Odds and Ends 9/17/25

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Welcome Back!


After 3 weeks, there is finally quite a bit to look at. 


Interconference results


Here is where we stand so far:

Overall:

1) SEC-         35-3/.921
2) Big Ten-     41-8/.837
3) Big 12-     32-9/.780
4) American    25-12/.676
5) ACC-          29-14/.674
6) MWC-         19-12/.613
7) SBC-             17-21/.447
8) CUSA-         13-17/.433
9) Pac 12-         3-4/.429
10) MAC        10-25/.286
11) Ind            1-4/.200
12) FCS        4-100/.038

The SEC remains the overall leader, but it's not a huge lead. The American Conference continues to  lead the G5, even moving ahead of the ACC. The SBC, CUSA, Pac 12, Independents, and MAC all have a losing record.


vs FBS:

1) SEC            26-3/.897
2) Big Ten    27-8/.771
3) Big 12        18-9/.667
4) American    14-11/.560
5) ACC            16-14/.533
6) MWC        9-12/.429
7) CUSA        5-16/.238
8) Pac 12    1-4/.200
9) SBC        5-21/.192
10) MAC        4-23/.148
11) FCS           4-100/.038
12) Ind        0-4/.000

Again, the SEC is in the lead, with the Big Ten fairly close behind. The American leads the G5, and are again above the ACC. All other G5 conferences have a losing record, meaning their overall record is propped up with wins over FCS squads. Independents are still winless against other FBS teams.



vs P4 (Notre Dame included, Pac 12 and UConn are not):

1) SEC            10-2/.833
2) Big 12          7-7/.500
3) Big Ten        5-5/.500
4) American      4-7/.364
5) ACC            5-11/.313
6) MWC            3-8/.272
7) SBC            1-14/.067
8) MAC          1-18/.056
9) Pac 12          0-2/.000
10) Ind                0-3/.000
11) CUSA          0-10/.000
12) FBS            0-50/.000

The SEC also leads this category, as there are 4 groups without a win. Again, the American Conference has a better record than the ACC. Interestingly, the Big Ten, the conference with the most teams, has played fewer P4 teams (10) than any other conference. Only the SEC has a winning record.


vs G5:

1) SEC            16-1/.941
4) ACC            11-3/.786
2) Big Ten        22-3/.880
3) Big 12        11-2/.846
5) American    10-4/.714
6) MWC         6-4/.600
10) Pac 12        1-2/.333
8) MAC            3-5/.375
9) SBC            2-4/.333
7) CUSA        5-6/.454
11) FCS            4-50/.074
12) Ind            0-1/.000

The SEC is near undefeated vs G5 teams, with the other 3 P4 conferences close behind. The American and the MWC have winning records against their peer conferences.



Intraconference results

The Sun Belt West leads the East 1-0


Undefeated/Winless teams

The following teams are undefeated with a 3-0 record (unless otherwise indicated):

Arizona
Auburn
BYU (2-0)
California
FSU (2-0)
Georgia
Georgia Tech
Houston
Illinois
Indiana
Iowa State (4-0)
Louisville (2-0)
LSU
Maryland
Memphis
Miami, Fl
Michigan State
Mississippi State
Missouri
Navy
NC State
Nebraska
North Texas
Ohio State
Oklahoma
Ole Miss
Oregon
Penn State
Rutgers
TCU (2-0)
Texas A&M
Texas Tech
Tulane
UCF (2-0)
UNLV 
USC
Utah
Vanderbilt
Washington (2-0)

39 out of 136 teams (28.7%) remain undefeated. 

Here is how many from each conference are still undefeated:

Big Ten    11 out of 18/.611
SEC     9-16/.563
Big 12    8-16/.500
ACC    6-17/.353
American    4-14/.285
MWC    1-12/.083
Pac 12    0-2/.000
Independents 0-2/.000
CUSA    0-10/.000
MAC    0-13/.000
SBC    0-14/.000


The following teams have yet to win a game (0-2 unless otherwise indicated):

Akron
Eastern Michigan
Miami, Oh (0-2)
Notre Dame (0-2)
Oregon State
Sam Houston 
San Jose State (0-2)
UCLA
UMass
Virginia Tech
Western Michigan

11 teams remain winless (8.1%).

