SEC ROOTING GUIDE

In which we tell you which teams you should root against in the upcoming week.

Ri-val-ry week.

Anyone else have that silly commercial stuck in your head?

Aside from Texas-Baylor, after Saturday, there are no regular-season games of consequence until next August. The real fun is about to begin.

But which teams are going to advance past this glorious final weekend to challenge for conference and national titles?

This weekend, there are several instances where the logjam for the final two College Football Playoff spot could get even more packed, or it could dissipate altogether. It’s sort of like when you have tangled headphones — the earbuds kind — and you start pulling at the ends. Sometimes it turns out there’s no tangle at all, and sometimes the line goes taut around a giant knot.

We’ll find out which way those spots are going to trend this weekend and the next.

Here are the Week 13 teams that SEC fans should root against.

Iowa at Nebraska (3:30 p.m. ET, Saturday): We’ve all heard the theoretical projections — Iowa would be an underdog against the rest of the top 10, or top 15, or any made-up number that touts have thrown out there to the media. Here’s an even more telling reality: The Hawkeyes are a 1.5-point favorite at Nebraska. The Cornhuskers are 5-6 this season, by the way. With a 1-4 record in a bad Big Ten West Division. If Nebraska can pull off the marginal upset, which sounds weird to say when comparing a 5-6 team with a potential College Football Playoff team from the same division, Iowa’s playoff hopes are over. No matter how “bad” you think the Hawkeyes are, they’ll be 11-1 at worst after this week. In some ways, the SEC — especially Alabama fans — should be rooting hard for Iowa. The Tide would love to exact some Big Ten revenge by matching up coach Nick Saban against coach Kirk Ferentz in the national semifinals.

Penn State at Michigan State (3:30 p.m. ET, Saturday): Speaking again toward Alabama fans, there are plenty of games to track nationally this weekend. Michigan State has a better quarterback than the Tide — high-round prospect Connor Cook. The team plays outstanding defense, especially up front. The Spartans are at least capable of slowing down Derrick Henry. And Michigan State would enter the Big Ten title game as a strong favorite ahead of Iowa. Look, Alabama still must beat Auburn and Florida. Even then, it’s unclear whether the Tide would match up against Oklahoma, the Big Ten champion or even Notre Dame. But just in case, it’s best to avoid Michigan State, which may be the team best equipped to knock off the current SEC favorite. Come on, coach James Franklin, do your old SEC pals a favor.

Notre Dame at Stanford (7:30 p.m. ET, Saturday): The Fighting Irish are on the outside of the playoff picture looking in as of Tuesday’s latest poll. Clemson and Alabama? Getting into the four-team field ahead of Notre Dame. Oklahoma? Ditto. If either Michigan State or Iowa wins out? The same. So not only does Notre Dame have to beat a very capable Stanford team on the road, but it has to do it in impressive fashion. Boston College nearly upended the Irish last week, and the Cardinal defense is capable of a similar performance. There’s a good chance Notre Dame is out of the playoff, but wouldn’t it be more fun if those golden helmets went down in flames, instead of having to listen to annoying Twitter arguments from accounts with clover avatars and leprechauns?

Oklahoma at Oklahoma State (8 p.m. ET, Saturday): The Sooners represent the Big 12’s best opportunity to claim a College Football Playoff spot. Win here and Oklahoma is going to finish ahead of Notre Dame in the playoff pecking order, no matter what happens in Palo Alto, Calif., this weekend. But that’s hardly a guarantee on the road against a 10-1 rival. A Sooners loss to the Cowboys would serve as a dual benefit to SEC fans, as it would ruin the holiday season for one Bob Stoops and it would throw the Big 12’s playoff chances into disarray, especially if one-loss Baylor also loses to TCU.