Another year, another instance where there is controversy surrounding the College Football Playoff yet the drama will still be out there nonetheless. It’s crazy I know, especially coming from someone who doesn’t have a problem with the current structure of the postseason. The last two years have witnessed the Different Leagues narrative favor the Big Ten. Will it be more of the same this year? Well ala…
Oklahoma Sooners: Sometimes in College Football you must kill off your opponents when you get the chance. Because you never know if you’ll get that again especially in the same game. For Oklahoma everything was going according to plan. A 17-0 lead at home in front of a raucous crowd in Norman, the chance to put Kalen DeBoer on the hot seat. It looked nice until Alabama stopped playing around. Once they got all of their early stage miscues out of the way, the Tide manhandled the Sooners in every which way. Once Zabien Brown returned that interception for a touchdown to tie the game there was no coming back from that. I know John Mateer will get a ton of blame for how he got skunked in the 2nd Half but that vaunted OU defense did him no favors especially with how Ty Simpson carved them up after halftime. The Sooners beating themselves would do the rest especially on Special Teams. (The Groza Award is useless and this game proved it) Even with its return to National Contention, something is missing right now from the Sooners perspective. They have a strong recruiting class coming next year but even then it might not be enough to get a decades worth of playoff losses off of their backs. And before I move on every time that’s held a 17 point lead in the history of the CFP has moved on EXCEPT OKLAHOMA! Who’s done this twice. Texas now has their spankbank material for the entire summer. How’s that feeling?
Texas A&M Aggies: If you’re an A&M fan its gotta be so frustrating to have the best season you’ve had in a decade only to not only fail to put away a team that you had a good chance of beating but reinforce every narrative that’s been said about you since the days of Johnny Football. Remember when people thought their loss against Texas was a fluke especially since the Longhorns had nothing to lose since they were eliminated from CFP contention? TELL ME LIES TELL ME SWEET LITTLE LIES! That game was only the beginning for what eventually became possibly the most agonizing loss in program history. Even with Marcel Reed having his worst game of the season by a country mile, the Aggies defense held Carson Beck and company to their lowest scoring output of the season and it still wasn’t enough. Why is that? Because they got beat by the one element that can make or break a squad with championship ambitions in the playoffs. SPECIAL TEAMS! They missed three field goals including two of them from less than 35 yards. (Their kicker had missed only two kicks all year. WOOF!) But even then it wasn’t painful enough. Look at Marcel Reed, driving his boys down the field with a chance to send the game into OT, the chance to make every single Notre Dame fan laugh at the U and the CFP committee. But then “Reed, gets it to the end zone, INTERCEPTED!” AGONY THY NAME IS BRYCE FITZGERALD! The sad part for A&M is that this may have been their best chance at a National Title with this core. Especially since the rest of the SEC will be out to get them in 2026. Wonderful not only did you blow an opportunity to exorcise your demons, you gave the Hurricanes all the momentum in the world. The reason why every Leprechaun is miserable right now is because of you! “GO TO THE CHURCH AND ASK GOD TO FORGIVE YOU!” (Boo hoo Irish fans, Miami beat you in Week 1)
Tulane Green Wave: I don’t even need to go into much detail over this game if you mind. This contest was over right from the opening kickoff. Ole Miss as they did in the regular season completely manhandled Tulane for 60 minutes. Trinidad Chambliss could do no wrong with both his arm and his legs. (That’s even with Kyren Lacy getting contained on the ground) The Rebels wanted to make an example of someone especially since Benedict Kiffin betrayed them for their snooty brother in Baton Rouge. The Green Wave just happened to be the poor souls who were invited to get smacked from high noon to dusk. This game reinforces the narrative that the CFP committee shouldn’t let a group of five teams meet up with an SEC squad in the playoffs. As I’ve said before, if you don’t like this playoff bracket blame Virginia for losing to a 5 loss Duke team in the ACC Championship. (And BYU getting smacked by Texas Tech) Don’t worry Tulane, just brush off this L and get back to work in the spring. You can manage right?
James Madison Dukes: Another no brainer of an outcome to say the least. Just like Ole Miss, Oregon was coming into the postseason furious but this time it was because of how little respect Dan Lanning got from the media based on comparisons to their team from the previous year. Looks like Dante Moore took that personally. The Dukes stood no chance against a Ducks team that wanted to silence their doubters right off the bat. (Well they kinda did) The final score of this game was deceiving, if Oregon wanted to score 70 points they would have found a way to do it. That’s how dominant they looked in this game. People are going to say that Alonza Barrett played well yet ignore that most of his stats came in garbage time. To be fair, not many contenders were beating the Ducks on this day with how they played in the 1st Half. (Maybe Indiana, Miami, or Ohio State) I wouldn’t be too upset over this game if I were a James Madison fan. Especially since they won their conference and got a ton of money just for making the CFP. Take this learning experience and use it as a way to get stronger going forward.
