Also Considered: Appalachian State, Liberty, SMU, Army, Memphis

Week 12 Recap

Our top game of the weekend involved the Sun Belt East Division rivals Coastal Carolina and Appalachian State. Despite debuting new uniforms for the game, the Mountaineers couldn’t put together a sixty minute game. The Mountaineers closed a strong first half with a 54 second TD drive to go up 17-9. App State then turned six second-half possessions into six total points, culminating in the pick six that turned a 4 point deficit into 11 which was too much to overcome on the Teal Turf. CCU WB Grayson McCall led the Chanticleers in passing and rushing finishing with 200 and 69 yards respectively, including his 62 yard TD run to swing momentum into CCU’s favor. Coastal Carolina is now firmly in the driver’s seat in the Sun Belt and is moving towards another showdown against Louisiana.

The Ragin Cajuns had their game canceled against FCS’ Central Arkansas but had their resume really get a boost by their opponents. Iowa State, by virtue of the annual Oklahoma free space against Oklahoma State, now is firmly in first place of the Big 12 and has a chance to clinch a spot this week. That Iowa State win, in both the quality and the decisiveness of the result, is the best win of anyone in this top ten and their ranking now reflects that.

The CFP hopeful Cincinnati had their toughest test in Orlando against former CFP hopeful UCF. The Knights showed their truest potential in sprinting out to an early lead, but Cincinnati fought back to take the lead before the half. Both teams traded haymakers before Cincinnati took the air out of the ball in their final two drives, killing off almost 10 minutes of the fourth quarter and setting themselves up as a potential CFP crasher for tomorrow night’s initial CFP rankings.

The Mountain West saw some clarity on Saturday as the Nevada defense shut out the San Diego State offense in the second half, with only two of the Aztecs drives going longer than 3 plays. The other game I highlighted last week between San Jose State and Fresno State got postponed due to COVID issues in Fresno. Those three teams, combined with perennial power Boise State, appear to be the cream of the crop out west. Out in the MAC, Western Michigan used their dynamic passing attack to sprint past Central Michigan to become the best team in Michigan (prove me wrong) and take a hold of the MAC West. Meanwhile, Buffalo continued to roll through the MAC East, with Jaret Patterson running for a school record 301 yards in a 42-17 win.

We had three great finishes among the contenders for the top 10 this week. First off, Tulsa continued its fantastic run with an incredible comeback Thursday night against Tulane. After losing their top two QBs to injury, third string QB Davis Brin ended regulation with three consecutive scoring drives, ending regulation with a 40 yard mini Hail Mary to tie the game. After the teams exchanged FGs in the first OT, Tulsa LB Zaven Collins intercepted a 3^rd and Goal pass and took it back to the house to win in 2OT and maintain their two games lead as #2 team in AAC. Liberty, in an ironic twist of fate from their game against Virginia Tech a couple of weeks ago, lost after a potential GW FG was blocked by NC State and have their first setback of the season. Finally, after some dubious clock management by Army late in the game, Georgia Southern couldn’t pull off a spike to set up a potential GW FG and a blocked PAT by Andre Carter is the difference.

To wrap up the top ten teams, BYU destroyed North Alabama, Boise State survived a late rally in Hawaii, and Marshall had their game against Charlotte canceled.

Week 13 Games to Watch

(Opening Lines Used Below)

Memphis (-11) at Navy

Believe it or not, both of these teams have at least a path to the AAC Championship! After being embarrassed by Cincinnati, Memphis has quietly found itself in an interesting position, with having a small chance, if they win out, to get another shot at Cincy. Navy on the other hand, needs a lot of help but at least has this game and one against Tulsa to try and shake up the AAC standings before their annual matchup with Army.

Tulsa at Houston (-3)

Like I mentioned above, the AAC could be really interesting for that second Championship spot. Tulsa schedule does not let up as this game is the first of three challenging games for the Golden Hurricane. The advanced numbers have been kind to Houston, without the results following. This matchup could be a chance for the Cougars to assert themselves down the stretch.

San Jose State at Boise State (-14)

Since their matchup with Fresno State got cancelled, this will be the first chance for the Spartans to really measure their team to someone of the top caliber in the Mountain West. Boise has had a less than ideal season, with the blowout loss to BYU and shaky performance last week, so it’ll be interesting to see how this game shakes out and the ramifications it has for the conference moving forward.

Kent State at Buffalo (-7)

Much like the Central Michigan vs Western Michigan matchup last weekend, we will have a clearer picture of the MAC East after this game. Kent State has really not played anyone of note in the conference, while Buffalo has backed up the expectations of the team by destroying everyone in their path, including the reigning MAC Champs in Miami (OH).