Feature: Badgers WR Vinny Anthony

 

Vinny Anthony II has begun to take off in his junior year with the Badgers. The big play threat has been all over the field during his first five games of the season. Anthony has proved to be a security blanket for Braedyn Locke. 

Anthony, a junior from Louisville, Kentucky, has rarely been featured on this Badgers offense, throughout his brief career, aside from his special teams role. 

In his first five games, Anthony has already produced more total yards than his previous two seasons with Wisconsin. So far on the season, Anthony has registered 9 catches for 206 yards and two touchdowns in his last two games against USC and Purdue. 

Impressively, Anthony is averaging almost 23 yards per catch in the campaign so far. Anthony currently leads the Big Ten in this category as well. For a wide receiver core predicted to be led by Will Pauling, Anthony is currently carrying the statistical title as the leading receiver thus far for the Badgers. Wisconsin has been looking for that one dynamic receiver for some time. Could Anthony be the one they’ve been looking for? 

Along with his impressive start, Anthony is the first Badger since Jared Abbrederis in 2013 to record multiple 50+ yard catches in a single season. In his previous two games, Anthony has recorded long touchdowns through the air on 63-yard and 52-yard heaves from Braedyn Locke. 

Anthony is embracing offensive coordinator Phil Longo's air raid offense with his big play touchdowns in back to back weeks. Executing big plays down the stretch on offense will be crucial towards the Badgers potential success. 

The air-raid offense has been in question since Longo took the role as the offensive coordinator in Madison. An offense that averaged just over 23 points per game last season, was averaging around 21 points per game this season prior to the Purdue game last Saturday. 

Longo and his air-raid offense came over to the Badgers with Luke Fickell last season. The hype and excitement of the offense was real, but the production was not. We had yet to see its full potential until last Saturday against the Purdue Boilermakers.  

The Badgers dropped 52 points on the Boilermakers operated by Longo's offense. Through the air, Braedyn Locke threw for three touchdowns that were all at least 25 yards. Braedyn Locke registered the most passing yards in a game since Joel Stave in 2015 for the Badgers. 

Wisconsin will head to New Brunswick, New Jersey this weekend to take on the Rutgers Scarlet Knights. Rutgers currently ranks as 27th in passing yards allowed per game. The Badgers are currently listed as a 2.5 point underdog going into Shi Stadium. 

Vinny Anthony will have a chance to extend his touchdown streak to three games come Saturday if the Badgers can figure out the Scarlet Knights defense. The game plan is clear for the Badgers: get Vinny Anthony the ball. 

Can the Badgers Make a Bowl Game This Year?

As the Badgers head into the bye week, they stand in at 2-1 on the season following a disappointing loss to the Alabama Crimson Tide. The Badgers will head to Southern California after the bye week to take on the USC Trojans. With the expansion of the Big Ten and tougher schedules in place, everyone is wondering, will the Badgers be able to make it back to bowl season? 

Dating back to 2002, the Badgers have made a bowl game every year and will look to further the streak in 2024. In every year since 2002, the Badgers have also had at least seven wins every year. After a unique start for Wisconsin, do they have a chance to achieve at least six wins this season? There is certainly a lot at stake. 

For those that do not know, in order to become bowl eligible, each team must accomplish at least six wins in a season. So with nine games remaining, the Badgers need to win at least four of their nine games in order to be eligible for a 23rd straight season. 

Dating back to 2014, the Badgers have won eight of their ten bowl games as well. Wisconsin also holds the third longest consecutive bowl game streak in the entire nation, behind the Georgia Bulldogs and Oklahoma Sooners by just a couple of years.  

The Badgers will now head into the Big Ten part of their schedule after their bye week. Their opponents include: USC, Purdue, Rutgers, Northwestern, Penn State, Iowa, Oregon, Nebraska, and Minnesota. 

Remaining on the schedule is four home games compared to five away games as the Badgers will head to USC for their first road matchup of the year. According to ESPN projections, the Badgers are only favored to win two of their nine matchups. Currently, four of these teams are ranked with two of the matchups on the road and two at home. 

After losing quarterback Tyler Van Dyke for the season, the outlook of the season for the Badgers has changed drastically. They will now be lead by sophomore quarterback Braedyn Locke for the foreseeable future unless there is another change made. 

In a small sample size last year, Braedyn Locke lead the Badgers to an underwhelming 1-3 record with their only win coming against Illinois. If Locke is unable to prove his worth in getting the Badgers to a bowl game, Luke Fickell has some other options to consider. 

Wisconsin also has freshmen quarterbacks Mabrey Mettauer and Cole LaCrue to resort to if Locke is unable to get the job done. The Badgers will need to execute the pass game in order to open up the run game for Chez Mellusi, Tawee Walker, and Cade Yacamelli. 

With four of the Badgers future opponents ranked, a possible upset will be huge for the Badgers hopes at achieving the six win mark. The best chance the Badgers have at pulling off an upset is probably at home where they will take on the Penn State Nittany Lions and the Oregon Ducks. 

I believe the games that the Badgers are most likely to win are against Rutgers, Northwestern, Minnesota, and Purdue. Winning all four of these games will make the Badgers bowl eligible for the 23rd season in a row. Mix in a possible upset out of their other matchups and Wisconsin could be looking at a higher stakes bowl game as well. 

The odds are certainly against the Badgers, but beating four of these nine opponents is definitely doable for the Badgers. I believe that by the time Thanksgiving comes around, the Badgers will be comfortably set into bowl season and extend their illustrious streak of consecutive bowl games to 23 straight years. 

