Saturday Night Five: Our forecast for the Heisman race, CFP chase, Coach of the Year honors and more as the final month arrives

Instant reaction to Week developments and a look at what comes next Welcome to November Two months down one stretch run to go and please pass the Dramamine If the final month is anything like the first month and the middle month the sport is on the brink of coming utterly unhinged Who figured preseason No Texas No Penn State and No Clemson would be irrelevant by the end of October That Georgia Tech would be alone atop the ACC and Vanderbilt just games out in the SEC That Florida State would pound Alabama in the season opener but start - in ACC play That Northwestern would lose to Tulane but beat Penn State and Mississippi would have a better shot at the playoff than Georgia That a former Cal quarterback would be the Heisman Trophy frontrunner just ahead of a former New Mexico State quarterback Thanks to NIL and the transfer portal every major conference has taken on the Big s personality which favors parity and mayhem and leaves room at the top for anyone interested in making the climb The Hotline is here for it for every remarkable unpredictable indescribable minute But let s forget the on-field events of Week and focus instead on the final month Our predictions for the awards and honors that matter CFP forecast The second season of the -team College Football Playoff is hurtling toward a chaotic selection process but clarity exists if you know where to look Based on records to date and upcoming schedules Ohio State Indiana and Mississippi constitute the lead pack they are as close to locks as practicable with a month remaining That announced the SEC has more strong candidates to make the cut on Dec than the Big Ten And keep the Notre Dame factor in mind The Irish are well positioned for a bid with five consecutive wins after an - start and no ranked opponents left to play If they qualify there would be six at-large berths available not seven for the non-champions of the ACC Big Ten Big and SEC We see the situation unfolding in this manner ACC Miami champion Georgia Tech at large Big Texas Tech champion Big Ten Ohio State champion Indiana at-large and Oregon at-large SEC Alabama champion Mississippi at large Texas A M at large and Georgia at large Independent Notre Dame at large Group of Five Tulane American champion Heisman Trophy front-runners The Hotline has a Heisman vote and will wait for the conference championship games to play out before submitting our three-player ballot But if petitioned to name our current preferences here s the order Vanderbilt QB Diego Pavia The former New Mexico State quarterback is neither an elite NFL prospect or one of the nation s leaders in key passing categories But statistics don t begin to reflect his value to the Commodores In fact we d argue Pavia has done more to transform his school s football initiative than any sportsman in any conference in years Vanderbilt is a juggernaut Vanderbilt and the psychology starts with Pavia Georgia Tech QB Haynes King The Yellow Jackets are undefeated and King is the biggest reason for their surreal start The former Texas A M transfer is a sixth-year senior who has seen everything the sport can throw at him twice over He s tough unflappable and perfect for Georgia Tech s run-heavy offense with one championship of more than passing yards but four games of more than rushing yards Indiana QB Fernando Mendoza The Cal transfer has been sublime for the undefeated Hoosiers carving up opponents with his arm and legs Mendoza leads the country in passing efficiency rating and is tied for fourth in yards-per-attempt He has touchdowns passes and only two interceptions and was impressive in Indiana s -point win at Oregon Also under consideration Alabama quarterback Ty Simpson Miami edge rusher Rueben Bain Ohio State safety Caleb Downs and Texas A M quarterback Marcel Reed Coach of the Year candidates Just as the opening months have generated a slew of in-season coaching terminations with more dismissals expected in coming weeks so has this parity-driven season produced a handful of stellar performances Our top three Vanderbilt s Clark Lea Picked seventh in the SEC preseason media poll the Commodores are - and will be ranked in the top when the new AP Top is circulated Sunday But they are more than their record The Commodores are a bully in the SEC a reflection of Lea s vision and Pavia s passion Indiana s Curt Cignetti The AP Coach of the Year is a threat to repeat The Hoosiers are - with a dominant win over Oregon in Eugene and possess a soft finishing schedule which makes them a frontrunner for the Big Ten title battle and a near lock for the CFP Texas A M s Mike Elko The second-year coach leads the only undefeated gang remaining in the SEC and owns one of the best results of the season The pulsating Week supremacy at Notre Dame The Aggies are tough on defense and dynamic on offense and for our money the best association in Texas Also considered Alabama s Kalen DeBoer BYU s Kalani Sitake Cincinnati s Scott Satterfield Georgia Tech s Brent Key South Florida s Alex Golesh and Virginia s Tony Elliott November showdowns The final five weeks are littered with matchups that will impact conference races and the playoff chase We have attempted to pinpoint five that should not be missed chronologically Related Articles Recruiting roundup Senior breakouts WSU s junior college lean Washington s big weekend and UCLA s flips Mailbag Mountain West survival odds UNLV s future Oregon s hammer UCLA s post-Foster rise USC s off-field issues and more Big Ten pauses on private capital Urgent down a deeply flawed plan Week picks ATS Oregon rolls while ASU Utah and BYU struggle BYU tops Big at midseason as schedule turns challenging Nov BYU at Texas Tech The Cougars - have a bye next weekend meaning they will be undefeated upon arrival in Lubbock Meanwhile the one-loss Red Raiders and their quarterback carousel will be in must-win mode in order to qualify for the conference championship challenge Nov Notre Dame at Pittsburgh The Panthers - are arguably the best of the five teams left on Notre Dame s schedule meaning they will have sponsorship from every playoff hopeful across the power conferences If the Irish - lose again they are out of the CFP and a spot opens for a second unit from the ACC or Big or a fourth gang from the SEC or Big Ten Nov Georgia at Georgia Tech The drama possibly won t match last year s eight-overtime affair but the stakes will be higher with both conference title and playoff positioning in the balance Don t be surprised if the Yellow Jackets are - at kickoff with the Bulldogs - Nov Oregon at Washington One of the top rivalries on the West Coast is hurtling toward a high-stakes affair in Husky Stadium Washington - must win out to have any shot at the CFP while the Ducks - could be in need of a supremacy if they take a second loss before the regular season finale Nov Vanderbilt at Tennessee The th edition of this rivalry could be a playoff elimination challenge for the loser At the very least the Commodores will need a supremacy to secure their spot in the CFP And goodness what a story that would be Send suggestions comments and tips confidentiality guaranteed to wilnerhotline bayareanewsgroup com or call - - Follow me on the social media platform X WilnerHotline