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Sometimes, we make the College Football Playoff talk way harder than it has to be. This is a natural byproduct of the setup, of course. With weekly mock rankings unveiled starting in late October and going until December, there's a lot of time to sift through nuances and overthink things.
That's part of the fun, but it's also tiring. What really matters at the end of the day is that you can win all your games and control your destiny. Our Lady may have been one of the two best teams in 2012 when it went to the BCS National Championship and lost, badly, to Alabama, but it was enough every week during the season. Following their win over Northwestern on Saturday, you can say a lot about the same things about the 2018 Fighting Irish. Was it their best performance? No, but it did not have to be. Quarterback Ian Book's late keeper not only put our lady up for good, it also kicked down the front door cover – something Northwestern does not allow often.
Our Lady is one of the few college football teams that can keep things simple amidst all the chaos, even without a 13th game. The dream is not over, but it's still anchored by a key Week 1 win over Michigan. With three weeks left, all that separates Our Lady from a semifinal appearance is a few more survive-and-advance games.
From Notre Dame 's big win, to Alabama' s statement against LSU and West Virginia 's thrilling victory at Texas, here' s all that happened in Week 10.
Winners
Alabama: So the Crimson Tide is not played nobody, eh? That talking point is officially dead 29-0 shutout of LSU. This was a game of the game and it was never a game. Then again, this was about a two-touchdown line. Bama would be a double-digit favorite against literally anyone, but LSU's No. 3 ranking was misnomer; the Tigers never stood a chance. Alabama's greatest opponent will be able to keep up with an offensive volley. That's not LSU's game. Maybe in the meantime at least one answer, but in the meantime at least we can put the topic of one-to-one loss in the playoff race.
Tua was not completely healthy, Bama played just ok, and they beat the no. 3 team in the country on the road by the widest margin in the series since 2002.
– Matt Hinton (@MattRHinton) November 4, 2018
Our Lady: There's a growing amount of chatter about Notre Dame and Michigan in the playoff race – namely, who would get in if each team had one loss? Our Lady has the Week 1 head-to-head win, but with a 42-7 win over Penn State, Michigan sure looks the part of a playoff team as of late. Of course, there's an easy answer to this. If Our Lady keeps winning, it will not matter what Michigan does. Oh, sure, the selection committee could have the Wolverines ahead of the Irish one of these weeks. They've been known to throw a curveball or two for dramatic purposes. They may even have their mental gymnastics back at a later point. But if Our Lady, which beat Northwestern 31-21 in Evanston, wins its final three games, no Big Ten West team is good enough to give Michigan a boost that would leapfrog the Irish simply by virtue of having a 13th game.
UCF: It's frustrating that everything the Knights are framed within the playoff debate. UCF did not play its best game on Thursday, but still beat a pretty good Temple team 52-40. It's a conference win; take it and move on. UCF is not making the playoff. It was never going to make the playoff. It was not going to make it last year and it had a better team. For once, let's not make everything about the postseason, especially when everyone knows it's a pipe dream anyway. UCF has won 21 straight. Good on you. That's hard to do. Appreciate that for what it is.
West Virginia quarterback Will Grier: Alabama quarterback Tua Tagovailoa makes NFL-caliber throws so that it's hard to decide which one is the most unfair and absurd. As an unintended result, it can be easy to lose track of other great quarterbacks. In most years, West Virginia's Will Grier would be a surefire Heisman finalist. Maybe he will be. The Mountaineers' 42-41 win over Texas sparked by Grier's astonishing touchdown pbad and two-point conversion It seemed like the type of moment that Gerry could get to New York. He would not win the Heisman, but he could get to New York.
Losers
LSU: Look, the Tigers were not equipped to beat Alabama. They have a lights out defense and … not much else. That could have been in the past when Alabama was a dominant team of the slow, boa constrictor variety. That's not how you beat Alabama in 2018. Sure, a quarterback Joe Burrow has been just a little out of the ordinary. If coach Ed Orgeron is serious about stealing Alabama 's West supremacy even in a while, it has to change the way it plays offensively. LSU's defense is great and Tagovailoa was still dropping dimes over them and running for long touchdowns. It needs an answer to that.
O coach can get the best OL and DL of all time, he will not beat Alabama playing the way his team plays.
– Michael Felder (@InTheBleachers) November 4, 2018
Miami: Not only did the Hurricanes play another ACC game, 20-12 vs. Duke – the Blue Devils got their first win at Miami since 1976 – Miami will make a bowl game. At 5-4, the Canes only need one more win, but there are no gimmes on the remaining schedule. Regardless, the fact that Miami is likely to win this division when the leading team is 5-4 Pitt remains one of the most flabbergasting developments of the season. The Canes are 5-7 in their last 12 games dating back to 2017, and frankly, they have not looked back since last week.
