Jon Joseph

Thanks, Hayward. As I bet you know, the Committee picks 7 at-large teams. It's counterintuitive from any sensible PO format but it is what we are stuck with in 2024 and 2025. Four of the five top-ranked conference champs have to be seeded 1-4 no matter where they may be ranked by the Committee. The highest-ranked G5 champ is guaranteed a spot. Five PO spots, but not the seeding, will be determined by conference champ games. Again, no attempt to lecture here, 'this' is confusing. 😒 On December 8, 2024, the PO seeding in all probability will not match the Committee's final ranking of the top 25. In all probability, a higher-ranked team or two will be benched in favor of a lower-ranked team. Of course, the Committee and ESPN could try to fudge things by simply releasing the Playoff field and seeding on December 8th. But ESPN's insistence on interim Committee poll$ being made public will not allow the Committee to escape almost certain backlash from teams passed over because of a screwed-up Playoff format. I expect more blowback come December 8th than when TCU/Baylor was passed over and last season when undefeated FSU was left out. Blame it on Playoff architect Greg Sankey. 😍

It's a B1G/SEC AP Poll. How about a College Football B1G/SEC 'World Series?' AP Top 25 Reality Check: SEC, Big Ten grab 16 spots in poll, monopolizing rankings like never before APNEWS.COM The Southeastern Conference and Big Ten occupy 64% of this week’s AP Top 25, with 16 ranked tream combined, the most ever by two conferences in one poll.

I kind of, sort of, "GET" the 16-team SEC playing eight conference games. The 18-team B1G plays nine conference games. However, the 17-team ACC playing eight conference games, especially with Clemson no longer playing like PO Champ Clemson, is indefensible. Ranked opponents Miami has played - ZIP. Ranked opponents Miami has remaining on its schedule - No. 19 Louisville, QB'd by friend Tyler Shough. Will Miami's ACC Champ Game opponent, if the U doesn't fold up, be ranked in the Committee's top 15, top 20, or top 25? And ACC champ Miami would be the 3rd or 4th seed with a 1st round bye. $CAM brought to you by Canes QB Cam. 😁

Stale Cupcakes are still available. But No. 11 USC at No. 18 Michigan, No. 24 Illinois at No. 22 Nebraska (Friday), UCLA at No. 16 LSU, 3-0 Michigan State at 2-1 Boston College, 3-0 Rutgers at 2-1 VA Tech, and 2-1 Iowa at 2-1 Minnesota are Week 4 big B1G games featuring a game in the Big House. College football Week 4: As conference play ramps up, more mismatches are on the slate for top teams APNEWS.COM The game of the week in college football matches No. 11 Southern California against No. 18 Michigan in Ann Arbor, Michigan.

I'm hoping that LSU will defeat at least one of Bama, Ole Miss in Baton Rogue. That Oklahoma upsets Tennessee in Norman Saturday, Texas in Dallas, and then wins one of its last two games, Alabama in Norman and LSU in Baton Rogue. Keep in range of Ohio State, take the game into the 4th quarter and I don't believe the Ducks will be severely punished by the Committee. The 1st Committee ranking will be released on November 5th. We'll get our 1st look at how closely the Committee follows the Coaches and AP Polls. TN, Bama, Mizzou, and UGA, have wins over P4 opponents. Ole Miss beat Wake Forest. Boise is ranked 27th, Wake is nowhere to be found. And Miami's signature win was over a bad Florida team. We'll see if the adoration the SEC is also the way of the Committee.

After Week 3 James is the 3rd leading rusher in the B1G. DM's take on Nebraska to date is spot on. Dowdell has looked darn good for the Huskers.😒 Will the Illini give the Huskers a battle Friday? Yes, the Illini defeated Kansas but UNLV did likewise.

In 2024-25 and 2025-26 the fifth highest ranked conference team is in the PO field. There is no assurance and I think it is very unlikely, that the PO format for the next 2 seasons will continue. Regardless, how are 2 teams that never made a PO appearance plus 4 teams that never made a PO appearance the best G5/G6 conference? The only kind of brand name the Pac-2 added is Boise State. Will UTSA, Tulane, USF, Memphis, and other AAC teams leave the AAC for a bird in the bush? Air Force Academy is rumored to be headed to the AAC and join football members Army and Navy. I think the AAC is as likely to poach UNLV as is the Pac-6. I do not believe the Pac-6 today has overtaken the AAC. FWIW, MAC school No. Illinois would be the G5 representative if the PO field was seeded today. Next in the AP top 25 comes AAC Memphis. Boise at No. 27 comes in third. You could merge the Pac-6, what's left of the Mountain West, and the AAC, and the combination would not give the conference Power Playoff status. As noted above, all of this is rearranging G5 deck chairs. The B1G and the SEC each receive 29% of PO revenues. The Power 2 will not take a lesser cut to accommodate the Pac-12 What will incentivize ESPN, FOX, and CW to pay more than they are paying for the same inventory? The Pac-12 name?

