Behind The Scoreboard

Week 11 in college football brought on a wild and chaotic Saturday afternoon that left some of us surprised or maybe upset – it depends on which teams you were cheering for.

So, let’s cut right to the chase, starting with the Alabama Crimson Tide versus the Mississippi State Bulldogs. All week long the Bulldogs had been riding high after an upset (35-28) of the Texas A&M Aggies.

This big win for the Bulldogs raised some questions. One in particular – can the Bulldogs make it two huge upsets in a row? Was this possible for MSU to pull it off – twice? Well, no disrespect to MSU fans, but the Bulldogs didn’t stand a chance nor did they pose a threat to Nick Saban and his Crimson Tide.

Jalen Hurts’ prolific performance wiped out any concerns that the Tide would have a letdown after a slugfest win at LSU. No. 1 Alabama routed Miss State 51-3. Hurts delivered his best game ever and Alabama’s defense denied MSU the end zone on nine trips across midfield.

And on his accomplishments, Hurts is the first Alabama player to have 300 yards passing and 100 yards rushing in the same game. He was approaching those milestones by half-time.

Now, with Auburn’s unbelievable loss at Georgia, Alabama has clinched the SEC West title. Alabama will host the 2016 Iron Bowl.

Remember last week about the big controversy in regards to Texas A&M being ranked above the unbeaten Washington? Well, here’s the shocker – the Washington Huskies have joined the one-loss club too. USC knocked off No. 4 Washington 26-13 Saturday night, snapping the Huskies’ 12-game winning streak and damaging their playoff chances. But fortunately for Washington, there is still a path to the playoffs, maybe just not as clearly as defined before the loss. The Huskies can still win the PAC-12 North with wins against Arizona State and Washington State in the next couple of weeks. And as for No. 20 USC’s win, it has created much chaos in the CFP picture and a boost for the Trojans’ PAC-12 title chances.

Alcorn State cruised past Mississippi Valley State 61-7 on Saturday. This was the Braves’ fourth straight win over the Delta Devils. Alcorn has outscored MVSU 203-58 in the four seasons.

And now, Alcorn State has clinched the East division title after Alabama A&M defeated Jackson State 27-20 on Saturday.  Alcorn State has won seven consecutive games against the SWAC’s East division dating back to last year.