Badgers Dismantled by the Tide

In one of the most highly anticipated Badger football games in some time, the Badgers got absolutely dismantled by the Alabama Crimson Tide on national television by a final score of 42-10. This game was a lot to take in so let's talk about it. 

It was brutal showing by the Badgers on Saturday after their blowout loss to the Crimson Tide to say the least. They couldn't get anything going on offense and their defense was no match for the high powered offense of the Tide. 

Things all started to fall downhill on the first drive of the game when quarterback Tyler Van Dyke went down. Van Dyke got hurt on a tackle on the Badger sideline and never came back. It was later confirmed that the transfer quarterback suffered a torn ACL and will now miss the entire season. 

Things were left up to sophomore quarterback Braedyn Locke for the remainder of the game. We saw Locke a good amount last season when quarterback Tanner Mordecai suffered a long-term hand injury. He was not very good last season and played like his 2023 self against the Tide as well. 

But I don't blame it all on him, I blame it on the coaching. The coaching was way too conservative in this game and with this type of play calling against the fourth ranked team in the country, the Badgers stood no chance. The Badgers ran the ball way too often right into the teeth of the Alabama defense for minimal gains. 

There were other costly mistakes that took this game away from the Badgers very quickly. Fumbles by both Cade Yacamelli and Chez Mellusi gave the Tide some momentum when the Badgers were within striking distance early in the game. 

Another costly blunder was the missed field goal by Nathaniel Vakos which was the difference from going into halftime with the Badgers being down by three possession compared to just one. All in all, the Badgers were far from perfect this previous Saturday. 

They were simply outmatched. After struggling to really pull away in their first two matchups against Western Michigan and South Dakota, the Tide gave the Badgers a very humbling feeling in their blowout victory. 

As Luke Fickell said to the team after the game, "if you haven't had your ass whooped before, you just did." The Badgers will now have a long time to reflect on their embarrassing loss as they head into their bye week before heading to Southern California. 

Wisconsin Football is Here!

After over 8 months of waiting, Badger football is finally back! The Badgers opened up their 2024 season with a victory over the Western Michigan Broncos. This game was far from perfect for Wisconsin so let's talk about. 

The Badgers landed a big quarterback transfer this offseason, Tyler Van Dyke, who has begun the season as QB1. After a couple of underwhelming seasons at Miami, that trend continued in Week 1 for Van Dyke. The offense looked very conservative which continuously hurt them throughout the game. 

Badger football has always had a star running back to command the offense, from Jonathan Taylor to Melvin Gordon and more, they have been fortunate to have such a dominant ground game. This year, however, this is not the case. The Badgers don't have a running back that is reminiscent of their past stars. 

Chez Mellusi and Tawee Walker have the skills to be a good duo, but not as good as past year running back production. With one of the more talented receiver rooms that the Badgers have had in a long time, the Air Raid gameplan, that Phil Longo and Luke Fickell brought over to Wisconsin, should be more prevalent. 

The Badgers were very efficient on third downs last night after converting 10/16 times. They were able to extend drives multiple times on their way to scoring more points in their 14 point victory. The Badger defense and special teams stepped up in some big ways last night as well. 

The recovery after the muffed punt by the Broncos completely changed the course of the game as the Badgers outscored Western Michigan 15-0 after that play. Without that play, it is very possible that we are talking about a much worse outcome. 

With a very tough schedule on the way for the Badgers, there are many mistakes needing correcting, and gaps that need filling. At the end of the day, a win is a win, no matter how you get it. After a beautiful night at Camp Randall Stadium, the Badgers are off to a 1-0 start in 2024. 

Shedeur and Travis are Back

The Colorado Buffaloes kicked off their 2024 season with a close victory over FCS powerhouse North Dakota State. The duo of Shedeur Sanders and Travis Hunter looked better than ever in their season debut. 

Colorado has been the headline of college football the past couple seasons with Deion Sanders taking over the program. Sanders has almost single handedly changed the dynamic of college football with NIL and the abundance of transfers entering the portal season after season. 

Sanders and Hunter are two of the highest paid college football players through NIL deals. Sanders is making almost $5 million annually while still in college. Previously, athletes could not benefit from their name, image, and likeness, but now athletes, such as Sanders, are taking full advantage of it. 

They don't just hand out millions to random athletes however. Sanders and Hunter absolutely tore it up last night in their 31-26 win. Sanders threw for over 440 yards along with 4 touchdowns as well. Hunter, on the other hand, had over 130 receiving yards and three touchdowns from Sanders. 

Travis Hunter is not only a star on offense, but is one of the rare two way players as he plays cornerback for the Buffs defense as well. Many critics have said he should focus on one position instead of both, but I am fascinated by how much Hunter leaves on the field. 

Many people are calling for these two to be the top picks in the 2025 NFL Draft. If they keep these numbers up, it's going to be hard to shut that take down. It's only one game and the Buffs have a long way to go, but this was a pretty impressive start for the Buffs offense in 2024. 

