Eight weeks into the season, conference championship projections are starting to crystallize, but plenty of uncertainty remains. On the latest episode of his show, Joel Klatt offered his conference championship projections heading into Week 9, weighing recent results, remaining schedules and potential tiebreakers.
Big Ten outlook in conference championship projections
Klatt expects Ohio State to work through its offensive issues and return to Indianapolis for the Big Ten title game. As for the opponent, he does not believe UCLA will finish unbeaten in conference play. In his scenario, a stumble by the Bruins sets up a tiebreaker that hinges on their matchup with Michigan. With Indiana holding a recent win over Michigan, Klatt projects Indiana to grab the second spot.
That would deliver a second straight Ohio State-Indiana title tilt. Citing how evenly matched the programs have been in recent meetings, Klatt noted that Ohio State’s chances would dip significantly if quarterback Julian Sayin is unavailable. If Sayin cannot go, he believes Indiana would take the Big Ten crown.
SEC race remains wide open
Klatt still tabs Georgia as the SEC favorite because of its consistency, even after the Bulldogs’ loss to Auburn. He sees a crowded chase for the other slot in Atlanta. With Ole Miss facing only one remaining ranked opponent, which happens to be Georgia, he envisions a standings logjam that ultimately breaks the Rebels’ way via tiebreakers. In his projection, Ole Miss reaches the title game with two losses, while Alabama, LSU, Tennessee and Kentucky each drop games down the stretch.
Klatt’s scenario has Ole Miss beating Georgia in the regular season, but he does not expect the Bulldogs to lose a rematch in Atlanta. His pick: Georgia to win the SEC championship.
Big 12 hinges on Holy War rematch
Calling the Big 12 another muddled race, Klatt lists Utah, BYU, Arizona, Texas Tech and Oklahoma State among the contenders with one or fewer conference losses. He points to the Nov. 7 Holy War between BYU and Utah as the pivotal game. If BYU wins in Salt Lake City, he does not see Arizona, Texas Tech or Oklahoma State running the table, which would leave multiple teams with two losses while BYU and Utah sit with one conference defeat.
That path sets up a BYU-Utah rematch in the Big 12 title game. With the rivals closely matched, Klatt splits the meetings and picks Utah to win the rematch and claim the Big 12 championship.
ACC picture favors Miami
In the ACC, Klatt pencils in Miami for the title game and expects the Hurricanes to avoid a conference loss. He views Wake Forest at SMU as a de facto play-in for the other spot, noting SMU’s 11-0 home record since joining the ACC and the steady play of quarterback Kevin Jennings. With SMU more battle-tested than Wake, Klatt projects the Mustangs to win at home and meet Miami in the championship game.
From there, Klatt picks Miami to defeat SMU and win the ACC.
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