Spartans Shadows staff college football pick ‘em: Championship Week edition

Championship Week of the college football season is here and that means it’s time for our weekly Spartan Shadows staff pick ’em.

Hey all, welcome back to the college football pick ‘em. What a weekend. First of all, I hope everyone had a safe and Happy Thanksgiving. Holy college football craziness this past weekend, though.

We had another push in our pick ‘em (more on that later). The Lions came out flatter than Aunt Betty’s special Thanksgiving punch. We had our Spartans get drubbed against Penn State but then salvaged our sports weekend by hiring new head coach Jonathan Smith from Oregon State. Speaking of Oregon State, they fell victim to probably one of the hottest teams in football during the Civil War last weekend.

Michigan squeaked out a win against Ohio State proving that Ryan Day may just be James Franklin with better talent around him. Florida State also won a close one against in-state rival Florida, however without Jordan Travis, many are questioning how far Florida State can go.

Let’s check out the results.

Week 13 results

• Packers at Lions — Line: Lions -7.5; Result: Green Bay cover
• No. 13 Ole Miss at Mississippi State — Line: Ole Miss -10; Result: Push
• Texas Tech at No. 7 Texas — Line: Texas -12.5; Result: Texas cover
• No. 11 Oregon State at No. 6 Oregon — Line: Oregon -13.5; Result: Oregon cover
• No. 2 Ohio State at No. 3 Michigan — Line: Michigan -3.5; Result: Michigan cover
• No. 8 Alabama at Auburn — Line: Alabama -14.5; Result: Auburn cover
• Washington State at No. 5 Washington — Line: Washington -16.5; Result: Washington State cover
• No. 4 Florida State at Florida — Line: Florida State -6.5; Result: Florida State cover
• No. 20 North Carolina at NC State — Line: UNC -3; Result: NC State cover
• No. 11 Penn State vs. Michigan State — Line: Penn State -21.5; Result: Penn State cover

There were some one-sided rivalry games this weekend. Penn State, Oregon, Texas, and honestly the Packers all put the game out of hand early. The Iron Bowl once again proved that anything could happen in that game with Alabama’s late fourth-and-goal conversion from the 31 to put them ahead for good. If the conference championship games this weekend are anything like last weekend’s games, we might be in for a treat.

As for our staff picks, I can sum it up like this. What a rough week for the boys. I knew coming into last week’s slates there would be some tough numbers to cover and man that was an understatement. Leading the pack this week was Emmett, Connor, Anthony, and I at 4-5-1. Ouch.

Next up we had Daily, MSU Recruits, and Joey at 3-6-1. Last, but certainly not least, we have Hop and Max going 2-7-1.

As we move into Championship Week and bowl season, there are still lots of picks left. Shout out of the day goes to Emmett for winning that pick ‘em regular season title. The check is in the mail.

Updated standings after Week 13 

1. Emmett 69-56-5
2. Hop: 67-58-5
3. Daily: 65-60-5
4. Chris: 64-61-5
5. Connor: 62-63-5
6. Max: 61-64-5
7. MSU Recruits: 60-65-5
8. Joey and Anthony: 58-67-5

Side Competition updates:

Hop vs. Daily: After the rough week all around, Daily did gain a game on Hop to make his lead only two games up heading into postseason play. Shout out to him for clawing back slowly but surely.

Chris vs. Anthony: The Battle for the Cane’s Box has become Groundhog’s Day. Wake up. I go somewhere between 4-6 and 6-4. Anthony matches. My lead stays the same. This week? No different. My lead over him still sits at six games.

Now for this week’s games. It’s time for the Championship Week slate.

Week 14 college football games

Disclaimer: All lines are as of 12 p.m. ET on Tuesday, Nov. 28, from Fan Duel. All game times listed are Eastern Standard Time.