 

2024 Big 12 Football Predictions

 

Arizona:

Week 1: vs New Mexico W (1-0)

Week 2: vs Northern Arizona W (2-0)

Week 3: at Kansas State L (2-1)

Week 4: BYE WEEK

Week 5: at Utah L (2-2)

Week 6: vs Texas Tech W (3-2)

Week 7: at BYU W (4-2)

Week 8: vs Colorado W (5-2)

Week 9: vs West Virginia W (6-2)

Week 10: at UCF L (6-3)

Week 11: BYE WEEK

Week 12: vs Houston W (7-3)

Week 13: at TCU L (7-4)

Week 14: vs Arizona State W (8-4)

FINAL RECORD PROJECTION: 8-4 (BOWL ELIGIBLE)

_____________________________________________________________________________________

Arizona State: 

Week 1: vs Wyoming W (1-0)

Week 2: vs Mississippi State L (1-1)

Week 3: at Texas State W (2-1)

Week 4: at Texas Tech L (2-2)

Week 5: BYE WEEK

Week 6: vs Kansas L (2-3)

Week 7: vs Utah L (2-4)

Week 8: at Cincinnati L (2-5)

Week 9: BYE WEEK

Week 10: at Oklahoma State L (2-6)

Week 11: vs UCF W (3-6)

Week 12: at Kansas State L (3-7)

Week 13: vs BYU W (4-7)

Week 14: at Arizona L (4-8)

FINAL RECORD PROJECTION: 4-8 (NOT BOWL ELIGIBLE)

_____________________________________________________________________________________

Baylor:

Week 1: vs Tarleton W (1-0)

Week 2: at Utah L (1-1)

Week 3: vs Air Force W (2-1)

Week 4: at Colorado L (2-2)

Week 5: vs BYU W (3-2)

Week 6: at Iowa State L (3-3)

Week 7: BYE WEEK

Week 8: at Texas Tech L (3-4)

Week 9: vs Oklahoma State L (3-5)

Week 10: vs TCU L (3-6)

Week 11: BYE WEEK 

Week 12: at West Virginia L (3-7)

Week 13: at Houston W (4-7)

Week 14: vs Kansas L (4-8)

FINAL RECORD PROJECTION: 4-8 (NOT BOWL ELIGIBLE)

_____________________________________________________________________________________

BYU:

Week 1: vs Southern Illinois W (1-0)

Week 2: at SMU L (1-1)

Week 3: at Wyoming W (2-1)

Week 4: vs Kansas State L (2-2)

Week 5: at Baylor L (2-3)

Week 6: BYE WEEK

Week 7: vs Arizona L (2-4)

Week 8: vs Oklahoma State L (2-5)

Week 9: at UCF L (2-6)

Week 10: BYE WEEK

Week 11: at Utah L (2-7)

Week 12: vs Kansas L (2-8)

Week 13: at Arizona State L (2-9)

Week 14: vs Houston W (3-9)

FINAL RECORD PROJECTION: 3-9 (NOT BOWL ELIGIBLE)

_____________________________________________________________________________________

UCF:

Week 1: vs New Hampshire W (1-0)

Week 2: vs Sam Houston W (2-0)

Week 3: at TCU L (2-1)

Week 4: BYE WEEK 

Week 5: vs Colorado W (3-1)

Week 6: at Florida L (3-2)

Week 7: vs Cincinnati W (4-2)

Week 8: at Iowa State W (5-2)

Week 9: vs BYU W (6-2)

Week 10: vs Arizona W (7-2)

Week 11: at Arizona State L (7-3)

Week 12: BYE WEEK 

Week 13: at West Virginia L (7-4)

Week 14: vs Utah L (7-5)

FINAL RECORD PROJECTION: 7-5 (BOWL ELIGIBLE)

_____________________________________________________________________________________

Cincinnati: 

Week 1: vs Towson W (1-0)

Week 2: vs Pittsburgh L (1-1)

Week 3: at Miami (OH) W (2-1)

Week 4: vs Houston W (3-1)

Week 5: at Texas Tech L (3-2)

Week 6: BYE WEEK 

Week 7: at UCF L (3-3)

Week 8: vs Arizona State W (4-3)

Week 9: at Colorado L (4-4)

Week 10: BYE WEEK 

Week 11: vs West Virginia L (4-5)

Week 12: at Iowa State L (4-6)

Week 13: at Kansas State L (4-7)

Week 14: vs TCU L (4-8)

FINAL RECORD PROJECTION: 4-8 (NOT BOWL ELIGIBLE)

_____________________________________________________________________________________

Colorado: 

Week 1: vs North Dakota State W (1-0)

Week 2: at Nebraska L (1-1)

Week 3: at Colorado State W (2-1)

Week 4: vs Baylor W (3-1)

Week 5: at UCF L (3-2)

Week 6: BYE WEEK 

Week 7: vs Kansas State W (4-2)

Week 8: at Arizona L (4-3)

Week 9: vs Cincinnati W (5-3)

Week 10: BYE WEEK 

Week 11: at Texas Tech L (5-4)

Week 12: vs Utah W (6-4)

Week 13: at Kansas L (6-5)

Week 14: vs Oklahoma State W (7-5)

FINAL RECORD PROJECTION: 7-5 (BOWL ELIGIBLE)

_____________________________________________________________________________________

Houston:

Week 1: vs UNLV W (1-0)

Week 2: at Oklahoma L (1-1)

Week 3: vs Rice W (2-1)

Week 4: at Cincinnati L (2-2)

Week 5: vs Iowa State L (2-3)

Week 6: at TCU L (2-4)

Week 7: BYE WEEK

Week 8: at Kansas L (2-5)

Week 9: vs Utah L (2-6)

Week 10: vs Kansas State L (2-7)

Week 11: BYE WEEK

Week 12: at Arizona L (2-8)

