Well folks, it’s that time of year. It’s that time of year where we see who will put a ring on it and who will be left standing at the alter ringless. What do I mean by that? I mean it’s time for conference championship weekend! The regular season is dead and gone, so now it is time to start crowning champions. We got a great slate of games on deck starting with the Pac-12 title game this evening, lets take a look at the matchups.
#2 Oregon vs. #7 Arizona
Of the conference title games on the slate, this is the game I am most excited to watch. You have two high flying offenses, a Heisman trophy contender, one of the best defenders in the country (Scooby Wright), and a ton of NFL talent all on one field. Add in the story line of how Oregon is looking to avenge their only loss of the season to this Arizona team and the fact a win secures a spot in the college football playoff and it just gets even more exciting. We all know how injuries on Oregon’s offensive line played a major factor in the first matchup, and now they are healthier in that aspect which should help tremendously. While not having Hroniss Grasu at center is still concerning, I think have guys like Jake Fisher back at tackle is huge when it comes to pass protection. It’s extremely hard to beat a good team twice, and with Oregon playing their best football at this stage in the season, I am having a hard time picking Arizona to pull off the upset again. It will be a dogfight, but I got Oregon coming out on top.
Prediction: Oregon
#1 Alabama vs. #16 Missouri
This game isn’t high on my priority list this weekend even though it’s the SEC title game. While I plan on tuning in to see how it plays out, I don’t expect this game to be watchable for the entire four quarters. I think the last team that had a real shot at taking down the Tide before the playoffs got 50 put on them in Iron Bowl. In my opinion, you need to have very good play from your quarterback to have a shot at winning the game and Maty Mauk has been up and down all year long. I am anxious to see how Alabama’s left tackle Cameron Robinson does against two very good edge rushers in Shane Ray and Markus Golden; all three guys have first round talent. I think the Tide rolls right into the playoffs.
Prediction: Alabama
#4 Florida State vs. #11 Georgia Tech
This is another intriguing matchup for me. You have Florida State who is coming in off another close shave against Florida and another rough outing from Jameis Winston, in which he threw four interceptions. On the other side of the coin you have Georgia Tech who is coming off a huge upset victory over in state rival Georgia and are riding high with momentum. This could prove to be very problematic for the Seminoles who have looked like they have been ripe for an upset for some time now, and now they face a very unorthodox style of offense in the biggest game of the year. Not only is Georgia Tech’s option attack tough to prepare for, they dominate the time of possession and with the way Jameis Winston has been turning the ball over lately, they could be a nail in the coffin. Florida State is the more talented team on paper, but that has not stopped them from playing down to the competition this year.
Prediction: Georgia Tech
#5 Ohio State vs. #13 Wisconsin
With JT Barrett going down last week against Michigan, the dynamics of this game shifts quite a bit. I think with Barrett under center the Buckeyes are the slam dunk favorites to win this game, but now you have a third string quarterback out there in the biggest game of the year. I can’t count out Urban Meyer, because we started to count out the Buckeyes when the news broke that Braxton Miller was out for the year and we saw how that played out with Barrett at the helm. I think the key for this game will be to get the young quarterback in a groove early and to not ask him to do too much. If the Buckeyes can avoid turning the ball over and giving Melvin Gordon more chances to tote the rock, I think they can still win this game, if not I think the Badgers can get this win and pull off the upset. This game will be very close, and with the unknown at quarterback for Ohio State, I am going with Wisconsin.
Prediction: Wisconsin
#6 Baylor vs. #9 Kansas State
While this isn’t a conference title game, this game will have some playoff ramifications going into the playoff committee’s final Top 25 rankings. Baylor is coming off a shootout with Texas Tech in which they surrendered almost 600 yards through the air to a freshmen quarterback and they saw Bryce Petty have to leave the game early due to a concussion. While Petty will be out there on Saturday, the performance by the Baylor defense worries me more than anything as they take on a very good Kansas State team who features a stud wide receiver in Tyler Lockett. Baylor needs some serious style points this week to get back in the good graces of the committee and I don’t think they will get them this week in Waco. In fact I will go a step further and say that Kansas State goes into Waco and pulls off the win.
Prediction: Kansas State