In today’s Fact or Fiction national columnist Mike Farrell looks at three big recent topics in college football and decides whether each statement is indeed FACT or if it’s FICTION.
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1. Georgia QB Stetson Bennett is good enough to win a national title.
Farrell’s take: FACT. Georgia offensive coordinator Todd Monken said as much this week, and I believe it. Stetson Bennett is good enough to win a national title despite his walk-on status. Will he? That’s another story. But let’s be clear: Bennett isn’t the weakest quarterback in this playoff.
Bryce Young is clearly the No. 1 guy, followed by the Bearcats' Desmond Ridder, but Bennett has been better than Michigan quarterback Cade McNamara overall this season, with a higher passing rating and more passing touchdowns. Bennett isn’t great by any stretch, but he’s more than serviceable with the UGA run game and defense to win it all. The Dawgs will win or lose behind him, despite JT Daniels and his former five-star rating.
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2. Alabama truly feels like an underdog against Cincinnati.
Farrell’s take: FICTION. Let’s be real. We’ve heard the quotes from players that Alabama feels like an underdog against Cincinnati but even they know that’s garbage. And so does Las Vegas, which made Bama a 13-point favorite.
But this is how Nick Saban does it. And he will have his team believing by kickoff that everyone thinks they stink and will lose.
That’s part of his gift. But while the thought of being an underdog may come out of their mouths and perhaps even be on their minds, deep down inside they know they should win this game by a large margin.
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3. Jerome Ford is the most important transfer in the playoff.
Farrell’s take: FACT. Alabama's Jameson Williams (who transferred from Ohio State) can make a case, as can a few others. But Ford (who transferred from Alabama) makes Cincinnati go. And you can bet Ford, who has rushed for more than 1,200 yards this season, wants to have a huge game against his old program.
If the Bearcats have any chance to keep this game close, Ford will need to have a career game. He is much more important than Williams.
