How To Football: Week 14/Conference Championship

So this is it. All that separates us from bowl season is Army-Navy, the Heisman Trophy presentation, and the playoff field being set. This week will finalize everything and put a ribbon on the 2015 college football regular season. I know, it seems like just yesterday we were watching the slopfest that was North Carolina-South Carolina. Football season is always so short, which is why it's important to soak in as much as possible.

Gameday will be live from the Oil Drum for the B1G Championship.

Return Of The MAC Shift

By the time we kickoff on Saturday, the MAC will crown their champion. In what may be Dino Baber's final game at the helm of the Falcons, 9-3 Bowling Green takes on NIU at Ford Field. Two of Bowling Greens losses came at the hands of Tennessee and Memphis, with the other being Memphis, so it isn't like Bowling Green is a team that backed their way into Detroit, they're a pretty damn good team in their own right. On the flip side, Northern Illinois looks to claim their spot as kings of the MAC, a title they have held a few times since the decade started.

Owls On Lean Shift

Who among us would have predicted in August that Temple and Houston would be a far more important game than Texas and Baylor? At one point in the season, both teams looked to upset the apple cart, with Temple earning the honor to host Gameday when Notre Dame came to barely beat them 24-20 before they inexplicably dropped a game to USF. And hell, Houston was four points away from remaining undefeated and being one game away from an undeniable playoff pass, but fell short at UConn. With a win over Baylor (not happening), Texas improved to 5-7, which this year may get a bowl bid, but honestly, would Texas even accept a bowl bid for 5-7? Southern Miss and Western Kentucky round out the action for the nooner...for FBS schools.

The Citadel, which you may know from such hits as "We Beat South Carolina", "Dogs Wearing Hats", and "We're Not Tar Heels" plays Charleston Southern, runner up in the SEC-Socon Challenge in an actual college football playoff! No really, with 24 teams and everything? That's at noon, and an hour later #1 overall seed Jacksonville "We Almost Beat Auburn" State hosts Chattanooga in the return leg of a game that was played in week 1 where the Gamecocks edged out the Mocs 23-20.

#StittHappens Shift

Speaking of return legs, remember that crazy awesome North Dakota State/Montana game that kicked off the 2015 college football season? No? Well the video is below.

If you did watch or follow the sport closely, you know that Bob Stitt is a genius when it comes to offense. Like an actual genius that only comes along once every two decades. And he's the first hurdle in North Dakota State's quest for an unheard of 5 straight national championships. I guarantee it will be a much better game than Florida-Bama and West Virginia-Kansas State.

SPARTY, NO! Shift

i'm sure by now you are acutely aware of what's at stake in the B1G championship game. And if you're not, it's this: a playoff spot. Both have been extremely unconvincing this season between Michigan State beating Michigan and Ohio State despite not leading at any point before the clock hit triple zeros and Iowa just straight up not playing anybody of note sans a ugly 10-6 game against Wisconsin. The ACC championship between North Carolina and Clemson serves as the wild card where a North Carolina win (probably) does not kick Clemson out the top four, but rather adds UNC into the playoff, potentially rendering what happens in Indianapolis irrelevant. Also, this gives Clemson a transitive loss to 2-9 VMI, which you so want. The PAC 12 Championship game is between Stanford and USC, and the only thing that's really at stake there is a Rose Bowl berth. Air Force plays San Diego State for the Mountain West Championship 30 minutes after Southland foes Sam Houston State and McNeese, who thanks to the LSU rainout remain undefeated, kick off at the Hole.

Diet PAC-12 After Dark Shift

Northern Iowa travels to Portland State, who you may remember from their week 1 victory over Wazzu. You know, before they got good.