Week 12 Review
Written by Wendi
While the SEC recovers during Cupcake Week, the SEC suffered some top 10 blows over this past weekend. You know how Georgia can’t seem to beat Alabama? Well, it appears that Alabama can’t beat Oklahoma. For the second year in a row, the 11th ranked Sooners have upset 4th ranked Bama. This time, the Sooners’ defense shined with three turnovers with one being a pick six and went on to win 23-21. But don’t worry Bama fans, The CFB Playoff rankings are not out yet, but I am sure you will still be in the top 10. 10th ranked Texas went down to Georgia and quickly realized they aren’t in the Big 12 anymore. Texas got manhandled the whole game and lost 35-10. Can’t blame that on the refs.
9th ranked Notre Dame had no problem handling business against Pittsburg 37-15 and is still in the playoff hunt. I still think they need to join a conference. Arizona handed 25th ranked Cincinnati their second loss in a row 30-24 in a back-and-forth game. The Wildcats were able to outscore the Bearcats 20-10 in the second half to pull away for the win. Is Oregon State ever going to be good again? In the pillow fight of the week, the Beavers traveled to take on Tulsa. The Golden Hurricanes had the Beavers shut out until late in the fourth quarter and went on to win 31-14 which snapped a five-game losing streak for Tulsa.
19th ranked Virginia is still looking to make the ACC title game with one loss. They beat Duke 34-17 with a dominate showing on the road. The only team remaining on their schedule is Virginia Tech and that should be an easy win for the Cavaliers. However, the ACC has three other teams with just a single conference loss. (Georgia Tech, SMU and Pitt).
In the B1G, a ranked matchup between Iowa and USC did not disappoint. It looked like Iowa was going to run away with this game in the first half, but USC regrouped at half time and outscored the Hawkeyes 16-0 in the second half and won 26-21. It’s still a tight race in the Big 10 to make the championship game. A lot can happen to Ohio State and Indiana. Can Ohio State lose to Michigan for the 5th straight time and keep them out of title game? You have USC, Michigan and Oregon with one conference loss. Penn State broke their six-game losing streak against Michigan State 28-10. Penn State held the Spartans scoreless in the second half of the game and maybe this is the momentum they needed. Hopefully they can win out the rest of the season and make a bowl game. Not so much for Ol’ Sparty.
It took overtime for the game to be decided against Liberty and Florida International. Liberty tied the game with two late field goals, but FIU was able to score a touchdown in overtime while Liberty threw an interception on their possession. The Panthers won 34-27. Both teams are still looking to become bowl eligible.
Jacksonville State remains unbeaten in conference play after beating Kennesaw State 35-26. The Owls and Gamecocks accounted for 1,030 total yards but the four turnovers by Kennesaw State really put them in a bad place that they couldn’t recover from.
On to Pick’ems…
There was not much movement in the overall rankings compared to the week prior other than me and Adam switching spots…again. Obviously, Sam and Sean still have a big lead in the top two spots.
There’s now a nine-point gap between 4th and 5th place. That is giving Adam and I a little bit of breathing room as we battle for third place.
Watching Sam squirm this weekend as the games played out was hilarious. As teams started to lose, Sam was doing the math in his head about how many more points he would need to get further from Sean, just to tie for the week. Is it still even possible for one of them to have a bad week and someone else takes second place?
There’s just a few more weeks to go. Cindie and Mike H did themselves no favor after an abysmal week. Their lack of performance put them further away from third place. Maybe Emma did Mike’s picks. I’m not saying it is impossible, but the chances have slimmed for some cash.
Chances of winning money:
For sure: Sean, Samuel
In the hunt: Adam, Wendi, Cindie, Kim, Mike H
Better luck next year: Rick, David, Noah, Evelyn, Mike M, Marc, Chris.
I believe there are only 3 weeks left and as the competition winds down, I would love to be a fly on the wall in Sean’s house talking about Sam and his picks the way Sam talks about Sean’s.
Also, has anyone heard from Noah and Gretchen after Alabama’s loss? Maybe I need to call the local Police Department and do a welfare check.
FYI – David will be writing the remaining articles. I am underpaid (I don’t really get paid) and I quit. No, seriously, Sam and I will be out of town starting this weekend and will not be watching much football the next two weekends. So Happy Thanksgiving to all and good luck this week. Not really. GO BLUE!
Most points for the week: Adam won his $10 with 40 points. Congrats!
Least points for the week: David was the caboose with 27 points.
Best pick of the week: Adam picking Arizona over Cincinnati helped him solidify first place this week.
Worst pick of the week: Chris going 9 on Texas. One thing you need to learn in this group. Never go higher than 5 on Texas.
Letters to the Editor:
Does USC have a legitimate shot at the Big 12 title game?
Reread your question and realize I can’t answer this question.
Will FSU get 6 wins to become bowl eligible?
It depends on which FSU team shows up for the last two games but for my answer, it’s probable….
Here are the rankings after Week 12:
1. Sam – 453 points
2. Sean – 448 points
3. Adam – 427 points
4. Wendi – 424 points
5. Cindie – 415 points
6. Kim – 410 points
7. Mike H – 407 points
8. Rick – 399 points
9. David – 386 points
10. Noah – 384 points
11. Evelyn - 372 points
12. Mike M - 361 points
13. Marc - 354 points
14. Chris - 309 points
