2020 College Football Discussion and Pick 'Em Thread

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Really, really excited about this season! It's a whole new era in Starkville.

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SEC going conference only with a 10-game schedule:

https://www.espn.com/college-football/story/_/id/29566090/sec-play-10-game-conference-only-football-schedule

Looks like my Commodores will be adding Mississippi State at home and a road trip to Alabama.  Vandy needs those non-conference games to get a few wins.  I just really don't want to go 0-10.

What's the source on who the extra 2 games are? Is that the 2021 and 2022 opponents moved up? That means we would play @Vanderbilt and Georgia at home.

I too wish we could have a full slate of non-conference games. Much easier to make a bowl when you only need 2 or 2 conference wins instead of 5.

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"If I were president, we would be playing college football" is the clinching argument for Biden.

Lots of developing countries are bringing back sports without COVID outbreaks. We can't, thanks to Trumps' ineptitude.

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It would be beyond ridiculous to cancel college football given the (virtually) zero risk that young people are at from this virus.

It's to protect the people they encounter in life, not generally to protect them.

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Absolutely gutted. You big city people don't grasp what college football means in the forgotten states who don't have pro sports.

The economy of Starkville (and Oxford too, but ¯\_(ツ)_/¯) will never recover from this. Same story for the major college towns all over America that aren't state capitals or major cities.

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At this point, I don't see any possible way for the 2020 CFB season to proceed. Once colleges have in person classes, covid cases keep exploding. The students are obviously not following social distancing (or some are, but the ones partying are ruining it for the rest). Once CFB players get a break they have been partying, as has been evidenced by the recent OU football cases. Notre Dame, Michigan State (which already had cancelled its CFB season), and many others are beginning to go back online. Seems like the beginning of the end.

I think it's highly unlikely the SEC, ACC, or Big 12 cancel. Many people in Trump country see the football cancelations as a politically motivated attack on Trump and not a public safety issue, and the governors of those states aren't going to allow it.

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Actually, now that I think about it, why can't our first game be September 7 (BYU @ Navy)?

Why can't it be September 4 (South Alabama @ Southern Miss)?

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Really bold of you to pick Kansas, when they haven't beaten an FBS team in about a decade.

Unfortunately not true, they beat TCU back in 2018, Texas back in 2016 or 2017, they just beat Boston College last year

Also Texas Tech last year. Les Miles is an outstanding coach and should have them competitive again once he has a few years to replenish the roster.

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If Kansas loses too that would be what.... 3-3?

My first instinct is to say that won't happen, since Les Miles is a great coach ... but I think Matt Campbell and Chris Klieman are too, so ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

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We now have a P4.

(Or a P2 this year.)

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Mississippi State @ #6 LSU 3:30 PM EDT CBS

I don't honestly expect to win, but I do think we have a better chance than anyone is giving us credit for. KJ Costello and Kylin Hill will be the two best players on the field, and Mike Leach is an outstanding coach.

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Don't look now, but Mississippi State leads LSU 17-14 and has outgained them 281-120 so far.

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Don't look now, but Mississippi State leads LSU 17-14 and has outgained them 281-120 so far.

If you get this one right and the rest of us get this wrong I think I'll jump off the roof of my apartment.

That's a pretty extreme reaction. Are you an LSU fan or something?

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If (and it's a big IF) Mississippi State and Arkansas both hold on to win today, it's suddenly a huge matchup in Starkville next week between these 2 teams.

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Mississippi State now leads 34-24, and KJ Costello has thrown for over 500 yards.

Either LSU's defense is not nearly as good as expected, or we have a real Heisman frontrunner in Starkville.

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KJ Costello - now the Heisman frontrunner?

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Arkansas just 90 seconds away from defeating #16 Mississippi State.

They lead 21-14.

F*** my life.

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Try ranking the SEC teams right now (apart from my 'Dores at #14)...

1   Alabama
2   Georgia
3   Texas A&M
4   Florida
5   Ole Miss
6   Tennessee
7   Auburn
8   Arkansas
9   Kentucky
10   Missouri
11   South Carolina
12   Mississippi State (FML)
13   LSU
14   Vanderbilt

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Try ranking the SEC teams right now (apart from my 'Dores at #14)...

My best effort (with lines to mark where I feel there's a big gap):

1. Alabama
2. Georgia
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3. Florida (still going to keep them narrowly above A&M)
4. Texas A&M
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5. Tennessee
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6. Ole Miss
7. Auburn
8. LSU
9. Missouri
10. Kentucky
11. South Carolina
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12. Arkansas
13. Mississippi State
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14. Vanderbilt

You shouldn't put LSU ahead of both of the teams who beat them, at least not yet.

In my rankings, nobody is below a team they beat. That probably won't be possible all season long, but I think it's fair this early.

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All that offense and a Mike Leach team gets shut out on offense.  Wonder when the last time a Leach team was shut out?

Never. FML.

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Once again, Auburn benefits from a horrible non-call from the officials.

SEC officiating is corrupt. We learned today that Big 10 officiating is not. I'm jealous.

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If I may, here are my major bowl predictions as of 10/25.  

Sugar (semi-finals): #1 Clemson v #4 Notre Dame
Rose (semi-finals): #2 Alabama v #3 Ohio State

Clemson and Notre Dame will presumably play each other in the ACC Championship Game. I doubt they'll take the loser to the playoff unless the Big 12 and Pac-12 just have no viable candidates.

But in that case, maybe. The SEC could get 2 in if Georgia beats Alabama in the SECCG rematch and they're both 10-1, but they definitely don't take a second SEC team if Alabama finishes 11-0. Well, I guess Texas A&M could finish 9-1 and be a playoff candidate without winning the West, but we all know that Texas A&M collapses every year.

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Liberty is also an independent, so even if Liberty and BYU get selected for a NY6, there still has to be a G5 team in the mix.

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The NCAA should really consider stepping in and telling conferences "no, you can't finish the season".

This is getting ridiculous.

If the rate of cancellations continues to increase, that will probably happen, but I don't think we're there yet.

Just in time to #BlameItOnBiden

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Apparently Will Muschamp is out at South Carolina

Hmm, it's not official yet, but if Muschamp does get fired, I'd expect South Carolina to hire an assistant at Alabama (that's what SEC schools usually do), or Clemson.

Maybe Steve Sarksian or Brett Venables would be the top candidates.

My bet is Billy Napier (former assistant at Alabama and now HC at "Louisiana") or Hugh Freeze.