Jarvis Benjamin Variety Hour

Washington vs. Oregon, delivered. In every single sense of the word. Okay, maybe not Dan Lanning refusing to take 3 points, time and time again. But other than that; that game ruled. West Virginia vs Houston was almost a better game, in the same week! And Colorado vs Stanford was almost better than that!!! #Some things are bigger than sports.   

In shocking news, Superman bleeds. 1-5 last week at the counter, and it truly felt worse than that. The year falls to 31-22-1 (57.4%) and I am sick over it. I said it here, but to say I expect to win this week is an understatement. If anyone was wondering: the Jarv-heads have doubled in size. X: @JBV60SHOW 

1. Michigan Wolverines (7-0) This Week: -24.5 @ Michigan State (2-4): Aaaand NEW!!! No, they still have not played anyone; but the Wolverines have also not played a game closer than 24 points all year (shoutout Rutgers). That is #1 team in the country type of stuff. I’ll get more into it later; but Georgia has kind of been flirting with getting bumped for a while now. Michigan travels to little brother this week, in a game that will probably not be very close. Jimmy cracks skulls AND takes names. *whispers* The first real opponent is less than a month away.     

2. Georgia Bulldogs (7-0) This Week: IDLE: So, the elephant in the room. Georgia has moved off the number one line, for what figures to be the first time in the history of these rankings. Plain and simple? I know they are still Georgia. I have yet to be impressed by Kirby Smart’s team this year. To top it off? They just lost their best offensive player for what will end up being over a month. Gulp. While the Dogs looked sharp against Kentucky a few weeks ago; a (far closer than it should have been) win over Vanderbilt, paired with everything I mentioned earlier is enough for me.     

3. Florida State Seminoles (6-0) This Week: -14 vs. Duke (5-1): In the last two games for Syracuse, they have been outscored 81-10. Had to get that in there. FSU pumped them last week, and I expect them to roll again this week. Jordan Travis and Keon Coleman are an almost unstoppable duo. Coleman had 140 receiving yards and added 100 more in the return game; 72 of those coming on a PUNT RETURN in the third quarter. I think this line is almost begging you to take Duke; so you know what that means. Noles by 100.        

4. Ohio State Buckeyes (6-0) This Week: -4.5 vs. Penn State (6-0): Best game, last game. I have wrestled a lot with what I think is going to happen at noon (why?) on Saturday at the Shoe. The Bucks are banged up offensively and will face by far the toughest defense they have played yet. Penn State will be tested overall, for what is the first time all year. If this game doesn’t get you going, I’m not sure what will. 

5. Penn State Nittany Lions (6-0) This Week: +4.5 @ Ohio State (6-0): What I think I am looking forward to the most is: the coaching matchup. James “I cover spreads” Franklin against my close personal friend Ryan Day. The only thing that could make this better would be Urban. No cap. This game didn’t make the final card, but it would go against who I am to not make a pick. State Penn. #Fuck the points (After Ohio scores on Drive #1).    

6. Washington Huskies (6-0) This Week: -28 vs. Arizona State (1-5): The Game of the Week delivered. Michael Penix delivered; as he typically does. With little Caleb’s performance on Saturday night, the southpaw further cemented himself as the Heisman favorite about halfway through the season. It’s probable, if the Playoff was this week, the Huskies would be in; as the champion of the Conference of Champions. It is VERY possible that the Huskies will drop a game (or two?) before they even reach the Conference of Champions championship game. Buckle up.   

7. Oklahoma Sooners (6-0) This Week: -19 vs. UCF (3-3): Sneaky Heisman candidate Dillon Gabriel and the Sooners are back! The Bye Week directly after Red River sort of hid what the Sooners did from the public eye. They vaulted themselves into what is probably control-your-own-destiny territory. An undefeated Sooner team is probably playoff bound! On the flip side? I have to assume a rematch loss against Texas in the Big 12 Championship game (should we get that far) would punch Oklahoma’s ticket the other way. Have to get there first.  

8. Alabama Crimson Tide (6-1) This Week: -9 vs. Tennessee (5-1): After a decent amount of self-reflection; I have come to a realization. The Alabama Crimson Tide are my SEC Champion. Wow. Feels good to get that one out there. I know it isn’t as hot-takey as it feels; but it is a rather unpopular opinion, it seems. Personally, I am not skeptical that Alabama’s offense is not good enough, as everyone else in the country seems to be. As I mentioned earlier, Georgia’s offense took a major hit. They are the Tide’s number one competition in the SEC. I’d feel very comfortable putting my money on Coach Nick Saban to ‘upset’ Georgia in an SEC Championship game they very well could be favored in (I know this is probably not true). Just some food for thought. Per usual.

