State of Ohio, Nebraska, State of Florida

The victories are victories in college football, as in any sport, and the Buckeyes will win what they can get in the most challenging season of the Urban Meyer era. The win allows OSU to play Saturday the decisive match between the winner and his rival Michigan, a match that will decide the Big Ten East division and bring the winner of the national semifinals.

It's hard to imagine the Ohio State finding the kind of performance needed to defeat what is clearly the best team in Michigan since Jim Harbaugh returned to the program in 2015. The Wolverines defense, stingy as always, was joined by a rare addition: Shea Patterson, a legitimate quarterback at the NFL. This is a first for Michigan under Harbaugh, at least.

More: Our Lady seems to be heading for the playoffs but why will it be different from the last time against Alabama

More: 10 observations of week 12 at college football

This will be the game of the week in college football, and for good reason. The question: which team should feel the pressure?

It's easy to say that the Ohio State, which has concocted 10 wins around a failed defense and an offense that alternates explosiveness and inconsistency. In what would be an amazing twist based on the recent history of this rivalry, the Buckeyes could be overlooked on their pitch against the Wolverines.

But the pressure is really on Michigan, which remained undefeated in Big Ten with Saturday's win against Indiana 31-20. Harbaugh has not yet beaten the Ohio State since arriving at his alma mater; when things went bad, the Buckeyes had more in the tank.

The pressure is on Harbaugh and the Wolverines because if it is now, if not against this specific team from the state of Ohio, with this Michigan team, then when? And the pressure is further heightened by the fact that Michigan, unlike OSU, is almost certainly in a national semifinal with a win against the Buckeyes and a win against Northwestern in the Big Ten title match.

Here are the rest of Saturday's winners and losers:

winners

Central Florida

UCF continues to win, the most recent in front of Cincinnati in a match presented as a clash between two of the best teams of the Group of Five. Well, the pre-game bill was half-fair. Cincinnati is not a bad team, if it's not as good as the 9-2 record of the Bearcats. UCF is simply a very good team, not only the best of the American Athletic Conference, but probably still the best non-major conference team.

Texas

The Iowa State 24-10 gives Texas eight regular season wins for the first time since the Mack Brown era and, along with West Virginia's loss to Oklahoma State, the Longhorns are about to reach the Big 12 championship match. The total wins alone made the second season of Tom Herman a success. Reaching the title is another important step.

State of Florida

This is not the season that Florida State fans have been hoping for since Willie Taggart's debut, but a 22-21 win over Boston College could provide the kind of impetus Taggart and the Seminoles needed for the 2019 season. the Eagles also brings the FSU We are getting closer to maintaining the longest run of college football matches, even if it requires a win against Florida at next week's rival meeting.

Pittsburgh

The Panthers won the Coastal Division of ACC with a 34-13 win at Wake Forest. Now 7-4 overall and 6-1 in the league, Pittsburgh has been one of the successes of the second half of the season. And as a reward? Congratulations Pittsburgh: Clemson will be waiting in early December. No matter what happens in the ACC title game, the season was great for the Panthers and coach Pat Narduzzi, who left no doubt about his ability to put this program at the championship level. Six Year's Eve.

Nebraska

The 9-6 slugfest with Michigan State was Nebraska's fourth victory over five attempts after a 0-6 start, one of the losses being a 36-31 loss to Ohio State. Progress has been clear and undeniable: with Scott Frost, the Cornhuskers are entering the post-season behind a group of younger contributors. Nebraska is one of the hottest teams in the offseason.

State of Utah

The Aggies won a thriller at Colorado State 29-24 before moving to 10-1 after the decisive game between the division and Boise State. Utah State's 10-game winning streak following a defeat against Michigan State early this year presents this program in the midst of the most successful regular season in its history.

The Citadel

The Bulldogs were tied 10-10 with the mighty Alabama at halftime. The final score was 50-17. But who cares? The Citadelle scored 10 more points in 30 minutes against Alabama over LSU and Mississippi State. The Bulldogs should take a photo of the field team at half-time.

***

losers

Syracuse

The clash of neutral sites with Notre Dame has given Syracuse the opportunity to make national noise and carve out a place in the New Year's bowl. However, Orange's powerful offensive was worth only three points and has never been afraid of what promises to be an excellent defense of Our Lady.

Illinois

You laugh if it was not so painfully sad. Illinois paid Lovie Smith, in March 2016, an unimaginable amount of money – six years worth $ 21 million – at a time when no other program in the country had even listed Smith in his list of candidates for possible opening. The results have been irrelevant since the beginning, but Saturday was horrible: Iowa beat the Illini 63-0 to equal the worst margin of defeat of the program in its history. The last time Illinois lost 63 points, it was facing the University of Chicago in 1906.

Louisville

Another week, another ugly show of Cardinals. Story of the Week: State of North Carolina lost 52 points and 518 yards in a 42-point victory. The first good news is that Louisville lost without Bobby Petrino, sacked last week, and it is better to lose without Petrino than with. And the best news? Louisville is nearing the end of a miserable season.

West Virginia

The hopes of the Mountaineers playoffs ended in a 45-41 loss to Oklahoma State, and if you think this is painful, consider the score at half-time: 31-14 in favor of West Virginia. Ouch. To make matters worse, the Mountaineers are now in a difficult position to reach the Big 12 championship game. A win next week against Oklahoma should win a big bowl, but that's what West Virginia can hope for better in 2018.

Virginia Tech

The Hokies dropped to 4-6 after a 38-14 loss to Miami (Florida), who scored 21 points in the third quarter to get away from a game that seemed to be able to go the other way in the middle. -time. What about Hokies? The national perspective of this team was built on the back of a victory against Florida State in the first match, which quickly proved insignificant. With so many staff losses during the offseason and a series of injuries on both sides of the ball, a late game loss may not be too surprising.

UConn

The Huskies lost 55-21 against East Carolina. Not much to add here.

Southern California

USC coach Clay Helton is at the time of fifth place after his terrible loss against a UCLA team that is still rebuilding under the coach freshman, Chip Kelly. The two fan bases share the same idea: if Kelly beats USC now, in his first season, will the Trojans still beat the Bruins? Helton is unlikely to retain the USC as the dominant team in Los Angeles, much less as a team capable of winning a national championship. That's why he could be coaching for his position when meeting with the undefeated Notre Dame next week.