2021 College Football Discussion and Pick'em Thread

[GeorgiaModerate]

Do we want to pick all of the bowls or just the after Christmas ones (including the playoff matchups)? There are 26 matchups after Christmas, there are 41 matchups with all.

I vote for picking all forty-one (if only because that might actually give me a chance to catch Donerail).

The pick'em should be like the original CFB championship system; the champ is decided pre-bowls and the bowls are just extra fun. Bowls are weird and, especially with the pre-Christmas ones, hard to predict since they have no stakes and its impossible to tell if the teams will show up or not. They shouldn't count for the standings.

FWIW, the original pick'em announcement at the beginning of the season noted that it would include the bowls and playoffs.  While I have some sympathy to your argument, as a general principle I don't like changing the rules of a game in the middle of it.

[NewYorkExpress]

Not mentioned earlier, but Duke Head Coach David Cutcliffe has resigned.

My guesses as to possible replacements for Cutcliffe at Duke:

Former Florida Head Coach Dan Mullen

Wake Forest Head Coach Dave Clawson

Clemson Defensive Coordinator Brett Venables

[Never Made it to Graceland]

Not mentioned earlier, but Duke Head Coach David Cutcliffe has resigned.

My guesses as to possible replacements for Cutcliffe at Duke:

Former Florida Head Coach Dan Mullen

Wake Forest Head Coach Dave Clawson

Clemson Defensive Coordinator Brett Venables

Only Mullen is somewhat viable there. Venables is the highest paid coordinator in football and won't leave unless it's for a seriously premier P5 program, and Clawson isn't leaving his long-term post after Wake Forest's most successful football season in history for what is, at best, a lateral move at a rival school with a historically mediocre program.

Venables MIGHT be a target for Oklahoma. But I seriously doubt he ever leaves Clemson.

[Grumpier Than Uncle Joe]

Riley not wanting to play Bama and Georgia every year looks smart right now.

[MasterJedi]

I'm looking forward to the triple monkey stomping that Cinncinnati is going to face by any of the other 3 teams in the playoffs.

[Хahar 🤔]

Riley not wanting to play Bama and Georgia every year looks smart right now.

I think this has a lot less to do with that (for one thing, SEC teams hardly play each other every year) and a lot more to do with Southern Cal doubling his salary.

[Amenhotep Bakari-Sellers]

I guess 2015 would be the yr that Ohio State Bucks won the Natl Title, they're not winning this yr

[Never Made it to Graceland]

I guess 2015 would be the yr that Ohio State Bucks won the Natl Title, they're not winning this yr

Bold if true.

[Illiniwek]

I'm late to the party buy my oh my what a glorious effort, game, moment, and celebration it was seeing Michigan finally take down Ohio State. What is so cool is that it wasn't some fluke upset or a game where one side had nothing to play for. This was a game with the conference title and a trip to the playoff was on the line; winner take all. It meant so much for both sides, and for once Michigan brought it and was the better team from start to finish. I sure hope that we don't have to wait another 10 years, and that this rivalry can be more competitive year to year moving forward. Its so much better for college football that way. And good on Jim Harbaugh for finally proving the haters wrong. GO BLUE!!!!!

And hey, Illinois may not have made a bowl game this year, and there were some frustrating losses along the way, but Bielema seems to be doing some good stuff with this team. If we can raise the floor of the program, we could be a bowl team more often than not starting in 2023. I'm optimistic we won't be an automatic cellar dweller anymore, and that's progress!

[Dereich]

I'm looking forward to the triple monkey stomping that Cincinnati is going to face by any of the other 3 teams in the playoffs.

Cincinnati would be favored over Oklahoma State, Baylor, or Notre Dame. The Alabama team that's shown up for the majority of this year doesn't stomp anyone. Saturday's Michigan gets an easy win but if the team that barely beat Nebraska and Rutgers shows up they lose. Georgia should triple monkey stomp anyone they face.

[Never Made it to Graceland]

I'm looking forward to the triple monkey stomping that Cincinnati is going to face by any of the other 3 teams in the playoffs.

Cincinnati would be favored over Oklahoma State, Baylor, or Notre Dame. The Alabama team that's shown up for the majority of this year doesn't stomp anyone. Saturday's Michigan gets an easy win but if the team that barely beat Nebraska and Rutgers shows up they lose. Georgia should triple monkey stomp anyone they face.

