dec. 28): North Carolina vs. UCLA
https://athlonsports.com/college-footba ... tions-2021

And so on. We'll see.
Impressive if you do get Fri Dec 31 or Sat January 1.

[Vrede too]

GO:

@Nevada 7-3 > Air Force 7-3. SAM them.
@Washington St 5-5 > Arizona 1-9. I don't have anything against Arizona, but the thought of the COVIDiot former WSU coaching staff watching a Bowl game from their couches pleases me. Pac12 Network, grrr!
SDSU (19) 9-1, 1st MWC West Division FBS > UNLV 2-8. Good luck! A possible 12-1 record would make for an excellent Bowl invitation. CBSS, grrr!

I'm rooting for all favorites tonight. Ut-oh.

[Vrede too]

GO:

@Nevada 7-3 > Air Force 7-3. SAM them.
Nevada came back from 14 down to tie with 3:13 left, lost 39-41 in 3OT. Fun game.
@Washington St 5-5 > Arizona 1-9. I don't have anything against Arizona, but the thought of the COVIDiot former WSU coaching staff watching a Bowl game from their couches pleases me. Pac12 Network, grrr!
WSU routed AZ. Bowl baby.
SDSU (19) 9-1, 1st MWC West Division > UNLV 2-8. Good luck! A possible 12-1 record would make for an excellent Bowl invitation. CBSS, grrr!
SDSU hung on to win 28-20. Congrats!

I'm rooting for all favorites tonight. Ut-oh. 2-1.

Michigan St (7) 9-1, 2nd BTEN East Division @Ohio St (4) 9-1, 1st BTEN East Division, hmmm. Best game of the day? Ohio St is favored by 18.5! No way would I have bet on it, but it's up early 14-0.

GO:

Top 25
Wake Forest (10) 9-1, 1st ACC Atlantic Division > @Clemson 7-3, 2nd ACC Atlantic Division. Clemson is favored by 4! A win and Wake Forest is in the ACC Championship and Clemson is out. Clemson up early 10-0 .
Iowa St 6-4 > Oklahoma (13) 9-1, 1st BIG12. Oklahoma is only favored by 3.5.
Charleston Southern 4-5 FCS > @Georgia (1) 10-0, 1st SEC East Division. Yeah, right, 0-21 so far.
Prairie View A&M 7-2, 1st SWAC West Division FCS > @Texas A&M (16) 7-3. Yeah, right.
@Maryland 5-5 > 14.5 point favorite Michigan (6) 9-1. Go Terps. On BTN, dammit.
14.5 point favorite @Pittsburgh (18) 8-2, 1st ACC Coastal Division > Virginia 6-4, 2nd ACC Coastal Division. A win and Pitt is in the ACC Championship and VA is out.
@Wisconsin (15) 7-3, 1st BTEN West Division > Nebraska 3-7
Arkansas (21) 7-3 > 20.5 point! favorite @Alabama (2) 9-1, 1st SEC West Division. How sweet would that be?
@N.C. State (20) 7-3 > Syracuse 5-5. On ACCN, dammit.
@Kansas St 7-3 > Baylor (11) 8-2. Keep Baylor out of the Top 10.
Oregon (3) 9-1, 1st PAC12 North Division > @Utah (23) 7-3, 1st PAC12 South Division. PAC12 Championship preview? Utah favored by 3. :confusion-scratchheadblue:
@Texas Tech 6-4 > Oklahoma St. (9) 9-1, 1st BIG12. Knock it out of the Top 10!

Non-Top 25
@Boston Coll 6-4 > Florida St 4-6. No Bowl for FSU. Florida St up early 19-3.
Rutgers 5-5 > @Penn St 6-4. Penn St up at the half 7-0.
UMass 1-9 > @Army 6-3. Army up at the half 19-10.
East Carolina 6-4 > @Navy 2-7.
Appalachian State 8-2, 1st SBELT East Division > @Troy 5-5. Get ranked with a win? On ESPN+, dammit.
@Charlotte 5-5 > Marshall 6-4.
UCLA 6-4 > @USC 4-5. Clash of the mediocre.
Louisiana 9-1 > @Liberty 7-3. Burn those Flames!
Auburn 6-4 > @South Carolina 5-5. Good luck.
@Utah St 8-2, 1st MWC Mountain Division > Wyoming 5-5. I know, but a Utah St win keeps Air Force out of the MWC Championship vs SDSU.

