Championship Saturday Open Thread

Hey, it’s Championship Saturday, also known as that weekend every year when we realize that Vanderbilt won’t be playing football again until next September.

Wait, you mean that’s not true this year? Hooray!

But there’s still football to be played, and even basketball is kicking into swing (and, of course, Vanderbilt plays a basketball game tonight in the Mount Rushmore State, for some reason), and here’s your guide to what’s on today.

11:00 AM CT: Temple at Navy (AAC Championship Game, ABC); Louisiana Tech at Western Kentucky (C-USA Championship Game, ESPN); Kansas State at TCU (Fox Sports 1); Troy at Georgia Southern (ESPN2)

11:30 AM CT: Oklahoma State at Oklahoma (FOX)

We’ll spare you the obvious “wet het” jokes, because we know there will be about ten jillion of those in the comments section about Temple playing Navy. The C-USA Championship is on early, too, with 9-3 Western Kentucky hosting Louisiana Tech, and we all remember who one of those nine wins was against, isn’t that right Kentucky Governor Matt Bevin?

Oh yeah, that’s the stuff. Also, Jeff Brohm is rumored to be the next coach at Purdue, which is sure to annoy some Vanderbilt fans who wanted him to be our head coach a few months back (because if you’d take the Purdue job, you’d take any Power 5 job.)

The Big 12 doesn’t do that championship game crap but the Bedlam game is the de facto Big 12 championship game. If purple’s your thing, K-State plays TCU. And Troy looks to win 10 games for the first time since joining FBS.

12:00 PM CT: New Mexico State at South Alabama (ESPN3)

2:00 PM CT: UL Lafayette at UL Monroe (ESPN3)

The Sun Belt has decided in its infinite wisdom that if it’s not going to have a conference championship game, why not subject the world to these games on Championship Saturday?

1:00 PM CT: New Hampshire at James Madison (ESPN3); Youngstown State at Jacksonville State (ESPN3)

2:00 PM CT: Villanova at South Dakota State (ESPN3); Chattanooga at Sam Houston State (ESPN3)

2:30 PM CT: San Diego at North Dakota State (ESPN3)

FCS playoffs, ya’ll. Ten bucks says one of these games will be more watchable than the SEC Championship.

Also at 2:30: Baylor at West Virginia (Fox Sports 1)

Which would you rather watch, North Dakota State or Baylor? I rest my case.

3:00 PM CT: Florida vs. Alabama (SEC Championship; CBS); Central Arkansas at Eastern Washington (ESPN3)

Now that’s just poor planning on the SEC’s part; who in their right mind is going to be watching Alabama probably stomp a mudhole in Florida when Eastern Washington-Central Arkansas is in the same time slot?

4:00 PM CT: Georgia State at Idaho (ESPN3)

6:30 PM CT: Arkansas State at Texas State (ESPN2)

Good God, Sun Belt, you proved your point.

6:00 PM CT: Richmond at North Dakota (ESPN3); Wofford at The Citadel (ESPN3)

Fun fact: per Jeff Sagarin, these teams are all better than Rutgers. And also like half the Sun Belt.

6:45 PM CT: San Diego State at Wyoming (Mountain West Championship; ESPN)

Wait, what? Boise State’s not in the Mountain West Championship?

7:00 PM CT: Clemson vs. Virginia Tech (ACC Championship; ABC); Wisconsin vs. Penn State (Big Ten Championship; FOX)

Also at 7, Vanderbilt plays Minnesota in the shootyhoops, so you’ll have to figure out a way to balance watching the Commodores with your James Franklin schadenfreude. Though to be fair, now that our football program isn’t a dumpster fire any more I’m feeling less and less need to root for schadenfreude there. Because remember, the other option in the Big Ten East was Urban Meyer, and nobody wants that.

So there’s your Championship Saturday, folks. Have fun.