Happy Tuesday oh great and wonderful college football fans. Welcome to the 250th edition of this blog. Yep, this is post number 250 so far since August 31, 2019. It’s been a lot of fun for me and, I hope, for you as well. Enough of that, there’s a lot of football this week so let’s go!
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Tonight, there are 2 MAC games with Ball St (5-6/119) invading Miami OH (5-6/135) which will give the winner bowl eligibility (Vegas: MIAO -2.5, GCR: MIAO 55.2%, MIAO to cover) followed by Bowling Green (6-5/1-2) heading to Ohio (8-3/57) which will give the winner (V: OHIO -7.0, G: OHIO 68.7%, C: OHIO) a spot in the championship game next week vs Toledo (7-4/70). No Wednesday games this week, but the Egg Bowl and a SWAC match-up on Thursday. Sadly, the Virginia/Virginia Tech game has been cancelled following the horrific shooting a couple of weeks ago. Here’s hoping and praying for a full recovery and some lessons learned across the nation.
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Before we get into the FBS a little more, the FCS playoff slate has been set. Here is the bracket:
| Game | Away | Conf | Home | Conf | Winner Plays | Conf |
| 1 | St Francis (9-2/139) | Northeast (7-0/1) | Delaware (7-4/160) | Colonial (4-4/5T) | South Dakota St (10-1/124) – 1 Seed | Missouri Valley (8-0/1) |
| 2 | Fordham (9-2/143) | Patriot (5-1/2) | New Hampshire (8-3/164) | Colonial (7-1/2) | Holy Cross (11-0/90) – 8 Seed | Patriot (6-0/1) |
| 3 | Gardner Webb (6-5/175) | Big South (5-0/1) | E Kentucky (7-4/168) | ASUN (3-2/2T) | William & Mary (10-1/113) – 5 Seed | Colonial (7-1/1) |
| 4 | North Dakota (7-4/179) | Missouri Valley (5-3/3T) | Weber St (9-2/130) | Big Sky (6-2/3T) | Montana St (10-1/116) – 4 Seed | Big Sky (8-0/1T) |
| 5 | Davidson (8-3/153) | Pioneer (6-2/2T) | Richmond (8-3/154) | Colonial (6-2/3T) | Sacramento St (11-0/95) – 2 Seed | Big Sky (8-0/1T) |
| 6 | Elon (8-3/152) | Colonial (6-2/3T) | Furman (9-2/133) | SoCon (7-1/2) | Incarnate Word (10-1/107) – 7 Seed | Southland (6-1/1) |
| 7 | Idaho (7-4/163) | Big Sky (6-2/3T) | SELA (8-3/151) | Southland (5-1/2) | Samford (10-1/118) – 6 Seed | SoCon (8-0/1) |
| 8 | Montana (7-4/166) | Big Sky (4-4/6) | SEMO (9-2/140) | Ohio Valley (5-0/1T) | North Dakota St (9-2/132) – 3 Seed | Missouri Valley (7-1/2) |
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The Pioneer, Ohio Valley, Northeast, Big South, and the ASUN Conferences all have 1 representative. The Patriot, SoCon, and Southland Conferences have 2 each. The Missouri Valley Football Conference has 3 while the Colonial and Big Sky Conferences have 5 each. Good luck to all the teams.
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There are tons of articles out there right now about the big rivalries this week. I thought we’d look at it a little differently: what does each FBS conference need to know the teams in next week’s championship games?
