As the regular season comes to an end, the excitement level in college football is only just heating up. In this week’s blog, I’m going to highlight the final week across each conference and preview next week’s conference championship games. I’ll also give my final thoughts on who I believe should win the Heisman Trophy, and wrap up by outlining what should be an outstanding College Football Playoff this year.
The South Eastern Conference
Things started early Friday for the SEC as Ole Miss handled the Egg Bowl with ease. Jumping out to a first-quarter lead gave the Rebels the cushion they needed to coast to yet another victory over Mississippi State. This is now Ole Miss’s fifth win in their last six tries—their only defeat coming in Mike Leach’s final coached game before he passed away two weeks later. Ole Miss finished the season 11–1 and 7–1 in conference play, with their only loss coming on the road at Georgia, a game they actually led entering the fourth quarter. The win set them up for a potential trip to the conference title game if both Texas A&M and Alabama lost.
Georgia had the afternoon slot on Friday in a game that did not matter for SEC title implications; win or lose, they were already locked into Atlanta since their game against Georgia Tech is not a conference matchup. Good Old Fashioned Hate lived up to its name, turning into a true slugfest that featured six field goals and just one touchdown. Neither team could capitalize on the other’s mistakes, and Georgia escaped with a 16–9 win. They also finished 11–1 and 7–1 in SEC play, their lone loss coming at home to Alabama. Thanks to holding the head-to-head tiebreaker over Ole Miss, the Bulldogs could sit back, relax, and wait to see who they would face in the conference title game.
Texas A&M needed only to win their final game to go 8–0 and reach their first SEC title game. The problem? They had to do it on the road in Austin—where Texas has won 47 of the previous 61 meetings. The trend continued. A&M’s first-half lead disappeared quickly after halftime, and two fourth-quarter interceptions by Marcell Reed sealed their fate. The Aggies suffered their first loss of the season in their final game. Oddly enough, the loss might not be the worst thing for them; now eliminated from the SEC title game, they gain an extra week of rest and will almost certainly host a first-round playoff game.
With the A&M loss, an Iron Bowl win would send Alabama back to the SEC Championship for the first time since 2023. While that might not sound like a long drought, Alabama hadn’t missed back-to-back SEC title games since 2010–2011. On paper, this year’s game against Auburn should have been an easy win, but Jordan-Hare at night brings chaos. The 5–6 Tigers tied the game at 20–20 early in the fourth quarter. Alabama then produced a nearly eight-minute drive that included two fourth-down conversions—the final one a fourth-and-two at the Auburn six that resulted in a touchdown. Had they failed, Kalen DeBoer would be sitting on the hottest seat of the century. Auburn still had a shot, driving down the field with under a minute to play, but as star receiver Cam Coleman fought for extra yards, the ball was punched out, sealing Alabama’s trip to yet another SEC title game.
Elsewhere in the conference, Vanderbilt earned its first 10-win season in school history with a strong second half against in-state rival Tennessee. Oklahoma used a late touchdown pass to Isaiah Sategna to beat LSU by four and keep their CFP hopes alive. Kentucky and South Carolina both embarrassed themselves in rivalry games against ACC opponents, while Florida flipped the script and beat theirs. Arkansas finished the season 0–8 in SEC play after a 14-point loss to Missouri, officially earning the title of worst SEC team of the year.
Next week’s title game in Atlanta is a rematch of the September 27th meeting in Athens, where Alabama won a second-half defensive battle 24–21. Since then, both teams have rolled—minus Alabama’s performance against Oklahoma. Georgia hasn’t had a real scare, and Ty Simpson has blossomed into a true Heisman contender. Georgia is nearly a lock for the CFP regardless of the result, but things aren’t as simple for Alabama. Currently sitting as the last at-large team in the field, a loss to Georgia would give them a third loss. It’s hard to imagine the committee punishing them for playing an extra game they earned, but if I were Alabama, I wouldn’t test that luck—especially not with a blowout. Georgia has never beaten Alabama in an SEC title game, but I think that streak ends this year. Give me the Dawgs in a 27–17 win.