Yeah, that's a comical thing to say when Cincy already has a top 5 win and the rest of the playoff contenders except Georgia aren't particularly elite.

[GeorgiaModerate]

During the Iowa-Virginia basketball game, ESPN just reported that Brian Kelly is moving from Notre Dame to LSU.

[Never Made it to Graceland]

During the Iowa-Virginia basketball game, ESPN just reported that Brian Kelly is moving from Notre Dame to LSU.

LOL, no f**king way.

[NewYorkExpress]

During the Iowa-Virginia basketball game, ESPN just reported that Brian Kelly is moving from Notre Dame to LSU.

LOL, no f**king way.

How on earth is that an upgrade for Kelly?

[NewYorkExpress]

Anyways, my guesses as to who will be the replacement for Kelly at Notre Dame:

Cincinnati Head Coach Luke Fickell

Baylor Head Coach Dave Aranda

Oregon Head Coach Mario Cristobal

Houston Head Coach Dana Holgorson

Texas A&M Head Coach Jimbo Fisher

Clemson Head Coach Dabo Swinney (I don't think Swinney actually will leave for Notre Dame, but I do expect Notre Dame to try to hire him)

Alabama Head Coach Nick Saban (See Dabo Swinney)

Michigan Head Coach Jim Harbaugh

Michigan State Head Coach Mel Tucker

Georgia Head Coach Kirby Smart

[Never Made it to Graceland]

Anyways, my guesses as to who will be the replacement for Kelly at Notre Dame:

Cincinnati Head Coach Luke Fickell

Baylor Head Coach Dave Aranda

Oregon Head Coach Mario Cristobal

Houston Head Coach Dana Holgorson

Texas A&M Head Coach Jimbo Fisher

Clemson Head Coach Dabo Swinney (I don't think Swinney actually will leave for Notre Dame, but I do expect Notre Dame to try to hire him)

Alabama Head Coach Nick Saban (See Dabo Swinney)

Michigan Head Coach Jim Harbaugh

Michigan State Head Coach Mel Tucker

Georgia Head Coach Kirby Smart

Fickell is the only one that makes sense. Although unlikely, I suppose Aranda, Cristobal, and Holgerson might consider it for the right money - your last six are LOL and basically the most secure jobs in football right now.

[Dereich]

Cincinnati not losing makes things more difficult for hiring Fickell. With the December early signing day looming getting a coach in ASAP to save the recruiting class is the number one priority for the schools currently searching. Fickell still having both a conference championship and potentially playoff games to coach would obviously get in the way of that. Any school that'd hire him would want him to leave immediately to work on recruiting. For Fickell leaving means either completely giving up a recruiting class at his new school, potentially crippling his tenure, or creating an absurd situation where a playoff team has an interim head coach. I guess it'd give the committee a good excuse to keep them out.

[Хahar 🤔]

Out of the games I attended last week, the Iron Bowl was obviously the best, but the Egg Bowl was the most interesting experience. Maybe it's because both programs have had far too much success to really care about each other in the same way, and maybe it's because they each have another rival in a neighboring state, but Auburn fans and Alabama fans didn't seem to hate each other in quite the way that the fans in Mississippi do. The Egg Bowl was the original reason for my trip, and it was everything I hoped it would be: a game with no meaningful national implications between two coaches with weird cults of personality in front of fans who made it clear that they despised each other. I won't soon forget that cold, rainy night in Starkville.

I knew about the cowbells, of course, but I don't think I was prepared for them. It was very amusing to see that every time Rebels fans would start the Hotty Toddy chant, a chorus of cowbells would start to try to drown them out. This continued even on the ramps after the game. Sometimes people would just start ringing their cowbells because they were bored and it was something to do. Lane Kiffin was not wrong in complaining about them, in the sense that it was very obvious that fans were not following the rules and instead continued to ring their cowbells well after the center got set. My buddy got a cowbell that now occupies a place of honor in his home.

[NewYorkExpress]

Cincinnati not losing makes things more difficult for hiring Fickell. With the December early signing day looming getting a coach in ASAP to save the recruiting class is the number one priority for the schools currently searching. Fickell still having both a conference championship and potentially playoff games to coach would obviously get in the way of that. Any school that'd hire him would want him to leave immediately to work on recruiting. For Fickell leaving means either completely giving up a recruiting class at his new school, potentially crippling his tenure, or creating an absurd situation where a playoff team has an interim head coach. I guess it'd give the committee a good excuse to keep them out.