Ohio State Buckeyes: The sound you are hearing is all of State College and Ann Arbor celebrating the demise of the defending National Champs. And all of South Florida since this game was the result of Miami getting revenge on Ohio State for getting screwed over in the National Championship Game 23 years ago. (No I still don’t know how they called the U for PI in OT which would have ended the game) The alleged best team money can buy must be sentenced back to reality. And just like in the Big Ten Championship Game the offense laid a massive egg when push came to shove. Julian Sayin is a good QB but he’s not ready for primetime TV. Reuben Bain and the Miami defense proved it. The only player that did anything worth a damn for the Buckeyes in this game was Jeremiah Smith (He turned down going to Miami for this. TOO BAD!). The rest of the team got manhandled up front by a Hurricanes team that was looking to make a massive statement. The moment Keionte Scott jumped a WR screen and took it to the house, any hope Ohio State had of a 2nd straight title was gone in an instant. They kept it close, but as I said, Sayin and company were shut down all game long. Not even Matt Patricia’s history making defense could save them on this night. The NFL has Nick Sirianni, College Football has Ryan Day. A coach who gets carried by High End Talent to glory yet has a long track record of mismanagement in crucial moments. Well at least you finally beat Michigan for once this year. Ok I’ll stop for now.
Texas Tech Red Raiders: If this team only had an offense. Under different circumstances we’d say that Texas Tech would be all but locks for the National Championship. But this is the world we live in and these are lives we’re given. Unable to recreate their strong 2nd Half against BYU the Red Raiders offensively shot blanks. Especially in the red zone. Behren Morton picked the wrong time to have his worst game of the season. He and that Offensive Line were manhandled by the Ducks pass rush. Trust me there were plenty of chances for Texas Tech to make this a game and each time they tried, they shot themselves in the foot. David Bailey and Ben Roberts were giving Dante Moore and that vaunted Oregon offense fits all game and it still wasn’t enough. At this point if I’m the AD of Texas Tech I’m putting all of my eggs in the basket of getting top recruits at WR and on the O-Line. Those are the only things holding this team back from glory. Will they address those needs? My guess would be yeah only because they’re in the Big 12 and that conference is basically dominated by Run and Shoot offenses. Some things never change do they?
Alabama Crimson Tide: OH NO! The media’s favorite child got absolutely destroyed for 60 minutes by a team that they all thought would crumble due to not having an iconic postseason reputation. GOLLY JEE WILLIKERS BATMAN! In what looked to be one of the great games of our time on paper turned into a laugher instantly. If Nick Saban were still the coach he would have made everyone walk back to Tuscaloosa from Pasadena it was that bad. (Those guys would be exhausted by the time they reached Arizona if that happened) The Tide had no answers for Fernando Mendoza or anything that the Hoosiers threw at them. Indiana looked like 2019 LSU against Alabama. Plus Curt Cignetti was mad that he didn’t run up the score even further given his face on the sidelines during the 4th Quarter. Every SEC homer is lucky that this game ended 38-3 because this could have been a lot worse than that. Kalen DeBoer’s job security was safe for a week and now he’s gone back to being on the hot seat. Also what happened to that offense? Ty Simpson? Ryan Williams? Anyone? (Not having an effective ground game cost them a deep run once again) You can show up anytime. What was once the envy of College Football is now at a crossroads. Do they truly have enough to get back to glory? Or will the Football Gods finally give their fans an extended serving of humble pie. I’m betting on the latter. “Maybe you should go home to Greenbow ALABAMA!” (The most storied program gets crushed by a longtime punching bag. THIS IS NOT A FAIRY TALE, THIS IS REALITY!)
Georgia Bulldogs: There is always a first time for everything. And in this case it’s something that I thought would never occur at any point over the last decade. No it’s not Ole Miss making the Final Four without Lane Kiffin keep going. It’s Georgia blowing a double digit lead to lose a game to anyone not named Alabama. Kirby Smart for years has been a master at protecting leads against teams that have fewer talent than the Bulldogs. Not on this night. And they had to play in their version of a haunted house in the Superdome. (They’ve lost the last two years in the Sugar Bowl and they already lost a National Title in 1982 to Penn State while being heavily favored) I know the narrative is to say that Carson Beck would have won this game but last I checked Gunner Stockton played a solid game. Georgia’s undoing in this game was their defense. That vaunted secondary got torched in the 2nd Half by Tre Wallace. TRE WALLACE! (Why couldn’t he do this at PSU outside of last year against West Virginia) He and Chambliss couldn’t be stopped down the stretch. And what you get is a new narrative that’s starting to spread. (Icing the kicker always works… NOT!) Georgia being known as the Mickey Mouse Clubhouse of College Football (Thank you Squidtard for giving SEC fans another reason to despise the Dawgs) because they beat a Bama team missing their two best WRs and TCU for their two National Titles. Next we will find out that they’ll laugh at us and say the committee screwed them over in 2023. (Word of advice: Don’t lose to Saban in the SEC Title Game YET AGAIN!)
