Week 11 Games of Interest
Which, if any, unbeatens will fall?
The big question nationally this week is which undefeated teams will lose?
Four out of the top five teams in the CFP Rankings are playing losable games. That said, “losable” is defined on a sliding scale.
Do YOU really think Utah is going to go up to Washington and beat Michael Penix and the Huskies?
A week after #2 Notre Dame beat #1 Florida St. back in 1993 I could not imagine the Irish losing on a last second field goal to Boston College.
Eh, it’s still sickening all these years later.
The point is, as the great Chuck Berry once sang, “It goes to show you never can tell!”
5) Utah at Washington
A team with very little offense goes on the road to play a higher ranked team with a ton of offense. Sounds like a snoozer, right? Maybe.
Utah’s defense is good at getting off the field, and the Utes’ offensive strength is its run game. Did I mention Washington’s run defense is even leakier than Virginia Tech’s?
If Utah runs for 180 yards and holds Michael Penix in check, both of which are entirely possible, then this really could be an interesting game.
4) Tennessee at Missouri
This is a kind of matchup one would expect to see in a non-BCS New Year’s Day bowl about 20 years ago, before Mizzou left the Big 12 for the SEC.
The matchups are really close across the board, and this game should go down to the wire.
While both teams have the exact same records (overall and in conference), after last season it feels like a down year in Knoxville and a great year in Columbia.
Sometimes that momentum alone, never mind home field advantage, is enough to squeak by with a win.
3) Ole Miss at Georgia
One of these days, Lane Kiffin is going to win a big game.
In this case, Merriam Webster’s dictionary defines a big game as any win over the University of Georgia or the University of Alabama so long as Kirby Smart and Nick Saban are the head coaches at those respective programs.
Getting said big win between the hedges on a Saturday night is easier said than done.
But is this Georgia team really good enough to get through the regular season undefeated? That would be three straight undefeated regular seasons.
The law of averages has to catch up with Dawgs eventually…
2) Miami at Florida St.
Line aside, this one feels like the best chance for an upset.
SP+ still does not like the Noles, and a quick review of the advanced stats reveals a much more even matchup than the records would indicate.
Miami has that boneheaded lost to Georgia Tech, but do the Hurricanes really have the look and feel of a 6-4 team that will strain to reach .500 in league play?
Conversely, as good as Florida St. is, are the Seminoles really good enough to make it through the entire regular season undefeated?
Strange things happen in this series, but it’s been a while since we have seen the truly unexpected. Kinda feels like the series is due to produce a shocker.
1) Michigan at Penn St.
I’m calling it right now. Jim Harbaugh emerges on the sideline in the second quarter dressed in a disguise, a la Bobby Valentine.
If anyone in sports was crazy enough to pull a Bobby V, it’s Harbaugh.
This game was already good enough to watch on split screen (with the Hokies), but the whole Connor Stallions mess takes the level of intrigue up to 13 on a 10-scale.
If you’re a Penn St. fan, the Harbaugh suspension is probably the worse thing that could happen. We know what the Wolverines will be listening to in their headphones pregame.
No doubt, Michigan is going to arrive at the stadium in a bad mood.
Should make for a fun game!