It’s just how the SEC likes it.
Theꦫ powerhouse conference’s championship game will dictate the entire weekend, and everyone will have tওo adjust accordingly.
Fourth-ranked Georgia holds the keys to Sunday’s 🐬College Football Playoff seedings. If the Bulldogs can upset No. 2 LSU and Heisman Trophy favorite Joe Burr꧙ow in Atlanta on Saturday afternoon, the four teams that will be selected by the committee should be locks, provided No. 3 Clemson doesn’t slip up in the ACC Championship game, though it could lead to movement among them. If the Bulldogs fall, then the fourth spot will be up for grabs, likely between No. 5 Utah (if the Utes knock off Oregon on Friday) and the Big 12 champion.
Georgia also was in this position last year, knowing a win would send it to the playoff. The Bulldogs, however, failed to hold o💃nto a 14-point lead against Alabama.
This team isn’t as dynamic offensively, after losing receivers Riley Ridley, Mecole Hardman and Isaac Nauta to the NFL. Quarterback Jake Fromm’s numbers declined across the board and leading rusher D’Andre Swift is nursing a left shoulder injury. But the defense is second nationally in points allowed (10.4) and the running game is elite, averaging an even 200 yards per game. It’s similar to recent LSU teams. Not this season’s Tigers, though. They were second in the country in points per game (48.7) after new passing game coordinator Joe Brady overhauled the aeriaꦛl attack.
“If you can score points like they’re doing, that’s great,” Georgia coach Kirby Smart said this week. “What’s bad about that? I think we all want to do that some, but it’s not who we are. We don’t have a team built li🦂ke that. We’reꩲ built very differently.”
While favored and undefeated LSU likely would get selected for the playoff even with a loss, the Tigers have a lot to play for, particularly the No. 1 seed and a chance to avoid having to play Clemson in the semifinals. A commanding victory would go a long way towards earning the top spot. Of course, a Georgia win would lock 🧸up a second playoff bid in three years for Smart’s program and a loss would open it up for someone else.
The SEC, as usual, holds all the cards.
Here ⛦is a look at the four other conference championship games:
Friday
Pac-12: No. 5 Utah vs. No. 13 Oregon, 8 p.m.
The Utes will have everyone’s undivided attention, in this stand-alone showdown to decide the Pac-12 crown. They not only need to win, but because a victory over Oregon would be their first against a ranked opponent, some style points could help in Utah’s quest for tꦉh🐻e conference’s first playoff spot in three years.
Saturday
Big 12: No. 6 Oklahoma vs. No. 7 Baylor, Noon
Less than 𒉰three weeks ago, the Sooners pulled a stunner, rallying from 21 points down to beat the Bears and keep their playoff hopes alive. They’ll need to beat Bꦆaylor again to give themselves a shot.
The defensively stout Bears, meanwhile, are💝 still in contention for the playoff as well, and could set a program record for wins in a season with a victory.
ACC: No. 3 Clemson vs. No. 23 Virginia, 7:30 p.m.
Forget Virginia winning. An upset would be this game being competitive after halftime. The Tigers are a four-score favorite over the three-loss Cavaliers. Aside from a shaky one-point win over North Carolina in late September,🙈 Clemson has won eveಞry game this year by at least two scores, a pattern that should continue Saturday night as Dabo Swinney’s team cruises back to the playoff.
Big Ten: No. 1 Ohio State vs. No. 8 Wisconsin, 8 p.m.
The first meeting was a rout, a thorough 38-7 O🐲hio State victory. It’s hard to see the rematch being too different unless Wisconsin can run the ball against the Buckeyes’ fourth-ranked unit and keep quarterback Justin Fields and company on the sidelines. A win likely would lock up the all-important No. 1 seed for Ohio State, so there is still plenty on the line for the undefeated Big Ten East champion.