Early college football notes … There are still plenty of games to be played, but we have the first confirmed conference championship game match-up. That will be top-ranked Georgia against LSU in the SEC title game in Atlanta on December 3rd. And without a berth in the conference title game, it would appear that Alabama’s hopes of making the 4-team CFP playoff with 2 losses are down to slim and none. The Tide did avoid the ignominy of having to endure a third opponent storming the field in the past 6 weeks with a 30-24 win at Mississippi, but LSU clinched the SEC West title with a win at Arkansas. In the game, Alabama QB Bryce Young didn’t put up huge numbers – he completed 21 of 33 passes for 209 yards and 3 scores – but we suspect that pro scouts came away impressed even more by his pocket presence, movement skills and overall ‘coolness.’ Also interesting to note in that game that RBs Jahmyr Gibbs of Alabama and Ole Miss’ Zach Evans, both of whom are generally considered to be among the top 3-4 prospects at the position, appear to have been benched as neither saw the field in the second half … It was a mixed bag for the other top-rated QBs for the 2023 draft. Tennessee’s Hendon Hooker had a terrific game as the Vols stayed in the national playoff win with a crushing 66-14 win over Missouri; Hooker completed 25 of 35 passes for 355 yards and 3 scores in a nice bounce-back outing after UT’s loss to Georgia last week. Ohio State’s CJ Stroud also piled up the numbers as he threw for 5 scores and just under 300 yards in a 56-14 romp over Indiana. However, Stroud was also a little bit inaccurate at times as he completed just 60% of his passes. Of note in that game, RB Miyan Williams, who had run for 147 yards in the first half, was carted off with a leg injury. That could be problematic for the Buckeyes when they play Michigan in two weeks as OSU was already without star soph RB Treveyon Henderson has also been sidelined of late. However, it was a very different story for Kentucky’s Will Levis, who completed just 11 of 23 passes for barely over 100 yards as the Wildcats suffered an embarrassing home loss to Vanderbilt; that would be the same Vanderbilt that entered the game on a 26-game conference losing streak … Elsewhere, Miami QB Tyler Van Dyke did not play in today’s game against Georgia Tech. Van Dyke, who was considered to be one of the top prospects at the position at the start of the season, re-injured his shoulder on his throwing arm that was originally injured last month, in last week’s game with Florida State. Got to wonder at this time whether Van Dyke would be far better served by returning to school next fall … On the other hand, star TCU WR Quentin Johnston is playing in tonight’s big game at Texas. If healthy, Johnston is a top 15-20 prospect for the upcoming draft, but scouts have been concerned about his durability as he has missed several games so far this year.
