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Brad Shepard is a college football columnist.
Jeff Dean.
Ol' Saint Nick and his team were able to reestablish themselves as forces to be reckoned with this college football holiday season after winning the title.
There were many surprises that shook free. Six of the 10 conference championship games were won by the underdogs.
The biggest news was that Alabama totally dominated top-ranked Georgia, and that the Tide will play in the College Football Playoff. The first-ever Group of Five program in college football's final four is likely to be Cincinnati, which shook off a pedestrian first half to wallop Houston at home.
Oklahoma State's defensive game plan was copied by the Bears with two goal-line stands to upset the Cowboys and end their playoff hopes. Michigan held serve to stay in the playoffs with a win over Iowa in the Big Ten title game, and Pittsburgh held on to beat Wake Forest after a shaky first quarter.
Utah beat Oregon for the second time in three weeks, and UTSA rebounded from last week's loss to beat Western Kentucky. Utah State stunned San Diego State in the Mountain West, and Billy Napier left Louisiana a champion in the Sun Belt.
The winners and thelosers for the week.
The Icon Sportswire is a part of the Getty Images.
Cincinnati played its way into the College Football Playoff regardless of what happened on Saturday.
The playoff committee would make an egregious mistake if they decided to penalize the Bearcats for their statement win over Houston.
They had to work hard for a half against the Cougars, but with so much in their grasp and on the verge of history, they came out of the locker room and showed just how good they are.
The most significant game in the conference's history was played in the conference championship game, where the team made all the necessary adjustments to win 35-20.
Cincinnati scored on its first possession of the second half to take a one point lead, and then used a six play, 75-yard drive to score on its first possession of the third quarter. The game's biggest play came after that.
On Houston's first offensive play of the third quarter, Clayton Tune dropped back to throw and failed to see the middle of the field. The ball was recovered by Dublanko and he returned it nine yards for a touchdown two plays later.
The home stadium with more than 40,000 screaming fans was loud when the Bearcats had a 15-point lead less than 4 minutes into the second half.
The team that had just one loss and had been solid on both sides of the ball all year was suddenly out of answers after the third quarter. Cincinnati's defense was great with eight sacks and 12 tackles for a loss as it looked like a playoff team.
With Oklahoma State losing and Notre Dame not playing, there should be no doubt that Cincinnati punched its playoff ticket in the process, becoming the first-ever Group of Five participant in college football's final four.
Brynn Anderson is a photographer.
If you were watching the SEC Championship Game on Saturday, you'd never believe the Georgia defense has been so good.
The talent-laden group allowed an average of 6.9 points a game all year, and they were the primary reason the team was the No. 1-ranked team in the nation.
People tend to forget that Alabama and quarterback Bryce Young are pretty good.
The Tide scored on five consecutive possessions to turn a 10-point deficit into a two-touchdown lead in a 41-24 win over Georgia in Atlanta.
The defensive backs were a step slower than the rest of the team all day. Brian Robinson was able to keep the Dawgs honest because the Tide were concerned about running back depth.
Young's arm did the rest.
After getting the ball to start the second half, the Tide scored a touchdown on the very next play and took less than two minutes to score again. They rode that run to win another game against Kirby Smart.
Alabama will return to the College Football Playoff after winning the national title last year and having to replace a lot of talent on both sides of the ball.
The defense that had led the nation in allowing just 230.9 yards per game gave up 536 on Saturday against the Tide. Alabama did what it wanted against Georgia after being shut out for more than three quarters against auburn.
It's possible that these teams meet again on a bigger stage.
Brynn Anderson is a photographer.
The college football transfer portal is a place where players go to rust and need to get over it. There are valuable, program-changing stars waiting to be grabbed.
In Alabama's case, players are waiting to keep the program on a championship level.
After DeVonta Smith and Jaylen Waddle left for the NFL, former Ohio State pass-catcher Jameson Williams joined the Alabama team.
In the SEC title game, Williams was half of one of the most dynamic duos in conference title game history, helping Alabama rebound from a left-for-dead Iron Bowl win a week ago.
Having Williams around was a big part of Young's performance, and it may have been a factor in him winning the trophy. The receiver missed the second half of the game after being ejected for targeting.
He made up for lost time against the Dawgs, finishing with seven catches for 184 yards and a pair of touchdown. In the second quarter, Young found Williams over the middle and he ran for a 67-yard touchdown that gave Alabama its first points of the game.
The next time Williams crossed the goal line, the score was different. The 55 yard bomb from Young to start the second half made a big difference in the game. His final tally was second only to Darvin Adams in a 2010 win.
Mac Jones had 418 passing yards in the SEC Championship Game before moving on to the New England Pats. The offensive line was brilliant and the Young-to-Williams combo was electric.
Mast is an Associated Press reporter.
The Michigan football team is going to the College Football Playoff.
We know that that doesn't fit the narrative that Jim Harbaugh couldn't lead Big Blue back to glory, but he did, and that the UM overpaid for him to come home.
