By LOGAN RIPLEY
Sports Editor
Like every Saturday that we will see in the coming months, it will be a showdown as the final four looms in the distance. With high level matchups and unexpected finishes we again were tangled in the thoughts of what if.
What if Notre Dame didn’t start off their season 1-2 and were not already on the outside looking in?
What if Louisville starting quarterback Lamar Jackson didn’t resemble a young Michael Vick, scoring endless touchdowns through the air and with his legs, therefore cementing their place as one of best undefeated teams?
These are the questions that we saw answered before our eyes this past weekend. Another week has come and gone and in doing so has narrowed the choices we will see in the end of the regular season.
One team that wasn’t mentioned in the top that learned the most was the Michigan Wolverines. Michigan faced off against Colorado and was looking like it was going to take a hit that would end their chances at a College Football Playoff berth.
But with the cliché, “when the games on the line, your best players come to play,” we witnessed one of the best two-way performances in football history or at least since recently retired Oakland Raider Charles Woodson donned the maize and blue.
Cornerback and offensive juggernaut Jabrill Peppers entertained all when he shut down Colorado with a total of nine tackles, 3.5 for a loss. He added 204 all-purpose yards which featured a 54-yard punt return for a touchdown.
Peppers is one of the best-kept secrets in CFB, mostly because he can play both sides of the ball. Others throughout the league focus on vast amount of running back talents including Nick Chubbs from Georgia and Delvin Cook of Florida State.
Though they may be the spotlight now, Peppers will make his mark this year for Michigan which will carry him into the first round this spring in the NFL Draft.
The current standings throughout college football highlight Alabama as a clear top choice followed by Ohio State, Louisville, Michigan and Clemson to round out the first five.
The matchup to look forward to is the Oct. 1 game with Louisville and Clemson squaring off; not only an offensive battle but one that has a running quarterback on each side. Both defenses will need to be aware of the versatility in order to contain that side of the ball.
