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The 2020-21 College Football Thread: Alabama Unleashes Bold Familiar Flavor on CFB !!

DeacsATS said:
I’ll take the criticism. I think Clemson is a tier above Bama this season. OSU might be up there with them, but I’ll need more evidence.

I’m not sold on Mac Jones. He has sick weapons, for sure. He’s not terrible. He’s just not Lawrence or Fields. Bama also has issues on defense (and so does most everyone else, which was part of my point).

Just my opinion.
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I'm a Clemson grad, but at this moment I think Clemson, Bama, and Ohio State are all on the same tier, and I'm honestly the most worried about Ohio State as I feel they are the most talented team on both sides. Bama has maybe the best offense, though I'm not sure how bad the Waddle injury effects them.

Clemson had a down day today against Syracuse. These seem to happen to Clemson every year where they play down to an opponent, but there are legitimate concerns about them as a national championship contender. The offensive line has had a lot of issues with run blocking, and Etienne's rushing numbers are down this year compared to prior years. Also the secondary is still very young and prong to busts in coverage, so that could really bite them once they play elite teams.

Bama is still working through defensive issues, but you have to imagine by the end of the year they'll have those fixed and at least be a top 20 defense. With their caliber offense due to the oline and weapons, a mediocre defense can win a championship.

Ohio State is probably elite on both sides of the ball, but they just started playing so it will take a few weeks to see how good they really are, though I expect them to be likely the best team.
 
dcnelso said:
I'm a Clemson grad, but at this moment I think Clemson, Bama, and Ohio State are all on the same tier, and I'm honestly the most worried about Ohio State as I feel they are the most talented team on both sides. Bama has maybe the best offense, though I'm not sure how bad the Waddle injury effects them.

Clemson had a down day today against Syracuse. These seem to happen to Clemson every year where they play down to an opponent, but there are legitimate concerns about them as a national championship contender. The offensive line has had a lot of issues with run blocking, and Etienne's rushing numbers are down this year compared to prior years. Also the secondary is still very young and prong to busts in coverage, so that could really bite them once they play elite teams.

Bama is still working through defensive issues, but you have to imagine by the end of the year they'll have those fixed and at least be a top 20 defense. With their caliber offense due to the oline and weapons, a mediocre defense can win a championship.

Ohio State is probably elite on both sides of the ball, but they just started playing so it will take a few weeks to see how good they really are, though I expect them to be likely the best team.
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Agree with ATS on OSU....need to see a few more games before making a judgement on them.

Miami only beats UVa 19-14 @ home, so .aybe we have a shot at the Canes. (UVa did have Armstrong back...16-30 for 181 YDS, 2 TD and 91 yds rushing)
 
Graham Mertz tested positive for the 'Rona. He's got to sit for 21 days.

Darn shame! Would have been nice to see what Wisconsin would do with him for a whole season.
 
Bama probably drops out of real title contention with the loss of Jaylen Waddle, their best player and all-universe WR. They are still loaded on offense and have two legit studs in Smith and Metchie at WR but Waddle is probably the most dangerous offensive player in the nation. He broke his ankle returning a kickoff. Couldn’t help but think of Greene doing the same for us. I know this is an ongoing debate and there is value to getting him more touches but our offense sure won’t survive a significant injury to him.
 
Wonder why Williams or Groulx aren’t back there with Morin or why Morin isn’t the lone KR.
 
WRS said:
Bama probably drops out of real title contention with the loss of Jaylen Waddle, their best player and all-universe WR. They are still loaded on offense and have two legit studs in Smith and Metchie at WR but Waddle is probably the most dangerous offensive player in the nation. He broke his ankle returning a kickoff. Couldn’t help but think of Greene doing the same for us. I know this is an ongoing debate and there is value to getting him more touches but our offense sure won’t survive a significant injury to him.
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Bama's remaining SEC schedule is pretty easy. They've already played their two hardest games, and with LSU's defensive issues and Auburn's offensive issues those should be fairly easy wins. The only question with the Waddle injury would be possibly UGA in the SEC championship game, but until UGA actually beats Bama, I'm taking Bama in that. I think Bama's defense will continue to get better and they'll finish undefeated going into the playoff.
 
