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ACC TAKEAWAY:
HURRICANES BLOW OUT BLUE DEVILS
The No. 10 Miami Hurricanes met with the Duke Blue Devils last Saturday and from the first kick-off, Miami dominated this one to the point that it was almost not fun to watch. The main I reason I left this blowout on was because I was super intrigued by the Hurricanes offense. They popped off and moved the ball down the field with ease throughout the entire duration of the game. They finished with over 500 total yards and their veteran leader D’Eriq King continued to impress as he has all season long. The red-shirt senior and transfer from Houston, threw for three touchdowns and ran for one as well, demonstrating to the college football world that he is a true dual-threat quarterback. On the other side of the ball, the Hurricanes defense held Duke’s transfer quarterback, Chase Brice, and the Blue Devils offense in check and really dominated for lack of a better term. The Hurricanes only allowed Duke to gain 177 total yards on the day. Not to mention, Miami’s notorious “turnover chain” was passed around quite a bit as the Hurricanes defense caused five total turnovers.
This win was a great morale booster for the Hurricanes heading into their last few games of the season. This team unfortunately won’t be making an appearance in the ACC Championship this year but that is only because two of the top 5 teams in the country will be playing in it. Although I am excited to see the Notre Dame and Clemson rematch in the ACC title game, you have to still feel bad for the Hurricanes because they got the short end of the stick. This team has only one loss to Clemson and if the Fighting Irish did not join the ACC this year due to Covid, Miami would be getting that rematch instead. I look forward to seeing who they get to matchup with in a bowl this year and am even more excited for their season next year. Coach Manny Diaz has the U trending back in the direction of greatness.
USA Today Sports / Jasen Vinlove
BIG TEN TAKEAWAY:
FIELDS AND THE BUCKEYES ARE BALLIN OUT
Last week in the blog, we highlighted the Michigan State Spartans for obtaining a huge victory against Northwestern and mentioned they would need to be near-perfect to pull off an upset win against the Buckeyes. It was clear that Ohio State was going to show up and perform even without their coach Ryan Day and several of their star players, so I wouldn’t say that the Spartans had a real advantage. The longshot upset just didn’t happen because Ohio State is simply a much better football team than Michigan State this season. And the main reason why is Justin Fields. He will not win the Heisman due to the spectacular seasons Trevor Lawrence, Mac Jones, and Kyle Trask are all having but that guy is an amazing football player who has been superb for the Buckeyes this season. He definitely deserves votes for the prestigious award and could have had a real shot if there wasn’t so much talent displayed this season at the FBS level.
Fields was one of the most publicized recruits a few years ago coming out of high school due to appearing on the television series QB1: Beyond The Lights. He gained even more attention once he decided to transfer from Georgia after his freshman season and the expectations were sky high when he made his way up to Columbus. Now in 2020, after two full seasons with the Buckeyes, he has surpassed those initial hopes and is not even done yet. It looks like Ohio State will get to play in the Big 10 Championship and potentially in the college football playoffs thereafter. If Fields can continue his success in those big-time games, we may be seeing NFL franchises jumping to get him in the draft come April.
Cleveland.com / David Petkiewicz
BIG 12 TAKEAWAY:
SOONERS BOOMING THEIR WAY TO CONFERENCE CHAMPIONSHIP GAME
The Sooners faced a struggling Baylor team this past weekend in Norman and was able to get the job done winning the game 27-14. The Sooners came out strong and scored the first seventeen points of the game, putting the Bears in a tough situation. Although Baylor was able to score a late third quarter touchdown, the Sooners put ten additional points on the board in the last quarter to seal the game. The win was a big one as it improved their record to 7-2 on the season and helped them secure a spot in the Big 12 Championship game. The Sooners will get to face off against the impressive Iowa State Cyclones who beat them earlier in the season and man will that be a fun one to watch. Iowa State has been really impressive this season but I expect the Sooners to show up big in the championship game. Coach Lincoln Riley and his squad will not only be playing for revenge or the last laugh, but also to keep their streak alive. The Big 12 Championship scheduled for December 19th, will be the Sooners fourth Championship game in a row and if they are victorious, they will be crowned as conference champions for the sixth straight season. As for the Cyclones, they will be looking to take home their first Big 12 title in school history. Looking forward to that game and hope there will be plenty of fireworks.
College Football News
PAC-12 TAKEAWAY:
DOWN GO THE DUCKS..AGAIN?
About a month ago when the Pac-12 season kicked off, I had the Oregon Ducks as my early pick to win the conference and repeat as Pac 12 champs. Looking back, man I was so wrong! The Ducks started the season out with an impressive 3-0 record and looked like they were going to be extremely successful. Fast forward to present day, and this team has lost two in a row and are on the brink of losing a third straight this upcoming weekend against Washington. The dominant ducks have all of a sudden turned into the dreadful Ducks and could finish their shortened season with a disappointing .500 record. I think the most concerning part about Oregon’s collapse has been who they’ve lost to. Both of their losses came to teams they should have easily beaten in the Oregon State Beavers and Cal Bears. The Beavers are a .500 team and Cal was winless until Oregon played them last weekend. The Ducks have been struggling on the road and haven’t been able to pull out the close ones. Let’s hope Mario Cristobal and the Ducks can turn it around this weekend and save their season against the visiting Huskies.
NBCSports.com
SEC TAKEAWAY:
A&M SURVIVES AUBURN
Other than the unexpected, last minute matchup between the No. 13 BYU Cougars and No. 18 Coastal Carolina Chanticleers this past weekend, this SEC battle was the most exciting game of week 14. The Auburn Tigers were coming off an embarrassing and demoralizing loss to the Alabama Crimson Tide and were looking to bounce back with an upset win against the Aggies. The Tigers held their own in this game and gave A&M a run for their money up until the fourth quarter when Jimbo Fisher’s squad pulled away. Aggies quarterback Kellen Mond managed the game well on offense and running back Isiah Spiller ran like a man on a mission. Spiller finished the game with 120 rushing yards and averaged 6 yards per carry which are video game type numbers. Another player to mention for the Aggies that stood out was the up and coming sophomore tight end, Jalen Wydermyer. He reeled in eight receptions for 89 yards and had both receiving touchdowns the Aggies scored Saturday. He will be a player to in the coming seasons and will most likely hear his name called at the NFL draft in the future.
As for the Aggies and where they lie in the playoff standings, they still remain the first team out at number 5. This could change however with a lot of football left to be played before January 1st when the semifinal games are set to take place. Notre Dame and Clemson will play each other in the ACC Championship as already mentioned so you’ll have a playoff contender losing there no matter what. Ohio State will not play Michigan this week due to Covid so that hurts them I believe and they will really have to really impress the committee against Northwestern in the Big 10 Championship to secure the fourth and final spot. Also, Alabama will have to beat Florida in the SEC Championship which will be no easy task. The point is that the Aggies could still sneak into the college football playoff based on what happens come championship weekend. They have done everything they can to give themselves a shot and now must wait and see like the rest of us what will ultimately happen.
Texas A&M Football Instagram