College Football Roundup: Bears' Big Game Comeback, SEC Eats Crow, Playoff Outlook, Foul Owls, Big Money Flips No. 1 Recruit

In one of the more exciting and well-played Big Games in recent years, Cal stormed back from a 14-point deficit to beat Stanford 24-21 on Saturday.

Stanford led 21-7 midway through the third quarter, and after Cal fumbled a kickoff, had a chance to go up by 17, but botched the hold on a 36-yard field goal attempt. 

A week earlier, Stanford was down by 14 in the fourth quarter and scored 17 straight points to beat Louisville. This time Cal scored 17 straight to overtake the Cardinal.

The Bears had to drive 98 yards for the game winning TD after a Stanford punt pinned them on the two-yard line. Quarterback Fernando Mendoza, who had trouble connecting with his receivers in the first half, caught fire in the second. He completed nine of his last 10 passes, including the decisive 22-yard TD to Jonathan Brady.

The win made the Bears bowl-eligible at 6-5, with next week's game against league-leader SMU left to play, while Stanford was relegated to its sixth straight season with no more than four wins. The Cardinal (3-8) finishes at San Jose State next week in what will not be a cakewalk.

This was the first Big Game with Stanford and Cal as members of the ACC. Both schools had to scramble to find a new home after the Pac-12's implosion, one that resulted in numerous 3,000 mile trips across the country this fall to play conference foes, The Big Game was televised on the ACC Network, which isn't available in many places and probably drew few viewers outside the Bay Area.

But it was still a Big Game to Stanford and Cal fans, and an enthusiastic crowd of 52,428 filled most of Cal's Memorial Stadium, a refreshing change from the paltry assemblages that have shown up at Stanford home games this year.

And for many of the Cal players--Mendoza, in particular--it was a career-defining moment that will live in Big Game lore forever.

Watching Mendoza's emotional and eloquent post-game interview, my wife and I had tears in our eyes.

This is clearly an exceptional young man.

SEC Eats Crow: All week, the media and SEC propagandists were discrediting undefeated Indiana and claiming the Hoosiers shouldn't be ranked ahead of two-loss SEC teams because of their weak schedule.

Yes, Indiana absorbed a lop-sided loss to No. 2 Ohio State Saturday in a game that was decided by special teams' gaffes.

But it was a very bleak day for the SEC.

Three ranked SEC teams--all contenders for the College Football Playoff--lost to unranked teams. Alabama was embarrassed by Oklahoma, 24-3, Ole Miss lost to Florida, 24-17, and Texas A&M lost in four overtimes to Auburn, 43-41.

After a brilliant win over Georgia two weeks ago, Ole Miss coach Lane Kiffin reverted to his usual "can't win the big ones" mode. Twice on fourth-and-one deep in Florida territory, Kiffin gave the ball to 325-pound defensive tackle J.J. Pegues, who was stuffed on both attempts.

Then, with two chances in the last four minutes, Ole Miss quarterback Jaxson Dart, the transfer from USC, threw horrible, back-to-back interceptions.

Alabama couldn't do anything against Oklahoma, and has lost three games for the first time in 14 seasons. The heat is already on first-year coach Kalen DeBoer.

Playoff Outlook: So scratch Ole Miss and Alabama from the College Football Playoff. Likewise A&M, unless it upsets Texas this weekend.

This means that the conference that everyone assumed would be getting four or five teams in the first 12-team playoff will probably land a maximum of three--Texas, Georgia, and Tennessee.

The Big Ten will most likely get four teams in--Oregon, Ohio State, Penn State and Indiana--unless the Hoosier tank against a weak Purdue team.

Meanwhile, the SEC's loss could be the ACC's gain. 

Shockingly, new member SMU is in first place in the league and headed for the conference championship game against either Miami or Clemson. Two ACC teams should make the playoff.

The Big 12 will probably only get one team in. Four teams are tied at the top of the conference--surprising Arizona State, fading BYU, controversial Colorado, and steady Iowa State.

ASU has recovered quickly from the Herm Edwards debacle with second-year coach and alum Kenny Dillingham. The Sun Devils, 3-9 a year ago and picked last in the conference, may finish 15 spots higher.

Notre Dame and presumed Mountain West champ Boise State will round out the playoff field.

Foul Year for Owls: There are four schools in major college football that have Owls as their mascots. All four have fired their head coaches this season.

Rice fired head coach Mike Bloomgren, the former Stanford assistant, in October after six-plus seasons and a 24-52 overall record.

Temple fired Stan Drayton earlier this month after he recorded nine wins in three seasons.

Kennesaw State fired Brian Bohannon last week, the first and only coach in the program's history, who went 72-38 in 10 seasons but was only 1-8 this year, the school's first playing at the FBS level.

Florida Atlantic last week fired Tom Herman, the former Houston and Texas head coach, who went 6-16 in less than two full seasons. In 10 years, Herman has gone from being the hottest coach in the country to a guy who can't hold a job at FAU.

Being a head coach in college football is a grind, one that's gotten much tougher because of NIL and the transfer portal.

Apparently, it's even tougher if you work for a school with Owls as your mascot.

Money Talks: Five-star quarterback prospect Bryce Underwood, the top ranked high school player in the nation in the class of 2025, has flipped his commitment from LSU to Michigan.

Underwood is from Belleville, about 30 minutes down the road from Ann Arbor. According to multiple reports, Underwood had verbally accepted an NIL deal worth $1.5 million annually from LSU, which would have made him the highest paid player on the team. 

At Michigan, however, Underwood is reportedly being offered $10 million over four years. That was enough to persuade him to abandon the Tigers and stay home.

A certain former Michigan quarterback, seven-time Super Bowl champion Tom Brady, was apparently involved in changing Underwood's mind.

And some of the greenbacks to pay him came from an unlikely source, Oracle founder Larry Ellison, whose wife, Jolin, is a Michigan alum.

The chairman of the Wolverine's Champions Circle NIL collective, Nate Forbes, made a point of thanking the Ellisons for "making this happen by providing invaluable guidance and financial resources." Hmmm...

Underwood's flip was yet another bad day for LSU coach Brian Kelly, who's had a lot of them this year.

And it couldn't happen to a nicer guy.