It was supposed to be “Showdown Saturday.” It turned out to be “Separation Saturday.” Alabama suffocated LSU 29-0, Michigan obliterated Penn State 42-7 and Georgia doubled-up Kentucky 34-17. Thats a combined 105-24 in the three-marquee match-ups of the day. Here are my top-10 takeaways from the first Saturday in November.
- Losing to LSU by 20-points might end up being one of the best things to happen to Georgia. The Dawgs rolled into Lexington and dominated the Cats 34-17 and clinched the SEC East. Kirby Smart’s squad is heading to Atlanta for the 2nd straight season. Since that loss to the Tigers of LSU, Georgia has dominated Florida and Kentucky in back-to-back weeks. Georgia is really hitting their stride on the ground and Jake Fromm is playing with confidence. Nice season for Kentucky. Nice story. Kentucky basketball begins Tuesday against Duke. Back to reality.
2. Michigan dismantled Penn State 42-7 this afternoon at The Big House. I can’t believe I’m saying this, but mark it down, the Wolverines will beat the Buckeyes. I’ve been as big of a “hater” on Jim Harbaugh as anyone, but I truly believe he will finally beat Urban Meyer. Michigan’s defense might be the best in the country. I’d certainly put them right there with Clemson and Alabama. I would slide Michigan all the way up to #3 in the country, even surpassing Notre Dame. They’d beat the Irish if they played today.
3. Notre Dame remains perfect. Ian Book is the real deal. Book tossed 2-touchdowns, threw for 334-yards and rushed for another 50+ and a rushing TD as the Irish defeated Northwestern by 10. My only question for Notre Dame right now is why Brian Kelly didn’t start Book from day 1. He’s vastly superior to Brandon Wimbush.
4. Alabama blanked LSU 29-0 in Death Valley. If any LSU fan says this was “a win” immediately end the conversation. The Tide doubled the spread and dominated the game. Bama outgunned LSU 576-196 in total yards. Complete and utter suffocation. The Crimson Tide have now won 8-straight in the series.
5. Vols get a struggle win. Should I be surprised that Tennessee defeated Charlotte 14-3? Maybe. Maybe not. Charlotte outgunned the Tennessee 244-192 in total yards. That’s pretty embarrassing. That said, a win is a win for Jeremy Pruitt. The Vols improve to 4-5 and with Kentucky coming off of a loss, I would anticipate a deflated Cats team next week at Neyland. Vols will have a real chance at winning and getting to 5-5 in year 1 of Jeremy Pruitt.
6. Clemson is absurd. Louisville is awful. The Tigers defeated Louisville 77-16. Dabo’s boys have now outscored their last 4-opponents 240-36. That’s not a typo. 240-36. That is an average score of 60-9. Clemson is looking like the only team that can possibly hand with Alabama. If the Tide and Tigers played right now, on a neutral field, I’d set the line at Bama -10.5.
7. The Buckeyes will lose to Michigan. After a 29-point loss to Purdue, Ohio State responded by squeezing out a 5-point win against a Nebraska team that struggles to get out of their own way. I’m not sure that Ohio State deserves to be in the Top-10 when the new CFB Playoff Rankings are revealed this Tuesday night.
8. Gus gets a big comeback win that could salvage his tenure on the Plains. Auburn rallied for their biggest comeback in 5-years to defeat Texas A&M. It doesn’t appear like Auburn has a chance vs Georgia, and, well, the Iron Bowl, never mind. But today was a nice comeback win for Auburn, as they improve to 6-3.
9. West Virginia and Texas gave us a thriller. A great game that lived up to the hype. Will Grier is a bad, bad man. Texas is NOT back. However, Sam Ehlinger is a baller.
10. CFB Playoff 4:
Here is how I’d have the CFB Top-10 come Tuesday night when the new rankings are revealed…
- Alabama
- Clemson
- Michigan (Yes, I have Michigan ahead of ND, even with a loss to ND)
- Notre Dame
- Georgia (With the way UGA is playing, I think they beat ND right now, but 20-point loss is bad)
- Oklahoma
- Washington State
- West Virginia
- UCF
- Ohio State