Week 12 – Sunday Storylines

Washington keeps winning – In the heavyweight battle of the night, UW did what they had to do to remain undefeated against Oregon State. The Huskies did not put up the gaudy numbers they’re accustomed to in the 22-20 victory, but Penix and company made plays when it mattered.

OSU did an incredible job of grinding down the Husky defense in the second half with the run game, but just couldn’t make the winning plays when they needed it.

Down go the Dukes – Without a doubt, the feel-good story of the season has been James Madison. Amidst a ton of unnecessary NCAA nonsense, the Dukes have dominated and even got to host College Gameday today. Good for them.

But today was just not their day. App State lived long enough to see themselves become the villain and upset the Dukes 26-23 in OT. We will always cherish those first 10 wins, JMU. Still love y’all.

Sunflower Showdown – Steady is the ship that rides out the storm. K-State feels like that team that rarely gets too high or too low, and that showed again on Saturday night. Facing KU’s third-string quarterback, the Cats did what they do best. Run the ball. Make the requisite plays on defense. That’s the recipe.

K-State did what it needed to do and walked out of Lawrence with a 31-27 victory.

FSU’s nightmare scenario – Sort of goes without saying, but you just have to feel gutted for Noles’ quarterback Jordan Travis. Ankles just aren’t supposed to bend that way. That all but ruins his Heisman campaign and the Nole’s chance at competing for a title. Really unfortunate and awful all around.

This really felt like the Dennis Dixon injury at Oregon, except that FSU didn’t lose. It feels like the season is totally toast now, and that really sucks.

Jeff Brohm’s brilliance – Back in August, I called out Lousiville’s favorable schedule and predicted a big year for the Cardinals. Much like myself, Brohm knew he needed to get some good wins out of this schedule, and boy, has he done it in a big way.

With its 38-31 win over Miami, the Cardinals moved to 10-1 and nailed down a berth in the ACC title game. Which, with the unfortunate FSU news, suddenly looks very gettable.

Not that we needed it, but this just confirms how good of a coach Brohm is. The dude is just good.

Red hot Arizona – The hottest team in America, literally and figuratively, is the Arizona Wildcats and the Cats didn’t cool down any today. Arizona raced out to an early 28-7 lead and never looked back in their 42-18 win over No. 22 Utah.

Jedd Fisch appeared to be a pretty underwhelming hire, but man is he cooking now. He’s doing great things down in Tuscon. I wonder if they can keep hold of him if a bigger school comes calling.

Brawl of the Wild – Every year around this time, I’m filled with jealousy as I see hard-working people like myself get the opportunity to see the Brawl of the Wild in person. For the uninformed, this is the annual rivalry game between FCS powers Montana and Montana State. It’s everything beautiful about college football.

The game features a beautifully wild backdrop of nature and mountains. Always cold weather. Smash-mouth football. Hated rivals. Copious amounts of Fireball whiskey. The list goes on.

Today, this big beautiful rivalry reared its ugly head once again and it was the No. 3 Montana Grizzlies that steam-rolled their cross-state rivals by a score of 37-7. The Griz got things popping from the jump and never looked back.

This was the perfect appetizer for the FCS playoff picture. The Grizzlies look incredibly formidable, and I for one, would not hate to see a Montana vs. SDSU playoff game in the near future.

Big bad Braun – Newly appointed Northwestern head coach David Braun has a helluva argument for Coach of the Year in the B10, if not the country. Amidst a dicey hazing scandal and the dismissal of Pat Fitzgerald, Braun has done the impossible and gotten the Wildcats to bowl eligibility after their 23-15 win over Purdue today.

Calling him a miracle worker is probably not entirely correct, but it’s probably not entirely off either. That team had all the makings of a one-win team and now they’re going bowling. What a scene.

Rinse and repeat Rhule – For the third time in as many weeks, the Matt Rhule-led Huskers had a chance to punch their ticket to bowl eligibility. But when the going got tough, the Huskers went soft and failed to capitalize.

Unlike the rest of the season, tonight was not about untimely turnovers against Wisconsin. Third-stringer Chubba Purdy filled in amicably, but with a potential game-winning drive in the works, Rhule elected to play for OT instead of going for the win. That decision proved futile.

Wisconsin banged in a touchdown and stopped the Huskers on the subsequent drive to nab a 24-17 OT victory. I probably need to rewatch the game to get the full report, but it really felt like Rhule went soft at the end.

Magic for Mizzou – A good Mizzou team flexed their muscle and snatched victory from the jaws of defeat. Where have we heard that one before?

Steadfast and unrelenting, Mizzou drove down the field late in the fourth quarter and lined up a game-winning field goal for kicker Harrison Mavis. Mavis ripped it in, giving the Tigers a 33-31 victory and Gator chomped his way to the sidelines. I love college football.

Freeze Warning – Guys, you’re never gonna guess what happened to Auburn during So-Con Saturday. No, it wasn’t a So-Con team that jumped up and bit them…but it was a wiley Aggies team from out west.

25-and-a-half point underdogs New Mexico State waltzed into Jordan Hare and waltzed out with a resounding 31-10 victory. Jerry Kill really embodied the “Call the Ambulance: But not for me!” meme and I’m so here for it. Everyone point and laugh at Auburn!!!

Pony Express – I touched on this during The Call Sheet, and today just further confirmed my suspicions. SMU is really good, y’all. That offense is fierce and they do just enough on defense.

In a big American conference battle of one-loss teams, the Ponies did their thang and topped Memphis 38-34. This game was wildly entertaining and was a real bright spot in a sneaky good early slate today.

I really like what Rhett Lashlee is cooking over in Dallas.

RICE – In the preseason, I proudly proclaimed that. I thought Rice could make a bowl game this year. Well, my brothers in arms, we are just one game away. Rice took care of business against Charlotte–despite being down JT Daniels–and is one very winnable game against FAU away from bowl eligibility. I need it like I need air!

America’s team – I don’t want to talk about it. Texas State got absolutely walloped today. Nothing more needs to be said. We’re on to next week.

Sonny Cumbie touched grass – Sonny Cumbie and La Tech have had a very bad year, and yeah today it got a whole lot worse. Rich Rod stuck his size 13 shoe up Cumbie’s hind parts and made him touch grass. Jville State is legit good, and yeah, LaTech is legit bad. Gotta wonder if changes are coming in Ruston.

Barry Odom has the goods – When you’ve got it, you’ve got it. And yeah, Barry Odom and UNLV have it.

If Braun doesn’t win Coach of the Year, Barry Odom is a great shout. The Runnin’ Rebels went from a lowly doormat to winning nine games and beating a good (but suddenly reeling) Air Force team. What a great story!

Midweek MACtion – ICYMI, Toledo had a stunning comeback and Miami OH took care of business to wrap up their respective divisions in the MAC. These two are set for a date in Detroit in a few weeks.

Both of these teams are fun and it should be a good game! Toledo is great on offense and the Redhawks are nasty on defense. Styles make fights and this should be a fun fight.

Washington vs. +1 Oregon State – -1 unit

Central Michigan vs. -8 Ohio – +1 unit

Hawaii vs. Wyoming OVER 44.5 – +1 unit

Arizona vs. Utah OVER 44.5 – +1 unit