The Big 10 Conference
The Big Ten was one of two conferences where we actually got the expected results in the final week.
Indiana started the weekend Friday night by dismantling Purdue for the Old Oaken Bucket. Their 56–3 win was no surprise, and it capped a perfect 12–0 regular season and a 9–0 conference record—the first unbeaten year for the Hoosiers since 1945, when they went 9–0–1, tying with Northwestern. The win clinched Indiana’s first Big Ten Championship Game berth and gives them their first chance at a conference title since 1967.
Ohio State had its chance to join them Saturday morning, needing only a win against Michigan to punch their ticket. The Wolverines had won the last four meetings, but the Buckeyes entered Ann Arbor determined to end the streak. Early Ohio State mistakes weren’t capitalized on the way Michigan fans hoped, which allowed the Buckeyes to settle in. A late first-half touchdown gave Ohio State a 17–9 lead at the break, and the defense pitched a shutout in the second half to secure a 27–9 victory. The win also gave Ohio State a perfect 12–0 regular season, setting up a Big Ten title game between the No. 1 and No. 2 teams in the country.
Elsewhere in the conference, Oregon traveled to Washington and, in an ugly but effective performance, beat the Huskies for the second straight season. Oregon finished 11–1 and almost certainly secured a playoff spot, likely hosting a first-round game in Autzen. USC handled UCLA fairly easily and finished 9–3, ultimately falling a win short—against either Notre Dame or Oregon—of making the playoff field. Minnesota and Iowa rolled through their rivalry matchups against Wisconsin and Nebraska, and Penn State picked up its sixth win of the season against Rutgers thanks to a fourth-quarter comeback. Not the year the Nittany Lions hoped for, but at least they get one more game. Illinois beat Northwestern in a blizzard, and Michigan State earned its first conference win of the season against a Maryland team that started 4–0 but completely unraveled afterward. Purdue finishes the year as the only team without a conference win and earns the crown of worst Big Ten team.
This week’s title game in Indianapolis is the highest-ranked matchup in its history, surpassing last year’s No. 1 Oregon vs. No. 3 Penn State showdown. It’s a loose rematch of last year’s late-November meeting, when Ohio State won 38–15. The cast is different this time, but I think the outcome will be the same: Ohio State wins the Big Ten Championship Game, 31–20.
The Big 12 Conference
The other conference where the expected happened was the Big 12.
Utah started the weekend by using a pair of late Jalon Daniels interceptions to seal a ten-point victory over the Jayhawks and keep their title-game hopes alive. Those hopes were quickly dashed as Arizona State got run out of its own building in the Territorial Cup. Arizona executed on all levels and won 23-7. That win by Arizona locked in that the conference title game would be a rematch between Texas Tech and BYU—before either of those teams even took the field Saturday morning. Utah finished the year 10-2, their best regular season since 2019. Arizona finished 9-3, while Arizona State wrapped up its disappointing title-defense season at 8-4, its lone highlight being the win over Texas Tech.
Texas Tech started Saturday strong with its largest road conference victory in school history, beating West Virginia 49-0. The Red Raiders finish the season 11-1 and 8-1 in conference play, tying the magical 2008 season for the most regular-season wins in program history. They now have a shot at their first conference title since joining the Big 12.
BYU got off to a slow start, falling behind 14-0 against UCF before rattling off 31 unanswered points en route to a 41-21 victory over the Knights. The Cougars also finish the season 11-1 and 8-1 in conference, with their lone loss coming on the road to Texas Tech. This marks BYU’s most regular-season wins since 2001, when they went 12-1. BYU now gets its first chance to win the Big 12 since joining the league—and its first chance at any conference title since winning the Mountain West back in 2007.
