College Football Week 14 Awards November 30, 2014

(Note: All rankings are current AP [week 14] unless otherwise noted.)

COACHES
Wish I were him: Rich Rodriquez, Arizona

Glad I’m not him: Steve Spurrier, South Carolina
Lucky guy: Paul Johnson, Georgia Tech

Poor guy: Mark Richt, Georgia
Desperately seeking a wake-up call: Bobby Petrino, Louisville

Desperately seeking a P.R. man: Dave Doeren, N.C. State

Desperately seeking sunglasses and a fake beard: Jim Mora, UCLA
Desperately seeking … anything: Brian Kelly, Notre Dame

TEAMS
Thought you’d kick butt, you did: Kansas State (defeated Kansas 51–13)
Thought you’d kick butt, you didn’t: Utah (defeated Colorado 38–34)

Thought you’d get your butt kicked, you did: Notre Dame (lost to USC 49–14)

Thought you’d get your butt kicked, you didn’t: Kentucky (lost to Louisville 44–40)

Thought you wouldn’t kick butt, you did: N.C. State (defeated North Carolina 35–7)

Dang, they’re good: Alabama
Dang, they’re bad: South Florida

You know, they’re not so bad: Georgia Tech
Can’t Stand Prosperity: Mississippi State

Did the season start? South Carolina

Can the season end? Notre Dame
Can the season never end? Arizona

GAMES
Play this again:  No. 11 Arizona 42, No. 13 Arizona State 35

Play this again, too: No. 22 Louisville 44, Kentucky 40
Never play this again: Louisiana Tech 76, Rice 31

What? Western Kentucky 67, No. 24 Marshall 66,OT

Huh? No. 16 Georgia Tech 30, No. 9 Georgia 24
Are you kidding me? Stanford 31, No. 9 UCLA 10

Oh – my – God: No. 19 Ole Miss 31, No. 4 Mississippi State 17

NEXT WEEK

(rankings are current AP (post-week 14, pre-week 15)
Ticket to die for: No. 1 Alabama vs. No. 17 Missouri

Best non-Power Five vs. Power Five matchup: None

Best non-Power Five matchup: UCF @ East Carolina

Upset alert: No. 12 Kansas State @ No. 7 Baylor

Must win: No. 14 Wisconsin vs. No. 6 Ohio State

Offensive explosion: No. 11 Arizona vs. No. 2 Oregon

Defensive struggle: Temple @ Tulane

Great game no one is talking about: Oklahoma State @ No. 20 Oklahoma

Intriguing coaching matchup: Bill Snyder of Kansas State vs. Art Briles of Baylor

Who’s bringing the body bags? Iowa State @ No. 5 TCU

Why are they playing? Fresno State @ No. 23 Boise State

Plenty of good seats remaining: SMU @ UConn

They shoot horses, don’t they?  Houston @ Cincinnati

Week 14 Random Thoughts:

As Colin Cowherd so wisely predicted, the landscape of college football has been seriously altered after this, the rivalry week. Start with Ohio State losing their second quarterback to injury. Already on the outside looking in to the playoff picture, at No. 6 and with a third–string QB, it is unlikely they will have the credibility to be let into the top four of the playoff, even if they beat a coming–on–strong Wisconsin.

South Carolina was already a team that we know what they were this month: a team that blows 4th-quarter leads (notwithstanding beating Florida at game’s end a couple of weeks ago). Such a tendency has already ruined their season. Such ruination was given an exclamation point when they laid down and died to in–state rival Clemson. “I the guys, 6–6 might be what we are,” he sighed in the post–game press conference. Let us hope this is not the last we have seen of the Ol’ Ball Coach, and that he has an opportunity to go out on a high note (along with a better record) next season.

Of course, nothing has altered the current college football picture like Mississippi State losing ignominiously to their arch–rival Ole Miss. All they had to do was beat the Rebels –– a tall order, to be sure –– and they would likely have secured a coveted spot into the top four playoff picture. Not anymore, in all likelihood, and more the pity.

Meanwhile, chippy UCLA had a golden opportunity –– wink –– to play for the Pac–12 title as the south division representative against Oregon. All that was before they dropped the ball to an apparently resurgent Stanford, thus giving the south division championship berth to Arizona instead. Hello, offensive explosion!

My prognostication for the final four playoffs? Alabama, Oregon, Florida State, and TCU –– if these shadows remain unchanged, which, at this rate, they will not.