Oh I still think they’ll make the playoff but just don’t think they will have the firepower to go all the way now. Jones will be forced to do more which may put him outside his comfort zone as well. Realize this is splitting hairs a bit so maybe more accurate to say this bumps them down from one of the favorites to just a contender. I do agree that the defense will probably get better but it’s been an issue for multiple years at this point.
 
WRS said:
Oh I still think they’ll make the playoff but just don’t think they will have the firepower to go all the way now. Jones will be forced to do more which may put him outside his comfort zone as well. Realize this is splitting hairs a bit so maybe more accurate to say this bumps them down from one of the favorites to just a contender. I do agree that the defense will probably get better but it’s been an issue for multiple years at this point.
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Waddle was the best WR in college this this, but Bama's other WRs are just as good as Clemson and Ohio State receivers. WR is actually a weakness of Clemson this year besides Amari Rogers. I think Ohio State and Clemson clearly have better QBs than Bama, though Mac Jones has played great so far and should be in consideration for a Heisman finalist. Bama has an NFL offensive line so, the other freshman 5 stars they throw out there will be fine and Jones has plenty of time in the pocket to find them. I think Bama has the best offense in the country, to me they are clearly a title contender.

I really think Clemson, Ohio State, and Bama are all on a completely different level than every other team, so the winner may just come down to whoever gets the #1 ranking and has the easier semi-final game and avoids one of the other big 3.
 
So I guess that the ACC and the bowls will recognize the same selection order as in the past with the tiers. But I also guess that if you finish 5-6 you take whatever scraps they give you and you can be jumped by a 3-8 team that might travel better. I would also think that the bowls are looking for teams that can at least put a few butts in the seats, even with reduced stadium capacity.

Lots of football left to be played but I could see the Duke's Mayonnaise Bowl being in favor of a Wake/NCSU v B1G matchup. The opponent alternates between B1G in even years and SEC in odd years. Va Tech played last year, so I would think they're out. VA Tech also played in the game in 2016. UVa played in 2018.

Other schools that might be on the bowl's wishlist could be Ga Tech, who has never played in the bowl.

I would have to guess they'll get the absolute dregs of the B1G East -- Maryland, Rutgers. But it would be good to go ahead and get one of thise teams this year when you're biting the bullet anyway, just to get them out of the way.
 
Paul Hogan said:
So I guess that the ACC and the bowls will recognize the same selection order as in the past with the tiers. But I also guess that if you finish 5-6 you take whatever scraps they give you and you can be jumped by a 3-8 team that might travel better. I would also think that the bowls are looking for teams that can at least put a few butts in the seats, even with reduced stadium capacity.

Lots of football left to be played but I could see the Duke's Mayonnaise Bowl being in favor of a Wake/NCSU v B1G matchup. The opponent alternates between B1G in even years and SEC in odd years. Va Tech played last year, so I would think they're out. VA Tech also played in the game in 2016. UVa played in 2018.

Other schools that might be on the bowl's wishlist could be Ga Tech, who has never played in the bowl.

I would have to guess they'll get the absolute dregs of the B1G East -- Maryland, Rutgers. But it would be good to go ahead and get one of thise teams this year when you're biting the bullet anyway, just to get them out of the way.
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I didn't know that it had changed from being an SEC opponent to alternating between SEC and Big Ten. I'd rather it have stayed with just SEC. Big Ten football is boring.
 
dcnelso said:
I really think Clemson, Ohio State, and Bama are all on a completely different level than every other team, so the winner may just come down to whoever gets the #1 ranking and has the easier semi-final game and avoids one of the other big 3.
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I agree with this. Will be interesting to see how the committee views the battle for #4. If Georgia runs the table and then beats Alabama in the SECCG, I think they’re in. If Georgia loses again, next choice would probably be ND if they beat Clemson in either the regular season or ACCCG. But what if the options are 2-loss UGA, 2-loss ND, undefeated OK St in a horrible Bog 12, and undefeated Oregon at just 6-0?
 
So Georgia played at Alabama and led at halftime with a fourth string quarterback, but there's a huge gap between Alabama, Clemson, Ohio State, and everybody else. And Alabama lost its (arguably) best player and it's no big deal. Ohio State is obviously good, but they're still basically in preseason mode after beating a Nebraska team that didn't even go to a bowl last year. Ohio State appears that it will be unchallenged this year and coast into the playoff as long as they avoid the Covid.