The road that brought the Michigan team here has been documented. Harbaugh restructured his contract in the off-season after he was winless against Ohio State.
According to the Detroit Free Press, Harbaugh went from one of the nation's highest-paid coaches to the 10th-highest paid base salary in the Big Ten. It seemed to be the final straw before Harbaugh's career was ended at his alma mater.
There was something that happened on the way down the spiral. The perfect formula on both sides of the ball was found by the UM, and they were able to repeat it on Saturday night in the Big Ten title game against Iowa.
The Michigan team played a brilliant all-around game in a victory over Iowa.
Two big plays gave Michigan an early advantage. They never blinked, smothering Iowa's offense.
The special teams got into action in the fourth quarter with a blocked punt that led to a touchdown.
It was thorough. Harbaugh was dancing on the sideline late in the game. The way he and his team have rebounded this year makes him deserving of it. They have a chance to play for a national championship.
The images are of Alika Jenner.
Utah has control of Oregon.
The Utes are going to the Rose Bowl for the first time after they defeated the Oregon in the conference title game.
After three failed attempts to win the conference title game, the Utah team is finally going to Pasadena.
This win was even more special because of the adversity the team faced this year after the accidental shooting death of star running back Ty Jordan last December and the shooting death of Aaron Lowe in September.
Whittingham told ABC's Holly Rowe after the game that it was difficult to describe. We've been through a lot and we're proud of these guys. The football team has great leadership. They went through a lot of adversity. We love our boys and they were with us tonight.
While Utah quarterback Cam Rising shined, it was Oregon coach Mario Cristobal's steadfast determination to stick with Anthony Brown that was puzzling.
The Utes have won nine of their last 10 games after back-to-back losses to BYU and San Diego State.
They're going to the first Rose Bowl.
The images are from theLoganWhitton
The quarterback battle between Pittsburgh's Kenny Pickett and Wake Forest's Sam Hartman was supposed to be a good one.
The hype was justified with a 35-point first quarter from the Demon Deacons.
Things changed quickly. The Wake offensive linemen were harassed by the panthers. Pitt brought the pressure by pinning their ears back.
It resulted in a completely different game. The game was tied at 21 at the end of the first half, but the Panthers scored 31 unanswered points in the second half to win the game. Hartman was sacked five times by Pittsburgh.
The game was close until late in the third quarter when Hartman's fourth and final pick turned the game. After Hallett got the catch, Pickett scored a touchdown four plays later to give the Panthers a 10-point lead.
A.J. Woods returned the first pick-six 73 yards to the Wake Forest 3-yard line, and Hallett returned the second pick-six 19 yards to set up another touchdown.
The Deacs' porous offensive line play was as much to blame for Hartman's ineffectiveness as his horrible second half.
Dan Marino's school touchdown record was broken by Pickett, who threw for 253 yards and two scores and ran for 20 more and a magnificent scoring run.
The Pitt quarterback had a big day, but the defense was the difference.
The Icon Sportswire is a part of the Getty Images.
Jackson sprinted away from the mass of humanity in the middle of the field to get to the left pylon while McVea was in pursuit.
The Cowboys' College Football Playoff hopes were hanging in the balance.
Jackson came up just shy of the goal line as McVea dove toward the ball-carrier on the 4th-and-goal play from the 1-yard line. It was an example of the Cowboys' day. The Big 12 Championship Game was a classic.
In the final minutes of the game, Gundy's team had a chance to score from the 2-yard line. They ran seven plays from the 2 or inside and only got three points. After three futile runs, they settled for a field goal to trim the score to 21-16.
They couldn't get the touchdown at the end.
"To see that effort and that fight is a definitive sign of what's been happening without all the eyes that are on us today," Dave Aranda told the ABC crew after the game. The Bears avenged an earlier loss to Oklahoma State by winning the title.
The Cowboys' defense was up to the task. After the break, all three scoring drives for the Bears were shut out. The offensive troubles were terrible.
The seven plays that will haunt the program were bad, but they were magnified by the other plays. With leading runner Jaylen Warren out, the Cowboys couldn't get anything going on the ground, and Spencer Sanders threw a career-high four picks.
Even though Oklahoma State won, it'll be left out of the playoffs now.
The person is Andres Leighton.
You have to pull for some people. Some people are deserving of magical moments.
Utah State's 46-13 win over San Diego State on Saturday was the culmination of a stunning season for the team and their coach.
The UNLV Runnin' Rebels finished last in the Mountain West Conference a year ago, but the Aggies finished last. Gary Andersen was fired before the season ended and then they looked at Arkansas State for Anderson.
Anderson lost his wife, Wendy, to cancer in 2019. He took the same job at USU. He'd carry his high-octane attack with him if he headed to Logan. Maybe everything he saw wouldn't remind him of what he had lost.
He told The Athletic after the season that he would always remember her, and that he would keep a song or a memory in his mind.
On Saturday, the Aggies finished on a high note with a win over the Aztecs.