FCS:
#7 @Montana (8-2) > #3 Montana St. (9-1). Griz favored by 2.5. I can't stream without subscribing.
Other Top 10 to lose.

[Vrede too]

Michigan St (7) 9-1, 2nd BTEN East Division @Ohio St (4) 9-1, 1st BTEN East Division, hmmm. Best game of the day? Ohio St is favored by 18.5! No way would I have bet on it, but it's up early 14-0. Ohio St 56-7. Look out OR and everyone else.

GO:

Top 25
Wake Forest (10) 9-1, 1st ACC Atlantic Division > @Clemson 7-3, 2nd ACC Atlantic Division. Clemson is favored by 4! A win and Wake Forest is in the ACC Championship and Clemson is out. Clemson up early 10-0 . Crap.
Iowa St 6-4 > Oklahoma (13) 9-1, 1st BIG12. Oklahoma is only favored by 3.5.
Good game. Oklahoma 28-21.
Charleston Southern 4-5 FCS > @Georgia (1) 10-0, 1st SEC East Division. Yeah, right, 0-21 so far. Rout.
Prairie View A&M 7-2, 1st SWAC West Division FCS > @Texas A&M (16) 7-3. Yeah, right. Rout.

Non-Top 25
@Boston Coll 6-4 > Florida St 4-6. No Bowl for FSU. Florida St up early 19-3. Florida St 26-23, argh.
Rutgers 5-5 > @Penn St 6-4. Penn St up at the half 7-0. Rout by Penn St.
UMass 1-9 > @Army 6-3. Army up at the half 19-10. Nope.

FCS:
#7 @Montana (8-2) > #3 Montana St. (9-1). Griz favored by 2.5. I can't stream without subscribing. Griz up 16-3 at the half!
Other Top 10 to lose.

My wishes are 0-7 so far.

[Vrede too]

GO:

Top 25
@Maryland 5-5 > 14.5 point favorite Michigan (6) 9-1. Go Terps. On BTN, dammit. Embarrassing.
14.5 point favorite @Pittsburgh (18) 8-2, 1st ACC Coastal Division > Virginia 6-4, 2nd ACC Coastal Division. A win and Pitt is in the ACC Championship and VA is out. Done, 48-38.
@Wisconsin (15) 7-3, 1st BTEN West Division > Nebraska 3-7. Cool, 35-28.
Arkansas (21) 7-3 > 20.5 point! favorite @Alabama (2) 9-1, 1st SEC West Division. How sweet would that be?
Great game, Arkansas came thaaat close. 900 total passing yards, team record for AL, 8 total passing TDs, no INTs.
@N.C. State (20) 7-3 > Syracuse 5-5. On ACCN, dammit. Nice!

Non-Top 25
East Carolina 6-4 > @Navy 2-7. Yes, 38-35.
Appalachian State 8-2, 1st SBELT East Division > @Troy 5-5. Get ranked with a win? On ESPN+, dammit.
45-7 sweet! Sun Belt Championship game guaranteed.
@Charlotte 5-5 > Marshall 6-4. Nope.
UCLA 6-4 > @USC 4-5. Clash of the mediocre. It's a Bruin city!
Louisiana 9-1 > @Liberty 7-3. Burn those Flames! Yeah, crushed them.

Also, MO > FL by one in 1OT after going for 2 sooner than they had to. Daring.

FCS:
#7 @Montana (8-2) > #3 Montana St. (9-1). Griz favored by 2.5. I can't stream without subscribing. 29-10 in MIssoula!!! 1st round bye certain, then 1 or more frigid home games, perhaps vs wussy southern teams.
Other Top 10 to lose. Losers: 3, 10

8-3 wishes, 8-10 on the day.