Week 13: vs Baylor L (2-9)

Week 14: at BYU L (2-10)

FINAL RECORD PROJECTION: 2-10 (NOT BOWL ELIGIBLE)

_____________________________________________________________________________________

Iowa State: 

Week 1: vs North Dakota W (1-0)

Week 2: at Iowa L (1-1)

Week 3: BYE WEEK

Week 4: vs Arkansas State W (2-1)

Week 5: at Houston W (3-1)

Week 6: vs Baylor W (4-1)

Week 7: at West Virginia L (4-2)

Week 8: vs UCF L (4-3)

Week 9: BYE WEEK

Week 10: vs Texas Tech W (5-3)

Week 11: at Kansas L (5-4)

Week 12: vs Cincinnati W (6-4)

Week 13: at Utah L (6-5)

Week 14: vs Kansas State L (6-6)

FINAL RECORD PROJECTION: 6-6 (BOWL ELIGIBLE)

_____________________________________________________________________________________

Kansas:

Week 1: vs Lindenwood W (1-0)

Week 2: at Illinois W (2-0)

Week 3: vs UNLV W (3-0)

Week 4: at West Virginia L (3-1)

Week 5: vs TCU W (4-1)

Week 6: at Arizona State W (5-1)

Week 7: BYE WEEK

Week 8: vs Houston W (6-1)

Week 9: at Kansas State L (6-2)

Week 10: BYE WEEK

Week 11: vs Iowa State W (7-2)

Week 12: at BYU W (8-2)

Week 13: vs Colorado W (9-2)

Week 14: at Baylor W (10-2)

FINAL RECORD PROJECTION: 10-2 (BOWL ELIGIBLE)

_____________________________________________________________________________________

Kansas State:

Week 1: vs UT Martin W (1-0)

Week 2: at Tulane W (2-0)

Week 3: vs Arizona W (3-0)

Week 4: at BYU W (4-0)

Week 5: vs Oklahoma State W (5-0)

Week 6: BYE WEEK 

Week 7: at Colorado L (5-1)

Week 8: at West Virginia L (5-2)

Week 9: vs Kansas W (6-2)

Week 10: at Houston W (7-2)

Week 11: BYE WEEK 

Week 12: vs Arizona State W (8-2)

Week 13: vs Cincinnati W (9-2)

Week 14: at Iowa State W (10-2)

FINAL RECORD PROJECTION: 10-2 (BOWL ELIGIBLE)

_____________________________________________________________________________________

Oklahoma State:

Week 1: vs South Dakota State W (1-0)

Week 2: vs Arkansas W (2-0)

Week 3: at Tulsa W (3-0)

Week 4: vs Utah W (4-0)

Week 5: at Kansas State L (4-1)

Week 6: vs West Virginia W (5-1)

Week 7: BYE WEEK

Week 8: at BYU W (6-1)

Week 9: at Baylor W (7-1)

Week 10: vs Arizona State W (8-1)

Week 11: at TCU L (8-2)

Week 12: BYE WEEK

Week 13: vs Texas Tech W (9-2)

Week 14: at Colorado L (9-3)

FINAL RECORD PROJECTION: 9-3 (BOWL ELIGIBLE)

_____________________________________________________________________________________

TCU:

Week 1: at Stanford W (1-0)

Week 2: vs LIU W (2-0)

Week 3: vs UCF W (3-0)

Week 4: at SMU L (3-1)

Week 5: at Kansas L (3-2)

Week 6: vs Houston W (4-2)

Week 7: BYE WEEK 

Week 8: at Utah L (4-3)

Week 9: vs Texas Tech W (5-3)

Week 10: at Baylor W (6-3)

Week 11: vs Oklahoma State W (7-3)

Week 12: BYE WEEK

Week 13: vs Arizona W (8-3)

Week 14: at Cincinnati W (9-3)

FINAL RECORD PROJECTION: 9-3 (BOWL ELIGIBLE)

_____________________________________________________________________________________

Texas Tech:

Week 1: vs Abeline Christian W (1-0)

Week 2: at Washington State L (1-1)

Week 3: vs North Texas W (2-1)

Week 4: vs Arizona State W (3-1)

Week 5: vs Cincinnati W (4-1)

Week 6: at Arizona L (4-2)

Week 7: BYE WEEK

Week 8: vs Baylor W (5-2)

Week 9: at TCU L (5-3)

Week 10: at Iowa State W (5-4)

Week 11: vs Colorado W (6-4)

Week 12: BYE WEEK

Week 13: at Oklahoma State L (6-5)

Week 14: vs West Virginia W (7-5)

FINAL RECORD PROJECTION: 7-5 (BOWL ELIGIBLE)

_____________________________________________________________________________________

Utah: 

Week 1: vs Southern Utah W (1-0)

Week 2: vs Baylor W (2-0)

Week 3: at Utah State W (3-0)

Week 4: at Oklahoma State L (3-1)

Week 5: vs Arizona W (4-1)

Week 6: BYE WEEK

Week 7: at Arizona State W (5-1)

Week 8: vs TCU W (6-1)

Week 9: at Houston W (7-1)

Week 10: BYE WEEK

Week 11: vs BYU W (8-1)

Week 12: at Colorado L (8-2)

Week 13: vs Iowa State W (9-2)

Week 14: at UCF W (10-2)

FINAL RECORD PROJECTION: 10-2 (BOWL ELIGIBLE) (College Football Playoff)

_____________________________________________________________________________________

West Virginia 

Week 1: vs Penn State L (0-1)