The Aggies came from nowhere to win a conference title. Anderson has a lot to do with it. This year, he turned quarterback Logan Bonner into a star, and he's an offensive genius. He had a big day on Saturday, with 318 yards and four touchdown.
The Utah State defense played its best game of the season. It was an outstanding evening for a team that has come a long way and especially for a coach who has been through so many long days that he should be happy to have one to celebrate.
The images are from ethnika Miller.
It's hard to blame a head coach for listening to other teams' offers, seeing the dollar signs and leaving for pastures new.
Or, in Oregon coach Mario Cristobal's case, his home beaches of Miami.
The problem with all the rumors and speculation surrounding the future of Cristobal is that it broke a few hours before the game with Utah in the Pac-12 Championship Game. The Miami Hurricanes were prepared to give Cristobal a "Lincoln Riley" level contract, according to John Canzano.
He played for the Hurricanes. Chris Fowler of ABC said during the broadcast that Cristobal's mother was gravely ill.
The buzz around their coach may have had an effect on the play of the Oregon team, but they played poorly against the Utah.
I don't know what to say. When asked if the rumors affected his team, Cristobal said he would if he had any plans. I wouldn't keep it either way. Is it possible that people will come at me? I do. Every year it happens.
The team looked soft, the quarterback play was not good, and the defense was bad. The ducks looked unprepared.
It's difficult to place all the blame on him, given his difficult personal situation. Football isn't the most important thing going on here. This could have been done a little earlier. The coach was already gone when Oregon played.
"When you say someone's offered, I haven't talked to anyone, so let's not create narratives as we sit here in this press conference," he told reporters after the game. "Oregon is working on some stuff for me, and that's what I have right now, and that's the extent of that conversation."
Ronald Cortes is a photographer.
It makes sense that Bailey Zappe has a name that is suitable for a video game because of the way he throws the ball.
UT San Antonio had more weapons in its arsenal and just enough quarters in its pocket to beat Western Kentucky in the Conference USA Championship Game.
The Roadrunners used a running attack and big plays to build a 42-13 lead in the third quarter. They sat on the lead, allowing Zappe to storm the 'Toppers back behind his C-USA-record 577 passing yards.
He proved he is one of the most prolific college signal-callers in recent memory by finishing four touchdown shy of Joe Burrow's single-season record.
The Roadrunners made plays when they had to. Traylor decided to go for it on 4th-and-3 from near the middle of the field because he was sick of how conservative they had been. The Roadrunners got the first down and scored a few plays later to take a two-score lead.
There were more than 40,000 people in San Antonio's Alamodome to watch the program's first championship. This program is on the rise.
UTSA is a Group of Five program that could surge for years sitting on the Lone Star State's hotbed of talent with stars like running back Sincere McCormick and quarterback Frank Harris.
This is just the beginning.
Matthew Hinton is a photographer.
The Florida Gators are going to get Billy Napier.
It looked like the Sun Belt Championship Game would be a letdown for the Ragin' Cajuns after he announced that it would be his last game.
Instead, he proved once again that he is a great coach and motivator by keeping his team focused. Louisiana-Lafayette won the conference title with a 24-16 win over Appalachian State, but there was nothing flashy about it.
The Cajuns were ranked 11-1, but the Mountaineers were favored to win. The two teams met in both of the last two years, with the Mountaineers winning both times.
The team's ownership ended earlier this year after a 41-13 win over Louisiana. They weren't going to let the uncertainty surrounding the program affect them, even with all the distraction.
The conference championship game is not negotiable, according to the coach.
"It's important for everyone to realize the commitment we've made to the players here and the staff here to really kind of take a singular focus on trying to do the best job we can do for this team."
Their commitment to their coach was reciprocated. Levi Lewis, who has been the author of so many quality Louisiana wins, had a big game with 253 yards and two touchdown, and the defense was stout.
The waters of Napier's departure could have been muddied by Appalachian State. Saturday was a farewell tour with "Thank you Billy" signs in the stands, emotions running high and a championship win.
Carlos Osorio.
The Kent State Golden Flashes were the top rushing offense and second-ranked scoring offense in the conference.
What did Northern Illinois do? The leading rushing attack in the MAC was kept off the field for most of the first half as the Huskies built a lead.
Crum was discombobulated and Kent State never could get going in the second half.
After finishing 0-6 in a abbreviated season last year, the Huskies won their first conference title since 2003 with a 41-23 victory over Kent State.
The Golden Flashes' explosivity on offense made them a sexy pick, despite the inconsistencies in their record.
They were swarmed by the Huskies throughout the day.
Crum threw his second pick of the day to C.J. Brown, who ran 26 yards for a touchdown to make it 24-3 in the third quarter.
It was too late for the Golden Flashes to make a serious threat after they bounced back with their first touchdown of the day.
The NIU offense was led by a Michigan State-transfer, and the defense was opportunistic, which helped return NIU to the winner's circle in the MAC. The conference was so unpredictable this season that it had beaten itself up.
The game was the same.
