Top 40 Songs of 2014

Note: The cut-off date for all songs was December 15th, anything released afterward is eligible for 2015. I find this note necessary thanks to Beyonce'.

It's that nostalgic, hot cocoa time of year again! Time to reflect on 2014 and wrap a festive bow on it before everybody makes their futile New Year's resolutions and 2015 begins. Unlike practically every music or entertainment website, I've actually waited a couple more weeks into the final month of the year to make my year-end music countdowns (Top 20 albums of 2014 coming soon). I don't like how the media has forced themselves to make their end-of-the-year deadlines the first of December. Not one of those lists captures the entirety of 2014 and I was semi-guilty of this last year when I got pump-faked like everybody else on the new-at-the-time Beyonce' album. There are many professional lists out there that won't even mention D'Angelo's stellar new album, Black Messiah, because of it's release last week. I don't think we need to rush the nostalgic practice of recapping the importance of any year until that final month is nearing completion because I don't want this to become another stereotypical internet thing like cat videos, hipster bloggers slurping down overpriced frappuccinos while typing into their laptops at Starbucks, or Only ___ kids will get this.

Now, onto the Top 40 songs of 2014!

Same rules apply as last year.

#40. Lykke Li "No Rest For The Wicked"

Loud, booming break-up songs? What is this, the 1980's? Lykke Li's third album, I Never Learn, is full of tracks like "No Rest For The Wicked" and the second single has a wonderful video to go along with her best vocal since 2011's "Sadness Is A Blessing". Li's built up a pretty great career for herself with her deep songwriting and cinematic music videos, I can't imagine what she has in store as a follow-up to her most emotional release yet.

NOTE: The song was co-produced and co-written by Bjorn Yttling of Peter Bjorn & John fame, you may remember their 2007 ditty, "Young Folks".

#39. Beyonce' "Flawless"

If this song doesn't make you feel like a badass, you need to go to a psychiatrist. "Flawless" is the feminist anthem of the year and Beyonce' presented it in a way that is not anti-male and instead, equality among both genders. The opening of the song is, by itself, probably the best female hip-hop track released this year (in a bad year for hip-hop). The song is split up into two parts that fit sort of perfect together despite being polar opposites. The first part, "Bow Down", is Beyonce' stating that she's not just Jay Z's "little wife" and is still an elite musician of many genres. The second part, "Flawless", begins with a speech by Nigerian author Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie on how our genders do not need to shape the people we become and do not dictate how we live our lives. Beyonce' then goes on to basically announce herself as a feminist in the catchiest, most badass way possible. It's the biggest banger hit off of her surprise-release Beyonce'.

NOTE: Nicki Minaj added her own verses in a remix. Of course some shit's gonna go down when there's a billion dollars on the track together.

#38. Jack White "Would You Fight For My Love?"

Jack White had a busy year between working with Neil Young, playing every festival known to mankind and releasing his awesome new album, Lazaretto. It seems weird that Jack White's solo work has been my least favorite incarnation of Jack White and yet, "Would You Fight For My Love?" is the best White song since "Icky Thump" from 2008. The video takes place at the bar and is set in a blue tone which is fitting considering the blues genre's heavy influence on White's post-Meg White career. He's been in The White Stripes, The Raconteurs, and The Dead Weather and somehow made great music with every project, not even slowing down over his past two albums. 

NOTE: The album Lazaretto is nominated for Best Alternative Music Album at the 2015 Grammy Awards.

#37. Jessie Ware "You & I (Forever)"

Jessie Ware is just a classy, smooth-singing, good-song making British lady. Ware is the higher-pitched Sade that consistently releases music. Ware's "You & I (Forever)" is one of the best love songs of the year and it's catchier than anything she has previously released. The "Weooh Weeooh Weeooh" in the background, along with the same pop/soul vibes she thrives on, make this her best song yet. The song sounds like a happy love song and the video is your typical happy love song video because who needs to complicate things with a Mac Demarco-like video? The U.S. radio stations need to catch up on some Jessie Ware before they head down the dreadful path of tacky songs that they are already on. 

