Whatever expectations you held entering Week 13, it's fair to suggest that Saturday's results blew up those thoughts.

Alabama and Ole Miss had direct paths to the College Football Playoff. Colorado held a clear road to the Big 12 Championship Game, while BYU could've sealed its own place in that title matchup.

If only it were so simple.

Ohio State's impressive win over Indiana kicked off a day of pandemonium around college football. There were upsets, key victories and so, so many impactful results in Week 13.

The following takeaways are subjective but cover the main stories from a lovable, chaotic slate of games.

Group of 5 Is Boise's to Lose

Exactly one hypothetical could have demanded more Group of Five attention, and it involved Army beating Notre Dame.

If the Black Knights could spring the upset, they would create a dilemma. Ranked 18th in the latest CFP poll, Army logically would have to rise above Notre Dame—which entered at sixth in the country. What would that be relative to 12th-ranked Boise State and even the Big 12's top team?

Fun to consider, but not important anymore.

Notre Dame laid a 49-14 smackdown on Army, while Boise State survived a 17-13 scare at Wyoming. That victory sealed a trip to the Mountain West Championship Game and ensured it's impossible for any other Group of Five champion to catch Boise State if it finishes 12-1.

Should the Broncos lose to Oregon State on Black Friday, we'll need to reassess. Tulane, in particular, would benefit from that.

Right now, though, Boise State is clearly atop the G5 race.

SMU Thrives, Miami Survives

In the program's first year as an ACC team, SMU is guaranteed a shot at winning the league championship.

Given the potential support—hello, oil money—that should be terrifying for the rest of the conference. SMU, nevertheless, sealed its place in the ACC championship with a commanding 33-7 win at Virginia.

And now, the Mustangs wait.

Miami, meanwhile, rode a maligned defense to a 42-14 victory over Wake Forest. The unit surrendered a touchdown on the opening drive but didn't allow another point; Wake returned a kickoff for its other score. Miami's offense wasn't outstanding yet pulled away nicely in the fourth quarter.

The result set up a crystal-clear picture for the 'Canes and the ACC in Week 14: If Miami wins at Syracuse, the 'Canes are in. If they lose, however, Clemson will be taking on SMU for the conference crown.

Big 12 Is a Beautiful Disaster

I have bad news to share: Any moment you've felt confident in understanding the Big 12 has been a downright lie.

The preseason Top 25 included league favorite Utah, along with Oklahoma State, Kansas State, Arizona and Kansas. Within that quintet, only K-State has a chance to make the conference title game—and it would require a ton of assistance next weekend, too.

Hey, no problem; BYU and Iowa State emerged as pleasant surprises and held undefeated records as November began! Since then, however, both programs have dropped two games.

Uh, here's Colorado! And the Buffs lost at Kansas on Saturday.

Arizona State and Iowa State hold the coveted "win-and-in" scenarios in their respective finales ahead of BYU, Colorado and Kansas State. However, the madness runs so deep that Baylor, Texas Tech, TCU and West Virginia somehow have a path, too.

Buckle up, folks. I have no idea what's going to happen.

Ole Miss Squanders CFP Path

The requirement was straightforward: Win twice.

If the Rebels could manage two victories to close the regular season, they'd be headed to the College Football Playoff. The recent, emphatic win over Georgia locked in Ole Miss as a contender.

Saturday's loss to Florida, however, has knocked the Rebels out of CFP consideration just as quickly. Multiple red-zone implosions and two late interceptions doomed ninth-ranked Ole Miss in a 24-17 upset against the Gators, who attained bowl eligibility with the triumph.

Ole Miss cannot officially be eliminated, but it would take an incredible amount of chaos to save the three-loss Rebels.

Lane Kiffin has built a quality program in Oxford. If the current CFP format had existed in 2021 or 2023, the Rebels would've been included. Yet again, though, they'll likely end just shy of the Playoff.

Alabama Loss Creates SEC Chaos

That result in Gainesville was merely the appetizer for a crazytown bananapants day around the SEC.

Alabama had a stunningly bad performance at Oklahoma, trudging to 234 offensive yards in a 24-3 loss. Two second-half turnovers doomed the Crimson Tide, whose Playoff dreams may have disappeared.

Also in the evening, Texas A&M lost a four-overtime thriller at Auburn. The bright side for the Aggies is they could beat Texas next weekend and make the SEC Championship Game! Since they're now 8-3, though, the Aggies don't have a strong case for an at-large bid.

Oh, and apparently Georgia—which played Massachusetts—clinched a spot in the SEC title game?

What a weekend.

Ohio State Restores Big Ten Order

The biggest game in Indiana football history began in nearly perfect fashion for the Hoosiers. They forced Ohio State to punt immediately, then waltzed down the field with a touchdown.

Unfortunately for IU, that was as good as it would get.

After that 70-yard scoring drive, the Hoosiers simply were unable to move the ball. Their next eight (non-kneeldown) possessions led to a meager 28 yards as Ohio State steadily built an insurmountable lead. Ultimately, the Buckeyes cruised to a 38-15 victory.

The story was—and remains—tremendous. Especially thanks to Florida's upset, the Hoosiers might make the CFP anyway.

But the preseason of expectation of Ohio State playing Oregon in the Big Ten Championship Game is likely to happen. All that stands in the Buckeyes' way of a shot at the league title is rival Michigan next weekend.

New Locks Highlight CFP Race

Heading into Week 13, only Oregon could say with absolute confidence that it had locked up a spot in the CFP.

That number is much higher now, mostly because of the SEC's wacky Saturday. The back end of the Playoff race is loaded with three-loss teams, so one-loss programs are generally safe.

Ohio State and Texas are definitely in, and I find it difficult to make an argument that would keep out Notre Dame.

Additionally, several more suddenly have a great opportunity to join the club in Week 14. Penn State, Georgia, Tennessee and Indiana—in that order, so to speak—are a single victory from being a lock.

The mayhem in the SEC also means SMU and Miami will be borderline locks if both programs win next weekend to carry 11-1 records into the ACC Championship Game. That possibility only increases if Texas avoids an upset loss at Texas A&M, as well.

Throw in automatic qualifiers from the Big 12 and a Group of Five conference, and that's 12 CFP teams.

It looks simple. But there's no way it will be, right? Certainly not if Week 13 was any indication, that's for sure.