This is the best weekend of college football.
There aren’t many games, but dang, there are some good ones. They say “quality over quantity,” right?
It’s the Saturday I’ve been waiting three months for because there’s nothing better than a Saturday full of conference championship games.
The slate of games are particularly appealing because four of the top five teams in the College Football Playoff rankings are involved, meaning the entire landscape could change in a matter of hours.
Who’s to say two-loss Stanford is out of contention? Could Ohio State sneak back to defend its title?
There are several what-if scenarios, ones that seem completely crazy but could become reality on Saturday.
But I don’t want to spend one of my last columns living in a what-if world. Let’s spend some time talking about the matchups because they are dreams-come-true, except for Baylor and Texas.
For whatever reason, the Bears and the Longhorns are playing a regular season game this weekend. Sorry Baylor, it still doesn’t count as a conference championship game (not that it would help you anyway).
Temple and Houston kick the high-stakes games off with the American Athletic Conference Championship. Both teams had great seasons and are flying high. It might be the least appealing game of the bunch, but often times, it’s the games you don’t expect to be great that are the most enjoyable.
I’m not going to waste space analyzing Alabama-Florida. The Southeastern Conference Championship Game has Alabama written all over it because Floridaplayed awfully the last few weeks. Nothing is impossible, but I wouldn’t put any money on the Gators, no matter what odds you’re getting. You may as well burn your money.
Hopefully, Florida players read this and are inspired because it could make for a more exciting game.
The evening is when things may heat up.
University of Southern California and Stanford play in the Pac-12 Championship Game. When these two teams have met in recent years, it’s almost always been a great game. Big upsets are a trend, and it’ll be interesting to see if the Trojans can spring another one on Saturday evening.
Michigan State against Iowa in the Big Ten Championship Game is nothing short of amazing. The Hawkeyes are undefeated and one win away from a berth in the College Football Playoff. What a time to be alive, am I right?
I love an underdog story, and nothing would make me happier as a fan of the game than to see a team like Iowa complete the fairy tale with a happily-ever-after ending.
Last but not least, Clemson faces off against North Carolina. Clemson should win, but Clemson is Clemson. And Clemson has a history of Clemsoning, so I expect this to be closer than it should.
The only negative is that colleges are mean and bad, and finals are next week. If possible, put off the studying for at least a few hours on Saturday. You’ll thank me later, even if your grades don’t.
Jack is a 22-year-old mass communication senior from Ruston, Louisiana. You can reach him on Twitter @Jack_TDR.