Another week of college football is in the books and while here were plenty of teams and individuals who got it done on the college gridiron, there were just as many who didn’t.
Here are a few teams and individuals who could’ve and probably should’ve done better, my Week 7 villains.
Clemson
It’s not completely over for the Tigers, as far as an appearance the playoff goes, but Friday night’s 27-24 loss to Syracuse in the Carrier Dome, is going to make things more difficult. The defending national champions simply can’t lose another game.
They need to win through, including the Atlantic Coast Conference championship game, to get in. But with North Carolina State and Georgia Tech on the docket, there’s no guarantee that happens. Of course, the health of quarterback Kelly Bryant will decide plenty.
Michigan’s passing game
It hurts my eyes. Clearly, John O’Korn is not the answer at quarterback. He completed 10-20 passes for just 58 yards. Yes, they won, for the twenty-first time against Indiana, but it wasn’t a particularly convincing effort one week out from a big game against Penn State. The Wolverines need a multi-faceted offense in Happy Valley.
O’Korn or whoever else starts at quarterback next week needs to make plays through the air, or they’re going to get hammered. If Jim Harbaugh wasn’t a Michigan legend, he’d be catching some serious heat from the maize and blue faithful.
Washington State
Five Luke Falk interceptions and two more turnovers doomed Mike Leach’s Cougars to a surprising 37-3 loss to Cal in Berkeley on Friday night. Like Clemson, their chance at a playoff berth is theoretically still alive, but their room for error is officially non-existent.
Washington
Not a good weekend for football teams in the state of Washington. The Huskies were absolutely brutal on Saturday night, shut out until late in the final quarter. Against a team, in Arizona State, who’s been giving up at least thirty points a game for as long as anyone can remember.
Tennessee
The Vols lost 15-9 to South Carolina and the Butch Jones Watch is on in earnest. This might be the week where the beleaguered head coach is finally shown the door.
Auburn
Up twenty to Louisiana State, things were looking good for the ‘other’ Tigers. Then LSU clicked into gear, and Auburn didn’t have anything for them, falling 24-23, their ninth straight loss to LSU in Baton Rouge. With their second loss (they lost to Clemson earlier in the season) we can officially say that, save some absolute insanity in the SEC, their playoff chances are officially done.
Louisville
The Cardinals surrendered 555 yards of total offense to Boston College. Unforgivable. Not even five touchdowns from Lamar Jackson could help.
San Diego State
The Aztecs had the inside running to be the Group of Five representative in the New Years’ Six bowl games, coming in undefeated, and with a nice win against Stanford under their belts. They were favoured by most to beat a Boise State team that’s been mostly disappointing this year.
Unfortunately for SDSU, the Broncos decided to play their best game of the season on Saturday, jumping out to a 21-0 half time lead, and cruised to a 31-14 win. Not the best night for San Diego State. They’ll rue this loss for some time.
Illinois
Lovie Smith is in strife. Rutgers threw just twelve passes all night. They’re not lighting anyone up through the air. So the Illini stacked the box, stuffed the run and won, right? Wrong. The Scarlet Knights looked like Georgia against a porous Illini front, giving up 274 yards in the 35-24 loss. It’s been a brutal month for Illinois, who haven’t won a thing since opening 2-0.
Nebraska
Remember when the Huskers hired Bob Diaco to fix their defence? It isn’t going well. Nebraska gave up 633 yards in a 56-14 loss to Ohio State. Head coach Mike Riley is done at the end of the season, if not before, and Diaco should follow him out the door. It’s a dumpster fire in Lincoln at the moment, and somewhere, Bo Pelini is smiling.
Brigham Young
The Cougars lost 35-10 to Mississippi State dropping them to 1-6, their worst start to a season since 1968.
Houston
A two-touchdown favourite, the Cougars lost to a Tulsa team with a 1-5 record coming in, giving up 288 rushing yards in a four-touchdown loss.
Arkansas
There were no redeeming features for the Razorbacks in this one. Simply put, they played terribly, losing 41-9 to Alabama. It’s one more nail in Bret Bielema’s coffin in Fayetteville.
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