Week 2: vs Albany W (1-1)

Week 3: at Pittsburgh W (2-1)

Week 4: vs Kansas W (3-1)

Week 5: BYE WEEK

Week 6: at Oklahoma State L (3-2)

Week 7: vs Iowa State W (4-2)

Week 8: vs Kansas State W (5-2)

Week 9: at Arizona L (5-3)

Week 10: BYE WEEK

Week 11: at Cincinnati W (6-3)

Week 12: vs Baylor W (7-3)

Week 13: vs UCF W (8-3)

Week 14: at Texas Tech L (8-4)

FINAL RECORD PROJECTION: 8-4 (BOWL ELIGIBLE)

_____________________________________________________________________________________

11 Bowl Eligible Teams

5 Not Bowl Eligible Teams

Big 12 Championship: Utah vs Kansas State (Utah wins/advances to CFP) 

Standings:

1. Utah

2. Kansas State

3. Kansas

4. TCU

5. Oklahoma State

6. Arizona

7. West Virginia 

8. Texas Tech

9. UCF

10. Colorado

11. Iowa State

12. Cincinnati 

13. Arizona State

14. Baylor

15. BYU

16. Houston

One Week Away: College Football!

College football is just around the corner! In just a week, the 10th ranked Florida State Seminoles and the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets will kick off the season in Dublin, Ireland. But a college football game in Ireland isn't anywhere close to the biggest storylines of the season to come. 

We have conference realignments and the expanded playoff to talk about. The most impacted conferences by realignment are the Big Ten and SEC. These conferences got a lot more competitive and some would say better with the new schools added to the mix. 

There was lots of debate on whether conference realignment would be good for the sport. It really takes away from the tradition of having a conference. For example, the Big Ten was predominantly midwestern teams with a couple of east coast schools. Now they've added four west coast teams, making the conference look like it consists of schools from all over the country. 

All four of these teams came from the Pac-12 which now consists of two teams. The SEC added two new schools as well: Oklahoma and Texas. With these additions, all of the schools in the SEC still are mostly from the southeastern part of the United States. 

With basically no more of the Pac-12, the ACC and Big 12 also underwent some big changes. Both of these conferences added six of the Pac-12 teams that left behind their original conference. Stanford and California were added to the ACC, while Colorado, Arizona, Arizona State, and Utah all departed for the Big 12. It's going to take a little time to get used to these new changes within these conferences. 

With the traditional conferences being left behind, there is some excitement to come. The new and highly anticipated matchups that fans could only see if these teams met up in the College Football Playoff. Speaking of the CFP, it has been expanded from 4 teams to 12! It's also not just one representative from each conference, conferences can have multiple teams represented in the playoff. 

On paper, it seems as the SEC and the Big Ten will dominate the CFP field. This is what has infuriated critics of conference realignment and the new CFP. It shows a misrepresentation of all of college football because it will pre-dominantly represent the two biggest powerhouse conferences. Currently, 9 of the top 11 teams in the country are either from the Big Ten or SEC. 

If the 12-team playoff was enacted last year, 10 of the 12 teams would be from the SEC or Big Ten currently. The other teams were from the ACC and Conference USA. No representation from the Big 12 at all. 

There has been talks on further expanding the 12-team playoff to more teams such as 14. If these conferences dominant the field of the CFP, I would have to assume that the 14-team playoff is adopted sooner than later. 

Yet, this season is going to be a very exciting one. Matchups such as Ohio State vs. Oregon, Georgia vs Texas, or a rematch of the National Championship, Michigan vs. Washington, will all be displayed in 2024. The are valid arguments for both sides of what makes college football better or worse, but nonetheless 2024 will mark a new era for the sport. 

2024 SEC Football Predictions

 

Alabama:

Week 1: vs Western Kentucky W (1-0)

Week 2: vs South Florida W (2-0)

Week 3: at Wisconsin W (3-0)

Week 4: BYE WEEK

Week 5: vs Georgia L (3-1)

Week 6: at Vanderbilt W (4-1)

Week 7: vs South Carolina W (5-1)

Week 8: at Tennessee L (5-2)

Week 9: vs Missouri W (6-2)

Week 10: BYE WEEK

Week 11: at LSU W (7-2)

Week 12: vs Mercer W (8-2)

Week 13: at Oklahoma L (8-3)

Week 14: vs Auburn W (9-3)

FINAL RECORD PROJECTION: 9-3 (BOWL ELIGIBLE)

_____________________________________________________________________________________

Arkansas:

Week 1: vs Arkansas-Pine Bluff W (1-0)

Week 2: at Oklahoma State L (1-1)

Week 3: vs UAB W (2-1)

Week 4: at Auburn L (2-2)

Week 5: at Texas A&M L (2-3)

Week 6: vs Tennessee L (2-4)

Week 7: BYE WEEK

Week 8: vs LSU L (2-5)

Week 9: at Mississippi State W (3-5)

Week 10: vs Ole Miss W (3-6)

Week 11: BYE WEEK

Week 12: vs Texas L (3-7)

Week 13: vs LA Tech W (4-7)

Week 14: at Missouri L (4-8)

FINAL RECORD PROJECTION: 4-8 (NOT BOWL ELIGIBLE)

____________________________________________________________________________________

Auburn: 

Week 1: vs Alabama A&M W (1-0)

Week 2: vs California W (2-0)

Week 3: vs New Mexico W (3-0)

Week 4: vs Arkansas W (4-0)

