Rivalry week saw the newest installments of some of the most storied and bitter rivalries in the sport, some of which had major playoff implications.
With their rivalry commonly referred to as “The Game,” the Ohio State University Buckeyes took on the University of Michigan Wolverines in a matchup that most predicted would be a blowout in favor of the Buckeyes.
After losing to the Wolverines in three straight years, OSU hoped to catch their rivals in an off-year, as the defending national champions suffered a major backslide this season and came into the matchup with a record of 6-5.
However, the Wolverines stunned the college football world, besting the Buckeyes in a defensive slugfest with a score of 13-10.
Although Ohio State will still get a shot at the national championship, Michigan retains bragging rights for at least another year.
The University of Miami Hurricanes had their playoff hopes crushed by the Syracuse University Orange.
The Orange mounted a come-from-behind victory, facing a deficit of 21-0, to eliminate the Hurricanes from an ACC Championship berth, which was necessary for a shot at the playoffs after dropping a game to unranked Georgia Tech earlier in the season.
Despite the best efforts of their rivals, the other playoff-contending teams handled business in rivalry week to make the best possible impression to the playoff selection committee.
The University of Notre Dame Fighting Irish looked to notch their 50th win over their nearly 100-year-old rival University of Southern California Trojans.
Coming into the game after a disappointing year with a record of 6-5, the Trojans’ only goal for the game was to eliminate the Irish from postseason consideration.
The game was neck-and-neck at halftime, with a score of 14-14. Late in the fourth quarter, the Trojans drove down the field, looking to tie the game up at 35, but made the costly mistake of throwing an interception that was returned for a touchdown. They would repeat the same error on the following drive, and the Irish sealed a 49-35 victory.
In what was perhaps the game of the year, the University of Georgia Bulldogs took on the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets in Athens, Georgia. The Yellow Jackets stunned the favored Bulldogs in the first half, heading into the break with a 17-0 lead.
UGA, typically showing strong second-half performances throughout the season, continued to fight despite the deficit, forcing overtime with a score of 27-27.
The new college football overtime rules have teams attempting two-point conversions if the game needs to extend past two extra periods, with the team that gets into the endzone and forces a stop being declared the winner.
That proved to be incredibly difficult for the Georgia rivals, as the game went into eight overtimes until the Bulldogs finally found a way to win with a final score of 44-42.
“It was so exhausting to watch, but I’m just glad we managed to get the job done,” said Owen Faulk, a senior accounting major and Georgia football fan.
The rivalry week results set up the matchups for conference championships.
Somewhat surprisingly, the Mountain West Conference championship was a game with playoff implications.
The game saw a matchup between the 11-1 Boise State University Broncos, led by Heisman trophy-contending running back Ashton Jeanty and whose only loss of the season came against No. 1 University of Oregon Ducks, and the University of Nevada, Las Vegas Rebels.
As he has done all season, Jeanty blew the game wide open, rushing for 209 yards and a touchdown in a 21-7 win, all but guaranteeing a playoff berth and first-round bye for the Broncos.
In the Big Ten championship, the Ducks took on the Penn State Nittany Lions. While many predicted that this game would be a blowout in favor of the Ducks, and that seemed to be the reality at first, the Nittany Lions managed to make it a close game, but the Ducks snagged an interception on PSU’s final drive to secure a 45-37 win.
The Southeastern Conference, or SEC, championship game was a rematch between UGA and the University of Texas Longhorns, whose first game ended in a 30-15 Bulldog victory.
The first half of the game was surprisingly low-scoring, as the Bulldogs could not keep possession of the ball long enough to score points, and the Longhorns could not capitalize on most of their long gains and good field position. They headed into the break with 6-3 Longhorn lead.
The finale of the game would see UGA going into extra time in back-to-back weeks, but the Bulldogs took care of business much faster this time, ending the game in one overtime with a score of 22-19.
In the Big-12 championship, the Arizona State University Sun Devils handled the Iowa State University Cyclones, confidently punching their ticket to the postseason to the tune of a 45-19 win.
The Atlantic Coast Conference, or ACC, championship game arguably had the most at stake. The Clemson University Tigers were looking to get into postseason consideration, while the Southern Methodist University Mustangs were simply looking not to fall out of consideration.
It was looking like a convincing win for the Tigers, heading into the half with a 24-7 lead, but the Mustangs roared back to tie the game at 31-31 with little time left.
However, an impressive kick return and quick play to put the Tigers in field goal range allowed them to kick a game-winning field goal, presenting the playoff committee with a 34-31 ACC championship Tiger victory.
“I don’t think SMU should be in the playoff no matter what,” said Dylan Lewis, a senior marketing major. “They haven’t beat a ranked team all season.”
In the first round of the revamped college football playoff, No. 16 Clemson will play No. 3 Texas, No. 7 Tennessee will play No. 6 Ohio State, No. 10 SMU will play No. 4 Penn State and No. 8 Indiana will play No. 5 Notre Dame.
The first-round byes were given to No. 12 Arizona State, No. 1 Oregon, No. 9 Boise State and No. 2 Georgia.