NOTE: One of the co-writers for the song? Miguel of "Adorn" fame. She might not be the greatest songwriter but, Jessie Ware knows who to reach out to when in need of a great song.

#36. Arcade Fire "We Exist"

Along with all of the newly released songs over the span of 2014, there were also some left other tracks from last year that got made into music videos that are eligible for this year's Top 40 songs. Reflektor was a fantastic album and one of the tracks that fit perfectly into that album was "We Exist". According to lead singer Win Butler, the song is about "a gay kid talking to his dad and coming out", which if it wasn't obvious enough, is the entire story-line of the video. The current Spiderman actor, Andrew Garfield, is the star of the video as a cross-dresser who goes to a bar, gets harassed and assaulted, knocked unconscious and then enters a dream where she is surrounded by a bunch of jean-shorted dudes while dancing. It's quite a bizarre role for Andrew Garfield and quite neat that he was inspired to take the role and then dance with Arcade Fire at Coachella (at least... he does in the video).

NOTE: "We Exist" is nominated for the Grammy Award for Best Music Video.

#35. Beyonce' featuring Jay Z "Drunk In Love"

Beyonce' and Jay Z make wedded life fun and sexy on the biggest hit off of her self-titled, world dominating album. The video is simple, black-and-white and on the beach yet for some reason, you can't look away. In case you weren't aware, Beyonce's pronunciation of "Surfboard" (Serfbort?) is the word of the year and her annunciation in certain moments of this song are what made it such a memorable smash hit. Mr. Knowles, Jay Z, adds his own verse into the song and it's super corny and risky yet, never embarrassing thus, keeping the song flowing. It's a pop song, hip hop song, rap song and it's everything we needed to kick off 2014.

NOTE: Here's the song being covered by Ed Sheeran, Grouplove, and Sia.

#34. Clean Bandit featuring Jess Glynne "Rather Be"

The catchiest song of 2014 was a dance song created by a group of strings making a disco-esque track from the U.K.. I don't think we'll ever see Clean Bandit or Jess Glynne ever make another "Rather Be" because it is the rare song that is played everywhere and nobody really hates it either. Jess Glynne's vocals are reminiscent of a slightly weaker Adele (I won't go as far as actually calling it an Adele dance track because let's face it, Adele's voice isn't really matched by anybody). The video is about a Japanese fan of the band hallucinating and seeing the band's logo everywhere. Another song that started taking over radio stations in January, "Rather Be" is nominated for the Grammy Award for Best Dance Recording and rightfully so, because I really want to dance to it right now just thinking about it.

NOTE:  "Rather Be" held the record for the most streams in a single week on Spotify in the United Kingdom. 

#33. Vance Joy "First Time"

The best and quite possibly, only song about losing your virginity in 2014 was written by Vance Joy. You might be more familiar with his catchy tune, "Riptide". Vance Joy is going to have a ton of desperate guys picking up ukuleles in 2015 instead of guitars. It'll either spawn a bunch of great new musicians or be a passing fad but, either way it will be a thing. Joy's entire debut album (Dream Your Life Away) is packed with descriptive songs like "First Time" and it's one of the more impressive debuts of 2014.

NOTE: This song did not chart anywhere outside of Joy's home country (Australia) and Belgium. How dare you, other countries of the world.

#32. Jungle "Time"

"Time" is a song sung by Josh Lloyd-Watson and Tom McFarland of Jungle but, when I first heard the song I thought "This is totally the guy from TV On The Radio". When Jungle's video for "Busy Earnin'" went semi-viral for it's incredible choreography, I wondered just how they could top that song and video. With "Time", they topped "Busy Earnin'" in it's funkiness and in a fun video which features two middle-aged men getting up out of their chairs to dance to the contagious music of Jungle. They then meet in a gymnasium where they have a funky dance together. It's weird, it's fun, it's everything I love about music videos with a great soundtrack.