| Conference | Teams in the Hunt (and what they need) |
| American | Tulane and Cincinnati are both 6-1 AND play each other Saturday. The winner punches their ticket. UCF and Houston are both 5-2 but I couldn’t find any tie breaking scenario in which HOU is in so they’re out. The loser of the big game this Saturday needs UCF to lose (UCF beat both in the regular season). UCF is in with a win. UCF loses, we get a rematch next week |
| ACC | Clemson and UNC are playing next week |
| Big 12 | TCU is in. Kansas St is 6-2 in second place all alone but needs to win OR Texas (5-3) to lose in order to clinch. Texas needs to Win AND Kansas St to lose |
| Big Ten | In the Game of the Week, Ohio St hosts Michigan with the winner playing in the championship. The West is a mess. 2 teams (Iowa and Purdue) are 5-3 while 3 (Illinois, Minnesota, and Wisconsin) are 4-4. Minnesota and Wisconsin play each other. I don’t see a scenario where MINN is in, but if Wisconsin wins AND Iowa loses AND Purdue loses AND Illinois loses, they are in. Illinois is in with a win AND an Iowa loss AND a Purdue loss. Purdue is in with a win OR a loss with an Iowa loss AND an Illinois loss AND a Wisconsin loss. Iowa is in with a win AND a Purdue loss OR loss AND a Purdue loss AND an Illinois loss AND a Wisconsin loss. Phew! |
| Conference USA | UTSA in in. North Texas and W Kentucky are both 5-2. North Texas is in with a win OR a W Kentucky loss. W Kentucky is in with a win AND a North Texas loss |
| MAC | Toledo is in. The winner of Bowling Green at Ohio is in |
| Mountain West | Boise St and Fresno St will be playing next week |
| Pac12 | Southern Cal is in. Oregon is 6-1 and is in with a win OR a Washington loss. Washington and Utah are tied at 5-2. Utah is in with a win AND a Washington loss AND an Oregon loss. Washington is in with a win AND an Oregon loss |
| SEC | Georgia and LSA are meeting in Atlanta next week |
| Sun Belt | Coastal Carolina is in. South Alabama and Troy are both 6-1. South Alabama is in with a win AND a Troy loss. Troy is in with a win OR a Troy loss |
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Welcome to the wild and wooly final regular season weekend 2022. Going into this week’s games, there are 74 of the 82 bowl slots filled and more will come soon. 40 teams are eliminated from bowl contention and 17 are still in limbo. Last week, straight up, the GCR was 44-21 (.677) in FBS games, 39-20 (.661) in FCS games for a 83-41 (.669) record. For the season, the GCR is 759-350 (.684). Against the spread, a bettor who gambled on the favorite in every game would have been 25-34 (.424) with 2 pushes. The GCR was 32-37 (.542). That brings the Vegas favorite to 173-212 (.449) and the GCR to 208-177 (.540) for the year. Here are all the games. Have a great Thanksgiving and a great week of football. Thanks for reading and sharing, G
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| Time | Away | Conf Rec | Home | Conf Rec | Vegas | GCR | To Cover |
