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We’re getting closer to the end of the regular season in college football, folks. Bowl season is just around the corner, and teams are jockeying for position to get themselves into a favorable post-season spot. What have we got on the agenda for this week?
Well, the local team is facing one of their toughest tests of the season. The Minnesota Golden Gophers are going to be hitting the road for Lincoln, Nebraska, to do battle with the Nebraska Cornhuskers for the $5 Bits of Broken Chair Trophy. (You laugh, but said trophy is absolutely a real thing.) The Huskers are currently ranked #19 and are coming off of an absolute drubbing at the hands of Ohio State last week. The Gophers are currently riding a four-game winning streak and have already gained bowl eligibility, but have a tough closing stretch with trips to Nebraska and Wisconsin sandwiched around next week’s home finale against Northwestern. This one is set to kick off at 6:30 PM Central time, and will be aired on the Big Ten Network. Our friends over at The Daily Gopher will have all of your coverage for this one.
As far as the five-time, five-time, five-time, five-time, five-time reigning and defending FCS Champions, the North Dakota State University Bison, today is their regular season home finale at the FargoDome. They will be taking part in Missouri Valley Football Conference action when they host Larry Bird’s alma mater, the Sycamores of Indiana State University. The Bison are still ranked at #4 in the FCS and are in decent position going into the post-season if they can win their last two games. This one will kick off at 2:30 PM Central time, and will be aired on ESPN3 as well as NBC affiliates throughout the state of North Dakota.
We’ve only got two games involving Top 25 teams squaring off today. One of them takes place in the SEC and involves the two teams at the bottom of the Top 25 rankings, as the 24th-ranked LSU Tigers take to the road for Fayetteville and a matchup with the 25th-ranked Arkansas Razorbacks. This one will be aired on ESPN, with kickoff time set for 6:00 PM Central.
The main event for the evening, such as it is, comes to us from the Pac 12. The 4th-ranked, and still undefeated, Washington Huskies will play host to the #20 team in the land, the USC Trojans. The Huskies would find themselves in the BCS playoff if the season ended today, and will attempt to keep their position this week. This matchup will be aired on FOX, with kickoff set for 6:30 PM Central.
Speaking of post-season positioning, here’s what the Top Ten of the College Football Playoff Standings looks like this week.
- Alabama Crimson Tide (9-0)
- Clemson Tigers (9-0)
- Michigan Wolverines (9-0)
- Washington Huskies (9-0)
- Ohio State Buckeyes (8-1)
- Louisville Cardinals (8-1)
- Wisconsin Badgers (7-2)
- Texas A&M Aggies (7-2)
- Auburn Tigers (7-2)
- Penn State Nittany Lions (7-2)
Last week I wondered how a 1-loss Texas A&M squad was ahead of an undefeated Washington team, but the Aggies took care of that problem with a loss to Mississippi State. So, four of the five remaining undefeated teams in the FBS occupy the top four spots in the rankings. The fifth is Western Michigan out of the MAC, who currently sit at 10-0 and at #21 in the rankings.
That’s a quick look around the world of college football for today, ladies and gentlemen. If there are games or players you’re interested in or that you’re keeping an eye on, you can hang out here and discuss them with your fellow Minnesota Vikings fans.