NOTE: #32 in 2013? "Tennis Court" by Lorde. Not bad company for Jungle.

#31. Kendrick Lamar "i"

Although we never did get an answer as to who that lady was from The Isley Brothers, their legendary song "Who's That Lady?" got sampled by the best rapper in the world right now. While we're still waiting for K. Dot's new album, we will pass the time watching "i" and his Colbert Show performance to keep us excited. "i" wasn't the best Kendrick Lamar song ever at first listen and it still isn't but, it's a fun, uplifting song with terrific verses from Lamar. Even Kendrick's worst is better than most people's best and "i" isn't his worst. The video is the first music video where the viewer sees Kendrick genuinely enjoying himself while roaming the streets. In case you haven't seen him perform this song live, let me fill you in on a little secret... He adds a new verse every time. That's some intense dedication from Lamar and I can't wait to see what his new album experiments with.

NOTE: Billboard named "i" the second best song of the year.

#30. Death From Above 1979 "Trainwreck 1979"

Death From Above 1979 had one successful debut album back in 2004 and proceeded to break up two years later without any other releases or hints of coming back until 2011 when drummer/lead singer Sebastien Grainger announced they were returning. The album The Physical World was released in September 2014 (10 years after their debut) and spawned the song played constantly through the MLB Playoffs on FOX, "Trainwreck 1979". No song was a bigger rock anthem in 2014 than this song and even if DFA1979 never releases anything again, I'll be satisfied with how they left us with this song and a good album to accompany the song.

NOTE: With the eclectic mix of music on this countdown, "Trainwreck 1979" is the only one I would describe as "dance punk".

#29. Lily Allen "Sheezus"

Lily Allen's Sheezus album may have disappointed most but there wasn't a more confident single released in 2014 than the album's title track "Sheezus". The album's title is an obvious homage to 2013's Kanye West album of the year Yeezus. Lily Allen didn't think she could have made a female version of Yeezus and was never really trying to but, she figured she might sell some extra records with the title and come up with a song that's a female version of Kendrick Lamar's "Control" verse that stopped time in 2013 and challenged every big-name rapper in the game. While Allen achieved nowhere near the notice that "Control" and Yeezus did, she did manage to start a feminist pop movement by shouting out Lady Gaga, Katy Perry, Rihanna, Lorde and Beyonce'. The hip hop influences on the song where Allen's anti-pop way of responding to her label's demands to make filler, meaningless songs like "Air Balloon" the singles off of her latest album. Her record label wouldn't even let her release "Sheezus" as a single due to her mentioning periods thrice in the lyrics. What a bizarre world we live in.

NOTE: After last year's #10 song "Hard Out Here", this is Allen's 2nd Top 40 year-ender off of Sheezus.

#28. Mapei "Don't Wait"

Mapei is a new Swedish singer who at age 31, scored with the release of her synth-heavy song "Don't Wait". Although Mapei clearly hasn't figured out what type of artist she wants to be on her debut album, Hey Hey, it's clear that there's a lot of potential in her as "Don't Wait" is another catchy ear-worm sure to get caught in your brain after hearing it once. I would describe it as a happy, summer version of Imogen Heap's "Hide And Seek". 

NOTE: Mapei's debut album was in the works for quite a while as she first appeared on a Major Lazer track back in 2009 (along with having her own EP). I'm quite disappointed with her album, considering it took her five years to create Hey Hey but, we'll always have "Don't Wait" and that seems like fair compensation.

