NCAA Football Report (Week 5)
In the NCAA debates are much more common than anywhere else and they stay relevant for longer as well.
It is the way the NCAA football world works as debates are all about the “what if” in sports.
They are about who is better or who is the best but usually surround teams or players than never face each other.
Whether it is a debate over the greatest all-time or just the greatest right now it is often a debate because there is never a true answer.
There is only stats and opinions to go around and in the NCAA that is often all there will ever be.
Unlike the professional leagues, the NCAA has a scheduling system that doesn’t necessarily pit the best against the best all the time.
Teams schedule their own games and more often than not avoid the best teams in the country in order to preserve their records.
They don’t want to face the best teams until it means a lot more as they will be happy to take them on in a big bowl or in the playoffs but they want to get there first.
Many teams have to play some great teams regardless of what their schedule is like because of their conferences and that is usually enough of a challenge for most teams.
In the conference, there are rarely enough really good teams to make up those big match-ups that solve debates about the best players and the best teams.
The best of the best rarely actually face off and the same can be said for the best players as there are simply too many teams and too few games to see these type of match-ups until at least the playoff.
Every now and then top teams do get together at the right time where everything is on the line and two great players are set to be featured in front of the entire country.
That was the case this week when NCAA fans were treated to a rare big regular season game where two teams and two players were looking to truly make an impact.
On one side, the Louisville Cardinals and Heisman favourite Lamar Jackson and on the other side, the Clemson tigers and Heisman hopeful Deshaun Watson.
Both teams were ranked in the top ten and each had a very good shot of making the playoff this year.
A win for the team meant a signature win, which is a necessary thing in the rankings and whoever won would have a much easier route to the playoff.
A loss puts one team in a tough spot as they would drop their first game and would need to run the table and get some help to make the playoff.
The game was also big for the ACC title as the winner took the inside track to the ACC title game.
Meanwhile, Jackson was looking for another big performance to solidify his spot on top of the Heisman voting and help him to make an even better case to win the top individual award in the sport.
His counterpart in Watson had fallen off of the top of the Heisman but a win and a big performance were sure to put his name back in the running for the Heisman.
The Tigers won the game and took the Cardinals out of the top four in the AP rankings giving them a good shot at a playoff spot.
It wasn’t an entire loss for Jackson though as his playoff hopes are not entirely done although they are going to have a tough road to get there.
What was big was the performance of the Louisville quarterback who ran for 162 yards and three touchdowns while also passing for 295 yards and a touchdown on the day.
It was a great performance for a Heisman candidate and although he didn’t get the win it was a big game for his Heisman candidacy.
Watson improved his chances as well but everyone was talking about the performance of Jackson in the game.
It was a bittersweet day for Jackson but for the fans it was a rare treat seeing this type of game in the middle of the season.
These games will become somewhat more common as the season moves on if only because a loss for any team from this point on could be devastating.
There is little time to come back for any top team if they want to make the playoff and so regardless of the team, they play every game gets more important.
Key Scores:
#10 Washington Huskies 44-6 Stanford Cardinal #7
– The Huskies kicked off what was sure to be a big week for the NCAA as they were the first team to play in the three top ten matchups this week and they made a statement beating Stanford easily on Friday night
#5 Clemson Tigers 42-36 Louisville Cardinals #3
– The Tigers and Cardinals were fighting for a lot this week as the CFP, ACC, and Heisman all seemed to be on the line in one game and the although the Tigers took the win it was Lamar Jackson who impressed the most
#4 Michigan Wolverines 14-7 Wisconsin Badgers #8
– The Wolverines and Badgers played classic Big Ten football in a massive conference match-up that had some serious playoff implications for either team and despite not putting up much Michigan still took the win
#11 Tennessee Volunteers 34-31 Georgia Bulldogs #25
– The Volunteers continue to make good on the promises that surrounded them in the pre-season as they run through the entire SEC in the hopes that they will eventually meet the Crimson Tide in their biggest test of the season in the SEC championship
Next Week:
Texas Longhorns vs. Oklahoma Sooners (Saturday, October 8th; 12:00 pm ET)
– It is a classic rivalry as the Red River Rivalry has been a great game for years and with the Longhorns now looking like a much better team they have the chance to make this one of the best games ever
Tennessee Volunteers vs. Texas A&M Aggies (Saturday, October 8th; 3:30 pm ET)
– The Vols try to continue their great season as they take on another SEC team with another opportunity to take their division in the SEC conference while the Aggies try to spoil the season of a division rival
Washington Huskies vs. Oregon Ducks (Saturday, October 8th; 7:30 pm ET)
– The Huskies have proven to everyone that they are here to play and to make a run at the playoff and they will try to continue that with a win against the Ducks who are having a curiously bad year
Florida State Seminoles vs. Miami Hurricanes (Saturday, October 8th; 8:00 pm ET)
– The Seminoles won’t have to travel far as they take on the Hurricanes looking to save their season against an in-state rival where players were likely recruited by both schools or only one giving them something more to play for
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