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The College Football Playoff selection committee was given something to ponder by Penn State.How much value does a conference championship have? How about a head-to-head victory? The Nittany Lions now have both of those over Ohio State heading into selection Sunday.We just won the toughest conference in college football, Penn State coach James Franklin said Saturday after the Nittany Lions beat Wisconsin for the Big Ten title. Its on you now, committee.Championship weekend ended with a couple wild games, but mostly the field of four fell into place.Alabama , Washington and Clemson all took care of their business -- though the Tigers had to work much harder than the other two -- and have to be feeling good about hearing their names called when the semifinals are set. Though Washington might not feel as comfortable as the other two.Ohio State (11-1) was home, hoping it was safely in the field after being No. 2 in the committees rankings last week. But how safe are they now from a surging Penn State? The Nittany Lions (11-2) ran their winning streak to nine games by wiping out a 21-point deficit to beat Wisconsin 38-31 in the Big Ten title game .The Nittany Lions, seventh in the last rankings, are the hottest team in the country that doesnt call Tuscaloosa, Alabama, home. They beat Ohio State in October. They won the division they share with the Buckeyes and now they are Big Ten champions for the first time since 2008.Ohio State has three victories against top-10 teams, including road wins against Wisconsin and Oklahoma.The selection committee protocol states that championships won and head-to-head results should be used by the committee to separate teams that have similar resumes. Basically, they are tiebreakers. Committee chairman Kirby Hocutt has said the margin between the Nittany Lions and Buckeyes the last two weeks was not all that close.What about now?Big Ten Commissioner Jim Delany was on ESPN earlier Saturday calling Ohio State a lock and lobbying for a second team from his conference. The committee has not been thrilled with Washingtons strength of schedule, but would it really dump the Huskies (12-1) for another Big Ten team after they pounded Colorado in the Pac-12 title game Friday night? And if it does, which one?Michigan was fifth last week by a razor thin margin, Hocutt said, behind the Huskies.But the Wolverines were home, too.Only Penn State was able to make a final statement and what a statement it was.Clemson (12-1) won the Atlantic Coast Conference championship by beating Virginia Tech 42-35, making it a lot more exciting than Tigers fans probably hoped. Deshaun Watson added to his Heisman Trophy resume and Clemson needed every one of the five touchdowns he accounted to hold off the Hokies.Alabama (13-0) completed its rampage through the regular season earlier in the day, crushing Florida 54-16 just for the fun of it. The Crimson Tide (13-0) probably didnt even need to win, but the machine knows nothing but destruction.Two years ago Ohio State crashed the top four with a record-breaking rout of Wisconsin in the Big Ten championship, bumping TCU out of the playoff position it had held going into the final rankings.The circumstances are different in so many ways this time, starting with the fact the Penn State has more ground to make up than those Buckeyes and an extra loss on its resume.If nothing else, though, the Nittany Lions have made things interesting.BIG 12The Big 12 is about to be 1 for 3 in making the College Football Playoff.The last time the smallest Power Five conference was left out of the semifinal was 2014. The result was an 18-month existential crisis for the Big 12 that led to the return of its conference championship game in 2017 and a rather public exploration of expansion possibilities. That wont happen this time around.What the Big 12 needs most of all is a healthy and humming Texas program and for coach Tom Herman to be as good as advertised.As for Oklahoma, which ran the table in the Big 12 to win its 10th title under coach Bob Stoops, it is off to the Sugar Bowl.ROW THE BOATAny drama or complications that could have come with figuring out which Group of Five champion will get a bid to the Cotton Bowl ended with Temple beating Navy 34-10 in the American Athletic conference championship game.Barring the committee suddenly falling for Temple (10-3), Western Michigan (13-0) will be the highest-ranked G5 champion and go to the Cotton Bowl. The drama now is surrounding this question: Will P.J. Fleck still be coaching the undefeated Broncos? Fleck is going to draw interest from Purdue and maybe Oregon.----NEW YEARS SIX PROJECTIONSPeach Bowl semifinal -- No. 1 Alabama vs. No. 4 WashingtonFiesta Bowl semifinal -- No. 2 Clemson vs. No. 3 Ohio StateRose Bowl -- USC vs. Penn StateSugar Bowl -- Oklahoma vs. AuburnOrange Bowl -- Florida State vs. MichiganCotton Bowl -- Western Michigan vs. Wisconsin----Follow Ralph D. Russo at www.Twitter.com/ralphDrussoAP----More AP college football: http://collegefootball.ap.org/Custom Blazers Jersey China . 