San Diego Union-Tribune (Sunday)
Spike in postponements threatens season’s finish
There has been a loose thread in college football’s sweater since September.
This week it was given a big tug, and now we’re this close to the whole thing unraveling.
After 11 weeks of navigating through the most uncharted waters in the game’s 150-year history because of the coronavirus pandemic, postponements and cancellations this week reached an unprecedented level.
About 15 percent of games have been canceled or postponed this season, but that figure jumped to 25 percent in Week 11.
There were 15 games canceled or postponed this week. Six of the games involved top 25 teams, including three of the nation’s five top teams — No. 1 Alabama, No. 3 Ohio State and No. 5 Texas A&M.
The craziest development came Friday after the Pac-12 canceled the UTAH-UCLA game and the Cal-arizona State game because of COVID-19 circumstances with both Utah and ASU.
Since the Bruins didn’t have anyone to play and the Bears didn’t have anyone to play, the Pac-12 said go ahead and play each other. At the Rose Bowl.
On a Sunday.
At 9 a.m.
Today. Sure. Why not? Somehow, Boise State was still able to play Thursday night against Colorado State (and crushed the Rams, 52-21), despite missing 14 players who either tested positive for COVID-19 or were held out because of contact tracing.
No one has called into question the integrity of the season yet. But make no mistake, it’s coming. How could it not? College football postseason matchups — most notably the New Year’s Six games that include the four-team playoff — are supposed to be revealed five weeks from today. Good luck with that. The initial CFP rankings haven’t even been revealed yet. They were scheduled to come out Nov. 17, were postponed until Nov. 24 and it wouldn’t be surprising to see them delayed into December.
Four teams in the top 10 — No. 2 Notre Dame, No. 4 Clemson, No. 8 BYU and No. 9 Miami — have played eight games already this season.
No. 3 Ohio State has played three.
If victorious late Saturday, No. 11 Oregon and No. 13 Wisconsin would both be eyeing the top 10.
They would have 2-0 records.
This situation isn’t suddenly going to disappear next week.
Wisconsin missed two games while its COVID-19 outbreak cleared, and it seems logical other schools will do likewise as they get through their issues.
The CFP committee has been questioned about its decision-making in the past when it was comparing apples to apples.
How is it going to judge a one-loss team that played 11 games with an unbeaten team that played six?
By contrast, most conferences have stipulated that teams need to play no more than two games fewer than the conference average in order to be eligible for their respective conference championship games.
Given what’s swirling around them, Bob Bowlsby, commissioner of the Big 12, said Thursday during a Sirius XM radio interview that delaying the New Year’s Six bowl games or playoff games could be a possibility.
“I am on the CFP operations committee, and we spent some time talking about that,” Bowlsby said. “We have not come to any closure on it, but there is some latitude to postpone it if that need should arise.”
Bill Hancock, executive director of the College Football Playoff, still sounds like everything will go as planned.
Speaking Friday to the Orlando Sentinel, Hancock said, “There are lots of rumors out there, but the commissioners continue to support playing the games as scheduled.”
That reminds me of the chaotic parade scene at the end of “Animal House,” where Kevin Bacon’s character says, “Remain calm. All is well.”
He was trampled.
Heisman Trophy delayed
Count the Heisman Trophy presentation among things impacted by the pandemic.
The announcement has been pushed back to Jan. 5. It will be televised by ESPN, but it will be done virtually.
The deadline for voters to submit their ballots is Dec. 21, with finalists announced three days later.
According to ESPN, Heisman finalists will appear remotely either from their homes or schools.
Host Chris Fowler will be in the network’s Bristol, Conn., studios, although analysts and former Heisman winners Tim Tebow (Florida, 2007) and Desmond Howard (Michigan, 1991) will participate remotely.
Quick hits
• Florida tight end Kyle Pitts missed Saturday’s game against Arkansas and could be out next week against Vanderbilt because of lingering effects from a concussion suffered against Georgia.
Pitts, a potential firstround NFL Draft pick, has 24 catches for 414 yards and eight touchdowns in five games.
• Liberty quarterback Malik Willis had himself a day, completing 14-of-19 passes for 306 yards and three touchdowns while rushing eight times for 97 yards and two more TDS in the No. 22 Flames’ 58-14 win over Western Carolina.
Liberty (8-0), which had never been in the top 25 before this season, now is knocking on a spot in the top 20.
• The name Rice was on the receiving end of a touchdown pass for the first time in who knows how long, with Brenden Rice, the son of Hall of Famer Jerry Rice, catching his first career TD pass — a 34-yarder from Colorado quarterback Sam Noyer in the third quarter — at Stanford. The Buffaloes needed the points in the 35-32 win.