#27. Ed Sheeran "Sing"

2014 was quietly Pharrell's year and he's earned it after twenty years of being behind-the-scenes and producing some of the biggest tracks of the 00's like "Drop It Like It's Hot", "Hollaback Girl" and Justin Timberlake's first album. 2014 was also Ed Sheeran's year as his second album, x, was the most streamed album on Spotify worldwide this year. It only made perfect sense for Pharrell to produce the first single off of x and appear in the limelight once again in the music video since it's these two's world and we're just living in it. "Sing" was the first sign that Sheeran was more than just the sensitive, ginger-haired dude who wants to get back together with his ex. "Sing" is the fun song that everybody can sing the chorus for at a concert and dance to while Sheeran bursts into a rap that feels corny at first listen but, is really just a sign of the showmanship Sheeran has gained with experience. The video stars a puppet Ed Sheeran going bar hopping and then picking up real Ed and Pharrell in a truck. The video is a fun time for all just like the song itself.

NOTE: "Sing" won the Best Male Video at the 2014 MTV VMA's.

#26. Alt-J "Left Hand Free"

"Breezeblocks" was a fun and original song but, I felt that Alt-J's debut album, An Awesome Wave, was pretty overrated as no song could possibly live up to "Breezeblocks" and didn't. On Alt-J's new record, This Is All Yours, the band finally reached my personal expectations and kicked ass with "Left Hand Free". It's a gritty song with some unintelligible lyrics that make me thankful the internet exists so I can look them up. The video is another perfect match for the song as it's a bunch of teenagers enjoying a sunny day off in the Longhorn State (Texas). Alt-J is going to be in the indie rock scene for a while.

NOTE: The video for "Left Hand Free" was filmed in San Antonio, Texas and features the Guadalupe River.

#25. Phantogram "Fall In Love"

Phantogram is a band without genre, which is why Spotify has tried classifying them in a made-up genre called Metropopolis. Apparently, Metropopolis is a genre that includes Charli XCX, Bleachers, and St. Vincent which means this genre is basically just the stuff that the music experts like that can't be fully defined put into a group created by the music experts. It's pretty friggin' stupid if you ask me. Where was I? Oh, yeah! Phantogram! "Fall In Love" is the trippiest trip hop track of the year as there are moments where it sounds like something you want to blare out of your speakers and at other moments, sounds like something you should definitely turn down before giving yourself an aneurysm. It's not dubstep and it's definitely on the outskirts of indie pop (there are electric guitars and whatnot). I'm not sure what the hell it is, I just know I enjoy it a lot. It's indescribable and the fact that people want to group it into something makes me ticked. WHY CAN'T WE JUST LET MUSIC BE MUSIC?!! -end of rant-

NOTE: Phantogram was a huge part of Big Boi's 2012 album, Vicious Lies and Dangerous Rumors, and they plan on releasing an EP together at some point in the near future.

#24. OK Go "The Writing's On The Wall"

OK Go never fails to amaze the mass public with their incredibly innovative music videos and the thing that I love about this band is they started out mediocre but, have progressively improved as a pop-rock band. Their newest album, Hungry Ghosts, features many different vibes and genres including indie-rock, electronic and the disco-pop of "I Won't Let You Down". "The Writing's On The Wall" fits in the first category as an indie-rock song which sounds eerily similar to what a 2014 version of Depeche Mode should sound like. The video is your typical video of the year-worthy stuff from OK Go as it's filled with mind-bending optical illusions that sometimes take a second viewing to catch.

NOTE: The video was all taped in one-shot because of course it was.

#23. Mr. Little Jeans "Good Mistake"

I first discovered Mr. Little Jeans (who is actually Ms. Monica Birkenes) via her chilling cover of Arcade Fire's "The Suburbs" which I loved. When I discovered she had released an entire album (Pocketknife) recently before that, I dug into it right away. The song "Good Mistake" was the obvious highlight with one of the best background tracks to drive to. Birkenes' voice shines throughout the album and she's going to rise up with Banks, Sylvan Esso, and Phantogram as this new wave of female dream-pop bubbles under the current mainstream music that is slowly going to change out of tacky songs and into slower-paced songs that don't get on people's nerves after the 100th listen.