Florida and Florida State: Somehow, both teams lost to Missouri and NC State, respectively, by a combined score of 85-45, and it barely registered on the radar. Florida State makes some semblance of sense seeing the Seminoles may not make a bowl game this year, but the Gators were the No. 11 team in the country, though they are now out of the East East race. My, oh my, that Nov. 24 game in Tallahbadee is going to be, uh, something.
Utah: Not only did the Utes give up ground in the Pac-12 South race following a 38-20 loss to Arizona State – the Sun Devils now control their own destiny Tyler Huntley for the rest of the season with a collarbone injury. That's the textbook definition of insult to injury. Utah drops to 4-3 in conference play and now every Pac-12 team except for Washington State has at least three losses.
Report from Hackett on the sidelines is a broken collarbone for Huntley#Utes
– Bill Riley (@ espn700bill) November 3, 2018
Conference championship weekend: I do not mean to be a Debbie Downer so far in advance, but I get the feeling conference championship weekend in early December is going to be a hot mess. As it stands now, every team in the Coastal ACC, Big Ten West and Pac-12 South has at least three losses and we're still in the first weekend in November. That's a reflection of how much college football teams have been this season. There's a lot of parity, but that's not always a good thing. Some of these titles are in the making, playoff-excluding losses for the favorites. At least with the latter there's chaos.
Best of the rest
Arizona QB Khalil Tate: The electrifying quarterback had a sharp game back from his ankle injury in a win vs. Oregon in Week 9. But he was back to the Khalil Tate of old in a 42-34 win over Colorado on Friday night. Not only did he have a full score of 11 straight pbades as part of a five-touchdown, 350-yard night, he also had a signature 25-yard run. Tate is healthy now and he looks like he's peaking at the right time.
Oklahoma quarterback Kyler Murray: Per OR, Murray is the first player in history to have 300 yards pbading and 100 yards rushing in the same game. Murray overcame a slow start with two interceptions to help beat Texas Tech 51-46. He finished with 461 yards and four touchdowns. If not for Tagovailoa, Murray would probably be the Heisman frontrunner.
This unimpressed LSU fan: If a picture says 1,000 words then this GIF says 1,000 more.
Georgia: The Bulldogs clinched the SEC East with a easy 34-17 win at Kentucky, becoming the first Power Five team secure a divisional title. Georgia gets a home game against Auburn UMbad and Georgia Tech. Then it's on to Atlanta for the SEC Championship Game vs. Alabama.
Houston: Let's see: Phase 1. Beat ranked South Florida in Week 9 and has a top challenger to UCF in the AAC title race. Phrase 2: drop to letdown game to 3-5 SMU 45-31. Phase 3: ???????? Phase 4: Profit?
This Hakeem Butler display of disrespek: I do not know who this Kansas defender is, but I do not know he has to give up forever. Butler had 164 yards and two touchdowns, including this one, in a 27-3 win.
UCLA coach Chip Kelly: Kelly's return to Oregon was somewhat incredibly, like, eighth on the list of most interesting storylines for Week 10. It was unceremonious, to say the least, with the Ducks winning comfortably 42-21, dropping the Bruins to 2-7 and out of bowl eligibility.
Illinois: It's been a rough season for the Illini, but they managed to literally average a first down per play (10.7 yards) in a 55-37 win over Minnesota. Illinois averaged 12.3 yards per rush, more than double its season average of 5.43.
Cal: The Golden Bears had the state of the game. Quarterback Brandon McIlwain threw a brutal end interception zone on a rollout, ending a 14-play drive that was on the verge of putting Cal up touchdown late in the fourth quarter. Washington State held on to win 19-13. You do not want to boil a game down to just one play, but that six-point swing mattered.
Clemson defensive linemen: I'm running out of things to be impressed by during Clemson's reign of terror on ACC opponents, so here's a factoid for you. Defensive linemen christian Wilkins and Lawrence Dexter now have a rushing touchdown with Lawrence getting a two-yard score in the Tigers' 77-16 thrashing of Louisville. Florida State running backs Akron, UT-San Antonio and Southern Miss had four total coming into Week 10.
UTEP: The Miners had the FBS 'longest losing streak at 20 games, but were practically a pick' em at Rice. UTEP has been decent against the spread of this season, so it's a good thing to have a win at first win. Congratulations, UTEP, for winning 34-26 and finally getting that w.
Coastal Carolina: This weird pick-six off the helmet did not help the Chanticleers against Appalachian State in a 23-7 loss, but sure looked awesome.
Heidelberg punter Austin Baker: Have you ever seen a 95-yard punt? Well, now you can say you have. Baker, from his own end zone, unleashed a 95-yard beast that, by actual distance, went more like 104 yards. In any case, it's a Division III record. If you're wondering, the NCAA record is 99 yards (by Nevada's Pat Brady in 1950).
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