Top 10 College Football Games of Week 12: Tennessee vs. Georgia Showdown, Playoff Implications Are Many
One of the most fascinating subplots in the first year of the 12-team College Football Playoff is how all these realigned and suddenly crowded conference races factor into that Playoff picture. Sure, Tennessee-Georgia is a huge matchup for the 12-team bracket, but so is LSU-Florida. And the state of Arizona and Kansas. And Clemson Pitt. And a number of other matchups up and down the schedule.
So let’s rank the top 10 games of Week 12, starting with honorable mentions and counting down.
Honorable mention: UCLA at Washington (Friday), No. 25 Tulane at Navy, Virginia at No. 8 Notre Dame, Boston College at No. 14 SMU, Nebraska at USC, Cincinnati at Iowa State, No. 18 Washington State at New Mexico
(All point spreads are from BetMGM; click here for live odds. All kickoff times are Eastern and on Saturday unless otherwise noted.)
10. No. No. 23 Missouri (7-2) at No. 21 South Carolina (6-3), 4:15 p.m., SEC Network
One of only two ranked matchups this week, though strangely this one won’t have much impact on the SEC or CFP races despite the message from Missouri head coach Eli Drinkwitz after last week’s wild win over Oklahoma.
Eli Drinkwitz on miraculous victory over Oklahoma:
“This keeps us in the Playoff hunt.
“That’s right, I said it, Playoff Hunt!”
pic.twitter.com/CxB1WzfL6y— SEC Mike (@MichaelWBratton) November 10, 2024
The AthleticsThe Playoff Projection Model gives both teams a less than 1 percent chance of winning the conference or reaching the CFP, but each team is still fighting to stay in the rankings, which could impact others. Ole Miss and LSU’s resumes would benefit from a South Carolina win, while Texas A&M favors Mizzou. The only guaranteed winner is Alabama, which defeated both teams.
Line: South Carolina -14
9. No. 20 Clemson (7-2) at Pitt (7-2), noon, ESPN
A few weeks ago it looked like it would be a showdown between the ACC candidates. Then Clemson lost to Louisville and Pitt dropped two in a row, with the Panthers crashing out of the CFP rankings. Now both teams are just fighting to stay in the ACC picture, and neither has a Top-25 win on the resume. Clemson is tied with Miami with one loss in the conference, but if both teams win, the Hurricanes would have the tiebreaker. The Tigers can boost their overall resume with a rivalry victory over currently ranked South Carolina in the regular season finale, but will still need help to make the ACC title game. Pitt needs an upset over Clemson to avoid a three-game skid after a 7-0 start.
Line: Clemson -11.5
8. No. 13 Boise State (8-1) at San Jose State (6-3), 7 p.m., CBS Sports Network
Boise State is still on pace to win the Mountain West and claim one of five automatic Playoff bids, and running back Ashton Jeanty is on pace to finish the regular season with the second-most rushing yards in one season, behind only Barry Sanders. in 1988. Jeanty had 209 rushing yards and three touchdowns in last week’s win over Nevada, adding to his FBS-leading total of 23 rushing touchdowns. The Broncos face a San Jose State team in their first year under Ken Niumatalolo and rank second in the Mountain West in yards allowed per game. San Jose State is fresh off an impressive win over Oregon State.
Line: Boise State -14
7. Arizona State (7-2) at No. 16 Kansas State (7-2), 7 p.m., ESPN
Kansas State is ahead of No. 17 Colorado in the CFP rankings thanks to a narrow head-to-head win in October, but the Wildcats are a game behind the Buffs in the Big 12 standings after a second league loss to Houston. from weeks ago. Even if K-State gets the help it needs elsewhere to reach the Big 12 championship, the rest of the schedule is a challenge: Arizona State, Cincinnati and Iowa State, all three entering this weekend with winning records to appear.
The Sun Devils expect to get Cam Skattebo back from injury after he missed the win over UCF. The senior ranks eighth in the FBS with 125.4 rushing yards per game.