| Atlantic Coast Conference | Power 5 | ||||||
| FRI | NC St (7-4/34) | ACC (3-4) | UNC (9-2/11) | ACC (6-1) | UNC -6 | UNC 78.1% | UNC |
| FRI | Florida (6-5/48) | SEC (3-5) | Florida St (8-3/14) | ACC (5-3) | FSU -9.5 | FSU 77.4% | FSU |
| 12:00 | South Carolina (7-4/37) | SEC (4-4) | Clemson (10-1/5) | ACC (8-0) | CLEM -15.0 | CLEM 99.9% | CLEM |
| 12:00 | Georgia Tech (5-6/60) | ACC (4-4) | Georgia (11-0/1) | SEC (8-0) | GEO -35.5 | GEO 99.9% | GEO |
| 3:00 | Louisville (7-4/32) | ACC (4-4) | Kentucky (6-5/44) | SEC (3-5) | KENT -3.0 | LOU 61.9% | LOU |
| 3:30 | Wake Forest (7-4/31) | ACC (3-4) | Duke (7-4/47) | ACC (4-3) | WF -3.5 | DUKE 56.4% | DUKE |
| 7:30 | Syracuse (6-5/43) | ACC (3-4) | Boston College (3-8/80) | ACC (2-5) | SYR -11.0 | SYR 62.0% | BC |
| 8:00 | Pittsburgh (7-4/36) | ACC (4-3) | Miami FL (5-6/74) | ACC (3-4) | PITT -6.5 | PITT 64.8% | MIAF |
| Big 12 Conference | Power 5 | ||||||
| FRI | Baylor (6-5/58) | B12 (4-4) | Texas (7-4/23) | B12 (5-3) | TEX -8.5 | TEX 64.5% | TEX |
| 12:00 | West Virginia (4-7/71) | B12 (2-6) | Oklahoma St (7-4/33) | B12 (4-4) | OKST -8.5 | OKST 68.9% | OKST |
| 4:00 | Iowa St (4-7/73) | B12 (4-7) | TCU (11-0/4) | B12 (8-0) | TCU -10.0 | TCU 99.9% | TCU |
| 7:30 | Oklahoma (6-5/54) | B12 (3-5) | Texas Tech (6-5/49) | B12 (4-4) | OKLA -2.0 | OKLA 56.5% | OKLA |
| 8:00 | Kansas (6-5/51) | B12 (3-5) | Kansas St (8-3/15) | B12 (6-2) | KSST -11.5 | KSST 7.1% | KSST |
| Big Ten Conference | Power 5 | ||||||
| FRI | Nebraska (3-8/88) | B1G (4-4) | Iowa (7-4/28) | B1G (5-3) | IOWA -9.5 | IOWA 71.4% | IOWA |
| 12:00 | Michigan (11-0/3) | B1G (8-0) | Ohio St (11-0/2) | B1G (8-0) | OHST -7.5 | MICH 56.7% | MICH |
| 12:00 | Rutgers (4-7/89) | B1G (1-7) | Maryland (6-5/42) | B1G (3-5) | MARY -14.0 | MARY 63.9% | RUTG |
| 3:30 | Illinois (7-4/39) | B1G (4-4) | Northwestern (1-10/68) | B1G (1-7) | ILL -14.0 | ILL 69.3% | ILL |
| 3:30 | Purdue (7-4/38) | B1G (5-3) | Indiana (4-7/63) | B1G (2-6) | PUR -10.5 | PUR 67.0% | IND |
| 3:30 | Minnesota (7-4/39) | B1G (4-4) | Wisconsin (6-5/56) | B1G (4-4) | WISC -3.0 | MINN 62.2% | MINN |
| 4:00 | Michigan St (5-6/55) | B1G (3-5) | Penn St (9-2/9) | B1G (6-2) | PSU -18.0 | PSU 982% | PSU |
| Pac 12 Conference | Power 5 | ||||||
| FRI | Arizona St (3-8/78) | P12 (2-6) | Arizona (4-7/64) | P12 (2-6) | ARIZ -4.0 | ARIZ 56.2% | AZST |
| FRI | UCLA (8-3/19) | P12 (5-3) | California (4-7/72) | P12 (2-6) | UCLA -10.0 | UCLA 75.4% | CAL |
| 3:30 | Oregon (9-2/12) | P12 (7-1) | Oregon St (8-3/16) | P12 (5-3) | ORE -3.0 | ORE 63.1% | ORE |
| 4:00 | Utah (8-3/21) | P12 (6-2) | Colorado (1-10/59) | P12 (1-7) | UTAH -29.5 | UTAH 76.0% | COL |
| 7:30 | Notre Dame (8-3/17) | IND (1-0) | Southern Cal (10-1/6) | P12 (8-1) | SCAL -5.0 | SCAL 91.7% | SCAL |
| 10:30 | Washington (9-2/13) | P12 (6-2) | Washington St (7-4/46) | P12 (4-4) | WASH -2.0 | WASH 75.7% | WASH |