[billy.pilgrim]

TJ is looking good. I wanted him over early on mainly due to Bo's legacy birthright claim and from hearing so much negative about TJ's not understanding plays.
His real test is next week

[Vrede too]

TJ is looking good. I wanted him over early on mainly due to Bo's legacy birthright claim and from hearing so much negative about TJ's not understanding plays.
His real test is next week

Q: Why did the Chicken cross the road?
A: To escape the Auburn pass rush.

There were already 3 sacks and an INT early in the 2nd.

Auburn beat Arkansas. Arkansas came thaaat close to beating AL. It's possible.
Edit: Never mind. A team that can't beat SC won't beat AL. Nice start, then a collapse.

[Vrede too]

GO:

Top 25
@Kansas St 7-3 > Baylor (11) 8-2. Keep Baylor out of the Top 10. KSU had its chances, but nope.
Oregon (3) 9-1, 1st PAC12 North Division > @Utah (23) 7-3, 1st PAC12 South Division. PAC12 Championship preview? Utah favored by 3. :confusion-scratchheadblue:
Oh noooo! The playoffs will suck, again.
@Texas Tech 6-4 > Oklahoma St. (9) 9-1, 1st BIG12. Knock it out of the Top 10! Uh-uh, skunked.

Losers: 3, 7, 10, 21

Non-Top 25
Auburn 6-4 > @South Carolina 5-5. Good luck. Sigh.
@Utah St 8-2, 1st MWC Mountain Division > Wyoming 5-5. I know, but a Utah St win keeps Air Force out of the MWC Championship vs SDSU. No, got routed.

Also, @Miami (FL) 5-5 beat Virginia Tech 5-5. Congrats, Bowl eligible.

0-5, 8-15 for the day.


an accidental onside kick...

[billy.pilgrim]

TJ is looking good. I wanted him over early on mainly due to Bo's legacy birthright claim and from hearing so much negative about TJ's not understanding plays.
His real test is next week

Q: Why did the Chicken cross the road?
A: To escape the Auburn pass rush.

There were already 3 sacks and an INT early in the 2nd.

Auburn beat Arkansas. Arkansas came thaaat close to beating AL. It's possible.
Edit: Never mind. A team that can't beat SC won't beat AL. Nice start, then a collapse.

It could be 50 to 0 all bammer, but then there's always a chance in a rivalry game, but still - we suck.

[Vrede too]

It could be 50 to 0 all bammer, but then there's always a chance in a rivalry game, but still - we suck.

Yeah, too bad about that. I'll hope for that rivalry game thing.


AP Top 25

1. Georgia 11-0
2. Ohio State 10-1 up3, well deserved after crushing Michigan State. Next up @#6 Michigan, who Michigan State beat.
3. Alabama 10-1 down1, still
4. Cincinnati 11-0 down1.
5. Notre Dame 10-1 up1.
6. Michigan 10-1 up2
7. Oklahoma State 10-1 up2 Next up vs #10 Oklahoma at home.
8. Ole Miss 9-2 up2
9. Baylor 9-2 up2
10. Oklahoma 10-1 up2 3rd Big 12 team in the Top 10, but none in playoff position
11. Oregon 9-2 down7, as it should be after losing to now #16 Utah
12. Michigan State 9-2 down5, as it should be.

21. Wake Forest 9-2 down8, as it should be after shaming NC by losing to unranked Clemson.
22. San Diego State 10-1 up1, slowest climb ever. Next up vs Boise St at home.
23. Louisiana 10-1 up1.
Aside: Louisiana is 7-0 in the Sun Belt Conference. 3 other teams in the West Division are 2-5 and 1 is 1-6 .
24. North Carolina State 8-3 up1. Next up vs UNC at home.

Others with votes:

(29) Appalachian State 9-2. Next up vs Georgia Southern 3-8 at home, then @#23 Louisiana in the Sun Belt Championship. Will it crack the Top 25 if it wins that one?

