SEC

Tolly’s Top 25 – Post Week 8

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My ballot for the AP Top 25 – If they let me have one

I have some short explanations for my picks in groups of 5 from 1 to 25. Then, at the bottom, I have the top 40 all in one list with the AP rankings in parentheses. As usual, I have plenty of disagreements with the AP. There is an entire conference I think they are overvaluing. 

First order of business, a shoutout:

Last Saturday WOF was at the Wisconsin @ Illinois game. Claire and Mark were in the stands near us in the Wisco away section, and were an absolute blast to watch the game with. Fans could take notes on “how to be a fan” from them. Thanks again, Claire and Mark, for hanging out during the game. 

Top 5

1 – Ohio State
2 – Michigan
3 – Washington
4 – Florida State
5 – Georgia

THE Ohio State is #1. I hate it, but it is what it is. No team has a better pair of wins than At Notre Dame and Vs. Penn State. OSU doesn’t really have any struggle games outside of their big matchups either. So based on overall resume, …

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What to Watch by Conference – Week 8 Preview

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The 1st B1G game, The 3rd Saturday in Oct., and what’s good in the other Conferences.

Week 8 of College football is here. We are well past the halfway point and getting into the meat of conference schedules. With conference play dominating the schedule in week 8, I decided that is how I would break down this week’s games – by conference. 

As far as my picks for the week go, I have them down at the bottom like normal. I finally had a positive week after struggling the last in the last 2. For some reason, I’m leaning heavily towards road teams this week. That won’t come back to bite me, right? 

What to Watch – By Conference

This week we are doing a conference by conference look at what fans should/will be watching. Most fans follow the conference their team plays in and also catch the biggest games. 

Big Ten

You are a B1G fan. This is your conference. And unfortunately, you only have access to 1 television. You could channel flip, but let’s say you don’t. What 3 games will you watch parked in front of your TV for 10 hours on Saturday?

Early:
7 Penn State …

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Tolly’s Top 25 – Post Week 7

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My ballot for the AP Top 25 – If they let me have one

I have some short explanations for my picks in groups of 5 from 1 to 25. Then, at the bottom, I have the top 25 all in one list with the AP rankings in parentheses. I’m closer to the AP than I expected, but there are still a couple of major disagreements between our lists. 

Top 5

1 – Michigan
2 – Washington
T-3 – Penn State
T-3 – Ohio State
5 – Georgia

Michigan is the only team that has blown out every single opponent they’ve played. Their schedule is hot garbage, but they’ve done what good teams do to bad schedules: dominate.

Washington has the new “best win in the country” designation. And outside of a pesky Arizona game, they’ve been as dominant as Michigan against their schedule.

Penn State looks like the better team to me, but Ohio State has the better resume (the Notre Dame win on the road). I couldn’t decide, and they play this week. I’ll sort it out then.

Georgia has looked good exactly once: the destruction of Kentucky. Every other game they’ve started slow, had running game issues, …

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Time for the B1G… I Mean Pac-12, to Shine. – Week 7 Preview

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Offense #1 vs Offense #2, USC’s first real test, and A West Championship Game.

It’s the Pac-12’s week to dominate the CFB landscape. The top 2 teams in the conference have a record setting showdown in the PNW. USC gets to show the country if they can win against good teams despite choosing not to play defense. It appears that this week we went heavy on the good primetime games. Noon is lacking, but after 6 pm there are so many good games I don’t have time to cover all of them. 

But let’s address the title for a moment. Washington, Oregon, USC, and Notre Dame are the headliners this week. That effectively makes this a Big 10 week. The Pac-12 schools are joining the conference next year, and Notre Dame will come along eventually. It might be 2 years, 20 years, or 200, but ND will be in the B1G one day. It just feels inevitable. 

At the bottom, I have my picks for the week.  I was dreadful last week going 1-10 ATS. As bad as that was, I’m now .500 on the season. This week’s pick will determine if I’m on the winning or losing side for …

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2 Loss Saban or 2 Loss Fisher, Who Needs the Win More? – Week 6 Preview

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The Red River Shootout, B1G Noon, and SEC Ranked vs. Ranked action. Why must all good things be at 11 AM?

It’s an SEC heavy week, so don’t make any Saturday plans with your buddies down south – unless of course football is involved. Not only are there 3 big SEC matchups this week, but future SEC members have the best game of the week. 11 AM (CT) is the best TV window this week, and I’ll explain why shortly. Who loses the CBS SEC 2:30 spotlight game will have season long ramifications. And, I look at the P5 conference races for those who want to renege on their preseason predictions. I know I have some picks I want back.

At the bottom, I have my picks for the week. I’m on a lot of road teams this week; I’m not sure how that happened. Last week was rough, but I didn’t do too bad for how many bad breaks I got. I was 4-4 ATS. Hopefully, this week goes a bit better. 

What is Interesting this Week? 

