If you are a fan of Survivor, this year’s college football season is probably looking very familiar, along the lines of one of the seasons where they bring past, familiar contestants to go against one another. There are those that, from the beginning look like strong competitors and you were surprised when they had setbacks early on, but they have come back and are still in the mix to be there at the end. Then you have some that have been in the mix all along, but the toughest skill challenges are still ahead of them and you don’t know if they have what it takes. There is one contestant who won their previous season and should be as good this time, but they are just barely hanging on each week. There are a few that you didn’t see coming, and while they need some help to be there at the end, they are making an impression now. And oh yeah, Notre Dame, Kansas State and Michigan State, please bring us your torches. Let’s see who can continue to stand on one leg on a post in the middle of the water the longest as we go to week 12 of the season.
Week 12 College Football Preview
Alabama (8-1) vs. Mississippi State (9-0), Saturday, 3:30pm ET, CBS; The champ from previous seasons is going up against the upstart. Alabama slipped midseason against Ole Miss but has made it back from redemption island. They got leapfrogged by TCU in the polls this week but are still viable at number five. Last week the Tide took advantage of horrible LSU offensive plays in overtime to still be relevant, but hey that is the way we play this game. MSU has been the top ranked team for all three weeks of the playoff committee poll. We have been waiting for them to fall face down in the mud, but quarterback Dak Prescott has been an impressive newcomer. His strength, though, is with his legs, not his arm. If Bama can force him to stay in the pocket to throw, and keep running back Josh Robinson in check, they can control the game with their defense. MSU’s defense is giving up more than 300 yards passing per game. Bama has won 23 straight at home and six in a row over against the Bulldogs, but this is the biggest game the Bulldogs have ever played. LWOS Featured Columnist Mike Loveall referred to the SEC as the Donner Party. Survivor meets cannibalism. This one should be a lot of fun.
Miami (6-3) vs. Florida State (9-0), Saturday, 8pm ET, ABC; Florida State is that competitor we expected more from. Each week we concede the ACC title and a playoff spot to them, and each week they struggle to put together the big puzzle pieces that make a Survivor picture. Even after beating Louisville last week, they fell from two to three in the playoff poll, and there is a legitimate question as to whether they are one of the four best teams in the country. The pattern is, they will fall behind early and Jameis Winston will look questionable, only to put it together in the second half with the season in the balance. Florida State’s biggest vulnerability is its thin defensive front seven and Miami running back Duke Johnson is averaging 196 yards per game the last three games. FSU’s biggest hope for salvation is that Jameis Winston has known how to flip the switch in the second half to pull out the win each week.
Kansas (3-6) vs. TCU (8-1), Saturday, 3pm ET, Fox Sports 1; This should be and will be a blowout. The story line is that TCU has a chance to scramble the work of the playoff committee. The Horned Frogs moved up to fourth this week. Win out and they will finish in a first-place tie with Baylor in the Big 12. But Baylor has the immunity idol because they beat TCU head-to-head and will win the conference title, while possibly being ranked behind the Frogs, because of a weaker overall schedule. The committee is quietly begging TCU to be overly impressive the rest of the way, as they were in blowing out Kansas State last week, to justify being ahead of Baylor. Head coach Gary Patterson has never been shy about keeping his foot on the offensive accelerator and TCU should put up big numbers this weekend.
Oregon State (4-5) vs. Arizona State (8-1), Saturday 10:45pm ET, ESPN; When the season started, we thought Arizona State could be a dark horse, but after trashing Notre Dame last week and now being ranked sixth, the Sun Devils have a role on the island that is simple. They control their own fate; win out, including a Pac-12 title game against Oregon, and they will be in the final four. If it were not for a blowout loss to UCLA early in the season, they would already be in the top four. ASU has never had a problem putting up points this season, but now it is the defense that is making the difference. They sacked ND quarterback Everett Golson six times last week and had pressure on him all day. OSU should have been a better matchup, but the Beavers have a defense that gave up 471 yards passing and five touchdowns to a first-time Washington State starter last week. Quarterback Sean Mannion was statistically one of the best in the nation last year. In 2014 however, he has thrown for only 10 touchdowns and has been sacked 28 times despite having impressive passing yard numbers.
Minnesota (7-2) vs. Ohio State (8-1), Saturday Noon ET, ABC; After lingering around camp helping with the smaller tasks, Ohio State finally got the spotlight it needed with an impressive breakout win against Michigan State. It moved them up six spots on the totem pole. The challenges remain big for the Buckeyes though. Michigan State’s marquee game was a loss to Oregon, so OSU beating them has limited pull. The Buckeyes’ final three games are against Minnesota, Indiana and Michigan, so there is not much there to boost their standing, meaning they need the tribe to get rid of a lot of the competitors in front of them. Quarterback JT Barrett has gone from hopeful fill-in at season’s start to the best in the Big Ten. Last week he threw for 300 yards and three touchdowns and ran for another 86 yards and two touchdowns. Minnesota popped into the last spot in the new rankings on the heels of a blowout win over Iowa. The elements are going to be a factor also. Game time high temperature in Minnesota is expected to be in the 20s.
Georgia (7-2) vs. Auburn (7-2), Saturday, 7:15 ET, ESPN; Auburn ran out of miracles last week in bumbling and stumbling its way to a loss against Texas A&M. The Tigers are not completely off the island, but one foot is in the water. Georgia is the island snake waiting to lunge at the committee. They are in second place in the SEC East but own the tiebreaker against first place Missouri. A two-conference loss Georgia team beating a better SEC West team for the conference title in a few weeks could cause everyone to toss their Survivor buffs in the fire. This is the last conference game of the season for Georgia and they get running back Todd Gurley back from NCAA suspension.
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