College Football Chaos: Week 13 Shakes Up Playoff Picture
Week 13 of the college football season delivered exactly what fans crave: drama, upsets, and a whole lot of chaos. With the College Football Playoff field narrowing and conference races heating up, this weekend’s action left us with fewer undefeated teams and a much murkier playoff picture. Let’s break it all down.
Undefeated No More
Heading into the weekend, there were only a handful of undefeated teams left in the nation. By the time the dust settled, two more had fallen. The Army Black Knights and the BYU Cougars both saw their perfect seasons come to an end in decisive fashion.
Army, who had been riding high all season, was soundly defeated by the Notre Dame Fighting Irish. Notre Dame’s dominant performance puts them in a strong position to make the playoff, provided they can secure a win over the USC Trojans next week. Meanwhile, BYU couldn’t keep up with the Arizona State Sun Devils, falling in a critical Big 12 matchup.
Big Ten Showdown Looms
In the Big Ten, the Ohio State Buckeyes made a statement with a dominant win over the Indiana Hoosiers. Ranked No. 2 in last week’s AP Poll, the Buckeyes limited Indiana to just 151 total yards in a game that was never in doubt. With a win next week against the Michigan Wolverines, Ohio State will punch their ticket to the Big Ten title game, where they’ll face the No. 1 Oregon Ducks in what promises to be an epic rematch.
Big 12 Madness
The Big 12 race is as wild as ever, with nine teams still in contention for a spot in the conference title game, according to ESPN Research. Both the BYU Cougars and the Colorado Buffaloes had opportunities to clinch their spots this weekend but failed to capitalize. BYU’s loss to Arizona State was a tough blow, but Colorado’s defeat was even more brutal. The Buffaloes were run over by Devin Neal and the Kansas Jayhawks. Neal was unstoppable, racking up four touchdowns in a performance that will be remembered for a long time in Lawrence.
SEC Stumbles
It wasn’t a great weekend for the SEC’s playoff hopefuls. Both the Alabama Crimson Tide and the Ole Miss Rebels suffered road upsets that could knock them out of playoff contention. With the SEC’s dominance in recent years, seeing two of its top teams falter in the same weekend is a rare sight.
Expert Playoff Picks
With so much upheaval, the College Football Playoff picture is as murky as ever. Here’s how ESPN’s experts rank their top 12 teams after Week 13:
- Andrea Adelson: 1. Oregon 2. Texas 3. Miami 4. Arizona State 5. Ohio State 6. Notre Dame 7. Penn State 8. Georgia 9. Tennessee 10. SMU 11. Indiana 12. Boise State
- Kyle Bonagura: 1. Oregon 2. Texas 3. Miami 4. Boise State 5. Ohio State 6. Notre Dame 7. Penn State 8. Georgia 9. Indiana 10. Tennessee 11. SMU 12. Arizona State
- Bill Connelly: 1. Oregon 2. Texas 3. Miami 4. Arizona State 5. Ohio State 6. Notre Dame 7. Penn State 8. Georgia 9. Indiana 10. SMU 11. Tennessee 12. Boise State
- Eli Lederman: 1. Oregon 2. Texas 3. Miami 4. Boise State 5. Ohio State 6. Notre Dame 7. Georgia 8. Penn State 9. Tennessee 10. Indiana 11. Arizona State 12. SMU
- Harry Lyles Jr.: 1. Oregon 2. Texas 3. SMU 4. Arizona State 5. Ohio State 6. Notre Dame 7. Penn State 8. Georgia 9. Indiana 10. Miami 11. Tennessee 12. Boise State
- Max Olson: 1. Oregon 2. Texas 3. Miami 4. Arizona State 5. Ohio State 6. Penn State 7. Notre Dame 8. Georgia 9. Indiana 10. SMU 11. Tennessee 12. Boise State
- Adam Rittenberg: 1. Oregon 2. Texas 3. Miami 4. Boise State 5. Ohio State 6. Notre Dame 7. Penn State 8. Georgia 9. Tennessee 10. Indiana 11. SMU 12. Arizona State
- Jake Trotter: 1. Oregon 2. Texas 3. SMU 4. Boise State 5. Ohio State 6. Notre Dame 7. Penn State 8. Georgia 9. Miami 10. Tennessee 11. Indiana 12. Arizona State
- Paolo Uggetti: 1. Oregon 2. Texas 3. Miami 4. Boise State 5. Ohio State 6. Notre Dame 7. Georgia 8. Penn State 9. Indiana 10. Tennessee 11. SMU 12. Arizona State
- Dave Wilson: 1. Oregon 2. Texas 3. Miami 4. Boise State 5. Ohio State 6. Notre Dame 7. Georgia 8. Penn State 9. Tennessee 10. SMU 11. Indiana 12. Arizona State
With just a few weeks left in the season, the stakes couldn’t be higher. Buckle up, college football fans—this ride is far from over.
Originally Written by: Andrea Adelson
