Unlike March Madness, the chaos isn’t scheduled.
But college football fans know that between the months of September and December, there will be at least one weekend that leaves them speechless.
That weekend was last weekend.
The tone was set by Utah State and BYU on Friday night, a game in which Big Blue upset the No. 18 Cougars 35-20.
BYU quarterback and Heisman hopeful Taysom Hill left not only with fractured hopes but a fractured left leg that will effectively end his season.
He wouldn’t be the only one to have his playoff dreams dashed.
A mind-boggling 11 of the top 25 teams in the AP Poll lost, including a record-breaking five of the top eight.
More records were toppled by Washington State quarterback Connor Halliday, who broke the Football Bowl Subdivision record for single-game passing yards with 734.
Even the goalposts could not remain upright in Ole Miss’s upset of No. 3 Alabama in a post-win scene that has been equated to V-J Day in Times Square.
The Rebels’ victory ?highlighted an SEC uprising where Mississippi State and Kentucky defeated Texas A&M and South Carolina, respectively, proving the door is wide open in the most exciting conference in college football.
Meanwhile, the PAC 12 was dealt the biggest shake-up of the weekend.
The conference saw four ranked teams fall, three to other PAC 12 teams, including Arizona State’s triumph against No. 16 USC on a Hail Mary pass that would make Notre Dame’s Touchdown Jesus shed a tear.
Speaking of the Fighting Irish, quarterback Everrett Golson threw a last-minute touchdown pass of his own to defeat the No. 14 Stanford Cardinals and remain a remarkable 16-0 in regular season games.
But what is perhaps most surprising to those college football fans who reside in the Midwest is the state of the Big Ten.
Northwestern defeated No. 17 Wisconsin 20-14 to take sole possession of the Big Ten West Division, and Rutgers celebrated its first Big Ten win against Michigan 26-24.
At 5-1, the Scarlet Knights boast the best overall record in the East Division, and the 2-4 Wolverines have the worst.
In August, those statements would have been unfathomable.
And, amid all the chaos, IU football played exactly as it should, allowing fans to get their fill of drama outside of Memorial Stadium.
What does it mean?
That no matter what sports channel aired in your house, dorm or apartment Saturday, an exhilarating game took place.
And no matter what the odds, teams are willing to do anything to earn the rights to the new College Football Playoff National Championship trophy.
The nation’s finest sport has outdone itself once again.
So while many students will travel home to be with friends and family this fall break, I’m calling up the FBS to schedule my Saturday plans.
What do you say we do it again next weekend?
vziege@indiana.edu
