Key scenarios to watch in Rivalry Week

Nothing defines college football like Rivalry Week, and the 2024 regular season finale means even more this year with the expansion of the College Football Playoff as auto-bid and at-large contenders enter the playoff picture hope to use their final game as a starting point for Championship Weekend and for the lucky dozen playoff selection and beyond.

Where do things stand in the conference championship picture as we approach the final regular season games this weekend?

Here’s what you need to know about which schools won in the Power Four and Group of Five conferences entering Week 14 and who can do it.

Who is there: SMU has secured one of the spots in the ACC Championship Game.

Worth knowing: Miami can clinch second place in this game if it beats Syracuse this weekend, while Clemson will rely on the Hurricanes to lose to the Orange.

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Who is there: Oregon will play for the Big Ten title in its first conference season.

Worth knowing: Ohio State will clinch a spot in the Big Ten Championship Game if it beats Michigan or if Penn State and Indian both lose.

But: Penn State advances with a win over Maryland and Ohio State loses to Michigan.

And: Indiana gets there with a win over Purdue and losses at both Ohio State and Penn State.

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Who is there: Nobody yet.

Worth knowing: The simple explanation is that the two teams that finish 7-2 in conference play advance to the Big 12 Championship Game. If there is a four-way tie at the top of the standings, as is the case this week, we will see Arizona State vs. Iowa State.

Otherwise? Here’s what you need to know about the Big 12 title hunt in Week 14.

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Who is there: Georgia has secured a spot in the SEC Championship Game.

Worth knowing: The winner of the highly anticipated Texas vs. Texas A&M rivalry game will face the Bulldogs in Atlanta with a chance at a likely bye in the first round of the College Football Playoff to whoever wins the SEC crown.

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Who is there: Jacksonville State won and will host the CUSA Championship Game.

Worth knowing: Liberty comes into the game with a win over Sam Houston; Western Kentucky wins by beating Jacksonville State combined with a loss against Liberty; Sam Houston has to beat Liberty and make Western Kentucky lose to Jacksonville State.

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Who is there: Nobody yet.

Worth knowing: Miami wins by beating Bowling Green or losing and losing to Ohio and Buffalo.

Or: Bowling Green gets into the game with a win against Miami or a loss against Buffalo and Ohio, with another tiebreaker scenario where Bowling Green makes it with a loss combined with a Ball State win over Ohio and a win from Central Michigan via Northern Illinois.

And: Ohio wins by beating Ball State or by losing and a spectacle of other tiebreaker scenarios involving every other team in the league.

On the other hand: Buffalo can get in if Ohio loses to Ball State, Miami beats Bowling Green, Eastern Michigan beats Western Michigan and NIU beats Central Michigan.

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Who is there: Boise State has secured a spot in the Mountain West Championship Game and is the Group of Five consensus favorite in the College Football Playoff. This week they go into the new group as the expected number 4 with a possible bye in the first round.

Worth knowing: Colorado State advances with a win against Utah State if UNLV loses to Nevada, while UNLV will face the Broncos this week if it wins.

But: If both Colorado State and UNLV win, the team ranked higher in the College Football Playoff rankings will face the Broncos.

And: If both lose, a computer metric will decide who plays Boise State between Colorado State and UNLV.

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Who is there: Nobody yet.

Worth knowing: Marshall wins the East Division by beating James Madison or Georgia Southern and losing to Appalachian State.

And: Georgia Southern clinched the East Division and a spot for the Sun Belt title by defeating Appalachian State and Marshall losing to James Madison.

But: Louisiana-Lafayette can win the West Division by beating UL-Monroe or South Alabama losing to Texas State.

Also: South Alabama advances with a win over Texas State and Louisiana-Lafayette loses to UL-Monroe.

Don’t forget: If there is a three-way tie between Louisiana-Lafayette, South Alabama and Arkansas State, then South Alabama wins the tiebreaker.

Finally: Arkansas State can share its division title but cannot play in the Sun Belt title game.

In summary: Marshall and Louisiana-Lafayette are in control, with Marshall coming into the game with a win over James Madison, while Louisiana-Lafayette takes the win with a win over UL-Monroe.

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