Will there be Ill(inois) tidings in Lincoln on Friday Night? 3 reasons the Huskers are B1G title contenders; 3 reasons to pump the brakes SATURDAYTRADITION.COM Nebraska is ranked and has its long-awaited answer at QB. Are the Cornhuskers truly back? If so, what's the ceiling?

An Insight Into The Obvious - No Power Soup For the Pac-6 and Cal and Furd are Gone 4 Good. Friedlander: Don’t get your hopes up Pac-12 diehards. Cal and Stanford aren’t coming back WWW.SATURDAYDOWNSOUTH.COM Despite the wishful thinking of West Coast traditionalists, the Bears and Cardinals aren't leaving the ACC to rejoin the newly reconstituted Pac-12. BTW, Pac-12 'diehards' = 2 teams plus John Canzano.

Don't Sleep On Cig's Hoosiers. B1G Time: Indiana's dominance amid 3-0 start should not be overlooked, thoughts on Michigan's QB change - CBSSports.com WWW.CBSSPORTS.COM The manner in which the Hoosiers are winning games should serve as a warning to the rest of the Big Ten

Thank you, Darren, for an update on the uncalled-for, unnecessary destruction of the Mountain West. The Pac-2 has paid $113M to date to rearrange G5 deck chairs with no qualms about destroying the MW and likely the Big Sky. The departing Pac-10 all knew the terms of the financial deals they were entering into before departing for the B1G, ACC, and the B12. The Pac-Whatever has no future media deal in place. As CBS Sports Dennis Dodd points out, there is no assurance that the MW newbies will receive more money than under the existing MW deal. Air Force Academy appears ready to join the AAC and AAC football members Army and Navy. Will USF, Memphis, Tulane, and UTSA, take the risk of possibly making less media money than in the AAC? If these teams are added, expect to hear from the Pac-Whatever that recent studies prove that Student-Athletes' health and welfare are significantly benefited by additional travel.😂 This pinnacle of hypocrisy could have been avoided by simply merging with the Mountain West and rebranding the conference as the Pac-12. As every journalist who covers CFB and is in their right mind and not hustling for subscriptions have noted, there is NO WAY that the Power 4, especially the Power 2, will recognize the Pac-Whatever as a Power Conference. At least $100M of the $113M spent to date on this foolishness was earned by Oregon and the other departing Pac-10 schools. That this G5 mishmash owns the rights to the "Pac-12" name is further evidence that the morons who led the Pac-12 over the cliff made a moronic settlement in a case with no claim for damages against their schools instead of declaring bankruptcy. Just hand over $300M plus because you feel 'guilty' about the market leaving behind two teams that deserve to be left behind? BRILLIANT! 2025 should be the last year Oregon plays Oregon State in football. If the Civil War continues, it should be conditioned on all games played in Autzen. Ohio State plays Ohio University infrequently; when it does, the games are played in Columbus, Ohio, not Athens, Ohio.

There will be 11 playoff games in 2024/25 including the champ game in Atlanta on 1/20/25. The latest AP Ranking would have SEC teams hosting all four 1st round games. This would result in 9 of the 11 playoff games being played in Dixie. The exceptions would be the Rose Bowl and the Fiesta Bowl. Imagine the outcry if the NFL titled the field like this. The D2 and D3 playoffs conducted by the NCAA and not the College Football Playoff Committee follow the NFL model. Higher-seeded teams play at home until the champ games. The Playoff Committee is attempting to manage a playoff and placate the six biggest bowls at the same time. And to not give the 4 top seeds a home game is senseless. B1G commish Tony Petitti has to lobby to change the 2026 format to the NFL format; or, add Las Vegas, SoFi Stadium, Lumen Field in Seattle, Minneapolis, Indianapolis, and Detroit as playoff sites. AP Poll No. 6 Tennessee plays at No. 15 Oklahoma on Saturday. Keep an eye on how far the loser of this game drops. Compare to the loser of the No. 11 SC at No. 18 Michigan game. Today at 2-0 with a neutral site win over No. 16 LSU and a shutout of a Utah State team that No. 12 Utah struggled against, SC should be ranked ahead of Ole Miss, Missouri, and Miami. 9 SEC teams, more than half of the conference are ranked in the AP Poll including a 2-1 A+M with a win at 1-2 Florida being its only win of (sour) note and a home loss to 2-1 Notre Dame. 3-0 Memphis, Indiana, Rutgers, and 2-1 Boise State deserve the 25th spot more than A+M. You rank more than 50% of the teams in any conference and you ipso facto add gravitas to the conference's strength-of-schedule; every loss is a 'good loss.'

I know it's confusing but in this scenario, Miami would be the ACC Champ and the 3 seed with a 1st round bye and the Canes would play in the Peach Bowl in the 2nd round vs. the winner of 11 Penn State at 5 Alabama. As the B12 Champ Utah would be the 4 seed, with a 1st Round bye, and play the winner of G5 representative No. 12 Northern Illinois at 5 Georgia in the Fiesta Bowl. As the 10th seed, Oregon would play a 1st round game at 7-seed Ole Miss. The winner would play Ohio State in the Rose Bowl. We have 2 seasons of this playoff mishmash before the format changes in 2025. For the next 2 seasons, the Committee's final running in all probability will not match the playoff seeding.😒

Wazzu started out 3-0 last season with a win over Wisconsin before not finishing with 6 wins and being bowl-eligible.

