I said in my last column that I was loathe to write about the same sport — college football — for two columns in a row (I like to mix it up), and here I am writing about it for three columns in a row.
But, eff it. I love college football. It is my favorite. It is my thing. Like Mina Kimes to the NFL, Rob Neyer to baseball, and Jon Rothstein to the college basketball.
And college football season is almost over. Indeed, football season is almost over. And with the end of football season comes a subtle, hard-to-describe sadness. The great writer Hunter S. Thompson actually titled his suicide letter "Football Season is Over," and I get it.
It's why I try really hard to get into spring football (I've failed so far, will give it another go in 2025) and Canadian football (with considerably more success). I love most sports, but at the end of the day, football is my steady, my No. 1, and that especially goes for the college variety.
So, let's talk and think about football while we still can.
* I know the 12-team playoff has had an auspicious start, with four games and four blowouts. But, let's be patient. I still consider an expanded playoff to be a positive, and there is no question we will get massive upsets, even if we don't in 2024. When the upsets start rolling in, I think that may convert a few of the expansion naysayers.
Even within these blowouts, isn't it kind of cool that teams like SMU, Indiana, and Arizona State get to briefly enjoy the rarified playoff air? Am I the only one that thinks so? Even if it's a quick one-and-done?
* I'm noticing something of a strange trend in FCS. For the last two seasons, South Dakota State won the FCS Championship. Prior to that, North Dakota State won 7 out of the previous 9. North Dakota has made the FCS playoffs four of the last six years. South Dakota made the semifinals this year and is ranked No. 4 in the FCS polls. But the prohibitive favorite to win it all this year is Montana State. Last year, Montana make the FCS title game.
In case you don't see where I'm going here, why the hell are the Montana and the Dakotas so good at the second level of college football? And you can expand this a bit further even into both the Upper Midwest and Big Sky country. Idaho made a deep run last year. Eastern Washington were champs in 2010. Ferris State, in northern Michigan, won the Division II championship this year.
This also raises the question why the FBS schools in or near these regions aren't any better. Three of those Dakota schools basically border on Minnesota, and the Golden Gophers are mediocrity personified. Going west, so is Washington State. Boise State is better than mediocre, and I probably should include Wisconsin, too, since they are technically north of the University of South Dakota, but Madison is just two hours from Chicago if you speed a bit, and just doesn't seem as isolated as the rest of these schools.
So what gives? Why do the more desolate parts of the Upper Midwest give us the very finest in second-level football, but Minnesota and Washington State aren't breaking through? Should they recruit Montana and the Dakotas more?
* I'll close this column with a pick, which is always a dicey proposition in bowl games, but nonetheless, I think I like Louisiana Tech to cover the 16.5-point spread against Army. Yes, Army is clearly the better team, but they're coming off the surprising loss to Navy, had a big opt-out (losing 1,000 yard back Kanye Udoh), and it's reasonable to think that Tech will be playing very footloose and fancy-free. They did not expect to go bowling and have absolutely nothing to lose.
Happy holidays, and cherish this last month of football!
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