Oregon Ducks: “The quick pass is intercepted! IT’S GONNA BE RUN IN FOR AN INDIANA TOUCHDOWN!” The more things change the more they stay the same. Remember last year when Ohio State beat themselves against Oregon only to demolish the Ducks in the rematch come playoff time? It happened again! Only this time it was Indiana and they beat you by double digits in the regular season meeting. The rematch was like watching a loved one die in real time. The Hoosiers and that high powered offense of theirs took whatever optimism that Oregon had and chucked it into an incinerator. Oh but they have Dante Moore on the other side. He played his worst game of his collegiate career. (You could say that about his entire team as well) No matter what he did, he was no match for Indiana’s defense and Cignetti putting the pedal to the metal (You thought Dan Lanning was a rascal, THINK AGAIN!) We all knew that Curt was ticked off at the end of the Alabama game. Well it’s safe to say that his team let out all of their fury on a Big Ten rival that had everything to lose given the level of talent on their squad. And here’s the piece de resistance. Even though Moore isn’t declaring for the NFL Draft because the Jets enjoy nothing but ButtFumbling any hope they somehow have, he probably won’t be back in Eugene next year. Why? Because guess they lured away from Nebraska? DILLON RAIOLA! HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA! College Football really has turned into the NFL.
Ole Miss Rebels: “If the Rebels only know that they were gettin’ screwed on the 7th floor!” That’s what the media wants you to believe given that no call on that Hail Mary to end the game. My sympathies end there. Especially since the officials were trying their best to hand you the game for most of the night. It was all there for the taking. The chance to make Kiffin regret his decision, the chance to run Miami’s record in the Fiesta Bowl to 0-5, getting revenge on Carson Beck after years of him owning you when he was at Georgia. What happens? (YoYo Sound) Ole Miss got cocky and it got the best of them. “If you shut down Malachi Toney, the Hurricanes offense won’t beat you!” Well guess what? The Rebels got beat by Keelan Marion and Mark Fletcher who each had over 150 all purpose yards. Oh you guys neutralized Reuben Bain and that vaunted Miami defense, well too bad because Pete Golding went into prevent defense against a guy who had carved up that kind of coverage all year. Just like A&M this may have been their best shot at a championship. Not only because most of the staff is going to LSU but they’re losing a ton of players due to the transfer portal and the NFL Draft. It would have been nice if you put a QB spy out there on the winning TD play. And as a result for the third consecutive season the SEC will not have a team in the National Championship Game. It serves ESPN right for all of the endless insufferability they’ve given a bunch of those programs that are in the postseason on a regular basis. I’m looking right at you Bama and Georgia. PAUSE.
I think it’s safe to say that the effects of this year’s CFP were seismic especially to the blue bloods of College Football. Alabama is facing an identity crisis, Georgia may be losing its luster, Ohio State had a chance to enter dynasty status and failed, and the SEC as a whole is no longer the most powerful conference in the nation. So with that being said, who’s going to be squaring off for the Natty?
(BOOM!) Indiana vs The U. What was once the red headed stepchild of the Big Ten against what was once the most dominant program in America for a 20 year period. And both of them have been led by head coaches who are destined for icon status given the work they’ve done. Mario Cristobal is no stranger to winning at Miami. He won a National Championship as a player there in 2001 and now he has the chance to be on the same level as Schnellenberger, Johnson, and Erickson in Hurricane Lore. And the team he’s assembled not only is reminiscent of the heyday of Miami Football but they are also built in Cristobal’s image. A roster that has nothing to lose and full of players who are built for the big moments. His chemistry with Carson Beck has played a massive role in their success this year. And as we saw with Cam Ward last year he knows how to get the best of his QB. The same goes for that defense. A fast and reckless unit in all three levels and especially on the front seven. And the scary thing is that outside of Bain and a few others, most of that crew will be back in 2026. They’re a fun and exciting team to watch. However Miami will be up against a team full of hired guns and assassins who may be the most dominant team that College Football has seen since 2019 LSU. Curt Cignetti in two years has transformed Indiana from a laughing stock into one of the most glamorous contenders that we’ve seen in years. A high tech offense led by a generational talent in Fernando Mendoza with a dual threat RB duo and a WR trio that can beat you ever which way. And let’s not forget that defense which led the nation in sacks this year. Now they are one win away from doing something that their longtime nemesis in Penn State was predicted to do at the start of the year. Win a National Championship, and bring endless amounts of salt to State College and reinforce the narratives about the Curse of Joe Paterno. (Cincinnati nearly did this to Baltimore back in 2021) But there is one thing that could hold them back. Miami is playing this game in their own backyard. Marking the 4th time in their history that the Hurricanes have played for a National Title on South Florida soil. And guess what happened the other three times? They won and knocked off the likes of Nebraska and Oklahoma who each were favored to win those games just like Indiana is here. A high speed locomotive against a concrete wall. Whoever wins this game will force the media and rival fans of theirs to lose their minds. The Football Gods show no mercy, AMEN.
Bragging Rights Sports 