| 11:00 | BYU (6-5/76) | IND (0-2) | Stanford (3-8/53) | P12 (1-8) | BYU -6.5 | BYU 59.9% | BYU |
| Southeastern Conference | Power 5 | ||||||
| THU | Mississippi St (7-4/29) | SEC (3-4) | Mississippi (8-3/18) | SEC (4-3) | MISS -2.0 | MISS 66.2% | MISS |
| FRI | Arkansas (6-5/41) | SEC (3-4) | Missouri (5-6/69) | SEC (2-5) | ARK -3.0 | ARK 58.9% | ARK |
| 3:30 | Auburn (5-6/50) | SEC (2-5) | Alabama (9-2/7) | SEC (5-2) | ALA -22.0 | ALA 99.9% | ALA |
| 7:00 | LSU (9-2/10) | SEC (6-1) | Texas A&M (4-7/83) | SEC (1-6) | LSU -10.0 | LSU 89.3% | LSU |
| 7:30 | Tennessee (9-2/8) | SEC (5-2) | Vanderbilt (5-6/62) | SEC (2-5) | TENN -14.0 | TENN 88.4% | TENN |
| OOC | Florida (FSU – ACC), Georgia (GT – ACC), Kentucky (LOU – ACC), South Carolina (CLEM – ACC) | ||||||
| American Athletic Conference | Group of 5 | ||||||
| FRI | Tulane (9-2/22) | AAC (6-1) | Cincinnati (9-2/26) | AAC (6-1) | CIN -2.0 | TULN 55.9% | TULN |
| 1:00 | East Carolina (6-5/84) | AAC (3-4) | Temple (3-8/144) | AAC (1-6) | ECAR -12.0 | ECAR 59.2% | TEMP |
| 3:30 | Memphis (6-5/96) | AAC (3-4) | SMU (6-5/75) | AAC (4-3) | SMU -4.0 | SMU 55.2% | SMU |
| 7:00 | UCF (8-3/40) | AAC (5-2) | South Florida (1-10/112) | AAC (0-7) | UCF -19.0 | UCF 71.8% | SFLA |
| 7:30 | Tulsa (4-7/121) | AAC (2-5) | Houston (7-4/66) | AAC (5-2) | HOU -12.0 | HOU 66.0% | HOU |
| IDLE | Navy (4-7/105) | ||||||
| Conference USA | Group of 5 | ||||||
| 12:00 | W Kentucky (7-5/92) | CUSA (5-2) | FAU (5-6/110) | CUSA (4-3) | WKY -7.0 | WKY 58.1% | WKY |
| 2:00 | Rice (5-6/109) | CUSA (3-4) | North Texas (6-5/98) | CUSA (5-2) | NTEX -14.0 | NTEX 59.0% | RICE |
| 3:30 | UTEP (5-6/131) | CUSA (3-4) | UTSA (9-2/27) | CUSA (7-0) | UTSA -17.0 | UTSA 83.9% | UTSA |
| 3:30 | UAB (5-6/101) | CUSA (3-4) | LA Tech (3-8/117) | CUSA (2-5) | UAB -17.5 | UAB 57.5% | LATC |
| 6:00 | Middle Tennessee (6-5/108) | CUSA (3-4) | FIU (4-7/149) | CUSA (2-5) | MTSU -19.5 | MTSU 58.2% | FIU |
| IDLE | Charlottte (3-9/150) | ||||||
| Mid American Conference | Group of 5 | ||||||
| TUE | Ball St (5-6/119) | MAC (3-4) | Miami OH (5-6/135) | MAC (3-4) | MIAO -2.5 | MIAO 55.2% | MIAO |
| TUE | Bowling Green (6-5/102) | MAC (5-2) | Ohio (8-3/57) | MAC (6-1) | OHIO -7.0 | OHIO 68.7% | OHIO |
| FRI | Toledo (7-4/70) | MAC (5-2) | W Michigan (4-7/125) | MAC (3-4) | TOL -7.5 | TOL 63.7% | TOL |
| FRI | C Michigan (4-7/126) | MAC (3-4) | E Michigan (7-4/91) | MAC (4-3) | CMI -1.5 | EMI 65.7% | EMI |
| 1:00 | Kent St (4-7/97) | MAC (3-4) | Buffalo (5-5/86) | MAC (4-2) | BUFF -3.5 | BUFF 58.9% | BUFF |
| 1:30 | Akron (1-9/122) | MAC (0-6) | N Illinois (3-8/147) | MAC (2-5) | NILL -10.0 | NILL 55.2% | AKR |
| Mountain West Conference | Group of 5 | ||||||
| FRI | Utah St (6-5/100) | MWC (5-2) | Boise St (8-3/45) | MWC (7-0) | BOST -16.5 | BOST 71.2% | UTST |
| FRI | New Mexico (2-9/120) | MWC (0-7) | Colorado St (2-9/111) | MWC (2-5) | COST -7.0 | COST 55.1% | NMEX |