NOTE: #23 last year? D.A.'s "Glowing".

#22. Foster The People "Coming Of Age"

Songs about growing up are usually pretty good and "Coming of Age" was no different as Foster The People's first track off of Supermodel is lead singer Mark Foster's song of realization that nothing will be the same after returning to his hometown after their first album. The alt-rock/indie-pop of Foster The People is especially nice as it is very much influenced by The Beach Boys. Despite their lack of surfing songs, Foster The People managed to get California as the setting in their "Coming of Age" video. The music video features emotional teenager story arcs much like the barrage of high school films in the 1980's.

NOTE: "Coming of Age" might have been the first single but, it was also the last song written for Supermodel.

#21. Michael Jackson featuring Justin Timberlake "Love Never Felt So Good"

"Love Never Felt So Good" feels like the perfect send-off for the late Michael Jackson as it is a rejected song he recorded in 1983 that was co-written Paul Anka. The track didn't need production from Timbaland but, it got some and that made the track more modernized and a national hit. They couldn't have picked a better guest star for a Michael Jackson song than Justin Timberlake and the video re-enacts many of Jackson's memorable dances along with clips from the original videos. They really couldn't have done a posthumous album and lead single any better.

NOTE: MJ & JT combined have the second most Grammy wins by any artists on one song on the countdown with 22, trailing only Beyonce' & Jay Z (36).

#20. Sylvan Esso "Coffee"

Sylvan Esso was a band that I was not familiar with until I saw them perform on the Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon. Immediately the dreamy and fluttery backing track caught my attention. Once the song was over, "Get up, get down. Get up, get down" was on repeat in my head. It's not a dance song and yet, the addictive dance lyrics were some of the catchiest lyrics of 2014. Sylvan Esso is an electronic indie-pop duo that consists of Mountain Man lead singer Amelia Meath and Megafun producer Nick Sanborn. I don't have the slightest clue what those two bands do but, I am perfectly content with more Sylvan Esso songs in the future.

NOTE: The track contains a part of "Hanky Panky" by Tommy James and the Shondells on Sylvan Esso's self-titled debut album.

#19. Foster The People "Best Friend"

It is pretty easy to confuse "Best Friend" and "Coming of Age" considering both are the two best songs Foster The People has released, both are on their second album, Supermodel, and both songs are pop-rock gold. The music video for "Best Friend" gets more and more trippy as it progresses with tie-dye ink splotches shaped like the band members and a super competetive model eating other models to harness their attractiveness. It's a weird video with a twist ending and a song you'll want to hear again and again after discovering. With the success of "Pumped Up Kicks", "Don't Stop (Color On The Walls)", and "Helena Beat" on their first album, Foster The People are looking like the too-rare consistent pop-rock band. 

NOTE: Despite less favorable reviews, Supermodel peaked at #3 on the Billboard 200 compared to their debut, Torches, which only peaked at #8.

#18. Beyonce' "Heaven"

(SPOILER) Don't worry, this is the final Beyonce' song. "Heaven" is the stand-out track from Beyonce'. When Yonce' performed parts of her entire album at the VMA's, this song brought everyone from dancing in their chairs or dancing standing up to holding back or letting go tears. The song is previously untouched territory by Beyonce' where she sings about her previous miscarriage. Beyonce's voice is filled with the sadness one would expect a mother to experience in her voice after such a tragic experience. Video co-director Todd Tourso is quoted as saying "Originally, her main inspiration for that song and that video was watching her mother lose one of her best friends. So Beyoncé’s treatment — which was incredibly detailed and fleshed out, shockingly so, at seven in the morning — was juxtaposing this gut-wrenching sad song with really happy visuals of two girls who are best friends doing all these amazing things, and then at the end of the video you find out that it was one of the girls’ bucket lists, and she’s actually dead. So we went out there to shoot that, and in shooting it, we realized that a lot of the more epic moments that we had originally wanted to capture came across as contrived, and a lot of the natural things that we had filmed looked very real and very beautiful." I don't think there's anything else that needs to be said about "Heaven" other than it is Beyonce's greatest songwriting achievement in a lifetime of music.

