Last Saturday we saw why college football rules the roost.
You can talk to anyone who lives in a city with an NFL franchise and they’ll tell you it’s the only game in town.
That may be true, but go into any town in America, big cities, small cities, farmland, any land, and it’s all about the college closest to them.
Their game is all that matters.
And if they attended a college or university, that bond and fierce rooting interest sticks with them their entire lives.
It’s like nothing else in sports.
Then, when you add on the intense setting of rivalry week, which we witnessed last weekend, the drama can go off the charts.
Only Oregon could breathe easy as they crushed Oregon State.
The Ducks are playoff worthy for sure.
With championship week still to be played nothing can be set in stone.
But all the other contenders had to sweat out incredible challenges, some of which were unexpected.
Really, none can be surprising when you put an underdog’s pride and determination on the table.
We saw Florida leading unbeaten Florida State by one after three quarters, before the Seminoles prevailed in the final 15 minutes with a field goal and a game-clinching touchdown.
How about how Washington State, playing for a bowl berth, drawing even with unblemished Washington with six minutes to go, only to see a game-winning 42-yard field goal win it for the Huskies who escaped once again?
The most dramatic finish featured a 4th and goal 31-yard desperation pass for a winning touchdown to give Alabama a victory over Auburn in their Iron Bowl matchup to keep the Tide’s playoff hopes alive for another week.
The fall-a-way grab by Isaiah Ford will be etched in the long history of that great state rivalry forever.
Undefeated and top-ranked Georgia, the defending national champs, now face Alabama with so much riding on the line………again.
The Bulldogs didn’t have a day at the beach either against Georgia Tech.
But the game of the day had to be the battle of Big Ten unbeatens, Ohio State and Michigan.
It wasn’t for the national crown, it wasn’t even the final game of the season for the winner, but it carried all the tension and drama of any collision you can think of for any age-old rivalry that comes to mind.
It wasn’t played in prime time in an indoor stadium.
It began at noon in an outdoor palace with 100-thousand plus fans screaming their lungs out.
It was played in the cold and wind of late November.
The one factor no one can predict are turnovers.
Michigan converted an interception into a touchdown drive for the first score of the game.
They also made good on all three 4th down attempts, the third ultimately resulting in a TD as well.
An officials call which could have gone either way, didn’t go the Buckeyes way and Ohio State was behind the 8-ball, trailing 14-3 on the road.
Games come down to who controls the line of scrimmage, and those critical plays in crunch time.
Michigan came out on top on both counts, and a final Ohio State pick sealed a thrilling 30-24 triumph.
The game had so much meaning beyond the obvious.
Wolverines head coach Jim Harbaugh was not on the sideline for the third straight game serving out his suspension by the Big Ten on sign-stealing charges by Michigan that may be true, but have not yet been fully proven.
So, the on-field decisions were again made by Sherrone Moore, an assistant coach turned interim head coach.
All Moore did was guide the Wolverines to wins over Penn State, Maryland, away from home, and the incredibly-pressurized showdown against the Buckeyes.
Moore was the hero of the month in full view for Michigan followers everywhere.
Now, Harbaugh returns for the Big Ten championship game against Iowa.
Barring what would be the shocker of the year, Michigan will finish without a loss and head to the college football playoff.
It’s the final year of the four-team format. Next season it expands to eight.
It should be eight this year since there are that many schools who are either without a loss, or have but one.
Georgia, Michigan, Washington and Florida State are 12-0.
Ohio State, Oregon, Texas and Alabama are 11-1.
Remember, championship week lies ahead.
You can’t envision the final four without one of the unbeatens.
It’s never happened in the history of the championship playoff.
I believe two or even three of the four one-loss teams could win two playoff games and win a national title.
But a couple of schools will be out of luck, including Ohio State.
That brings us to their head coach Ryan Day.
He’s done everything at Columbus but one thing.
The big thing.
The biggest thing.
His teams haven’t beaten Michigan.
They beat everyone they play.
But not Michigan.
Three consecutive losses under his regime.
Many are calling for his scalp.
I don’t care what you do, but if you don’t beat Michigan, the rest doesn’t matter.
A word of advice.
Be careful what you wish for.
Will a change of head coaches automatically assure a victory over the Wolverines?
Further still, will a change of coaches automatically assure dominance over the rest of the Big Ten?
Does a win over your hated rivals matter if you lose a game or two before?
If it does, go for it. Get a new man.
But I think Ryan Day has done an outstanding job at Ohio State.
Even in that loss last Saturday, I saw the Buckeyes overcome the early turnover, a questionable call and a 7-point deficit to come right back to score and stay in the game.
That showed me something.
I know Michigan won the game, and the two turnovers were huge.
But as painful as it is for Ohio State supporters, I feel it’s unwise to turn away from a head coach who has delivered big time success.
Let Ryan Day have still another crack at Michigan.
Just sayin’.