MOVING THE CHAINS: Takeaways from College Football 2024 – Week Thirteen

Michigan makes stunning $10.5 million NIL offer

to flip No. 1 QB recruit Bryce Underwood from LSU.

Thus read a recent headline from the New York Post. Other sources report the offer was $12 million. A friend of mine suggested the NCAA should put a salary cap on NIL money. As ridiculous as it sounds, he may be right.

From my perspective, I say this: enjoy college football while you still can. At least, college football as it used to be a few years back. Before NIL money. Before the transfer portal. Before the playoff system. Before the convoluted formula used to determine who even gets invited to the playoffs. Before coaches were disposed of like yesterday’s garbage. Before college football became what it is now: absolutely.

Before college football shot itself in the foot.

But yet, here we are. Enjoy it while you can.

ESPN’s College GameDay and Fox’s Big Noon Kickoff were both in Columbus, Ohio this weekend. The reason, I assume, is because (Begin facetious font) a composite 10 talking heads pondering and bantering for a cumulative five hours about what we could clearly see for ourselves once the game began at noon. (End facetious font.) Surely ESPN can think of a better way to invest their money than having Saban and Herbstreit standing in front of a screen waving pool cues in the air like they’re light sabers. On to the games.

As they seem to do every week, #2 Ohio State gave up an early score to #5 Indiana before turning on the gas. Final score: Buckeyes – 38, Hoosiers – 15. My friend David, who was at the game, sent me a text suggesting Indiana, when they took an early 7 – 0 lead, take a team photo in front of the scoreboard at the risk of getting a penalty, just as then Indiana coach Lee Corso had done when his Hoosiers took an early 7 – 6 lead over the Buckeyes in Columbus in 1976.

Next up for Ohio State: if they beat ‘the team up north’ (Michigan, 50 – 6 winners over Northwestern) next week, they’ll have a rematch with #1 Oregon (idle this week) for the Big Ten championship. For Indiana, well, it was fun while it lasted. #4 Penn State upped its record to 10 – 1 with a narrow 26 – 25 win over Minnesota, and joins Indiana on the wait-and-see list to see who gets invited to the playoffs.

Indiana wasn’t the only undefeated team to lose this week. #18 Army was crushed by #6 Notre Dame, 49 – 14, effectively ending any argument for the Cadets making the playoffs. #1 Oregon is now the only remaining undefeated team remaining.

The overachieving Florida Gators were playoff-busters for the second week in a row in the cozy confines of the Swamp. Last week it was LSU; this week it was #9 Ole Miss. Gators – 24, Rebels – 17. It looks like the Lane Train won’t be one of the dozen teams in the playoffs, but maybe they learned something in their loss: you can only go to the well so many times. Prior to the game, 325-pound JJ Pegues was 15 for 15 in fourth-and-short situations when taking a handoff or direct snap before plowing through the defensive line for the conversion. As Lee Corso says, ‘not so fast.’ The Gators stopped Pegues – not once, not twice, but three times in critical fourth down situations that ultimately proved to determine the outcome of the game. So much for Kiffin’s one-trick pony.

#8 Miami appeared to enter their game with Wake Forest like they have in their games with other inferior opponents lately: lackadaisically. Fortunately, they kicked into gear in the fourth quarter (scoring 22 points) before Hurricane quarterback squandered his Heisman hopes. Miami – 42, Wake Forest – 14. Ward’s numbers: 27 for 38, 280 yards, two TD’s, and one interception. Ward also broke the Miami season records (formerly held by Bernie Kosar) for completions (268) and passing yardage (3,774). Miami appears to be headed for the ACC championship game to face #13 SMU, 33 – 7 winners over Virginia. #17 Clemson is still hanging around (beating the Citadel, 51 – 14), although their chances are slim and out of their control: if Miami beats Syracuse next week, the Tigers are out.

Don’t look now, but Colorado’s Travis Hunter is hot on Ward’s Heisman heels – and he may have become the outright favorite, had it not been for the #16 Buffs 37 – 21 loss to Kansas. Jayhawk running back Devin Neal looked like a Heisman candidate, however, with 37 carries for 207 yards and three TD’s and four receptions for 80 yards and another score.

In other Big-12 action, #21 Arizona State beat #14 BYU, 28 – 23, despite a delay at the 0:01 mark after their fans, who assumed the clock had expired, rushed the field and tore down the goal posts. Once the field was cleared and the goal posts were restored, BYU tried a last second Hail Mary to pull off the win. The good news: the pass was complete. The bad news: the receiver was a couple of yards short of the end zone.

In another Big-12 game, #22 Iowa State beat Utah, 31 – 28. There is now a four-way tie for first place, with all four teams having two conference losses: Iowa State, Arizona State, Colorado, and BYU. There are a number of scenarios next week to determine who plays in the conference championship game, but it’s not worth getting into because whoever wins it doesn’t stand a chance of winning the National Championship. (Sorry Deion, but you and I both know it’s the truth.)

Believe it or not, there is still the possibility of an eight-way tie for first in the Big-12 after next week’s games. But I don’t have enough room (nor desire) to explain it here.

Speaking of teams without a chance in the playoffs, #12 Boise State is still hanging around at 10 – 1 after squeaking by Wyoming, 17 – 13.

In the SEC, #10 Georgia crushed Massachusetts 59 – 21, while #11 Tennessee did the same to UTEP, 56 – 0. Thanks to a couple of assists from the two teams in the Yellowhammer state, the Bulldogs ticket to the conference championship game is now officially punched. First, Auburn slipped by #15 Texas A&M 43 – 41 in four overtimes; second, Alabama was humiliated on the road by Oklahoma, 24 – 3.

In another SEC game of consequence, #3 Texas beat Kentucky, 31 – 14. That means the winner of the Longhorns’ regular season finale with instate rival Texas A&M will meet Georgia in December.

Personally, the biggest surprise this season has been the play of my alma mater, the Florida Gators. I honestly thought four wins was a stretch. They now have six, are bowl eligible, and have a game with a horrendous Florida State squad remaining. How horrendous? Prior to the Seminoles’ 41 – 7 win against 1 – 10 (and now 1 – 11) Charleston Southern this weekend, they had not scored more than 21 points or gained more than 300 yards in a game this season.

One last thing: should the Gators end the season at 7 – 5 with a win against their instate rival in Tallahassee, Billy Napier should be named Coach of the Year.

Even though it will probably go to that guy in Bloomington who missed out on a photo opp.

Scott Ludwig lives, runs, and walks in Senoia.  His latest compilation of 101 columns, ‘Southern Accent’, complements ‘Southern Charm,’ ‘Southern Comfort,’ and ‘Southern Hospitality,’ his first three compilations.  Other books in his Southern Exposure series include ‘Finding the Words,’ ‘Portraits of the South,’ and ‘let me tell you a funny story.’  All of his books can be found on his author page on Amazon.