NOTE: Other people who helped with Beyonce's self-titled album? Sia, Boots, Timbaland, Pharrell, The-Dream, Miguel, Justin Timberlake, Drake, Majid Jordan, Ryan Tedder of OneRepublic, Hit-Boy and of course, Jay Z.

#17. SBTRKT featuring Ezra Koenig "New Dorp. New York"

The second single off of Wonder Where We Land, SBTRKT's sophomore album features Ezra Koenig of Vampire Weekend and was the song that caught me off-guard the most in 2014. I was not expecting to hear something so different from the general output of music in 2014 and I had honestly forgotten/overlooked SBTRKT after their first album in 2011. It was the only track I would describe as electronic-jazz in the history of countdowns. Ezra Koenig's singing is so rapid at certain points in the song that he almost sounds like he's scatting or beat-boxing. The deep distorted voice that Koenig seems to have borrowed from last year's VW hit "Diane Young" comes in even better use on "New Dorp. New York" as it adds to the mystery that is SBTRKT and his unique genre of electronic music.

NOTE: SBTRKT's second album is dedicated to his brother, Daniel who died of cancer since SBTRKT's debut album.

#16. Jenny Lewis "Just One Of The Guys"

Anne Hathaway and Kristen Stewart are just two of the guys in the video for "Just One of the Guys". Jenny Lewis was originally a member of Rilo Kiley for 14 years but, after two albums as a band and two solo albums, the group split and Lewis began work on her most personal record yet. The 38-year old Lewis co-wrote with strictly big indie rock superstars like Beck and Ryan Adams and "Just One of the Guys" is the only song off of the terrific The Voyager album and it's probably not even one of the three best songs on that album. Jenny Lewis has also been an actor for a few decades and recruited some of her actress pals for a music video that was clearly fun to shoot.

NOTE: "Just One of the Guys" was named the #5 song of 2014 in Rolling Stone magazine.

#15. Haim featuring A$AP Ferg "My Song 5"

Haim was one of those bands that I was all in on during 2013 and "My Song 5" was my favorite track off of their debut album, Days Are Gone. The music video for "My Song 5" matches the song by being Haim's best video out of the six music videos they have released so far. The music video is a parody of the Jerry Springer/Ricki Lake talk shows. called "Dallas Murphy" and is fun to watch to see if you can name all of the guest stars featured throughout the video. The song is a mixture of hip-hop and rock and roll and before you know it, A$AP Ferg shows up to debut a previously unheard verse not featured on Haim's album. It's a fun song with or without the video.

NOTE: Video cameos include... Vanessa Bayer of Saturday Night Live, Ke$ha, Ezra Koenig of Vampire Weekend, A$ap Ferg, Grimes, Big Sean, and Ariel Rechtshaid who co-wrote the song along with all the other success he's had this year. (Rechtshaid also helped with Beyonce's album)

#14. Paolo Nutini "Iron Sky"

One of my personal favorite artists, Paolo Nutini, has yet to achieve much American success since nobody has good taste over here (except you!). "Iron Sky" is a song that everyone should really see performed live instead of just clicking the above link because the music video is eight minutes and a whole other beast on it's own. Nutini's voice shines on the politically-charged track that he released along with four other tracks long before releasing his third album, Caustic Love, in April. Paolo is still the male Amy Winehouse seven years after both artists broke through at the exact same time and "Iron Sky" is the best thing to come out of Scotland this year.

NOTE: #14 on last year's countdown? "We Can't Stop" by Miley Cyrus. 