Line: Kansas State -7.5
6. No. 22 LSU (6-3) at Florida (4-5), 3:30 p.m., ABC
If you’re wondering why this match, between two teams that took a blow last week, is so high on the list, it’s because there’s still a quite plausible road map allowing LSU to still make it to the SEC Championship Game. But for that to happen, the Tigers would have to win the rest of the regular season, starting with a trip to Gainesville. Florida hopes to have freshman quarterback DJ Lagway back from injury, and LSU is in need of a serious defensive search after being split by mobile quarterbacks Marcel Reed and Jalen Milroe in back-to-back losses, allowing a total of 80 points and 11 points . rushing touchdowns to Texas A&M and Alabama.
Line: LSU-4
5. No. 1 Oregon (10-0) at Wisconsin (5-4), 7:30 p.m., NBC
The Ducks defeated Idaho by 10 and Boise State by 3 on a last-second field goal to start the season. Since then, aside from the one-point win over Ohio State, Oregon’s seven other wins have all been by at least 21 points — which is why it’s surprising that this spread is only 13.5. The Badgers have lost two in a row after an inactive week, including a 32-point loss to Iowa.
Oregon has a chance to start 11-0 for only the second time in program history and for the first time since 2010 when the Ducks reached the national championship and lost to Auburn. That was also the same season in which Wisconsin defeated No. 1 Ohio State.
Line: Oregon -13.5
4. Kansas (3-6) at No. 6 BYU (9-0), 10:15 p.m., ESPN
BYU’s dream season continued with an incredible comeback win over Utah in the Holy War rivalry last Saturday, followed by a three-spot jump in the CFP rankings Tuesday. The Cougars are one of four remaining undefeated teams in the FBS, sitting alone atop the Big 12 standings. They meet a Kansas team that has disappointed this season but has looked much better in recent weeks. The Jayhawks, winners of two of their last three, scored 45 points in a win over then-ranked Iowa State last weekend and can move on to play BYU and Colorado in the next game.
Line: BYU-2.5
3. Utah (4-5) at No. 17 Colorado (7-2), noon, Fox
A year after dominating headlines as a 4-8 team that finished last in the Pac-12, Colorado is a top-20 team with a Heisman Trophy favorite in two-time star Travis Hunter, as well as a clear path to the Big to win. 12 and reach the Playoff. The Buffs still draw a lot of attention (including Deion Sanders co-hosting a new talk show!), but they’ve earned it with their play. It has created an ideal scenario for the Big 12 so far: undefeated BYU and media darling Colorado at the top of the standings, with the potential for a conference-championship clash and possibly even room for both to reach the Playoff, if all goes well.
That starts with the Buffs hosting a 10 a.m. local time kickoff against a Utah team coming off a devastating and controversial rivalry loss to BYU.
Line: Colorado -11.5
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2. No. 3 Texas (8-1) at Arkansas (5-4), noon, ABC
Texas sits at No. 3 in the CFP rankings, thanks in large part to a one-loss record. The Longhorns have largely passed the eye test, as did last week’s win over Florida, but have zero Top-25 wins, with their best win coming on the road at Vanderbilt. Still, quarterback Quinn Ewers looked healthy and sharp against the Gators, and Texas controls its own destiny in the SEC and will reach the championship if it wins, starting with Saturday’s road trip against nasty, lowly and well-rested Arkansas. The Hogs are coming off an inactive week after an embarrassing home loss to Ole Miss and expect dynamic quarterback Taylen Green to be healthy. A win for Texas won’t change the CV criticism, but that won’t matter if the country continues to pile up wins.
Line: Texas -12.5
1. No. 7 Tennessee (8-1) and No. 12 Georgia (7-2), 7:30 p.m., ABC
This is an elimination game for Georgia, which dropped out of the Playoff field in Tuesday’s rankings and would certainly have finished with three losses. However, a win by the Dawgs – who are double-digit favorites – drags the Vols into the morass of two-loss teams in SEC play, setting the table for some tiebreaker nightmares in the title game. Of the eight teams entering the weekend with one or two losses in the SEC standings, there are only two games left in which these teams will face off: this one and Texas at Texas A&M on Nov. 30. A lot can change before that, but Saturday’s result will have an impact.
Tennessee quarterback Nico Iamaleava is questionable, with ESPN’s Pete Thamel reporting Iamaleava has a concussion after leaving last week’s win against Mississippi State. Georgia quarterback Carson Beck has had his own non-injury issues, throwing 12 interceptions in the past six games.
Line: Georgia -9.5
(Photo of Georgia’s Cash Jones and Ole Miss’ Jared Ivey: Justin Ford/Getty Images)