Elsewhere in the conference, Houston denied Baylor bowl eligibility with a 31-24 win. The Cougars finished 9-3, an impressive turnaround from last season’s 4-8. Kansas State earned bowl eligibility by beating Colorado 24-14. The Buffaloes end the year 3-9 with only one conference win. TCU beat Cincinnati 45-23, capping a collapse that saw the Bearcats go from conference-title hopefuls to losers of four straight. Iowa State slipped past Oklahoma State to hand the Cowboys their 11th loss of the year—they finish 1-11, with their only win coming against UT Martin—and claim the title of worst Big 12 team of the season.
This year’s Big 12 title game features the seventh and eighth different teams to appear in it over the last four years. Since 2020, ten different teams have played in the conference championship, making it one of the most diverse title-game lineups in the nation. This year’s matchup is a rematch of the November 8th meeting in Lubbock. I think BYU gets its revenge and beats Texas Tech 27-25.
The Atlantic Coast Conference
This went about as badly as it could for the ACC. To start the week, three teams sat atop the conference standings with just one conference loss. All three were ranked, and as long as two of them won, there would be a ranked matchup for the title game.
Virginia was the highest-ranked of the three, and they got the day started on the right foot with one of their largest wins in history over in-state rival Virginia Tech. The win gave the Cavaliers a 10-2 season overall and a 7-1 conference record. It also punched their ticket to Charlotte for the first time since 2019 and gave them a chance at their first conference title since 1995.
Pitt was another team sitting atop the standings, though they needed some help. First they needed to beat Miami, and then they would be watching SMU later that night hoping for a loss. It’s safe to assume no one in the Pitt program was paying attention to SMU by Saturday night, as the Panthers got their doors blown off by Miami 38-7. The game wasn’t even close—Miami dominated every aspect. The loss dropped Pitt to 6-2 in conference, putting them in a cluster of teams that still had a path to the title game if SMU and Duke both lost.
That possibility didn’t last long, as Duke took full advantage of its opportunity and pummeled Wake Forest 49-32. Despite three non-conference losses—two to Group of Five schools—Duke finished 6-2 in conference and held the tiebreakers over all other 6-2 teams. That meant that if Cal beat SMU, Duke would reach the ACC title game at 7-5, while Miami, sitting at 10-2, would miss out.
SMU had to travel to the Bay Area to take on Cal in a classic ACC showdown. The Mustangs fell behind 31-14 early before rattling off three straight touchdown drives to take a 35-31 lead. Their title hopes were alive, and all they needed to do was hold on for the final 2:22. But Cal marched right down the field and scored with under a minute to play. With forty seconds left, SMU got into range for a 52-yard attempt, but the kick sailed wide right, and Cal escaped with the win.
Elsewhere in the conference, Clemson and Louisville dominated their in-state SEC rivals, while Florida State and Georgia Tech did not have the same luck. NC State put a cherry on top of Bill Belichick’s first year at UNC with a 42-19 win over the Tar Heels. Boston College earned its first conference win of the year against Syracuse. Both finished 1-7 in ACC play—Syracuse does hold one more overall win, but both teams carry at least an eight-game losing streak. You decide who gets the crown for worst ACC team this season.
As we look ahead to Virginia vs. Duke in the conference title game, it’s important to understand why this outcome is so damaging. The conference’s highest-ranked team, Miami, isn’t in the game and now needs to make the playoff as an at-large—unlikely, since no one ahead of them lost in the final week. Even with a win over Notre Dame, they aren’t viewed as a top-10 caliber team, and for the second year in a row they lost exactly the wrong combination of ACC games to miss the title game. A Duke win on Saturday puts the conference in real danger of missing the playoff entirely; it's hard to imagine the committee ranking an 8-5 Duke ahead of potential 13-1 James Madison, 13-1 North Texas, or 12-2 Tulane—especially since Duke lost to Tulane earlier this season.
I love the chaos here, and I think it’s going to happen: Duke 35–27 over Virginia.
Group of 5 Conferences
American — Navy went into Memphis on Thanksgiving night and beat the Tigers 28–17. All the Midshipmen needed to reach the conference title game was a Tulane or North Texas loss. On Friday, the Mean Green took care of Temple, and on Saturday Tulane shut out Charlotte 27–0, crushing Navy’s dream. The game between Tulane and North Texas is almost certainly a “win and in” for the CFP, and with both coaches destined for P5 jobs when the season ends, I think North Texas wins 49–35 and punches its ticket to the playoff.
