College football Week 14: Spots in conference title games are up for grabs as regular season closes

When it comes to setting conference championship game matchups in the final week of the regular season, we can do it the easy way or we can do it the hard way.

The ACC, Big Ten, Big 12, SEC and almost certainly the American are the leagues whose champions will get automatic College Football Playoff bids. Each has two teams that will advance to conference title games as long as they win Friday or Saturday.

Fans of teams on the bubble are hoping things get messy and will have tiebreaker scenarios pulled up on their phones as games unfold. Without getting into the weeds, here are the front-runners’ direct routes to the championship games Dec. 5-6.

American: No. 21 North Texas beats Temple at home; No. 22 Tulane beats Charlotte at home.

Atlantic Coast: No. 17 Virgina beats Virginia Tech at home; No. 25 SMU wins at California.

Big Ten: No. 1 Ohio State wins at No. 15 Michigan; No. 2 Indiana wins at Purdue.

Big 12: No. 7 Texas Tech wins at West Virginia; No. 11 BYU beats UCF at home.

Southeastern: No. 3 Texas A&M wins at No. 16 Texas; No. 10 Alabama wins at Auburn.

Best game

No. 1 Ohio State (11-0, 8-0 Big Ten) at No. 15 Michigan (9-2, 7-1), Saturday, noon ET (Fox)

The Buckeyes have lost four straight against the “Team Up North,” and last year’s defeat was so devastating there were calls for Ryan Day’s firing. It was still being talked about on the eve of the Buckeyes’ win over Notre Dame in the national championship game.

Ohio State hasn’t lost five straight to Michigan since a six-game skid from 1922-27. If the Buckeyes win, they should be the CFP top seed and get the first-round bye that goes with it. A loss could cost them a top-four seeding and leave them playing a first-round game at home.

Under the radar

Troy (7-4, 5-2 Sun Belt) at Southern Mississippi (7-4, 5-2), Saturday, 3:30 p.m. ET (ESPN+)

One of the great under-the-radar stories of the season has been the work of Southern Miss first-year coach Charles Huff. He took a program that went 1-11 and winless in the Sun Belt to the brink of its first conference championship game. If the Golden Eagles win, they’re in.

Huff brought in 70 transfers, including 23 who followed him from Marshall, and will be going for Southern Miss’ first eight-win season since 2017. Troy second-year coach Gerad Parker is trying to get the Trojans to their third Sun Belt title game in four years.

Heisman watch

Notre Dame running back Jeremiyah Love is making a strong closing bid for the Heisman Trophy. He’s gone from 50-to-1 long shot entering the season on BetMGM Sportsbook to second favorite among the wagering public at 15-to-4 this week. Indiana quarterback Fernando Mendoza remains the prohibitive favorite.

Love is third in the nation in rushing at 118.7 yards per game, and his 20 touchdowns rank second and are tied for the single-season school record set by Jerome Bettis in 1991.

Love ran for 171 yards and three touchdowns on just eight carries in last week’s 70-7 win over Syracuse. He’s only the third player since 1996 to achieve those numbers on so few carries. He’ll finish the regular season Saturday night at Stanford. The last running back to win the Heisman was Alabama’s Derrick Henry in 2015.

Numbers to know

10 — Texas Tech’s nation-leading wins by at least 20 points.

17 — Pittsburgh interceptions returned for touchdowns since 2021, most in the nation. The Panthers have a pick-6 in each of its last three games and four this season.

37-4 — Kalen DeBoer’s combined record in November games as head coach at Sioux Falls, Fresno State, Washington and Alabama.

135 — Meetings between Minnesota and Wisconsin for Paul Bunyan’s Axe when they square off in Minneapolis, most of any FBS college football rivalry.

1898 — The year Navy last played on Thanksgiving. The Midshipmen visit Memphis on Thursday.

Hot seat

UTEP’s Scotty Walden was within a minute of what would have been the highlight of an otherwise awful season: a second straight win in the rivalry with New Mexico State. After blowing a 21-point first-quarter lead at home last Saturday, his Miners were up 31-27 with 56 seconds left in the game. Then the Aggies drove 75 yards in 35 seconds to score the winning touchdown.

Walden, 5-18 overall and 4-11 in Conference USA in two seasons, needs a win at Delaware on Saturday to match last year’s three victories. The Miners’ only wins this season are against Tennessee-Martin of the FCS and a Sam Houston team that started 0-8 and is now 2-9.

Walden has three years left on his contract and would be owed a buyout of about $1.5 million if fired, according to USA Today.

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