College football takeaways: Who gets last College Football Playofff spot? Who wins Heisman?

Championship Weekend lived up to the hype and it left us with plenty of College Football Playoff drama and Heisman Trophy intrigue.

Pac-12 Championship Game: Oregon repeats in peak Pac-12 predicament

Okay, so you already know the 2020 college football season is a weird one, right? Well, how about crowing your conference champion not even winning their division or even being the highest-ranked team? That’s what happened in the Pac-12 where Oregon beat USC to win their second-straight conference championship on Friday night.

The Ducks came off the sidelines to replace Washington who won the Pac-12 North but was unable to play because of COVID leaving the roster decimated and without any offensive lineman able to play. USC has been the comeback kids all season but quarterback Kedon Slovis and the Trojans didn’t have another last-minute rally in them this time.

Slovis threw three interceptions, the second year in a row the sophomore threw three picks against Oregon, and fellow sophomore Kayvon Thibodeaux wreaked havoc on the Trojans offensive line all night. He practically lived in the backfield and USC offensive linemen will have nightmares about the potential No. 1 pick in the 2022 NFL Draft all offseason.

Big Ten Championship Game: Ohio State survives upset bid from Northwestern

The Big Ten changed their rules to get Ohio State in their championship game and for three quarters it looked like the Buckeyes weren’t going to hold up their end of the bargain. Northwestern had Ohio State flummoxed, limiting the Buckeyes to six points in the first half and a four-point deficit at halftime.

Ohio State was down 22 players due to COVID, including leading receiver Chris Olave and second-leading tackler, Barrett Browning, and Justin Fields clearly missed his favorite target. Fields threw a pair of ugly interceptions and held on to the ball for a long time when he dropped back to pass, which will be a red flag for NFL scouts. Fields also battled a wrist/thumb injury that affected him, but shouldn’t keep him limited in the playoff.

Ohio State relied on running back and Oklahoma transfer Trey Sermon who ran for a Buckeye single-game and Big Ten Championship Game record 331 yards and a pair of touchdowns to escape with the 22-10 win. The win likely secures the playoff bid for the Buckeyes.

Big 12 Championship Game: Lincoln Riley is a perfect 6-for-6

Oklahoma got revenge on Iowa State after the Cyclones got them early in the regular-season. The Sooners jumped on them early, building a 24-7 lead but credit Matt Campbell’s team for not giving up and making it a game until the closing minutes. It wasn’t enough, however, as Lincoln Riley’s team won their sixth-straight Big 12 championship. Riley has never not won the Big 12 title since joining Bob Stoops staff and later succeeding him as head coach. Riley had the perfect gif reaction after the game, summoning Michael Jordan after he won his sixth championship. Riley is still in pursuit of his first national championship and while it won’t come this year, you have to think he gets it one of the next few years.

ACC Championship Game: Clemson gets revenge on Notre Dame

Notre Dame needed double-overtime to beat Clemson without Trevor Lawrence in their own place. With Lawrence, Clemson exposed the Fighting Irish and could have put their playoff hopes on life support. Notre Dame took a 3-0 lead on the first drive and appeared to have a chance at making it 10-0 but had to settle for a 24-yard field goal that was shanked. That was the chance for Notre Dame and they let it get away. From there, Clemson put on a blitzkrieg and it was 31-3 and Notre Dame saw their playoff life flash before their eyes.

It finished at 34-10 with Lawrence throwing for 322 yards and two touchdowns with another 90 yards and a score on the ground. He had an uphill battle in the Heisman conversation after missing two games because of COVID and having another canceled because of COVID reasons, but he made his case why he should be the first Heisman winner from Clemson. The win secures Clemson’s spot as the No. 2 team and a likely game with Ohio State in a rematch of last year’s thrilling Fiesta Bowl won by the Tigers.

SEC Championship Game

That was arguably the game of the year. Mac Jones threw five touchdowns, three to Najee Harris and two to DeVonta Smith. One of those three players is winning the Heisman Trophy. Harris also added two rushing touchdowns to go with his 178 yards on 31 carries. Smith had 15 receptions for 184 yards and Jones threw for 418 yards on 33-of-43 passing with an interception in the 52-46 win. Florida’s Kyle Trask threw for 408 yards and three touchdowns but it wasn’t enough. All-American tight end Kyle Pitts continued his dominance with seven catches for 129 yards and a score and Kadarius Toney led the Gators in receiving with eight receptions for 153 yards and a touchdown. The two combined for 32 points in a back-and-forth fourth quarter after Florida made it a game with 14 unanswered third-quarter points to narrow the Tide lead. I wonder if any of the playoff games will be as good as the SEC Championship Game?

College Football Playoff rankings

There’s going to be a lot of upset Texas A&M football fans but the Aggies are not making the College Football Playoff. Alabama, Clemson, Ohio State and Notre Dame will occupy the four teams in the playoff with Alabama playing Notre Dame in the Sugar Bowl and Clemson playing Ohio State in the Rose Bowl, which will be played at AT&T Stadium. Texas A&M fans can moan and groan about Ohio State getting in with only six games and Notre Dame getting in after getting waxed by Clemson, but the reality is the strongest part of their resume is a blowout loss to Alabama. Sorry, but that’s not good enough.

Heisman watch: Will Alabama trio split votes and see Trevor Lawrence win?

DeVonta Smith may be the best player. Najee Harris was the best player in the SEC Championship Game. Mac Jones was the field general for the best team in the nation. Alabama could have three finalists but will they split the vote among themselves and see none of them actually win? We all know how hard it is for a wide receiver to win the Heisman. Only three have ever done it. While Alabama running backs Mark Ingram and Derrick Henry are the only backs to win since Reggie Bush in 2005, it’s a quarterback award, which is why I think Jones is the leader in the clubhouse.

But my vote goes to Lawrence who is the best player in the country and if he didn’t miss two games because of COVID and a third game that was canceled because of COVID issues, he likely has Clemson undefeated and the stats to match with Jones. He made a lasting impression on voters with three total touchdowns and 412 total yards vs. Notre Dame. However, I think it’ll be just a little too late for him to overcome the extra games the Alabama trio has.

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