9. Texas Longhorns (5-1) This Week: -22.5 @ Houston (3-3): As I mentioned earlier: a Big 12 Championship rematch win is Texas’ best (and only) shot at making the Playoff. It’s not going to be necessarily easy, but Texas should be favored by Vegas to win out the rest of the year. Hopefully Sark was reminding his boys of that during the week off. This week? The sneaky hardest game they have left.   

10. Oregon Ducks (5-1) This Week: -20 vs. Washington State (4-2): Don’t fret GTT; the National Championship dream is not over yet. Sure, the Ducks are probably on the outside looking in after last week’s devastating loss to Washington; but as is a common theme, the conference championship rematch is in play. As with (what seems to be) every single Pac 12 team, they will be around the conversation until the very end. Bo Nix, the college Brandon Staley, and the rest of the Ducks will have their work cut out for them.    

11. North Carolina Tar Heels (6-0) This Week: -23.5 vs. Virginia (1-5): I don’t know what it is, but I like the UVA team total over this week (iykyk). I like UNC. I like UNC even more now that Tez Walker has FINALLY been cleared to play. I think they will run the table, with the toughest game coming @Clemson late in the year. That is a game they will more than likely be an underdog in, and I can’t wait to watch them win outright. UNC vs FSU in the ACC Championship is creeping into the back of my mind. I am really hoping they will both be undefeated with a playoff berth on the line.  

12. Oregon State Beavers (6-1) This Week: BYE: The Beavs are going to be in the Top 10 by the beginning of November, if I had to guess. From there? It won’t get easier. They are through the early tough part of their schedule; but will close the year hosting Washington and traveling to Eugene. I have not been very high on Oregon State all year; but the Beavs will definitely be around the conversation until the very last week. I was extremely excited for Washington vs Oregon for weeks; I have a feeling that Washington vs Oregon State will generate the same hype.        

13. Notre Dame Fighting Irish (6-2) This Week: OPEN: Bully ball. That’s about all the explanation needed for what happened on Saturday night in South Bend. Very predictably so, as I (duh) told you this would happen last week. It seems as though the meat of the Irish schedule has finally passed, however it may be too little too late. To quote the Bean Man, “A two-loss season is the Super Bowl for other programs. Not Notre Dame.” Enjoy the week off. The Fighting Irish Faithful are rooting for chaos.  

14. USC Trojans (6-1) This Week: -6.5 vs. Utah (5-1): That’s the Lincoln Riley we all know and love. Fun fact (yes, I will re-post it eventually on jarvisbenjamin.com) Lincoln Riley was one of the inaugural members of the Fraud List. That was a weak and pathetic performance; there is no way around that. USC will have to rebound, and quickly, if they want to save this season somehow. Utah bullied them last year, so theoretically this is a revenge spot. No, I’m not sure if USC has the willpower/strength/mental fortitude (insert insults here) to rebound and beat the Utes. BUT, if they do and the following games matter, USC probably beats Washington. Michael Penix and the Huskies want to play a Lincoln Riley high flying offense type of game; and I’m not sure if there is anyone in the country better at that than Lincoln. More food for thought.           

15. Ole Miss Rebels (5-1) This Week: -6.5 @ Auburn (3-3): Lane Train is just hanging around isn’t he? First off: this line stinks. Second off: the Rebels are off a bye, so they should be ready. Third off: I’m still not dumb enough to back Ole Miss here. I expect Ole Miss to get the job done and stay relevant in the SEC West race (although they did lose to Alabama earlier this year). I don’t really have much else here; except that it feels incredibly similar to last year in Oxford.    

16. Utah Utes (5-1) This Week: +6.5 @ USC (6-1): If you couldn’t already tell: the Conference of Champions has me in a mental pretzel. It seems to me that Cam Rising is not going to play this season, and his next snaps will be at Mercedes Benz Stadium in Atlanta (iykyk); BUT the Utes continue to hang around. Admittedly (as a Ute fan) it is a bit of a poser 5-1, but there are no pictures on the scorecard folks. The Utes have now entered the resume-building portion of the season: @USC, vs Oregon, vs ASU, @Washington, and it is safe to say they can make some national noise. I don’t think I’ll get to the counter for anything less than a TD on Saturday, but I am definitely pulling for them. 

17.  Tennessee Volunteers (5-1) This Week: +9 @ Alabama (6-1): I have already written the Vols off by epic proportions this week. I think that Saban has revenge on his mind; after last year’s epic (again!) matchup in Neyland. If you’ve read this far, you know I have Alabama making a decent run, so that’s probably where this game ends on the moneyline. As for those 9 points? It will come down to Tennessee’s ground game. Every (an exaggeration) big win the Vols have had in the Josh Heupel era has come with success running the football. If Tennessee wants to be in this game at all, they will need to establish the run. Early and often.  

