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Winners and Losers Week 12: What's at stake in the final regular season weekend of college football

Yahoo Sports Staff

As Ohio State somehow kept its faint College Football Playoff hopes alive against Maryland, West Virginia watched them disappear in Stillwater.

The No. 10 Buckeyes moved to 10-1 with a 52-51 overtime win over the Terrapins after Maryland’s game-winning two-point conversion try fell incomplete. The victory sets up a winner-take-all matchup for the Big Ten East with No. 4 Michigan, a team that escaped a scare of its own. Indiana led at halftime 17-15 thanks to some disastrous clock management by the Wolverines and Michigan only won 31-20.

The winner of Michigan-Ohio State will be the clear favorite over Northwestern in the Big Ten championship game. If that winner is Michigan and the Wolverines beat the Wildcats, then the Big Ten will assuredly have a team in the playoff. If Ohio State beats Michigan and then Northwestern, the Big Ten’s hopes are a lot murkier. But they’re still there.

While the Big Ten can claim two playoff contenders with a straight face, the Big 12 is down to one. That’s No. 6 Oklahoma, who gave up 40 points to Kansas in a 55-40 win Saturday night. Yes, that’s right. Kansas.

The Sooners visit No. 9 West Virginia on Friday in the regular season finale. That game was all set up to be a potential back-to-back series with the Sooners and Mountaineers also meeting in the Dec. 1 Big 12 title game. West Virginia all but ruined that possibility with a 45-41 loss to Oklahoma State on Saturday afternoon.

With West Virginia now having two losses, Oklahoma is the only team left standing in the Big 12 with just one. And you can bet there are people in the Big 12 office that are hoping it stays that way. While a rematch between West Virginia and Texas in the title game would certainly be spicy given the “Horns-down” history between the two schools, Oklahoma-Texas has longstanding bad blood. And playoff implications because it’s down to Oklahoma or bust for the Big 12’s chances of getting into the four-team tournament.

After easily beating No. 12 Syracuse on Saturday, No. 3 Notre Dame is in the playoff with a win over USC on Nov. 24. The Trojans, at 5-6, need a win to make a bowl game. And maybe for Clay Helton to keep his job as well. A 5-7 season would be the first time USC has finished below .500 since 2000 — and it made a coaching change after that year.

The Apple Cup between No. 18 Washington and No. 8 Washington State looms large in the Pac-12. The winner of that game Friday night takes the Pac-12 North and heads to the Pac-12 title game. Much like the Big 12, you can bet there are people at the conference office that want it to be Washington State on the outside chance the Cougars can get into the playoff.

The only conference without any league title drama on the final weekend of the regular season is the SEC. The conference’s divisions have felt wrapped up for months with No. 5 Georgia and No. 1 Alabama set to play Dec. 1 in Atlanta. But the final weekend could still give us some playoff drama. Alabama has longtime rival Auburn in the Iron Bowl and Georgia takes on rival Georgia Tech, a triple-option team on a four-game win streak. An unexpected loss by either SEC team could make the playoff field look quite different.

Winners

Central Florida: UCF is now one win away from its second straight undefeated regular season. In a primetime matchup against No. 24 Cincinnati, the 11th-ranked Knights improved to 10-0 with a 38-13 victory. It was the 23rd consecutive victory for UCF, who clinched the AAC East title. All that’s left for the Knights is a trip to rival USF and the AAC title game. Another trip to a New Year’s Six bowl game likely will follow.

Pittsburgh: Pitt is officially headed to the ACC title game. The Panthers fell behind Wake Forest 10-6 at halftime but exploded with four second-half touchdowns in a 34-13 win to clinch the program’s first-ever ACC Coastal crown. Kenny Pickett threw for 316 yards and three touchdowns, both career highs, in the win. It has been a remarkable turnaround for the Panthers, who have now won four in a row after starting the season 3-4.

Utah: Things didn’t look good when Utah lost its starting quarterback and top running back in the same week. Now the Utes have their first-ever Pac-12 South title. Utah trounced Colorado 30-7 in Boulder on Saturday to improve to 8-3 (6-3 Pac-12) on the year. Jason Shelley threw for 221 yards and two scores in his second career start while the defense limited the Buffs to just 196 yards of offense. The Utes clinched the South title outright later Saturday night when Oregon held on for a 31-29 win over Arizona State.

Jonathan Taylor, RB, Wisconsin: Jonathan Taylor added to his nation-leading rushing total in a big way against Purdue. The sophomore rushed for a ridiculous 321 yards and three touchdowns in a 47-44 triple-overtime win. Two of Taylor’s scored came in extra time, including the game-winning 17-yarder in 3OT. Taylor now has 1,869 yards on the year. He’ll have the chance to pass 2,000 yards next week vs. Minnesota.

Jake Moody, K, Michigan: With Quinn Nordin, best known as the recruit who had Jim Harbaugh sleepover at his house, sidelined with an apparent illness, freshman Jake Moody saw his first career action. In his debut, Moody set a school record with six field goals in UM’s 31-20 win over Indiana. Moody connected on kicks of 32, 30, 31, 33, 23 and 29 yards to help the Wolverines improve to 10-1.

Florida State: Florida State’s 36-year bowl streak could keep going another season. The Seminoles improved to 5-6 on the year by beating No. 20 Boston College 22-21 at home on Saturday. After trailing for most of the second half, FSU went ahead with just 1:49 to play on a 74-yard touchdown pass from Deondre Francois to Tamorrion Terry. A win over rival Florida next week will extend the bowl streak to 37 years.

