This weekend we get introduced to the College Football Playoff teams, with many teams having a shot at the playoffs. There are four clear-cut favorites, those being the LSU Tigers, Ohio State Buckeyes, Clemson Tigers, and Georgia Bulldogs. That could change because this weekend is championship weekend. We could see teams lose that give the committee a nightmare scenario. The games to pay close attention to are the SEC championship, Big Ten Championship, Big 12 Championship, and the PAC 12 Title. The ACC title game might already be over because Clemson has looked unbeatable since nearly losing to North Carolina back in October.
In the SEC title game, we get to see a matchup between Georgia and LSU, with the winner guaranteed a spot in the playoffs. This matchup is going to be the best one we get to witness this weekend because both teams have been tearing up the SEC all year. The critical factor in this game will be Joe Burrow; with a victory, he punches his ticket to New York next weekend and could become the 2nd Heisman winner from LSU. Prediction: LSU 28 Georgia 25.
Next, we have the Big 12 championship: The Ohio State Buckeyes and the Wisconsin Badgers. A matchup Ohio State won earlier this season. On paper, Ohio State looks like they’ll easily make the playoffs, but they haven’t had a tough matchup all year. On the other hand, Wisconsin will be looking to avenge their loss to Ohio State and cause Ohio State to miss the playoffs. Prediction: Wisconsin 32 Ohio State 17.
In the Big 10 championship, we get another rematch in Oklahoma vs. Baylor. Baylor will want to avenge a loss after they squandered with a 21-point lead to Oklahoma, ultimately losing 34-31. This time I believe the game will be different from it being at a neutral site, not with Baylor winning, but Oklahoma winning by a more considerable margin. The main x-factor in this game will be Jalen Hurts, who’s been playing like a Heisman contender all season and looking like a first-round draft pick. If Oklahoma wins and Jalen balls-out, it would not be a surprise to me if Jalen becomes the 3rd Heisman winner in a row from Oklahoma to give them 8 in all. Oklahoma would then have the most Heisman winners in NCAA Football, passing USC and Notre Dame. Prediction: Oklahoma 42 Baylor 28.
We then have the ACC title game, which will be a matchup between Clemson and Virginia. Clemson being the clear-cut favorite, primarily because they play in a weak conference. It seems a foregone conclusion that Clemson will win this matchup comfortably because Clemson has been running the ACC for a while now. Prediction: Clemson 42 Virginia 10.
Lastly, we have a matchup between Oregon and Utah for the PAC 12 tile, which should have been the hype of championship weekend. Arizona State ended up changing this after they upset Oregon. Now Utah looks like the last hope for the PAC-12 to make the playoffs. I do believe Utah has the weapons to beat Oregon, but they will need to play flawlessly to win. If Utah slows down Oregon and doesn’t make any mistakes, they’ll come away with a victory. Their main point of focus for winning should be to slow down Justin Herbert, who will more than likely be a top 10 pick this upcoming draft. Prediction: Utah 28 Oregon 21.
Playoff Predictions and Matchups:
1 LSU vs 4 Oklahoma
2 Clemson vs 3 Utah