Mountain West — Chaos came early with three Friday games. New Mexico forced an interception in the first overtime against San Diego State, only to fumble it on their possession—then immediately scored a touchdown on the first play of the second overtime. A failed two-point conversion left them vulnerable, but a fourth-down stop sealed the win. The Lobos then needed a Utah State win over Boise State to reach the title game. As New Mexico won, Utah State held an 11-point lead over Boise State. But slowly and surely the Broncos chipped away, scoring with two minutes left to take the lead. Utah State’s Hail Mary came up short, and UNLV now travels to Boise for a rematch. I think Boise State wins 45–24.
Sun Belt — James Madison didn’t slow down in its rampage through conference play, winning its final game 59–10. Their combined conference scoring margin is 340–121 as they rolled through the league. They face Troy, the West Division winner, in what could be JMU’s best shot at a CFP appearance. I think JMU wins 59–17.
Conference USA — Jacksonville State and Kennesaw State both finish 7–1 in conference in just their third and second years in C-USA, respectively. The title game means little beyond bragging rights, but I think Jacksonville State wins 31–18.
MAC — Western Michigan gets a shot to avenge its only conference loss as it faces Miami in the title game. Miami stumbled after beating the Broncos but still finds itself in prime position to win the league. I think Western Michigan gets its revenge 31–24. We can’t talk about the MAC without mentioning that UMass lost to Bowling Green this week to fall to 0–8 in conference and 0–12 overall. Their season included a loss to FCS Bryant, who went 3–9 at that level. UMass earns the crown of worst FBS team of the year.
Stat Line of the Week
Kaytron Allen (Penn State): 22 CAR 226 YDS 1 TD
This week caps off an incredible three game stretch for Allen. Penn State won all three games to become bowl eligible and it was all thanks to Allen. The last three games Allen had, 72 carries for 567 yards and five touchdowns. Allen finishes the year as the 6th most rusher in FBS, only 285 yards behind the leader, all while having 67 less carries. Take away the first 9 games of the year and Allen still is a top 150 rusher in FBS.
Will’s Corner
A slow start by the Cougars on both sides of the ball put them in an early 14–0 hole. BYU didn’t punt again after its first possession, and aside from two missed field goals, played almost perfectly the rest of the way. Parker Kingston had an electric day, returning his first punt for a touchdown this season and catching another one while racking up 126 receiving yards. BYU’s defense settled in as well, forcing two turnovers and holding UCF under 300 total yards. BYU now looks to bounce back and show the CFP committee that they deserve a spot in the playoff.
Tennessee 24, Vanderbilt 45
A strong start to the game saw the Vols take a 21–14 lead late in the second quarter. Pavia had thrown two picks and seemed to be running for his life almost every time he dropped back. Then everything flipped—Pavia led a late drive to tie the game at 21–21 going into halftime, and it seemed like Tennessee thought that was the end of the game. The defense didn’t stop Vanderbilt once during the second half, and all the offense could muster was a 25–yard field goal. It was a very mediocre Tennessee season that had the chance to be something special. An extremely close loss to Georgia and losses to Oklahoma and Alabama in games they could have won will haunt this team. An 8–4 season seemed like the ceiling, but the loss to Vanderbilt leaves a sour taste on what was an overall decent season.
Washington State 32, Oregon State 9
2025 Pac-12 Conference Champions! Washington State avenges its earlier loss to the Beavers with a dominant 32–9 win to reach bowl eligibility. The Cougs jumped on the Beavs early and never looked back, leading 25–0 at one point. The season had its ups and downs, as any first year under a new head coach would. They struggled at the beginning to find the right quarterback—maybe if the coaching staff read this blog they wouldn’t have wasted three weeks trying Jaxon Potter out—but after that they settled in. They lost four one–score games while winning just one, and the blowout loss to North Texas doesn’t look as bad now since UNT could be a CFP team. The defense played well all year, and if you take out the UW and UNT games, they never gave up more than 24 points—even against an Ole Miss team that averages 37.2 per game. This win gives WSU another postseason game, most likely the LA or New Mexico Bowl. Personally, if the bowl selection people care about entertainment at all, the Sun Bowl should invite them to play Wake Forest.