I'd say that Georgia and ND make up a next tier below those three schools. ND is the only competitive game left on Clemson's schedule and they will probably play them twice in six weeks. Clemson has shown a few cracks on offense in the first half, giving up 10 to UVA and Miami, and 14 to Syracuse. But part of that is just because their own offense scores so quickly that the other team gets multiple chances on offense. ND finally blew somebody out. Their game against UNC-CH is the toughest left on their schedule and if they win that I would guess they'll be in the ACCCG. One thought, if ND beats Wake in W-S on 12/12 to make the ACCCG, they would be playing three out of four weeks in NC, which would probably be enough for them to never want to join the ACC.

Georgia needs to stay clean, improve at QB, run the fucking ball, and beat Florida and they'll get another chance at Alabama.
 
timthedeac said:
I agree with this. Will be interesting to see how the committee views the battle for #4. If Georgia runs the table and then beats Alabama in the SECCG, I think they’re in. If Georgia loses again, next choice would probably be ND if they beat Clemson in either the regular season or ACCCG. But what if the options are 2-loss UGA, 2-loss ND, undefeated OK St in a horrible Bog 12, and undefeated Oregon at just 6-0?
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Oklahoma State is not going undefeated, but the ACC and B1G are just as bad as the Big XII. At least the ACC added ND.

Oregon would go 6-0 against an awful schedule that might include one ranked team (Washington) to close the season, but probably not.
 
I say it every year, and I'm sure it makes me look like a curmudgeon, but talking about the playoff this early is ridiculous. The B1G just started playing and the Oregon hasn't even played a game yet.

To Biff's point about the bowls, I have no idea how it is going to work this year. If there are limited fans in the stands, will how well a team's fanbase travel even matter? Or will they just try to put together the best made-for-TV matchups? I can't imagine some shitty 3-8(ish) team will make a decent bowl over a 5-6(ish) team because their fans travel well... Which of those fans are going to make that trip to watch their shitty 3-8 team? I guess you could see it become more geography-based... Select teams that are closer to your bowl.

It's all going to be a mess, I think, given there will be teams playing significantly fewer games coupled with almost no interesting non-conference matchups. I'm just glad college football is being played.
 
DeacsATS said:
I say it every year, and I'm sure it makes me look like a curmudgeon, but talking about the playoff this early is ridiculous. The B1G just started playing and the Oregon hasn't even played a game yet.

To Biff's point about the bowls, I have no idea how it is going to work this year. If there are limited fans in the stands, will how well a team's fanbase travel even matter? Or will they just try to put together the best made-for-TV matchups? I can't imagine some shitty 3-8(ish) team will make a decent bowl over a 5-6(ish) team because their fans travel well... Which of those fans are going to make that trip to watch their shitty 3-8 team? I guess you could see it become more geography-based... Select teams that are closer to your bowl.

It's all going to be a mess, I think, given there will be teams playing significantly fewer games coupled with almost no interesting non-conference matchups. I'm just glad college football is being played.
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They're only letting 7,000 into BofA Stadium for Panthers games, so I would imagine Wake could fill half of that easily, even if we go 5-6. Of course, what's going to happen is the schools are going to ask everybody to buy a bunch of tickets to bowl games that they won't possible or legally be able to attend, because that's what happens every year.

However, I would guess the Florida bowls will be expecting 35,000+ for every game and will invite teams who can sell that allotment.
 
Paul Hogan said:
They're only letting 7,000 into BofA Stadium for Panthers games, so I would imagine Wake could fill half of that easily, even if we go 5-6.
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I don't know. Close to half of the fans at Saturday's game were VT fans.
 
Some have touted Wisconsin as a national championship contender for whatever reason.

 
Paul Hogan said:
Some have touted Wisconsin as a national championship contender for whatever reason.

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Wisconsin lost 7 starters off of its defense from last year as well as Jonathan Taylor. Even if the QBs were available, they were likely to have some growing pains this year. A blow out of Illinois doesn't change that likelihood.
 
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