Sooners make their case
Oklahoma now waiting to see if it gets playoff ticket
ARLINGTON, Texas — No. 6 Oklahoma has done all it can, winning a fifth Big 12 title in a row with another close win over No. 8 Baylor.
Now the Sooners wait to see if they are going to get in back in the College Football Playoff. That is up to the selection committee.
“I hope they see the Big 12 champions. They’ve got a job to do, I get that,” coach Lincoln Riley said after Oklahoma’s 30-23 overtime win Saturday.
“We’ve had a job to do as a team, which was continuing to improve through the year, trust the things that we could and ultimately win the Big 12 championship,” he said. “We’ve done that.”
Rhamondre Stevenson had a 5-yard touchdown run in overtime, and then true freshman Jacob Zeno — whose two long passes in the fourth quarter helped tie the game — was under constant pressure when the Bears got their last chance.
A day after No. 5 Utah lost in the Pac-12 championship game, and before No. 4 Georgia took on No. 1 LSU for the SEC title, Oklahoma (12-1, No. 6 CFP) became the first team in any league to win 10 conference championship games. It was the 13th Big 12 title overall for the Sooners, who went to the playoff three of the past four seasons.
Big 12 commissioner Bob Bowlsby said he likes the league’s case for a playoff spot.
It was the second time in four games that Oklahoma beat the Bears (11-2, No. 7 CFP), who in coach Matt Rhule’s debut season two years ago lost 11 games with a depleted roster in the aftermath of a scandal that led to the firing of two-time
Big 12 champion coach Art Briles.
No. 1 LSU 37, No. 4 Georgia 10: Joe Burrow finished off what seems like his Heisman Trophy coronation with another dazzling performance and No. 1 LSU locked up a spot in the College Football Playoff for the first time, dominating No. 4 Georgia 37-10 in the Southeastern Conference championship game Saturday.
The Tigers, going for their first national title since 2007 season, will either return to Atlanta or head west to suburban Phoenix for a semifinal game on Dec. 28. Their bowl site and opponent will be announced on Sunday, but they surely made a persuasive case to be the top overall seed in the four-team field.
Burrow was all over the stat sheet for LSU (13-0, No. 2 CFP). He threw for 349 yards and four touchdowns. He was the Tigers' secondleading rusher with 41 yards on 11 carries, often leaving the Bulldogs grasping at air as he twirled this way and that. He even caught a pass on a ball that was batted down at the line and wound up his arms, taking off for a 16-yard gain.
No. 16 Memphis 29, Cincinnati 24: Antonio Gibson caught a 6-yard touchdown pass from Brady White with 1:14 left and No. 16 Memphis defeated No. 21 Cincinnati in the American Athletic Conference championship game. The victory marked the first time Memphis (12-1, No. 17, CFP) has won the AAC title in its third straight conference championship game. The Tigers now wait for an invitation to the Cotton Bowl as the highestranked Group of Five team.
No. 19 Boise State 31, Hawaii 10: Jaylon Henderson threw for 220 yards and two touchdowns and ran for another score to lead No. 19 Boise State to a 31-10 victory over Hawaii in the Mountain West championship game Saturday.
Boise State (12-1, No. 19 CFP) won its second conference title in three years, beating Hawaii again this season after winning the Oct. 12th meeting, 59-37. After rolling up 518 yards of offense in the first game, the Broncos leaned on their defense in the rematch.
The Broncos made two defensive stands inside the 5, once in the second quarter and another early in the third.
Hawaii (9-5) was making its first appearance in the title game. It enjoyed some success through the air with Cole McDonald passing for 241 yards, but couldn't overcome early problems in the red zone
Florida Atlantic 49, Alabama-Birmingham 6:
Chris Robison threw for 267 yards and four touchdowns, BJ Emmons ran for a pair of scores and Florida Atlantic rolled past UAB 49-6 on Saturday for the Owls’ second Conference USA title in Kiffin’s three seasons as coach.
Malcolm Davidson rushed for 128 yards and Deangelo Antoine had five catches for 112 yards for the Owls (10-3), who had no trouble with the league’s top-ranked defense. UAB (9-4) allowed a season-high in points and a season-high 585 yards.
FAU coach Lane Kiffin announced after the game that he was leaving to take the vacant head coaching job at Ole Miss.