This is how many from each conference are still winless:

MAC    4 out of 13 teams
SBC    0-14
CUSA    1-10
American    0-14
Ind     1-2
Pac 12    1-2
MWC    1-12
ACC     1-17
Big Ten     1-18
SEC    0-16
Big 12    0-16


The following teams have a win, but no FBS wins:

Air Force
Arkansas State
Ball State
Boise State
Boston College
Charlotte
Coastal Carolina
Colorado State
Duke
FAU
Florida
Georgia State
James Madison
Kansas State
Kennesaw State
Kent State
Liberty
Louisiana
Marshall
Nevada
Northern Illinois
Northwestern
Oklahoma State
San Diego State
South Alabama
Troy
Tulsa
UConn
ULM
UTEP
UTSA
Virginia

32 teams (23.5%) do not have an FBS win.
This is how many teams of each conference fall into this category:

SBC-9
MWC-5
CUSA-3
MAC-3
American-4
Big 12-2
ACC-3
Big Ten-1
Ind- 1
SEC-1
Pac 12-0

Bowl eligible/eliminated

I will start listing these as soon as teams become bowl eligible (6 wins) or eliminated (7 losses). Look for this in mid- to late-October.


Paul's Playoff Picks

All of my picks are still in play (obviously), but Kansas State's possible bid is all but gone.

As a refresher, here is the setup for the CFP:

5 slots are reserved for the 5 highest ranked conference champions; 7 slots are at-large (any team)
The top 4 seeds get a bye for the 1st round. This year, there are no allowances made for conference champions beyond being accepted into the field. The next 4 seeds get a home game for the 1st round, and the 9-12 seeds travel to play 4-8 (4 vs 12, 5 vs 11, etc.). Teams are not reseeded after the 1st round. After the 1st round, it plays out like any tournament- quarterfinals, semifinals, then finals, all at neutral sites (which I hope will change in future years).

Here is who I think makes it into this year's 12-team CFP, presented in no particular order:

Georgia
Ohio State- still undefeated
Clemson- 2 losses already make it difficult
Kansas State- just 1-3, on the verge of elimination
Notre Dame- 2 losses already
Boise State- blown out by USF
Texas- close loss to OSU
Alabama- lost to FSU by 14
Oregon- still undefeated
Penn State- still undefeated
Georgia Tech- still undefeated
LSU- still undefeated


Here is the list of the next most likely teams to get in:


Oklahoma- still undefeated
Ole Miss- still undefeated
Tennessee- close loss to UGA in OT
Michigan- loss to Oklahoma
Iowa- loss to Iowa State
Illinois- still undefeated
Indiana- still undefeated
USC- still undefeated
Miami, Fl- still undefeated
SMU- loss to Baylor
Louisville- still undefeated
BYU- still undefeated
Arizona State- loss to lowly Miss State
Iowa State- still undefeated
Baylor- loss to Auburn
Utah- still undefeated
Tulane- still undefeated
Army- lost to FCS team, but beat Kansas St
Memphis- still undefeated
San Jose State- lost to a MAC team
UNLV- still undefeated
James Madison- loss at Louisville by only 14
Georgia Southern- routed by Fresno St and USC
Louisiana- lost to Rice
Texas State- loss to Arizona State
Toledo- close loss to Kentucky
Ohio- 3 pt loss to Rutgers, but upset win vs WVU
Liberty- still no FBS wins
WKU- loss to Toledo

This is obviously an extensive list, because I basically listed every P4 team with a chance to get 9+ wins, and every G5 team that I think could get 10+ wins. I am 99.9% sure that I will be wrong about much of this, but I would be happy if I get at least 6 of the 12 teams right, and if all 12 come from these 2 lists.


I'll update how my picks are doing each Wednesday throughout the season.




Feel free to leave a comment. Come back tomorrow for Paul's Picks! 

Until next time, may you and your loved ones be blessed!    

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