There's nothing stopping Fickell from being hired somewhere, serving as a lame duck coach at Cincinnati for the conference championship game and/or a bowl/the Playoff, while simultaneously working on recruiting at say... Notre Dame.

[Dereich]

Cincinnati not losing makes things more difficult for hiring Fickell. With the December early signing day looming getting a coach in ASAP to save the recruiting class is the number one priority for the schools currently searching. Fickell still having both a conference championship and potentially playoff games to coach would obviously get in the way of that. Any school that'd hire him would want him to leave immediately to work on recruiting. For Fickell leaving means either completely giving up a recruiting class at his new school, potentially crippling his tenure, or creating an absurd situation where a playoff team has an interim head coach. I guess it'd give the committee a good excuse to keep them out.

There's nothing stopping Fickell from being hired somewhere, serving as a lame duck coach at Cincinnati for the conference championship game and/or a bowl/the Playoff, while simultaneously working on recruiting at say... Notre Dame.

Sure, but that risks being the worst of both worlds. He'd be too busy with playoff prep to adequately recruit while at the same time giving a half-assed job on his existing team. Also, think of the toxic environment that'd create in the Cincinnati locker room. The assistant coaches would be upset and distracted as their own job security would be gone and the players would be demoralized as they watch the man who recruited them spend his time prepping to leave them behind.

Now I'm not saying it won't happen; I think Fickell is the most likely candidate for Notre Dame. I'm just saying that if it does happen it'll create a bunch of headaches for everyone and potentially interfere with the best G5 team we've seen in 15 years.

[Sprouts Farmers Market ✘]

LSU might just be the top job in the nation for the 2020s, and they selected someone who doesn't know the south at all. Arkansas and Ole Miss division titles, here we come...

[Donerail]

How on earth is that an upgrade for Kelly?

His Notre Dame salary is not public but is known to not be over $7 mil; LSU is paying $9.5 mil every year for ten years, plus incentives that bring the total contract over $100 mil. So it's around a $30,000,000 upgrade.

Anyways, my guesses as to who will be the replacement for Kelly at Notre Dame:

Cincinnati Head Coach Luke Fickell

Fickell is the only one that makes sense. Although unlikely, I suppose Aranda, Cristobal, and Holgerson might consider it for the right money - your last six are LOL and basically the most secure jobs in football right now.

I'd be willing to bet the eventual head coach is not on that list. Fickell is really the only one who's a serious candidate for the job. They're considering promoting Marcus Freeman, for one; among current head coaches, Matt Campbell is the obvious omission.

[GeorgiaModerate]

Weird thought: Urban Meyer?

[Хahar 🤔]

Donerail's list is correct. The only names I've seen attached to the Notre Dame job are Freeman, Fickell, and Campbell. I don't think there's any reason to believe it'll be anyone else.

Weird thought: Urban Meyer?

Not going to happen. His record of ethical lapses is too long for Notre Dame just like it was for Southern California. If he ever gets back into college it'll have to be at a school that really doesn't care.

[Illiniwek]

Week 14 (and Army vs Navy)

Friday, December 3rd

Conference USA Championship Game

Western Kentucky @ #22 UTSA 7 PM EST CBSSN

PAC 12 Championship Game

#11 Oregon vs #19 Utah at Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas, NV 8 PM EST ABC

Saturday, December 4th

Big 12 Championship Game

#8 Baylor vs #7 Oklahoma State at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, TX Noon EST ABC

MAC Championship Game

Kent State vs Northern Illinois at Ford Field in Detroit, MI Noon EST ESPN

Mountain West Championship Game

Utah State vs #21 San Diego State at Dignity Health Sports Park in Carson, CA 3 PM EST FOX

Sun Belt Championship Game

Appalachian State @ Louisiana 3:30 PM EST ESPN

SEC Championship Game

#1 Georgia vs #3 Alabama at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta, GA 4 PM EST CBS

AAC Championship Game

#24 Houston @ #4 Cincinnati 4 PM EST ABC

ACC Championship Game

#17 Pittsburgh vs #18 Wake Forest at Bank of America Stadium in Charlotte, NC 8 PM EST ABC

Big Ten Championship Game

#5 Michigan vs #16 Iowa at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis, IN 8 PM EST FOX

SICKOS Game of the Week

USC @ California 11 PM EST FS1

Saturday, December 11

Army vs Navy at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, NJ 3 PM EST CBS