The Football Brainiacs

…you’re like me and still holding out even the slightest hope that OU can win out, win the Big 12, and back door their way into the playoffs. I wrote about the possibility earlier this week (HERE).

I know, I know guys…it’s not going to happen. The comments were duly noted. I’m just not ready to completely resign myself that quite yet. It’s more fun (for me) this way!

So here are the teams I’ll be rooting for in this weeks match-ups. I’ll keep doing this each week so long as OU keeps winning.

Oregon vs. Cal: Rooting for…Cal

I haven’t seen Cal play this year but just looking at their stats it appears that coach Dykes finally has that passing game going. Unfortunately, it doesn’t appear he’s got much going on defense.

Texas vs. Kansas State: Rooting for…Texas.

I gotta do it! Texas surprising a team like KSU would go a long way in putting OU in a better position to potentially win the Big 12. This possibility seems possible. The Texas defense didn’t look too hot last week against Iowa State, but they’ve been nails for much of the season. Texas missing their true freshman safety, Jason Hall, hurts. They’ll need to stay aggressive up front. Waters doesn’t deal with pressure well, and Texas has a corner that can match-up with KSU’s best target. KSU’s center had a hell of a game last week. He really gave Jordan Phillips fits in the second half. If he plays like that again, KSU will be able to run the ball against Texas very effectively. If last week took a toll on him then Texas may be able to disrupt the KSU run game. Texas is also more stout at the LB position than Oklahoma, and I don’t see them getting walled off as easily as the OU LBs were. I don’t know if most of y’all can muster the strength to do it (or even care to)…but, personally, I’ll be pulling for Longhorns.

Mississippi State vs. Kentucky: Rooting for…Stoops’ Troops!

This game probably doesn’t matter as much because the little hope I have that OU wins out is based on the idea that the playoff committee is going to refuse to put two teams from the same conference in unless the records are vastly different. But the more chaos there is the better. Kentucky got smacked around pretty good by LSU last week, but up until then they’d actually won three SEC (East…hmmm) games. I haven’t really seen Kentucky play yet, but I have seen Mississippi State play and they look good. If I had to point to one area where they aren’t as good, it’s in the secondary. But their defensive line does a great job of covering up any back end deficiencies. Again, this one is a long shot but I’ll still be rooting for baby Stoops!

Michigan vs. Michigan State: Rooting for…Michigan!

While I’ve got no ties to the state of Michigan (other than my friendship with RB I suppose), I’m big fan of coach Narduzzi’s defense. I’ve seen Michigan State play and unless you’re an excellent excellent offensive team, they’ll usually suffocate your ass. They aren’t in the habit of making decent or even pretty good offenses look good. But this is a rivalry and anything can happen in rivalry games. I haven’t seen Michigan play yet, but I know they came off an emotional win last week so their players might be feeling a little momentum. And of course you know coach Hoke is going to be trying to save his job, and what better way to do it than get a way over their in-state rival. It’s always an uphill battle against MSU’s stingy D, but I’ll be sending the Maize and Blue some good vibes from the gulf coast!

Texas Tech vs. TCU: Rooting for…Shades!

This is another situation where I’m rooting against what I love and rooting for what I don’t (I’m not a hater!). Coach Patterson is a defensive guru and Texas Tech is defensive optional, so normally I’d rooting for Frogs but not this week. The sooner TCU loses the better. That TCU/WVU game is going to be critical next week. Of course OU also needs WVU to drop one as well, but hopefully it’s to some random team they aren’t expected to lose to…like Iowa State or Texas…cause they could do us a lot of favors if they’d take down KSU and TCU.

Ole Miss vs. LSU: Rooting for…Geux Tigers!

I’m just hoping that maybe LSU found some swag last week and that their young defense is finally putting it together. I’m also hoping Ole Miss will act like a team that hasn’t been in this position before, because they haven’t (at least not in a long time) and will lay an egg.

Alabama vs. Tennessee: Rooting for…Rollllll VOLS!

Tennessee has a decent defense, a good set of WRs, and a pretty good quarterback, but their offensive line is just not good. They aren’t able to run the ball nor are they aren’t able to pass protect. Alabama looked like some wolves last week and chances are they’re going to tear Tennessee apart. I guess all I’m hoping for is that their margin of victory is less than OU’s was. The playoff committee isn’t just a bunch of coaches and guys around the country trying to quickly fill out a ballet. They know their votes will be totally diluted by other voters, as well as both national and local media. They are well respected, select individuals who, I believe, will deliberate on a lot of details including comparing like opponents. If Alabama wins the SEC and OU found a way to win the Big 12, then maybe OU has a slightly more compelling case based on the results of the games with the two common opponents.

Ohio State vs. Penn State: Rooting for…Penn State!

Since all my hopes of OU winning the Big 12 and somehow getting into the playoff are built on the idea that the playoff committee is going to prefer a two-loss conference champion over a one-loss SEC team, it’s still critical that at least one of the Power 5 conference champions has two losses. At this point, FSU isn’t likely to have two losses. The Big 10 overall hasn’t looked great, so they’re the easiest target to get rid of in my opinion. But the Buckeyes are one of those sexy name brands the playoff committee would be more than willing to put in, so the sooner Urban Meyer drops another one, the better. Plus Ohio State is probably the lone team in the Big 10 with a reasonable chance of beating Michigan State…and that would help OU (or whoever the Big 12 winner ends up being) immensely…assuming of course that Ohio State drops an additional game as well.

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If Bob Stoops is right and the parity in college football is becoming an insurmountable issue, then surely one of these games can go OU’s way!