[Vrede too]

Stats Perform FCS Top 25

1 Sam Houston 10-0
2 James Madison 10-1
3 North Dakota State 10-1 up1
4 Eastern Washington 9-2 up1
5 Montana 9-2 up2
6 Villanova 9-2
7 Montana State 9-2 down4
8 Sacramento State 9-2 up3
9 ETSU 10-1 down1, neoplacebo attended
10 Kennesaw State 10-1 down1

14 UC Davis 8-3 down4

Eastern Washington, Montana, Montana State, Sacramento State and UC Davis are all in the Big Sky Conference.

2021 NCAA FCS football championship bracket announced

... Montana (9-2) will be the sixth seed as an at-large selection out of the Big Sky Conference. The Grizzlies finished the season winning their final five games and will be making their 25th appearance in the FCS Championship....

25 is the most by any school.
Montana is 33-22 in the tournament.
Montana will get at least 1 home game - in December, no dome.

Schools by Conference

Missouri Valley Football Conference – 6
Big Sky Conference – 5 ...

24 teams are in the tournament. 8 get a 1st round bye including Montana , Montana State and Sacramento State.
UC Davis (8-3) plays at South Dakota St. (8-3).
University of Northern Iowa (6-5) plays at Eastern Wash. (9-2)

GO GRIZ!!!

[Vrede too]

It could be 50 to 0 all bammer, but then there's always a chance in a rivalry game, but still - we suck.

Seriously, Notre Dame has shot at return to College Football Playoff

... Notre Dame is 10-1 heading into a season-ending game with Stanford. Beat the 3-8 Cardinal and the Irish will sit back and hope for multiple paths to the playoffs to open up for them.

While predicting what a human committee will decide is imperfect, it stands to reason Notre Dame probably needs any two of the following to happen:

Georgia soundly defeating Alabama in the SEC championship game. How soundly? Enough to eliminate the Crimson Tide as an attractive two-loss contender.

The winner of Oklahoma-Oklahoma State to lose in the Big 12 championship game.

The winner of Ohio State-Michigan to lose in the Big Ten championship game.

A Cincinnati loss.

None of these are far-fetched. And if any two happen, then the playoff committee is about out of obvious contenders. It would likely need to put a two-loss team in ahead of the Irish and while there may be some debate on that, would the committee really? ...

Hey!!! He doesn't even mention Auburn beating Alabama on Sat. Fuck you, Dan Wetzel. Everyone outside of Tuscaloosa, especially some bubble teams, are Tiger fans this week. WDE.

[Vrede too]

PSC:

1. Georgia 11-0
2. Ohio State 10-1 up2. Next up @Michigan (5).
3. Alabama 10-1 down1 Next up getting crushed @Auburn
4. Cincinnati 11-0 up1, highest a non-Power Five team has ever achieved. Next up ECU, then Houston (24) in the AAC title game. If they win do they stay in the playoffs while other teams are beating Power Five teams in their title games? I think not.
5. Michigan 10-1 up1. Go Ohio State, but I'm not thrilled about it.
6. Notre Dame 10-1 up2.
7. Oklahoma State 10-1 up2 Now Oklahoma at home.
8. Baylor 9-2 up3 for beating KSU?
9. Ole Miss 9-2 up3 for beating Vandy?
10. Oklahoma 10-1 up3 for beating Iowa St?
11. Oregon 9-2 down8 FU Utah.
12. Michigan State 9-2 down5.

18. Wake Forest 9-2 down8. FU Clemson.

20. North Carolina State 8-3. Beat UNC.
21. San Diego State 10-1 down2 after winning??? FU PSC.

23. Clemson 8-3 was unranked

[Vrede too]

GO:
@San Jose St 5-6 > Fresno St 8-3, 2nd MWC West Division. A Fresno St loss guarantees SDSU a slot in the Mountain West Championship game even if @SDSU loses to Boise St in its regular season finale on Friday.

[O Really]

20. North Carolina State 8-3. Beat UNC.

Thanks! Your endorsement undoubtedly increases the 'Heels chances dramatically.