The first nine weeks of the college football season have provided plenty of drama and intrigue. The more things change, the more they stay the same with Alabama locked in to the top position in the first College Football Playoff poll. Meanwhile, Texas A&M opened in the fourth and final playoff spot in the initial poll but everybody knows that Washington is in control of its own destiny at 8-0 in the Pac-12. Then there is Louisville quarterback Lamar Jackson, who has absolutely thrilled college football fans with his ridiculous skill set through the first half of the year and has the Cardinals still in the conversation as a potential playoff team if they can catch a break down the final stretch. Here is a look at the good, the bad and the ugly from the first half of the college football season.
The Good – The Heisman Trophy Race
Jackson has separated himself from the pack with 2,522 passing yards and 22 touchdowns with another 996 rushing yards and 16 touchdowns on the ground through eight games. Jackson did everything he could to try to upset Clemson and while his team fell short in a 42-36 loss his numbers alone this season are enough to consider him an obvious favorite to win the Heisman trophy. However, it’s important to remember the precedent set by Leonard Fournette a year ago when he dominated over the first half of the season and then hit a wall in a loss to Alabama and never recovered. Deshaun Watson was the winning quarterback in the matchup between Louisville and Clemson and a strong finish could put him back in position to have a legitimate chance to win the Heisman. Meanwhile, Washington quarterback Jake Browning has had a strong season for an undefeated Huskies’ team while Jabrill Peppers has done everything asked of him and more for Michigan. The Heisman trophy conversation has provided plenty of entertainment so far this year and it should be an interesting race down the final stretch of the regular season.
The Bad – Disappointments At The Top
Alabama, Clemson, Michigan and Washington are still undefeated but what has happened to their top competition to this point in the season? Texas A&M was given the fourth spot in the initial CFP poll but they were blown away by the Crimson Tide and it doesn’t seem like anybody outside of Aggies’ fans really wants to see them in the playoffs right now. Meanwhile, Ohio State choked in a brutal loss to Penn State, Louisville and Florida State both fell to Clemson and the Pac-12 and Big 12 are both in big trouble outside of Washington’s emergence on the west coast. There are four obvious playoff candidates in control of their own destiny right now including Washington and it’s clear the playoff picture has been a disappointment to this point in the season.
The Ugly – Surprise Failures
While the Huskies have been a pleasant surprise to this point, the surprise failures have represented the ugliest aspect of the first half with teams like Notre Dame, USC, Michigan State and Oklahoma all major disappointments so far this season. Those four teams have combined for a 17-15 record with the Sooners providing the bulk of those wins even though they were eliminated from the playoff conversation very early on. The Fighting Irish and Trojans never gave themselves a shot to contend for a top-10 spot even though they started the season in those ranks. Notre Dame lost to Texas right off the bat while USC was crumpled by Alabama and then lost to Stanford and Utah for good measure. Although those are their only three losses on the season, those were their only real tough college football opponents.
Meanwhile, the Spartans have gone from Big Ten champions and a playoff appearance to an 0-5 record in conference play. That includes double-digit losses to Northwestern and Maryland. They are currently 2-6, which is downright shocking for a team that has been so consistently good over the last handful of years.
All four teams have been disappointments to different degrees and their surprising failures have represented the ugliest aspect of the first half of the college football season.