Joshua Kelley, RB, UCLA: Kelley has come out of seemingly nowhere to emerge as one of the better running backs in the Pac-12. Kelley, a former walk-on who started his career at UC Davis, rushed for 289 yards on a whopping 40 carries in the Bruins’ 34-27 win over USC. Kelley’s 55-yard touchdown run in the fourth quarter gave UCLA a lead it would not relinquish. Kelley now has 1,188 yards and 10 TDs on the year.

Andy Isabella, WR, UMass: Isabella is the best receiver you’ve never heard of. And he got a chance to showcase his abilities against Georgia on Saturday. Isabella entered the day leading the nation with 87 catches and 1,479 receiving yards. He added 15 catches, 219 yards and two scores to his totals Saturday, giving him 102 catches, 1,698 yards and 13 TDs for the Minutemen. UMass finished the year 4-8 with the 66-27 loss. You’ll see Isabella in the NFL next year.

Grayson Muehlstein, QB, TCU: Muehlstein finally got his moment. The fifth-year senior has been buried on the depth chart throughout his TCU career. But with Shawn Robinson out and Michael Collins sidelined in the first half vs. Baylor, Muehlstein was forced into action. He completed 11-of-15 passes for 137 yards and a touchdown in a 16-9 win. With Collins likely out, Muehlstein should get his first career start next week vs. Oklahoma State on senior day. TCU can clinch bowl eligibility with a win over the Cowboys.

LOSERS

Virginia Tech: Virginia Tech’s 25-year bowl streak is in serious jeopardy. The Hokies dropped to 4-6 with a blowout 38-14 loss to Miami on Saturday. While the Hurricanes snapped a four-game losing streak, the Hokies have now dropped five of their last six. Virginia Tech hosts rival Virginia on Friday. If the Hokies beat the Cavaliers for the 15th straight time, a 12th game will be added to the schedule on Dec. 1 against Marshall in an effort to keep the bowl streak alive. If Virginia Tech drops to 4-7 with a loss, the Marshall game won’t be played, according to multiple reports.

Texas Tech: After starting the season 5-2, including a stint in the Top 25, Texas Tech has now lost four games in a row and is in danger of missing out on a bowl game. Entering Saturday, the Red Raiders were averaging 41.8 points per game. In Saturday’s loss to Kansas State, TTU mustered a measly six points. The Red Raiders totaled only 181 yards in the 21-6 loss and turned it over three times. Bowl eligibility will be on the line for both teams in next Saturday’s home game vs. Baylor.

Purdue: Purdue looked well on its way to clinching another bowl berth against Wisconsin. The Boilermakers led 27-13 midway through the fourth, but allowed Badgers backup quarterback Jack Coan to throw two touchdown passes in a four-minute span to force overtime. Wisconsin went on to win 47-44 in triple overtime. To play in the postseason for a second straight season, Purdue now has to go on the road and beat rival Indiana. Both teams are 5-6. It could be Purdue’s final game with head coach Jeff Brohm, who is being heavily courted by Louisville, his alma mater.

Mike MacIntyre: Colorado has gone from 5-0 to 5-6, and head coach Mike MacIntyre is feeling the heat. During the week, a report emerged saying CU planned to fire MacIntyre after the season. MacIntyre was quick to brush it off during his weekly press conference, but was more defiant after Saturday’s 30-7 home loss to Utah. From the Denver Post:

At his news conference, MacIntyre poked through this six-game losing streak with almost clinical detachment, only to drop a stunning hint this thing won’t end well for him.

“The thing about this business that’s tough is, when you do good, everybody’s asking why you’re leaving,” said MacIntyre, citing the fickle nature of boosters. “They get mad at you when you’re leaving. I could’ve left (for) three good places, and stayed. That’s just the way it is. When you’re losing, they want to get rid of you. You can never win as a head coach on that, and I understand that.”

Things aren’t looking good for MacIntyre.

Arkansas: Chad Morris’ first season keeps getting worse. The Razorbacks were dismantled Saturday by Mississippi State, 52-6. Arkansas is now 2-9 overall and 0-7 in SEC play. The Razorbacks, whose only wins are over Eastern Illinois and Tulsa, are the only SEC team without a win in conference play. They have one final chance to get a league win next at Missouri.

Buffalo: The Bulls could have clinched the MAC East with a win over Ohio on Wednesday night. It wasn’t close. UB put up only 277 yards and turned it over five times in a blowout 52-17 loss to Ohio. Buffalo can still clinch the division with a win over Bowling Green next week, but it would have preferred to take care of things against the Bobcats.

South Florida: After a 7-0 start to the season, USF has come crashing back down to Earth. USF jumped out to a 17-0 lead over Temple in Philly on Saturday, only to surrender 27 straight points from the Owls in a 27-17 loss. The Bulls, who turned it over five times, have now lost four games in a row. Undefeated UCF visits Tampa next week.

Illinois: The Illini lost 63-0 to Iowa. It’s the third time this season that Illinois has given up 63 points, though in the first two games they at least scored. This one was an abject disaster and it ruined any hopes of a bowl game in Lovie Smith’s third season with the team. Illinois is now 4-7 and simply plays Northwestern on Saturday with pride on the line.

Michigan State: The Spartans are a mess. Michigan State fell to 6-5 with a 9-6 loss to Nebraska on Saturday. It’s the second straight game where Michigan State has scored just six points as the team’s offense somehow got worse. Michigan State entered the game scoring just 21.7 points per game. That may sound OK, but it’s 119th out of 130 FBS teams. At least Rutgers looms as the final game of the season.

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