After a crazy week 11, one that saw LSU take down the mighty Alabama Crimson Tide and Minnesota upset Penn State, people around the college football scene are still buzzing. Get ready, though, because week 12 comes with a whole new slate of interesting matchups.
Let’s take a look at some of those matchups and other news from around the country:
No. 10 Oklahoma Sooners at No. 13 Baylor Bears
Saturday night will feature a Big 12 matchup of the top two teams as No. 10-ranked Oklahoma (8-1) travels to take on No. 13-ranked Baylor (9-0). Oklahoma looks to roll behind quarterback Jalen Hurts, who has thrown for 2,724 yards, 24 touchdowns and just four interceptions this season. He has also rushed for a remarkable 869 yards and 15 additional touchdowns.
Baylor is led by quarterback Charlie Brewer, who has thrown for 2,338 yards, 16 touchdowns and four interceptions. His leading receiver has been Denzel Mims, who has 44 catches for 675 yards and eight touchdowns.
No. 8 Minnesota Golden Gophers at No. 20 Iowa Hawkeyes
After upsetting then-No. 4 Penn State last week, the undefeated and No. 8-ranked Minnesota Golden Gophers (9-0) look to take down their Big Ten West rival, the No. 20-ranked Iowa Hawkeyes (6-3). Minnesota quarterback Tanner Morgan leads the way, as he has thrown for 2,100 yards, 21 touchdowns and just four interceptions. On the ground, Rodney Smith has led the Golden Gophers with 940 yards rushing and seven touchdowns.
For Iowa, Nate Stanley leads the way under center, having thrown for 2,158 yards, 12 touchdowns and five interceptions. Mekhi Sargent currently leads the Iowa running backs with 464 yards rushing and four touchdowns.
No. 4 Georgia Bulldogs at No. 12 Auburn Tigers
Saturday features a showdown of SEC East vs. SEC West as the No. 4 Georgia Bulldogs (8-1) take on the No. 12 Auburn Tigers (7-2). Georgia was one of the beneficiaries of Alabama’s loss as it is now in the top four of the latest College Football Playoff rankings. A big win over Auburn could help solidify that standing.
The Bulldogs will look to quarterback Jake Fromm to lead them, as Fromm has thrown for 1,858 yards, 13 touchdowns and three interceptions. On the ground, Georgia is led by D’Andre Swift, who has 921 rushing yards and seven touchdowns.
Auburn looks to true freshman Bo Nix to upset Georgia, as Nix has thrown for 1,798 yards, 12 touchdowns and six interceptions. His leading receiver is Seth Williams, who has 35 catches for 569 yards and eight touchdowns.
Change At The Top
Many expected that the winner of the LSU-Alabama game would move to the first overall spot in the College Football Playoff rankings, and that is exactly what happened. After LSU hung on to win 46-41, it now finds itself s atop the College Football Playoff rankings. Alabama dropped to No. 5 behind Ohio State, Clemson and Georgia.
One of the biggest jumpers after last week was the Minnesota Golden Gophers. After beating Penn State 31-26, Minnesota moved from No. 17 up to No. 8. The undefeated Golden Gophers will try to keep moving up if they can take care of another ranked team in Iowa.
Young To Sit One More Week
Those that argue that college athletes should be able to get some money without retribution could use Ohio State’s Chase Young as a poster child. Last year, Young borrowed some money, which he has since paid back, to fly his girlfriend out to the Rose Bowl. For the NCAA, they apparently deem that to be a violation of their rules, and it has caused all sorts of turmoil for the defensive end.
To get ahead of it, Ohio State sat him out last week against Maryland, which they still beat handily. It appears that the NCAA wants him to sit out one more week, as he won’t play against Rutgers (another team that Ohio State should have no problem with sans Young).
The good news for Ohio State fans, though, is that it means he will be available to play against both Penn State and Michigan, two teams that can determine the Buckeyes’ fate in both the conference and the College Football Playoff system.
Despite missing last week, Young’s numbers are still gaudy. In eight games, he has 29 tackles, 15.5 for loss and 13.5 sacks. He has been remarkable this year on Saturdays for Ohio State and will likely continue his success on Sundays in the near future.
Oklahoma Loses A Pair
While Oklahoma currently sits 10th in the nation, it did lose a couple of contributors in its last game. Running back Trey Sermon is out for the rest of the season after he hurt his left knee in last weekend’s game during the second quarter. Thus far, he has rushed for 385 yards and four touchdowns. While those may not be significant numbers, it will likely put more pressure on fellow running back Kennedy Brooks and quarterback Jalen Hurts.
The other injury came to defensive lineman Kenneth Mann. While his injury has not been disclosed as of yet, it also appears that he is out for the season. Last season Mann had 55 tackles, but this season has been a bit more pedestrian for him as he has just five tackles and missed games earlier in the season as well.