| FRI | Wyoming (7-4/79) | MWC (5-2) | Fresno St (7-4/67) | MWC (6-1) | FRST -14.5 | FRST 57.8% | WYO |
| 3:30 | Hawaii (3-9/142) | MWC (2-5) | San Jose St (6-4/85) | MWC (4-3) | SJST -14.5 | SJST 65.7% | HAW |
| 6:00 | Nevada (2-9/137) | MWC (0-7) | UNLV (4-7/128) | MWC (2-5) | UNVL -12.5 | UNLV 56.2% | NEV |
| 9:00 | Air Force (8-3/45) | MWC (4-3) | San Diego St (7-4/77) | MWC (5-2) | AF -2.0 | AF 64.3% | AF |
| Sun Belt Conference | Group of 5 | ||||||
| 12:00 | Georgia St (4-7/123) | SUN (3-4) | Marshall (7-4/65) | SUN (4-3) | MARS -6.0 | MARS 66.1% | MARS |
| 12:00 | Old Dominion (3-8/129) | SUN (2-5) | South Alabama (9-2/24) | SUN (6-1) | SALA -15.0 | SALA 87.2% | SALA |
| 12:00 | Coastal Carolina (9-1/20) | SUN (6-1) | James Madison (7-3/61) | SUN (5-2) | JMU -13.5 | CCAR 69.7% | CCAR |
| 3:00 | Troy (9-2/25) | SUN (6-1) | Arkansas St (3-8/134) | SUN (1-6) | TROY -13.5 | TROY 70.6% | TROY |
| 5:00 | Louisiana (5-6/103) | SUN (3-4) | Texas St (4-7/127) | SUN (2-5) | LAU -4.5 | LAU 56.6% | LAU |
| 5:00 | Southern Miss (5-6/94) | SUN (3-4) | ULM (4-7/104) | SUN (3-4) | SMIS -3.0 | SMIS 56.5% | SMIS |
| 6:00 | App St (6-5/87) | SUN (3-4) | Ga Southern (5-6/114) | SUN (2-5) | APST -5.0 | APST 58.0% | APST |
| Independents | Group of 5 | Notre Dame | Power 5 | ||||
| 12:00 | Army (4-6/106) | IND (1-0) | UMASS (1-10/136) | IND (0-3) | ARMY -20.0 | ARMY 55.4% | UMAS |
| 12:00 | New Mexico St (4-6/158) | IND (1-0) | Liberty (8-3/52) | IND (2-1) | LIB -24.0 | LIB 73.5% | NMST |
| OOC | BYU (STAN – P12), Notre Dame (SCAL – P12) | ||||||
| IDLE | UCONN (6-6/99) | ||||||
| Southwestern Athletic Conf | FCS | ||||||
| THU | Ark Pine Bluff (2-8/233) | SWAC (0-7) | Alabama St (4-7/206) | SWAC (4-3) | NL | ALST 57.1% | NL |
| 2:00 | Grambling St (3-7/249) – N | SWAC (2-6) | Southern (6-4/181) – N | SWAC (4-3) | NL | SOUT 55.3% | NL |
| FCS Playoffs Round 1 | |||||||
| 12:00 | Elon (8-3/152) | CAA (6-2) | Furman (9-2/133) | SoCon (7-1) | NL | FUR 58.6% | NL |
| 2:00 | Davidson (8-3/153) | PFL (6-2) | Richmond (8-3/154) | CAA (6-2) | NL | RICH 55.1% | NL |
| 2:00 | St Francis (9-2/139) | NEC (7-0) | Delaware (7-4/160) | CAA (4-4) | NL | STFR 57.1% | NL |
| 2:00 | Fordham (9-2/143) | PAT (5-1) | New Hampshire (8-3/164) | CAA (7-1) | NL | FORD 57.7% | NL |
| 4:00 | North Dakota (7-4/179) | MVFC (5-3) | Weber St (9-2/130) | BSKY (6-2) | NL | WEB 60.4% | NL |
| 5:00 | Gardner Webb (6-5/175) | BSO (5-0) | E Kentucky (7-4/168) | ASUN (3-2) | NL | EKY 56.2% | NL |
| 7:00 | Idaho (7-4/163) | BSKY (6-2) | SELA (8-3/151) | SLAN (5-1) | NL | SELA 57.8% | NL |
| 10:00 | SEMO (9-2/140) | OVFC (5-0) | Montana (7-4/166) | BSKY (4-4) | NL | SEMO 57.2% | NL |
| BYE | South Dakota St (10-1/124) – 1 Seed, Sacramento St (11-0/95) – 2 Seed, North Dakota St (9-2/132) – 3 Seed, Montana St (10-1/116) – 4 Seed, William & Mary (10-1/113) – 5 Seed, Samford (10-1/118) – 6 Seed, Incarnate Word (10-1/107) – 7 Seed, Holy Cross (11-0/90) – 8 Seed |