• C-USA Championship: New Mexico State vs. No. 25 Liberty — Friday at 7 p.m. on CBSSN (Line: Liberty -10.5)

Emmett: Liberty
Hop: Liberty
Daily: Liberty
Chris: Liberty
Connor: Liberty
Max: Liberty
Recruits: New Mexico State
Joey: New Mexico State
Anthony: Liberty

• Pac-12 Championship: No. 6 Oregon vs. No. 4 Washington — Friday at 8 p.m. on ABC (Line: Oregon -9.5)

Emmett: Washington
Hop: Washington
Daily: Oregon
Chris: Washington
Connor: Washington
Max: Oregon
Recruits: Oregon
Joey: Oregon
Anthony: Washington 

• Big 12 Championship: No. 20 Oklahoma State vs. No. 7 Texas — Saturday at 12 p.m. on ABC (Line: Texas -14.5)

Emmett: Texas
Hop: Oklahoma State
Daily: Texas
Chris: Texas
Connor: Oklahoma State
Max: Oklahoma State
Recruits: Texas
Joey: Texas
Anthony: Texas 

• MAC Championship: Miami (OH) vs. Toledo — Saturday at 12 p.m. on ESPN (Line: Toledo -7.5)

Emmett: Toledo
Hop: Miami (OH)
Daily: Toledo
Chris: Toledo
Connor: Toledo
Max: Toledo
Recruits: Toledo
Joey: Toledo
Anthony: Toledo 

• Mountain West Championship: Boise State vs. UNLV — Saturday at 3:30 p.m. on FOX (Line: Boise State -2.5) 

Emmett: UNLV
Hop: UNLV
Daily: UNLV
Chris: UNLV
Connor: UNLV
Max: UNLV
Recruits: Boise State
Joey: Boise State
Anthony: Boise State 

• SEC Championship: No. 1 Georgia vs. No. 8 Alabama — Saturday at 3:30 p.m. on CBS (Line: Georgia -6.5)

Emmett: Georgia
Hop: Georgia
Daily: Bama
Chris: Georgia
Connor: Georgia
Max: Bama
Recruits: Bama
Joey: Bama
Anthony: Georgia

• AAC Championship: SMU vs. No. 23 Tulane — Saturday at 4 p.m. on ABC (Line: Tulane -5.5)

Emmett: Tulane
Hop: Tulane
Daily: Tulane
Chris: SMU
Connor: Tulane
Max: Tulane
Recruits: SMU
Joey: SMU
Anthony: Tulane 

• Sun Belt Championship: Appalachian State vs. Troy — Saturday at 4 p.m. on ESPN (Line: Troy -6.5)

Emmett: Troy
Hop: Troy
Daily: Appalachian State
Chris: Troy
Connor: Troy
Max: Troy
Recruits: Appalachian State
Joey: Appalachian State
Anthony: Appalachian State 

• Big Ten Championship: No. 3 Michigan vs. No. 17 Iowa — Saturday at 8 p.m. on FOX (Line: Michigan -23.5)

Emmett: Michigan
Hop: Michigan
Daily: Michigan
Chris: Michigan
Connor: Michigan
Max: Iowa
Recruits: Michigan
Joey: Michigan
Anthony: Michigan 

• ACC Championship: No. 10 Louisville vs. No. 5 Florida State — Saturday at 8 p.m. on ABC (Line: Florida State -2.5)

Emmett: Louisville
Hop: Louisville
Daily: Louisville
Chris: Louisville
Connor: Louisville
Max: Florida State
Recruits: Louisville
Joey: Louisville
Anthony: Louisville

Well, there you have it folks. It looks like we have some confidence in Michigan and Louisville to get it done as a staff. Well, except Max. So that probably means he will get those right.

In all seriousness, it will be interesting to watch to see if Louisville can prove itself against a good Florida State team, even without Jordan Travis. Iowa’s defense has played great this year under defensive coordinator Philip Parker (hopefully MSU’s next DC). The question with them is whether or not they can score enough points to cover the big number Michigan is laying.

Regardless, buckle in for an exciting weekend of college football, folks. Let’s see what kind of chaos we can bring to the College Football Playoff this year.

Have a great week and as always, Go Green.