Michigan marks the hardest test all season for the Huskies. But Washington’s shown it can win with defense, as it edged both Oregon State and Washington State with rock-solid defensive efforts. They’ll need that one more time to claim the crown.
The Cardinals have known for a long time that they were going nowhere in 2023, but they haven’t played like it. Given the Seahawks’ tendency to play close games, they’ll have to keep up on offense if they want to give themselves a chance at the postseason.
Jake Browning’s playing for his next job and gets one more chance to get some game tape for his next contract. That makes Cincinnati far more dangerous than Cleveland, as the Browns lack any real motivation.
New Orleans has a major success allergy: the Saints tend to follow up wins with failing to cover the next week. For the year, New Orleans has gone 1-5-1 ATS the week after a victory, and the Saints are just 3-10-1 ATS after a win under Dennis Allen.
On the other side of the coin, Atlanta’s been fading down the stretch, losing three of its past four. But the Falcons beat up the Saints on the ground in Week 12, and they’ve had the most success against bad run defenses.
Alabama isn’t supposed to be here. The Crimson Tide didn’t earn their way in; they got gifted their spot by Florida State losing Jordan Travis to injury. But they’re here now, and they’re dangerous as a result. That’s especially true for Michigan, as the Wolverines haven’t exactly faced much of a challenge this year.
The Longhorns might have the wrong matchup for this game in Washington’s pass attack. If the Longhorns can’t stop the pass, the Huskies likely have another upset win on their hands.
How will LSU handle life without Jayden Daniels? The Tigers built so much of their offense around the Heisman winner, and now they’ve got to play without him with Daniels opting out of the bowl game. That means Garrett Nussmeier becomes the quarterback, and his first start is against a middling Wisconsin squad.
The Brian Ferentz era ends with a game against a Tennessee team that was just kind of there this season. The Volunteers had one pratfall against a bad Florida team, but otherwise managed to beat the teams they should while losing to the teams stronger than they were.
After skating through 2023 without playing anyone of substance, Liberty gets its shot at the big boys in facing Oregon. This might be a little more than the Flames bargained for, however, as they played one of the weakest schedules in the nation. This might be reminiscent of when Georgia met Hawai’i in the Sugar Bowl 15 years ago.