I’ll be attending the Wisconsin Homecoming game vs. Rutgers on Saturday morning (So I’m missing the good morning games). After that, the …

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We Will Watch Deion, Win or Lose – Week 5 Preview

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The basketball schools dominate my CFB viewing plans. There are some upset possibilities this week. Even when Deion loses he’s still winning. 

Going into the season, I wrote about the games I thought would be the best in week 5. I was on the right path but missed the mark a little. I just couldn’t see the Deion effect being this all-encompassing. This is a shorter preview that mostly just covers the games I want to watch. Week 5 isn’t as good as week 4, but it’s possible no week will stand side by side with week 4 in quality until rivalry week. 

At the bottom, I have my picks for the week. Last week we absolutely killed it, going 7-1-1 ATS. Let’s see if I can keep the hot streak rolling.  

What I’ll be Watching this Week 

There is no Badger game this weekend, and I have no major plans. Guess I’ll just be lying around watching football all day. 

  • Odds listed refer to spreads taken from FanDuel at the time of writing

11:00 AM CST:
Deion overshadows some good games

There are some solid morning games this week. But let’s be honest. If you have football on, …

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Saturday, Saban, and Sanders, Everything You Want and More – Week 4 Preview

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What is it about a little number next to a team name that makes us want to watch them more?

Texas at Alabama was the most anticipated game of the year – that can’t be disputed. But, week 4 is definitely the best full weekend of the year so far. And it’s not close. I wouldn’t be surprised if this ends up being the best week of the whole season (rivalry week is still pretty great). Going into the season, I wrote about the games I thought would be the best in week 4. Check it out if you want to see what the storylines going into the season were. 

There is a packed Saturday full of great games. Let’s start with the ones everyone wants to hear about.  

Ranked vs. Ranked 

Ranked on ranked violence, that’s what the fans want. People need to be told who matters and who doesn’t. It makes life easier for them. Are there other games that matter? Sure. But that’s not why we’re here. We’re here for two reasons:

  1. Ranked vs. ranked games are usually darn good games.
  1. A ranked team loses no matter what, and we love watching the big brands go
…

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Tolly’s Top 25 – Post Week 3

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My ballot for the AP Top 25 – If they let me have one

I have some short explanations for my picks in groups of 5 from 1 to 25. Then, at the bottom, I have a list of 1-40. I went 40 deep to show what my personal “others receiving votes” section would look like. 

We got some upsets in week 3, so there was plenty of movement. And realize that teams can move based on wins they got earlier in the year – wins over Florida look better now, right?

We’re mixing things up with the top 25 this week. I think we know most of the teams at the top, so I decided to go top-down this week. I also have quite a bit to say at the bottom due to a certain team falling more than I ever thought they could. I guess it’s true: the bigger they are, the harder they fall. 

Top 5

1 – Florida State
2 – Georgia
3 – Texas
4 – Penn State
5 – Washington

I feel like I need to explain myself here. LSU is good, really really good. So I HAVE TO have Florida State #1. That …

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Will Upsets Strike on a Quiet Week? – Week 3 Preview

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Week 2 delivered some chart topping hits. Week 3 is more so the deep cuts. 

A lot of casuals will watch their team play this weekend, or nothing at all. There is no Texas – Bama, FSU – LSU, or Colorado – any decent team to get first billing this week. Many fans are looking ahead to the absolute monster that is week 4. There are a lot of good games in week 4, but we’ll get there when we get there. I had some games I thought would be the best in week 3 before the season started. But I’ll leave it up to you if I was on the mark or not. There are some things to talk about in week 3, they are just deeper cuts for a more diehard fan. For me the week mostly revolves around renewed rivalries and possible upsets. Let’s get into it. 

Upset Watch 

With the games being a little lackluster this weekend, let’s flip the script on our format. I will be watching the Wisconsin – Georgia Southern game. Outside of that, I’ll check scores on my phone during the day to see if any upsets are brewing. When things start …

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Doubt Saban at Your Own Peril – CFB Week 2 Recap

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Pac-12 Supremacy, SEC slump, B1G check-in, and Tolly’s Top 25.

Who is the best conference? A common, fun debate among college football fans that has consistently ended with the SEC on top for the last 15 years. Sometimes the B1G has an argument, but they have generally played second fiddle to the teams down south. 2023 is being weird though. The Pac-12 is on an absolute tear, and the SEC’s elite can’t get out of their own way. Minus Clemson, the ACC has a solid argument for 2nd place. Yes, Georgia is still Georgia, but after that – college football has gone a bit off the rails. 

The Pac-12 is the Best Conference – For Now

The top 8 in the Pac-12:

Washington – 2-0
They absolutely destroyed Boise State. The Huskies might have the best defense in the Pac.

Oregon – 2-0
The Ducks scored 81 in week 1 and beat a Big 12 contender on the road in week 2.

USC – 3-0
The offense looks unstoppable. They have 2 special teams TDs in 3 games.

Utah – 2-0
They have two P5 wins with their 3rd string QB.

Colorado – 2-0 
Deion has two P5 wins including …

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