Week 5: vs Oklahoma L (4-1)

Week 6: at Georgia L (4-2)

Week 7: BYE WEEK

Week 8: at Missouri L (4-3)

Week 9: at Kentucky W (5-3)

Week 10: vs Vanderbilt W (6-3)

Week 11: BYE WEEK

Week 12: vs ULM W (7-3)

Week 13: vs Texas A&M W (8-3)

Week 14: at Alabama L (8-4)

FINAL RECORD PROJECTION: 8-4 (BOWL ELIGIBLE)

_____________________________________________________________________________________

Florida: 

Week 1: vs Miami (FL) W (1-0)

Week 2: vs Samford W (2-0)

Week 3: vs Texas A&M W (3-0)

Week 4: at Mississippi State W (4-0)

Week 5: BYE WEEK

Week 6: vs UCF W (5-0)

Week 7: at Tennessee L (5-1)

Week 8: vs Kentucky W (6-1)

Week 9: BYE WEEK

Week 10: at Georgia L (6-2)

Week 11: at Texas L (6-3)

Week 12: vs LSU L (6-4)

Week 13: vs Ole Miss W (7-4)

Week 14: at Florida State L (7-5)

FINAL RECORD PROJECTION: 7-5 (BOWL ELIGIBLE)

_____________________________________________________________________________________ 

Georgia:

Week 1: vs Clemson W (1-0)

Week 2: vs Tennessee Tech W (2-0)

Week 3: at Kentucky W (3-0)

Week 4: BYE WEEK

Week 5: at Alabama W (4-0)

Week 6: vs Auburn W (5-0)

Week 7: vs Mississippi State W (6-0)

Week 8: at Texas W (7-0)

Week 9: BYE WEEK

Week 10: vs Florida W (8-0)

Week 11: at Ole Miss W (9-0)

Week 12: vs Tennessee W (10-0)

Week 13: vs UMass W (11-0)

Week 14: vs Georgia Tech W (12-0)

FINAL RECORD PROJECTION: 12-0 (BOWL ELIGIBLE) (College Football Playoff)

_____________________________________________________________________________________

Kentucky: 

Week 1: vs Southern Miss W (1-0)

Week 2: vs South Carolina W (2-0)

Week 3: vs Georgia L (2-1)

Week 4: vs Ohio W (3-1)

Week 5: at Ole Miss L (3-2)

Week 6: BYE WEEK

Week 7: vs Vanderbilt W (4-2)

Week 8: at Florida L (4-3)

Week 9: vs Auburn L (4-4)

Week 10: at Tennessee L (4-5)

Week 11: BYE WEEK 

Week 12: vs Murray State W (5-5)

Week 13: at Texas L (5-6)

Week 14: vs Louisville L (5-7)

FINAL RECORD PROJECTION: 5-7 (NOT BOWL ELIGIBLE)

_____________________________________________________________________________________ 

LSU: 

Week 1: vs USC W (1-0)

Week 2: vs Nicholls St. W (2-0)

Week 3: at South Carolina W (3-0)

Week 4: vs UCLA W (4-0)

Week 5: vs South Alabama W (5-0)

Week 6: BYE WEEK

Week 7: vs Ole Miss W (6-0)

Week 8: at Arkansas W (7-0)

Week 9: at Texas A&M L (7-1)

Week 10: BYE WEEK

Week 11: vs Alabama L (7-2)

Week 12: at Florida W (8-2)

Week 13: vs Vanderbilt W (9-2)

Week 14: vs Oklahoma W (10-2)

FINAL RECORD PROJECTION: 10-2 (BOWL ELIGIBLE) (College Football Playoff)

_____________________________________________________________________________________

Mississippi State: 

Week 1: vs EKU W (1-0)

Week 2: at Arizona State W (2-0)

Week 3: vs Toledo W (3-0)

Week 4: vs Florida L (3-1)

Week 5: at Texas L (3-2)

Week 6: BYE WEEK 

Week 7: at Georgia L (3-3)

Week 8: vs Texas A&M L (3-4)

Week 9: vs Arkansas L (3-5)

Week 10: vs UMass W (4-5)

Week 11: at Tennessee L (4-6)

Week 12: BYE WEEK 

Week 13: vs Missouri L (4-7)

Week 14: at Ole Miss L (4-8)

FINAL RECORD PROJECTION: 4-8 (NOT BOWL ELIGIBLE)

_____________________________________________________________________________________

Missouri: 

Week 1: vs Murray State W (1-0)

Week 2: vs Buffalo W (2-0)

Week 3: vs Boston College W (3-0)

Week 4: vs Vanderbilt W (4-0)

Week 5: BYE WEEK 

Week 6: at Texas A&M L (4-1)

Week 7: at UMass W (5-1)

Week 8: vs Auburn W (6-1)

Week 9: at Alabama L (6-2)

Week 10: BYE WEEK 

Week 11: vs Oklahoma W (7-2)

Week 12: at South Carolina W (8-2)

Week 13: at Mississippi State W (9-2)

Week 14: vs Arkansas W (10-2)

FINAL RECORD PROJECTION: 10-2 (BOWL ELIGIBLE) 

_____________________________________________________________________________________

Oklahoma:

Week 1: vs Temple W (1-0)

Week 2: vs Houston W (2-0)

Week 3: vs Tulane W (3-0)

Week 4: vs Tennessee W (4-0)

Week 5: at Auburn W (5-0)