On3 Ranks Oregon's Remaining 9 B1G Games Ranking Oregon's Remaining Games - On3 WWW.ON3.COM We are in the bye week but we take a look at Oregon's conference games and rank them in order of toughest to easiest.

Thanks, Alex. And Gabe, keep on blowing that horn!

NOW, I'm starting to feel sorry for Beavers fans; however, in Alaska, Siberia, Newfoundland, Hudson's Bay, Iceland, and Scandinavia, these Beaverettes are prized partners in the depths of the deep, dark, freezing winters. 😁

A B1G Game in the Big House Has SC Favored at -6.5. The B1G storylines for Week 4: USC’s conference debut in the Big House highlights slate SATURDAYTRADITION.COM USC at Michigan is the headliner, but don't sleep on Illinois at Nebraska. Here's what matters most about the B1G's Week 4 slate. Don't miss No. 24 Illinois at No. 22 Nebraska this Friday on Fox at 5 PM Pacific.

Hey, Y'All, Saturday Down South is Buying the Ducks. 10 CFB ideas I’m buying or selling after Week 3 WWW.SATURDAYDOWNSOUTH.COM Let's breakdown some prevailing college football narratives and see if they match up with what the underlying data is telling us.

Ducks B1G Champ Odds Rebound. Updated Big Ten Odds: Any Oregon Ducks Change After 49-14 Win Over Oregon State? WWW.YARDBARKER.COM The Oregon Ducks beat the brakes off the Oregon State Beavers by a score of 49-14. Oregon shook off their underwhelming performances against Idaho and Boise State.

The Beavs and the Pac-Whatever are G5. Anything else is a short-term accommodation; it's form over substance. I'd like the Ducks to open every season in Autzen against Portland State. (No whopping cough, please.) Every season the Ducks will be integrating portal players with Ducks veterans. As we have witnessed in 2024 this is not a seamless process. Mullens needs to do all can to play at least 7 home games every season. Especially in the odd years when Oregon will play five B1G road games. Oregon State would be fine so long as all the games are played in Autzen. Michigan, Ohio State, and Penn State do not go on the road to play G5 schools. Oregon plays 9 B1G games every season and will incur the travel that comes with being in a coast-to-coast conference. Extrapolating from today's AP Poll, 9 of the 11 playoff games, including 4 1st round games all hosted by SEC schools, and would be contested in Dixie. The exceptions would be the Fiesta and Rose Bowls. To win a championship in the next 2 seasons means playing 16 or 17 games and defeating 3 or 4 highly-ranked playoff teams with 2 to 3 games on the road. Why do anything to make THIS more difficult; especially, if the ACC and the SEC continue to play 8 conference games and Notre Dame plays 12 regular season games? The expanded Playoff requires Art of the Deal scheduling regardless of tradition and out-of-conference headlines. Again, using the current AP Poll, 6 SEC teams in the field would bring a far bigger slice of the playoff pie to the SEC than would 3 B1G teams to the B1G. As currently configured, you get no more money for playing Oklahoma out-of-conference than playing Tulsa. There will be plenty of eyeballs on Oregon without playing rigorous out-of-conference games.

Illinois is AP Poll ranked No. 24 and plays at No. 22 Nebraska next week. Unlike SEC vs. SEC matchups, the loser of this game will fall more than 1 or 2 spots in the next AP Poll. No. 6 Tennessee plays at No. 15 Oklahoma next Saturday so we will have a comparison.

I apologize to OBD Forum friends, but I believe the AP Poll and the Committee Poll when they are released, deserve to be highlighted, easily found, and discussed.

Post Week 3 AP Poll - 7 B1G Teams Ranked NCAA College Football Rankings: AP Top 25 Football Poll APNEWS.COM The official page for the AP Top 25 college football poll, a tradition since 1936. Keep up to date and view the latest ranking updates each week. OBD has a win over No. 27 Boise State. Teams ranked above the Ducks, Ole Miss, Mizzou, and Miami have no significant wins. Miami defeated a 1-2 Florida. Missouri finally played a P4 opponent ranked behind Boise and struggled to put the Eagles away at home. I have no beef with the ranking of Texas, Georgia, Alabama and Tennessee, all with quality P4 victories. The SEC wheat will start to be separated from the chaff when No. 6 Tennessee visits No. 15 Oklahoma on Saturday, but all the other ranked SEC teams play inferior opponents. The B1G sees No. 11 USC, (being undefeated with a victory over LSU does not move SC up) at No. 18 Michigan, and No. 24 Illinois at No. 22 Nebraska.

Ducks Stay at 9 in Post Week 3 AP Poll Which is Male Bovine Excrement! NCAA College Football Rankings: AP Top 25 Football Poll APNEWS.COM The official page for the AP Top 25 college football poll, a tradition since 1936. Keep up to date and view the latest ranking updates each week.