1 position. The Mustangs (6-0), who beat Queens 50-31 last weekend, earned 17 first-place votes and 287 points in voting by the Football Reporters of Canada. Western was last ranked first in the country in October 2011. Custom Blazers Jerseys . The FA rejected Wilsheres appeal that the length of his punishment was "clearly excessive" and said Thursday his suspension begins with immediate effect. He will miss league matches against Chelsea on Monday and West Ham on Dec. http://www.customblazersjersey.com/ . "It doesnt get any better than that," Giambi said. "Im speechless." The Indians are roaring toward October. Giambi belted a two-run, pinch-hit homer with two outs in the ninth inning to give Cleveland a shocking 5-4 win over the Chicago White Sox on Tuesday night, keeping the Indians up with the lead pack in the AL wild-card race. Custom Terry Porter Jersey . The nimble-footed quarterback got his wish, dashing through the snow and a weary defence all the way into the NCAA record book. Custom Blazers Jerseys . LOUIS -- The New Orleans Saints looked like a team playing out the string.JACKSONVILLE, Fla. -- Cornerback Jalen Ramsey was the cant-miss draft pick. Defensive tackle Malik Jackson was the $90 million free agent. Pass-rusher Dante Fowler Jr. was the key piece returning from injury.Rookie Yannick Ngakoue is having as big an impact as any of them for the Jacksonville Jaguars this season.A third-round pick from Maryland, Ngakoue has a team-leading three sacks, three forced fumbles and an interception that set up a touchdown. And the Jaguars (1-3), who have a bye this week, believe hes just getting started.Every year in this league you have guys stepping up and things like that, so its no surprise, Jaguars linebacker Telvin Smith said.You cant look at a piece of paper or a draft pick or what his check is and say, `This guy is going to be this. Thats what I love about this league: Youve got to go out and re-prove yourself every Sunday, every Monday, every Thursday.Every time you step on that field, you have to say, `This is who I am. And right now, hes doing a great job of it.Ngakoue is one of eight NFL players to notch at least one sack in each of the past three weeks. He also has a forced fumble in three straight games, and now leads all rookies in both categories. His three sacks tied him with Kevin Hardy (1996) for the most by a rookie through four games in franchise history.Its not surprising to us because he works like that in practice, coach Gus Bradley said. The cool thing is that he is carrying it over, and if there is a time where he gets stuck or blocked, it doesnt frustrate him to the next play. He recovers quickly and he has been playing at a high level.Ngakoue (pronounced In-GACK-way) played at a high level as a junior at Maryland. He set a school record with 13+ sacks and ranked second in the nation in sacks per game.The Jaguars viewed Ngakoue as a perfect fit at the teams pass-rushing Leo position behind Fowler, the third overall pick in the 2015 draft who missed his rookie season because of a knee injury.Its an important spot in Bradleys 4-3 scheme and one the Jaguars failed to fill the previous three years with Jason Babin, Jeremy MMincey, Chris Clemons, Andre Branch, Ryan Davis and Chris Smith.ddddddddddddJacksonville parted ways with Clemons and Branch after last season, clearing the way for Fowler to step right into a starting role. But they needed a backup.First-year defensive coordinator Todd Wash felt Ngakoue could be the guy, maybe even more.It was a situation where I was standing on the table earlier in the draft for him, Wash said. I loved him coming out. I know his temperament, his ability and I think youre starting to see more. ... We really like what weve seen in the draft and what were getting right now out of him.The revamped Jaguars rank sixth in the NFL in total defense, averaging 304.5 yards a game, and insist the unit is only going to get better the longer the new faces continue to jell.Ramsey has been better than anyone expected, starting from Day 1 and basically shutting down top receivers every week.Jackson has provided consistent pressure up the middle, keeping quarterbacks in the pocket and providing the catalyst for many of the teams 12 sacks. Fowler has been solid, too, with two sacks and several big plays.Ngakoue has been just as good, especially considering he hasnt been on the field nearly as much.Got to play with a chip, Ngakoue said. Always underestimated and always out to prove something each and every day. Just because I made it to this level, its not the end. Its just the beginning. Thats my mentality each and every day.Its a good approach to have, especially as a rookie whos had some early success.The Jaguars love it, almost as much as they do his past three performances.His first step is really good, Wash said. He can cover some ground vertically. He has the ability to lean and bend. He not only is a speed guy, but has enough man in him to be a power rusher also. You cant be a one-trick pony when youre rushing the passer, so were very excited about him.---AP NFL website: www.pro32.ap.org and AP NFL Twitter feed: http://twitter.com/AP-NFL ' ' '