Week 6: BYE WEEK

Week 7: at Texas L (5-1)

Week 8: vs South Carolina W (6-1)

Week 9: at Ole Miss L (6-2)

Week 10: vs Maine W (7-2)

Week 11: at Missouri L (7-3)

Week 12: BYE WEEK

Week 13: vs Alabama W (8-3)

Week 14: at LSU L (8-4)

FINAL RECORD PROJECTION: 8-4 (BOWL ELIGIBLE)

_____________________________________________________________________________________

Ole Miss: 

Week 1: vs Furman W (1-0)

Week 2: vs Middle Tennessee W (2-0)

Week 3: at Wake Forest W (3-0)

Week 4: vs Georgia Southern W (4-0)

Week 5: vs Kentucky W (5-0)

Week 6: at South Carolina W (6-0)

Week 7: at LSU L (6-1)

Week 8: BYE WEEK

Week 9: vs Oklahoma W (7-1)

Week 10: at Arkansas W (8-1)

Week 11: vs Georgia L (8-2)

Week 12: BYE WEEK

Week 13: at Florida L (8-3)

Week 14: vs Mississippi State W (9-3)

FINAL RECORD PROJECTION: 9-3 (BOWL ELIGIBLE)

_____________________________________________________________________________________

South Carolina:

Week 1: vs Old Dominion W (1-0)

Week 2: at Kentucky L (1-1)

Week 3: vs LSU L (1-2)

Week 4: vs Akron W (2-2)

Week 5: BYE WEEK

Week 6: vs Ole Miss L (2-3)

Week 7: at Alabama L (2-4)

Week 8: at Oklahoma L (2-5)

Week 9: BYE WEEK 

Week 10: vs Texas A&M L (2-6)

Week 11: at Vanderbilt W (3-6)

Week 12: vs Missouri L (3-7)

Week 13: vs Wofford W (4-7)

Week 14: at Clemson L (4-8)

FINAL RECORD PROJECTION: 4-8 (NOT BOWL ELIGIBLE)

____________________________________________________________________________________

Tennessee:

Week 1: vs Chattanooga W (1-0)

Week 2: vs NC State W (2-0)

Week 3: vs Kent State W (3-0)

Week 4: at Oklahoma L (3-1)

Week 5: BYE WEEK 

Week 6: at Arkansas W (4-1)

Week 7: vs Florida W (5-1)

Week 8: vs Alabama W (6-1)

Week 9: BYE WEEK

Week 10: vs Kentucky W (7-1)

Week 11: vs Mississippi State W (8-1)

Week 12: at Georgia L (8-2)

Week 13: vs Texas at El Paso W (9-2)

Week 14: at Vanderbilt W (10-2)

FINAL RECORD PROJECTION: 10-2 (BOWL ELIGIBLE) (College Football Playoff)

____________________________________________________________________________________

Texas A&M:

Week 1: vs Notre Dame L (0-1)

Week 2: vs McNeese W (1-1)

Week 3: at Florida L (1-2)

Week 4: vs Bowling Green W (2-2)

Week 5: vs Arkansas W (3-2)

Week 6: vs Missouri W (4-2)

Week 7: BYE WEEK

Week 8: at Mississippi State W (5-2)

Week 9: vs LSU W (6-2)

Week 10: at South Carolina W (7-2)

Week 11: BYE WEEK

Week 12: vs New Mexico St. W (8-2)

Week 13: at Auburn L (8-3)

Week 14: vs Texas L (8-4)

FINAL RECORD PROJECTION: 8-4 (BOWL ELIGIBLE)

____________________________________________________________________________________

Texas:

Week 1: vs Colorado State W (1-0)

Week 2: at Michigan W (2-0)

Week 3: vs UTSA W (3-0)

Week 4: vs ULM W (4-0)

Week 5: vs Mississippi State W (5-0)

Week 6: BYE WEEK 

Week 7: vs Oklahoma W (6-0)

Week 8: vs Georgia L (6-1)

Week 9: at Vanderbilt W (7-1)

Week 10: BYE WEEK

Week 11: vs Florida W (8-1)

Week 12: at Arkansas W (9-1)

Week 13: vs Kentucky W (10-1)

Week 14: at Texas A&M W (11-1)

FINAL RECORD PROJECTION: 11-1 (BOWL ELIGIBLE) (College Football Playoff)

_____________________________________________________________________________________

Vanderbilt: 

Week 1: vs Virginia Tech L (0-1)

Week 2: vs Alcorn State W (1-1)

Week 3: at Georgia State W (2-1)

Week 4: at Missouri L (2-2)

Week 5: BYE WEEK

Week 6: vs Alabama L (2-3)

Week 7: at Kentucky L (2-4)

Week 8: vs Ball State W (3-4)

Week 9: vs Texas L (3-5)

Week 10: at Auburn L (3-6)

Week 11: vs South Carolina L (3-7)

Week 12: BYE WEEK

Week 13: at LSU L (3-8)

Week 14: vs Tennessee L (3-9)

FINAL RECORD PROJECTION: 3-9 (NOT BOWL ELIGIBLE)

_____________________________________________________________________________________

11 Bowl Eligible Teams

5 Non Bowl Eligible Teams

SEC Championship: Georgia vs Texas (Georgia WINS)

CFP Teams: Georgia, Texas, Tennessee, LSU

BOLD TAKE: Alabama does NOT make the CFP

Final Standings: 

