Matt's (SOME)DAY MORNING MUSINGS: MIDSEASON MADNESS

Each week, our Executive Director, Matthew Redding (5’11, 185, 4.78 40-yard dash, $4.99 on Wish, 5.49 on TEMU) sits down with a cup of coffee and ponders life in the world of College Football and beyond. Ask him anything on Twitter (@TheBarningMan) and he may answer it next week over his breakfast. This week, he's looking around the landscape of the college football world before the final push into the final playoff...

'Baylor vs. Northwestern State' Photo Credit: Rockin'Rita via Flickr

Apologies for the brief absence. Life got more insane than the Michigan sign-stealing witch hunt.

Let's begin, shall we?

Going back over my initial predictions for the season, it's safe to say that absolutely none of them will come true. The idea was to be bold and wild, but now we (unfortunately) sit here with 2/3rds of the season behind us and the final weeks of rivalry week, championship week, and bowl season right around the corner.

So, instead of being crazed with insane what-if scenarios, let's look at what may lie ahead in Matt's (Some)Day Morning Musing.

1. THE NEXT ARKANSAS HEAD COACH WILL BE - Gus Malzahn. Okay, kidding, but he'll get an interview because of his SEC Championships and homecoming discount price. In reality, this job is for Phil Longo or Jeff Lebby to take over. Arkansas has looked putrid at times and it's clear that they need a shot in the arm after wasting KJ Jefferson's career. No disrespect to Sam Pittman, who absolutely righted the ship for the Hogs, but unfortunately it'll be time for a change after going 8-12 in the regular season since last year.

2. JIM HARBAUGH BECOMES THE HIGHEST PAID COACH IN THE B1G - That's right. We're hearing reports that Michigan lawyers and boosters met this morning and decided to move forward with the extension, and if Jim hasn't left for the NFL by now, then I think he's content with where he's at. Plus, with the talent he's bringing in with his 15th-ranked recruiting class (headlined by QB Jadyn Davis) the Wolverine's future looks bright enough to outshine any ridiculous sign-stealing scandal.

3. URBAN MEYER TAKES THE TEXAS A&M JOB - Because Jimbo Fisher gets let go after another disappointing 8-4 campaign and because Brian Hartline (Ohio State OC) takes the Michigan State job. I know, this hire might ruffle some feathers at first, but when Meyer wins his obligatory national title before retiring because of his health, Aggie fans will forget about Jacksonville and Ohio State.

4. LINCOLN RILEY BOLTS FOR THE CHICAGO BEARS - And they draft Caleb Williams #1 overall. At this point, I am convinced that Alex Grinch has discriminating photos of Lincoln Riley somewhere in his office, and that's the only reason he hasn't been fired yet. The argument for college coaches not working out in the NFL is very valid, given the recent history, but the last time USC put a coach in the NFL was Pete Carroll and he now has both a college national title and a Super Bowl ring. Besides, what could go wrong when Patrick Mahomes Jr is your QB, right? (wrong, but they'll hire him anyways, recent history be damned).

5. YOUR HEISMAN WINNER IS - Bo Nix, Quarterback, Oregon. Yeah, that's right. Auburn fans get another slap in the face and watch the chosen one do everything he was supposed to do at Auburn with the Ducks instead. It's been absolute misery watching him be everything we knew he was somewhere else, but good for him. After how bad our previous coaching staff was, who can blame him? Currently, the kid sits at 2,337 yards through the air, 27 TD's, and 1 interception. The Ducks are 7-1 (and would have been 8-0 if Dan Lanning didn't try to get cute vs. Washington) and are in prime position to knock off USC, Oregon State, and potentially Washington in a rematch for the last Pac-12 title. If he continues to play clean and gets the Ducks to the playoffs, go ahead and give it to him.

6. GEORGIA DROPS A GAME BEFORE THE PLAYOFF - The Bulldogs will go to the CFP regardless, but at some point, the Brock Bowers injury will catch up to them. The remaining opponents on their schedule feature top-ten Ole Miss and two top-25 teams in Missouri and Tennessee, who both have playmakers on offense, and the SEC West opponent in Atlanta will either be a suddenly resurrected and pissed-off Alabama or an LSU team that's arguably better than last years squad. For a Georgia team that's talented, but struggled to beat mediocre competition in South Carolina and Auburn, that spells trouble.

7. EDDIE GEORGE TAKES A POWER FIVE JOB - In the business of football, it's a world of copycats. THIS school hired an offensive guru, so THAT school hired an offensive guru from the same coaching tree, etc. After seeing what Deion Sanders has done for Colorado, which was a program dead in the water after going 1-11 last year, there's bound to be some P5 program that's desperate enough to try and replicate that success, if anything just to get people talking about the brand again. Enter Eddie George, Tennessee State University's head coach who currently has the Tigers at 6-2 and the players absolutely love. Would he have the same impact as Coach Prime? maybe not in the win-loss column, but someone is going to appear in the headlines more often than not (like, say, Virginia?)

8. THE FINAL FOUR TEAMS ARE - Georgia, Ohio State, Florida State, Oregon. Yes, Oregon. I think Washington drops a game vs USC and then loses to a one-loss Oregon in the Pac-12 title rematch.

9. THE NEW JIMBO FISHER MEDIA HOT SEAT DARLING ENTERING 2024 - Dabo Swinney. I think he's a fine guy who did some fine stuff for the Tigers, winning two national titles and building up the brand with two first-round quarterbacks, but Trevor Lawrence and Deshaun Watson play on Sundays now. DJ Uiagalelei was run out of town because Cade Klubnik was apparently better, but now DJ shines for Oregon State, while Klubnik looks lost in Garret Riley's system. Dabo squandered a playoff appearance last year, settling for a 10-win Orange Bowl season, and now sits at 4-4 with losses to Duke and North Carolina State. His refusal to embrace the modern day of college football and read talent at the game's most important position is about to cost him, and 2024 will be a make-or-break year for the former title-winning coach.

10. IT'S GONNA BE A GREAT PLAYOFF - What better way to end the last four-team playoff than with a bang? Whether it's Washington, Oregon, Georgia, Michigan, Ohio State, Alabama, or heck even Ole Miss, this year's list of contenders has some names to watch, and it's only going to make us miss the season even more... Until next time.

- M