Raphielle Johnson's Blog

In the era of the "superconference", more leagues are tipping off conference games in the month of December. Tonight, the MAAC, NEC, Ohio Valley and Horizon all had at least one conference game on tap. And with this being a blog on the northeast, I'll focus on the MAAC and NEC openers.

Niagara 89, Rider 77

Before I get started on my BCS rant, here are the five matchups that will take place in January:

Rose: Illinois (9-3) vs. USC (10-2)
Sugar: Hawaii (12-0) vs. Georgia (10-2)
Orange: Kansas (11-1) vs. Virginia Tech (10-2)
Fiesta: West Virginia (10-2) vs. Oklahoma (11-2)
National Title: LSU (11-2) vs. Ohio State (11-1)

MAC: Miami-Ohio vs. Central Michigan (11 AM EST, ESPN)

To be honest, the 2007 college football season has not been for the faint of heart. Close finishes and amazing upsets have made an absolute mess of the college football landscape. But boy has it been fun to watch. With one weekend of games remaining, we’re close to finding out who will play for the national title. But, given the way this season has gone, the only surprise would be that things go exactly as planned. Here’s a recap of week thirteen.

1. Arkansas 50, #1 LSU 48 (3 OT).

10. #7 Georgia @ Georgia Tech, 3:30 PM (ABC)

1. Two more national title contenders fall out of the race.

10. San Diego St. @ Air Force: 2:06 PM EST
The Aztecs and Falcons get together in a game that will go a long way in sorting out the mess behind BYU in the Mountain West. These are two of four teams with two conference losses, and a win in their finale would most likely sew up second place for the Falcons, while the Aztecs are holding out hope for bowl eligibility. No one expected either of these teams to have a shot at second place this late in the year, but here they are. It's also the home finale for Air Force QB Shaun Carney, who seems to have been around since the mid-90s.

1. Illinois comes of age in Columbus.

10. Texas Tech @ #10 Texas (3:30 PM EST, ABC)
This one promises to be a wild affair, but who wins this game could depend entirely upon how well the Red Raiders play on defense. More specifically, can they tame the red-hot Jamaal Charles at running back? Tech will have the edge through the air, but they have proven to be turnover-prone in losses to Missouri and Colorado. With a win, Texas hangs on by their fingernails in the Big 12 South race. Texas Tech, on the other hand, is playing for bowl positioning in addition to bragging rights.

9. Fresno State @ #16 Hawaii (11 PM EST, ESPN2)

Here are some of my observations on the weekend that was in college football.

1. I wouldn’t be surprised if Bill Callahan were fired Monday morning.