1. Georgia

2. Texas

3. LSU

4. Tennessee

5. Missouri

6. Alabama

7. Ole Miss

8. Texas A&M

9. Oklahoma

10. Auburn

11. Florida

12. Kentucky

13. Arkansas

14. South Carolina

15. Mississippi State

16. Vanderbilt

2024 Big Ten Football Predictions

 

Illinois:

Week 1: vs Eastern Illinois W (1-0)

Week 2: vs Kansas L (1-1)

Week 3: vs Central Michigan W (2-1)

Week 4: at Nebraska L (2-2)

Week 5: BYE WEEK

Week 6: at Penn State L (2-3)

Week 7: vs Purdue W (3-3)

Week 8: vs Michigan L (3-4)

Week 9: at Oregon L (3-5)

Week 10: vs Minnesota W (4-5)

Week 11: BYE WEEK

Week 12: vs Michigan State W (5-5)

Week 13: at Rutgers L (5-6)

Week 14: at Northwestern W (6-6)

FINAL RECORD PROJECTION: 6-6 (BOWL ELIGIBLE) 

Why FSU Should NOT Qualify for the CFP

 

In the final year of the four team college football playoff, the committee will have a very tough time determining the final four teams to advance. One of those teams in the mix is the Florida State Seminoles and I'm here to tell you why they should NOT qualify. 

Florida State has had a great season headlined by a lot of big name players such as Jordan Travis, Keon Coleman, and Jared Verse. But recently, their star quarterback, Jordan Travis, suffered a season-ending injury and the Seminoles will now have to rely on the rest of their quarterback room to do the job. 

As we all know, from high school to college to the NFL, teams do not operate as well without their starting quarterback and FSU is a prime example. They escaped Gainesville last weekend with a narrow victory over the Gators and if it wasn't for some brutal penalties on the Gators, we would be having a much different conversation right now. 

In years past, we've seen the committee put in some really out matched #4 seeds into the college football playoff just for them to be dismantled by the #1 seed. Two examples of that is when LSU took down Oklahoma with Joe Burrow, and also Alabama taking down Notre Dame a couple of years ago as well. No one wants to see a blowout in one of the biggest games of the year and with FSU's quarterback situation, they are very vulnerable. 

Another thing is their strength of schedule. Out of the Power 5 conferences, the ACC is arguably the weakest and FSU has been able to walk all over it this season. The only ranked teams they took on all season was Duke, who finished 7-5, and LSU (not even in the ACC). Putting Florida State up against a team like Georgia or Michigan, even Washington, in the college football playoff is not a good idea. 

It's even worse of an idea when there are teams surrounding them that deserve to be in the playoff even more. These teams include Texas, Alabama, and even Ohio State. These three teams all have better strength of schedules, but they all have 1 loss which is staring the committee right in the face. 

I believe Florida State had a great year and that they have a lot of talent on this team, just this team does not operate as well without Jordan Travis. The unfortunate injury of Travis is what is taking this team out of playoff contention. Viewers want to see competitive games and with FSU down to their backup quarterbacks, this is not guaranteed. Even if FSU does beat Louisville, I believe that other schools have better resumes than them and are more deserving. 

My Top 3 Heisman Candidates

 

As we approach the end of the college football season and inch closer to bowl season, that means its time to address who is going to win the most prestigious award, the Heisman Trophy. My top three candidates as of now are Jayden Daniels, Michael Penix, and Bo Nix. In a race, where just a couple of months ago I thought would be dominated by Caleb Williams, has totally turned upside down. 

1. Jayden Daniels

It's hard to argue against the LSU quarterback who just put up over 600 total scrimmage yards by himself against the Florida Gators. Those stats are unheard of and it makes it even more impressive that it was put up against an legitimate and competitive Division I school. Daniels has shown that he is the best dual-threat quarterback in the sport approaching 1,000 rushing yards on the season with over 3,000 passing yards to add onto that. The only flaw to Daniels' case to win the trophy is the loss column for the LSU Tigers sitting at three. Aside from the three losses, Daniels is putting up historic numbers and has my vote for the Heisman as of now. 

Remaining schedule:

vs Georgia State, vs Texas A&M (Easiest remaining schedule)

2. Michael Penix Jr.

From starting off at Indiana, after going through so many brutal injuries, and transferring to Washington, it is great to see how far Penix has come throughout his college career. He is having the dream season finally in his senior season and currently at the helm of the number 5 team in the country. Adding to how impressive Penix has been, Washington is currently playing in the toughest conference in the sport. The PAC-12 has been no joke in its final year of existence and Penix has embraced this with unbelievable numbers. The one thing that gives the upper edge to Daniels in this race though is that Penix is a solely one dimensional quarterback, not being able to do anything with his legs. Penix is currently my number two in the Heisman race. 

Remaining schedule:

@ #11 Oregon State, vs Washington State (Hardest remaining schedule)

3. Bo Nix

Along with the rest of these quarterbacks, Nix himself is also a transfer and having the best season of his career up in Eugene. Nix along with Penix plays in the PAC-12, but in their one and only meeting, Penix came out with the victory giving him the edge in this Heisman race. Nix also has his team in a top ten spot in the country along with his impressive passing numbers. Similar to Penix, he is also a one-dimensional quarterback, once again giving the edge to Daniels. Nix has certainly been impressive, but at the end of the day I believe Penix and Daniels both have an advantage over him, placing him at third in my Heisman rankings as of now. 

Remaining schedule: 

@ Arizona State, vs #11 Oregon State (2nd hardest remaining schedule)