18. Duke Blue Devils (5-1) This Week: +14 @ Florida State (6-0): As I said earlier, this line feels like it’s begging you to take Duke. I don’t think Duke has nearly enough to stay in this game, if I’m being totally honest. The Blue Devils WILL NOT be able to run the ball as easily as they did last week (ricochet shot) and it will be obvious on the scoreboard. I imagine that this game will start a little bit of a Duke slide. Unless they end up under .500, this is the most successful season in Duke Football history. #FootballSchool        

19. LSU Tigers (5-2) This Week: -30 vs. Army (2-4): By no means is LSU a bad football team. This is going to feel like a shot; but as I mentioned earlier, a two-loss season is not a tremendous accomplishment for some programs. LSU is one of those programs. This game is laugh out loud funny. Something about Army heading to Death Valley on a Saturday night just feels off. I may have said this before, but about all LSU has left is a shot to spoil Alabama’s season next week.    

20. Missouri Tigers (6-1) This Week: -7.5 vs. South Carolina (2-4): On the other hand, this is a program that is probably popping champagne after a two-loss season. The crazy part is: it won’t even happen this week! Spencer Rattler and co. come to Mizzou for a game they will almost definitely lose. Unfortunately for these Tiger fans, I’m not sure if a two-loss season is guaranteed. They will travel to Athens next week and host Tennessee the week after. Nothing good in life ever comes easy. Remember that Mizzou fans.  

21. UCLA Bruins (4-2) This Week: -16.5 @ Stanford (2-4): Last week would have been a great game for the Bruins to steal if they wanted to make any noise in the big picture. Oh well. I figure UCLA won’t drop a game until their matchup with USC the week prior to Thanksgiving. There? That would (maybe?) be the ultimate chance to end your crosstown rival’s season. I am rooting for that matchup to have some juice. That is all.  

22. Louisville Cardinals (6-1) This Week: IDLE: The worst ranked team of all time finally got what was coming to them last week. I’m truly not sure how it took that long. (Hopefully) Only one more week of writing about Louisville after they lose next week to Duke. Luckily for Cardinals fans, it’s almost basketball season. Zing!

23. Air Force Falcons (6-0) This Week: -11.5 @ Navy (3-3): As a self-proclaimed Wyoming Cowboys fan, Air Force had 0 business winning that game last week. As promised, I backed Wyoming and said #Fuck the points; and I subsequently lost after the coach attempted a 65 (sort of an exaggeration) yard field goal for the win. Back-breaking stuff. It was that kind of week. I thought about saying #Fuck the points again and backing the Falcons to lose their first game once more; but I realized for every bit up for this game Navy is, you have to figure Air Force is too? Right?  

24. Tulane Green Wave (5-1) This Week: -20 vs. North Texas (3-3): So my beloved Tulane Green Wave have finally made a return to the most prestigious rankings on the internet. The only loss they suffered this year came to Ole Miss (top 15 team) without Michael Pratt (really good starting QB). Hmmmm. Seems like this team might be good. It feels possible that the Green Wave will be headed back to a NY6 bowl and that would be awesome for the program. Tulane’s toughest game remaining is probably the last week of the season vs UTSA, who have not been what anyone expected of them all year. I’d say they have a really good chance to win out.   

25. James Madison Dukes (6-0) This Week: -3.5 @ Marshall (4-2): After some independent research; I have made a troubling discovery. Apparently, since JMU is only in Year 2 of their transition from FCS, they are not technically bowl eligible. I know I am not the only person that thinks this; but that is probably the dumbest rule that currently exists. JMU has five wins against FBS teams (and one against Bucknell) and will probably(?) win the Sun Belt. That team deserves to be bowl eligible! The Dukes’ coach referenced “a fair amount of common sense” being used when it comes to determining their eligibility later in the year. You can never be too sure of what is considered “common sense” when the NCAA is involved. Hopefully, something like this. 

26. Iowa Hawkeyes (6-1) This Week: -5 vs. Minnesota (3-3): I have no idea how (3-0 final?) but this line leads me to believe PJ Fleck is going to win this game.  

27. Liberty Flames (6-0) This Week: -14.5 vs. Middle Tennessee (2-5): Head Coach Jamey Chadwell (shoutout COASTAL) has a real chance to run the table in his first year.  

28. Rutgers Scarlet Knights (5-2) This Week: -5 @ Indiana (2-4): Massive game. To start 5-2 and not make a bowl could be program-altering. 

29. Arizona Wildcats (4-3) This Week: BYE: In well-respected circles, this is the friskiest team in the country. 

30. Texas A&M Aggies (4-3) This Week: OPEN: This could actually be the best 4-3 team EVER. 

Thank you for your time as always. Hopefully by next week’s rankings, the Devils will have started 1 (one) game on time. 

200 years too late. 

Be Well.

JB