College Football Playoff Outlook: Week 4
Week three of the College Football season saw some exciting games and storylines come to fruition. Two of the top ten teams lose and the Big Ten had a historically bad day for a conference as a whole.
1. Alabama Crimson Tide
No. 1 Alabama began SEC play this past Saturday with a matchup at Ole Miss. Some thought this game could be competitive, but that turned out to be far from the case. The Rebels scored the first touchdown of the game, but then the Crimson Tide went on to score 62 straight points for a dominating win over Ole Miss.
Every aspect of the game was dominated by the Crimson Tide as they went 516 yards of total offense compared to just 248 for the Rebels. Also, Nick Saban’s team held Ole Miss to just nine first downs. Sophomore quarterback Tua Tagovailoa improved on his Heisman campaign with an efficient 191 yards and tossing two scores.
Alabama has been by far the most dominant team this year in college football and is the easy choice for the No. 1 spot. The Tide now face their toughest opponent of the season so far with No. 22 Texas A&M making the trip to Tuscaloosa for a matchup at 3:30 on Saturday.
2. Ohio State Buckeyes
The AP poll has No. 4 Ohio State too low and vaulted up to my No. 2 spot after a huge win over No. 15 TCU this past week. The Buckeyes made the trip to Arlington to battle the Horned Frogs and came out with a 40-28 win.
This game was very impressive for the Buckeyes in their first real test of the young season. Sophomore quarterback Dwayne Haskins again looked spectacular with 344 yards and two scores. Ohio State used a four-minute stretch in the third quarter to jump out by 12 on the Horned Frogs and never looked back.
Now with the return of head coach Urban Meyer this week, we may see an inspired and determined Buckeyes team against Tulane. The injury to star junior Nick Bosa should be something to watch as a massive showdown with No. 10 Penn State looms the following week.
3. Clemson Tigers
No. 2 ranked Clemson Tigers handled their business this past weekend against Georgia Southern 38-7 but dropped a spot because they haven’t been as impressive this season as Alabama and Ohio State.
Despite starting the season 3-0, it’s hard for me to feel as if this Clemson team is a dominant as season’s past. Wins over Furman and Georgia Southern don’t really scream national champion to me and were lucky to squeak by Texas A&M on the road in week two.
We may start to learn more about this Clemson team now as they begin ACC play with a matchup with Syracuse who is 3-0 and has looked impressive. Clemson doesn’t play a ranked team until November 11th when they travel to No. 23 Boston College.
4. Georgia Bulldogs
Coach Kirby Smart and his No. 3 ranked Bulldogs did their job this past week and handled Middle Tennessee 49-7 to start the season 3-0. Georgia was in control of this entire game and looked dominant throughout.
Sophomore quarterback Jake Fromm was superb in this game as threw for 128 yards and three touchdowns on only 12 passes. Freshman quarterback Justin Fields also saw playtime as he threw for 71 yards and a score on eight attempts. The Georgia rushing attack dominated Middle Tennessee as they ran for 261 yards and two scores.
Georgia will make the trip to the other Columbia in the SEC, Missouri, to play the Tigers on Saturday. Missouri is one of the underrated teams in the SEC and gives the Bulldogs a test led by future NFL pro and senior quarterback Drew Lock. Lock has thrown for 11 touchdowns to only one interception and will surely test this Georgia defense.
5. Oklahoma Sooners
6. LSU Tigers
Camden Tofil is a sophomore majoring in advertising. To contact him, email camdentofil@gmail.com.
