10 things to be thankful for in college football

It's Thanksgiving weekend in the United States and across the college football world, so let's take a quick look at what those in the sport are thankful for this season.

Iowa is thankful for the 2015 schedule

Iowa somehow managed to avoid the three Big Ten powers - Michigan, Michigan State, and Ohio State - in its 2015 schedule, giving the preseason No. 53 Hawkeyes a shot at a decent season, but this is ridiculous. Not even the most ardent Iowa fan would have expected an 11-0 start to the season and the No. 4 spot in the CFP rankings. You have to be good to be lucky, though, and against all odds, Iowa is really good.

Michigan State is thankful for Michigan's special teams unit

The Spartans are currently No. 5 in the College Football Playoff rankings, but with wins over Penn State and Iowa, they will be Big Ten champs and in the playoff. One of the main reasons for Michigan State's high ranking is a road win against No. 10 Michigan.

A punter's fumbled snap is basically the difference between the two schools. Give thanks indeed.

UCLA is thankful for Josh Rosen

When the nation's second-ranked pro-style quarterback committed to UCLA, it was widely hailed as a home-run signing. It was going to be pretty hard for Rosen to exceed mile-high expectations, but the true freshman did, with a 28-for-35, 351-yard, three-touchdown performance in his very first game. The California native has been a revelation, breaking numerous Bruin records on his way to 3124 yards and 19 touchdowns, and one sweet dorm room.

Oklahoma is thankful the Texas game was played Oct. 10

Oklahoma is riding high, winner of six straight - including last weekend's dramatic win over TCU - and rising to No. 3 in the CFP rankings. It's almost like everyone forgot about the Sooners' loss to the dumpster fire that is Texas. Yes, the same Longhorns that lost 38-3 to Notre Dame, and 50-7 against TCU. As last year's Ohio State team showed, lose before November and it's as though it didn't happen. Unless, that is, you're North Carolina, whose season-opening season loss to an atrocious South Carolina squad will be held against it until 2026.

The viewing public is thankful for Dabo Swinney

The Clemson coach has long been one of college football's most quotable characters, but following the top-ranked Tigers' win over Notre Dame in an October monsoon, the 46-year-old created a Mike Gundy-esque media moment for the ages.

Jimmy Sexton and Trace Armstrong are thankful for all the coaching vacancies

2015 may be remembered as the year that firing college coaches became as routine as morning coffee. With positions at schools such as USC, Miami, Virginia Tech, South Carolina, Missouri, and Maryland open, the powerhouse agent duo of Sexton and Armstrong are set to cash in. Basically every major college coach is represented by one of these two, including the current apple of every program's eye, Houston's Tom Herman. Those commission cheques are going to look real nice.

Jimbo Fisher is thankful that LSU boosters are bananas

The worst-kept secret in college football at this point in the season is that LSU is planning to fire coach Les Miles. It would be easy to craft a 9,000-word post about why LSU shouldn't fire a man with a national title and a 60-27 record in the toughest conference in the nation, but it appears Tigers faithful have gone off the deep end. They feel they can bring Jimbo Fisher in from Florida State at a moment's notice. Whether the 2013 national champ stays with the Seminoles or goes to the Bayou, he's going to get a new contract that is well above the $5.15 million he currently holds.

The media is thankful for coaches with microphones

Unlike the press conferences of NFL coaches, where basically nothing interesting is ever said by anyone other then Rex Ryan, the college game is currently blessed with characters throughout the ranks. Whether it be Michigan's Jim Harbaugh giving diet or trick-or-treating advice, Alabama's Nick Saban's thoughts on FCS football, or Texas Tech's Kliff Kingsbury talking trash to Arkansas' Bret Bielema, we are in a golden era indeed.

Fans of a good stiff-arm are thankful for USC's JuJu Smith-Schuster

In USC's game against Utah, Dominique Hatfield thought he wanted a piece of JuJu Smith-Schuster. As it turns out, he did not.

We're thankful for the Turkey of the Year (We mean "turkey" in the nicest way possible)​

Hey, Coach Bielema, how do you plan on celebrating the overtime win over Ole Miss that brought the Razorbacks' record to 5-4?

Don't ever change, coach.

Happy Thanksgiving, everybody!