Weekend Filled with Storylines

It’s Week 9 ladies and gentlemen and we’re getting to the final stretch of the season. This is where we start to figure out which teams are still in the hunt for a spot in the college football playoff, what teams could be looking for a coaching change, and how teams will likely finish their season. Last week, we looked at some of the biggest surprises, Heisman frontrunners, and much more from the first half of the season. It’s now time to turn the page as we head into this final stretch. 

It’s time to take a look at the top storylines as we approach Week 9 of college football action.

Taking control of the SEC

The SEC is going to be the talk of college football this week. The Texas A&M Aggies and the LSU Tigers remain atop the division with undefeated records in the conference and believe it or not they face each other this week. Not only is it a battle of two teams in the top 20, but also a match-up that will take over the best record in the conference. Both teams have won six games in a row. One battle that will be intriguing to watch is LSU’s offensive line that is led by top NFL Draft prospect offensive tackle Will Campbell and see how the o-line adjusts to A&M’s pass rush led by Nic Scourton. 

If A&M’s pressure doesn’t get to LSU quarterback Garrett Nussmeier early and often, it’ll be a long afternoon for them. To the contrary, if Texas A&M provides a ton of pressure early it should give them the edge. It all goes well, this should be the game of the week and go down to the wire. Who takes control of the SEC with five weeks left?

Kiss those playoff hopes goodbye

With five weeks left in the season, it is time to start looking at teams that have legitimate chances to reach the College Football Playoff. One game that’s outcome may make or break their playoff aspirations is between 21st ranked Missouri and 15th ranked Alabama. With a win over Bama, Missouri should jump into the top 15 teams in the country, meanwhile if Bama wins they pretty much stamp their name into the playoffs. This game is make or break for the Tigers as they have the tough task of stopping Bama quarterback Jalen Milroe and a high powered Bama offense. The good thing for Missouri is that Bama has lost two of their last three games. 

Brady Cook was the hero for the Tigers in their 21-17 victory over Auburn last weekend, but can he do it against Bama? Milroe is a quarterback that thrives with the deep ball and according to PFF, Missouri ranks 84th in coverage. Whatever happens here, whoever wins their playoff hopes are still alive, whoever loses can kiss their playoff hopes goodbye.

Is Navy the real deal?

This is the week we find out if we’re in the midst of the greatest Navy Midshipmen team in college football history. They’re undefeated at 6-0 coming into this game against 12th ranked Notre Dame. They haven’t really beaten anyone, meanwhile the Irish have a huge win over Texas A&M that started this season. Now, if they play that game over again it may be a different story as that Aggies team is different now than two months ago. This game will be closer than a lot of people think. One thing is for certain, the Irish will be bigger and stronger. If they can utilize that advantage early, it could take Navy out of the game early. 

It could be a huge day for Notre Dame running back Jeremiyah Love as Navy’s run defense has been sort of lackluster. This Navy team is led by quarterback Blake Horvath. He leads the team in both passing and rushing and is statistically the best rushing quarterback in all of football. Meanwhile, his passing stats align with Will Howard at Ohio State. The outcome of this game will tell us if the Navy is the real deal.

Colorado needs new haters

Colorado head coach Deion Sanders has been very vocal this week. This week, the Buffaloes match-up against a team that was also trying to acquire Sanders’ head coaching services – Cincinnati Bearcats. It should be a blowout, but it appears all of the people that were once haters of Sanders and his program at Colorado, they’re now fans. It’s a team that has shown they enjoy the negativity and thrive off of it. They’re 3-1 on the road this season and Sanders was asked by On3’s Steve Samra how he enjoys road games and being the underdog.

“We like to be booed, naysayed and hated. That turns us on. It turns us on. It’s kind of sexy, matter of fact. That’s how I felt when I played. I loved to be on the road and get booed and naysayed and all of that. I think we like being the underdogs. We like being those types of people,” said Sanders. 

With five weeks left in the season that appears to be a favorable one, it will be time for the Buffaloes to find some new haters, because they may run the table the rest of the way.