We Have a Playoff Mess On Our Hands: Week 14 CFB Recap
Well, that's it, folks. The 2025 college football regular season has come to an end, but in many ways, we're just getting started. We have College Football Playoff spots to be decided, conference championships to be won and coaching vacancies to be filled — with others potentially set to open.
Here's the Week 14 recap:
- Some Teams That Think They Put Together a Playoff Résumé Are Going To Be Very Upset
Ten of 12 CFP spots are all but accounted for heading into conference championship weekend. I'd probably even say Alabama is virtually a shoo-in as well, leaving potentially just one spot available between Notre Dame, Miami, BYU and Vanderbilt — 9-3 Texas is not a serious contender, especially with these spots at such a premium, and anyone peddling that nonsense is likely getting paid by someone to do it.
As much as it seemed the Fighting Irish would be guaranteed a spot at 10-2, I no longer see the path for them with Miami's strong close to the season and a head-to-head loss to the Hurricanes. Maybe neither team makes it, but if one of them does, it can't be the team that lost to the other. The games have to matter.
And all of this could get thrown into total chaos if BYU takes down Texas Tech next week, in which case the Red Raiders would take that last at-large spot and all of those teams could be on the outside looking in.
Things are going to get hairy.
- Lane Kiffin May Never Make a Decision
The real story of the day wasn't even on a football field, but rather Lane Kiffin's continued refusal to make up his mind on where he will be coaching in 2026. All of the signs have pointed to Kiffin leaving Ole Miss for LSU, but there was supposed to be some sort of resolution Saturday, which has obviously come and gone with no news.
Kiffin met with Ole Miss decision makers Saturday afternoon into the night and we still came away with nothing. Maybe there will be an announcement today or maybe Kiffin will just keep playing the world's longest game of chicken with his current employer.
- Ohio State Finally Did It
Even coming off a national championship and now an undefeated regular season, it's been a long six years for Ohio State fans since their last win over Michigan. The Buckeyes came in with, yet again, the immensely more talented and polished team on paper, but they had to prove they were actually capable of beating Michigan on the field.
And honestly, the first quarter showed some signs of this being somehow another installment in the recent series of unthinkable Wolverines upsets. But then OSU turned it on, decided Michigan was not going to get in the end zone and covered with ease.
Now Ohio State heads to the Big Ten Championship Game for a titanic showdown with Indiana and the No. 1 seed in the College Football Playoff on the line.
- Alabama, Oklahoma Survive Scares To Avoid Disaster
The Iron Bowl was the insane spectacle it always is at Jordan-Hare Stadium and Oklahoma needed a late fourth quarter score to stave off an upset bid from LSU that would have obliterated the Sooners' CFP hopes.
I actually thought for a minute late in the game Auburn was really going to do it. The Tigers actually stopped Alabama twice on the Tide's final drive, but got called for penalties both times, which led to Kalen DeBoer putting his nuts on the table on fourth down inside the 5-yard line for Bama's game-winning score. Auburn took the ball back down the field but, of course, fumbled to give Bama the win and very likely a spot in the Playoff.
- 7-5 Duke Is Headed to the ACC Championship Game Over 11-2 Miami
You asked and now you shall receive: 7-5 Duke has won the five-way tie for second place in the ACC over Miami, Georgia Tech, Pitt and SMU, so the Blue Devils will head to Charlotte next week to take on Virginia for the conference title. This is what happens when you build mega-conferences where nobody actually plays each other and these things end up being decided by asinine tiebreakers.
While this scenario is insane, it's great news for the Group of Five teams vying for a CFP berth, because if Duke beats Virginia, it's very likely there would be two G5 representatives in the Playoff as two of the five highest-ranked conference champions and the ACC would be counting on Miami receiving an at-large bid for its represtative.
Fun stuff.