Heisman Projection
This seems to be the most wide-open Heisman race that I can remember. There is no clear favorite, and no one has gone out and taken control of it like in years past. There’s also a general feeling of underwhelming performances across the board. It’s hard to compare apples to apples now with the clock changes implemented last year, but the stats simply aren’t there anymore.
This year’s passing leader, Drew Mestemaker of UNT, doesn’t even have 4,000 passing yards. Gone are the days of quarterbacks pushing 5,000 yards, but even last year Cam Ward eclipsed 4,000 with ease. And it’s not just passing yards—this season’s touchdown leader is Fernando Mendoza with 32, which would be the lowest total by a Heisman-winning quarterback since Lamar Jackson and Johnny Manziel. Both of those guys had countless signature moments to support their lower touchdown numbers.
Looking at non-quarterbacks, Jeremiyah Love is nowhere near the touchdown production of winners like DeVonta Smith or Derrick Henry. And compared to those with similar touchdown totals—Mark Ingram, Reggie Bush, Ron Dayne—he falls significantly short in yardage.
2024 brought one of the worst Heisman snubs in Ashton Jeanty; 2025 is simply going to bring one of the weakest Heisman winners, period. I think Mendoza probably wins it because of Indiana’s season, not because of his own stats or ability. There are probably 25–30 quarterbacks Cignetti could have achieved the same results with. If we’re talking about pure MVP-caliber players, Vanderbilt, Georgia Tech, and Texas Tech are not where they are without Pavia, King, or Rodriguez, and I think that’s what the Heisman should reward—not an average-skilled quarterback on one of the best teams in the country.
CFB News
The coaching carousel is in full swing.
The American Conference seems to be the preferred waiting room for future SEC coaches. Tulane’s Jon Sumrall is expected to take the Florida job once Tulane is eliminated this year. South Florida’s Alex Golesh is riding a strong season straight into the Auburn job. Memphis coach Ryan Silverfield will take his talents to Fayetteville to lead Arkansas next season. North Texas coach Eric Morris will be leaving for Oklahoma State when the Mean Green are eliminated.
Stanford made a move this week as well, hiring Tavita Pritchard to helm the Cardinal. The former Stanford quarterback (2006–2009) most recently served as the quarterbacks coach for the Washington Commanders.
Finally, in a stunning turn of events, Jim Mora has accepted the head coaching job at Colorado State. Nick Saban was seen live on The Pat McAfee Show asking, “Why?”—a sentiment that seems to be shared across the college football world.
Jonathan Smith lasted all of two years at Michigan State, as he was fired Sunday after going 9-15 in to year with the Spartans.
Lane Kiffin take LSU Job
All the speculation and rumors are finally over. Lane Kiffin will be leaving Ole Miss—right before the most historic postseason run in program history—to take the LSU head coaching job. This comes after a weeks-long reality-show-style saga in which he repeatedly stated he would announce his decision after the Egg Bowl. Ole Miss athletic director Keith Carter has reportedly denied Kiffin’s request to coach the Rebels through the remainder of the season. Defensive coordinator Pete Golding will lead the Rebels on their postseason run.
Kiffin’s deal with LSU is reportedly worth approximately $12 million per year, with additional bonuses available.
Games to Watch – Week 15
Watch them all! The Number of college football games left this season is limited and you should cherish every last one.
Guest Guesser Update
I got smoked. I went for it and ended up having the ability to come back and tie, but it didn't last past Georgia beating Georgia Tech.
Upcoming Blogs
I’d love to hear from readers, too. Think my takes are dumb? Want my opinion on something I missed? Email me at thecollegefootblog@gmail.com.