#13. Broods "Bridges"

I honestly thought that "Bridges" was a song by Lorde when I first heard it and as it turns out, I wasn't very far off. "Bridges" is the first single off of siblings Georgia and Caleb Nott's debut album, Evergreen. Broods are an indie pop outfit from New Zealand (Lorde's home country) and "Bridges" was produced by Joel Little, the man who co-wrote and co-produced the entirety of Lorde's 2013 excellent album, Pure Heroine. The video for "Bridges" is one of the sadder, most well executed videos of the year as it shows the story of a teenage guy falling into the "friend zone" of a teenage girl and um... doesn't take it well and ends up taking it way too far to the point of obsession. Everybody knows somebody who has either been in this position (boy or girl) or you are one of the characters in the video. When you put the simplistic dramatic song together with the simplistic dramatic video, you get one of the best breakout songs of 2014.

NOTE: This song was also released to adult alternative and modern rock radio stations, meaning this song is also classified in the same group as Lorde's controversial classification as a "rock" artist at the award shows of 2014.

#12. TV On The Radio "Happy Idiot"

"Happy Idiot" was a late entry to the list, being released in late October. It is the first single of TV On The Radio to not feature late bassist Gerard Smith, who died right after the release of 2011's Nine Types of Light. The song is what we've come to expect from TV On The Radio, a great indie rock song that is sung by one of the most underrated voices in music (Tunde Adebimpe's). Another great driving song, "Happy Idiot" actually has Paul Reubens (yes, of Pee Wee's Playhouse fame) driving in a race car which makes sense because his character of Pee Wee Herman is... wait for it... a happy idiot. After 2013's release of the music video for "Million Miles", I was unsure of what was to come from the band if that song would be the best song off of their new album. Thankfully, Seeds is better than "Million Miles" (even though that's not a bad song) and it's more of a garage-rock album than the art-rock TV On The Radio has become accustomed to.

NOTE: TV On The Radio had the #5 song of 2011 with "Will Do".

#11. St. Vincent "Digital Witness"

The David Byrne influences are strong on St. Vincent's self-titled fourth album. None of the tracks show this more than "Digital Witness". The song is about high-tech braggadocio that people today must post everything they do to some sort of social networking website and St. Vincent's tired of it all. The video is everything artsy and bizarre one should come to expect from Annie Clark or David Byrne as Annie is in a dystopian universe where there appears to be some sort of military training going on? Who really knows? There's a reason "Digital Witness" appears on many other year-end lists because of it's uniqueness and synth-y chorus.

NOTE: St. Vincent was named as the album of 2014 by Slant Magazine, musicOMH, The Guardian and NME.

#10. Lykke Li "Gunshot"

"Gunshot" is another video that takes place in a dystopian landscape where there's a bunch of weird stuff going on around an overly made-up Lykke Li. This song is one of the most incredible songs released this year as it is a true indie pop power ballad, the likes of which I had not heard in a long time. The entirety of Lyyke Li's I Never Learn album consists of songs like "Gunshot" where you can tell Li's breakup that inspired the record really screwed her up emotionally. The song could have finished higher on end of the year lists if it weren't for the indescribable video where nobody can really tell what message Li is trying to get across. 

NOTE: #10 on last year's list? "Hard Out Here" by Lily Allen.

#9. Sam Smith "Stay With Me"

If there was one voice that transcended genres this year, it was that of British singer Sam Smith. The song "Stay With Me" is a pop ballad that tells the story of a man who had a one-night stand and then begs the other person not to leave. It's a sad, lonely tale that only Smith's voice could deliver. Nothing pleasantly surprised me more than hearing Smith and his background singers really stop the audience in their tracks in his American debut on U.S. television on Saturday Night Live in March. It was one of the biggest radio hits of 2014 and unlike most of the other songs that fit into that realm, it didn't suck.

NOTE: "Stay With Me" is nominated for Song of the Year, Record of the Year and Best Pop Solo Performance.

#8. Lana Del Rey "West Coast"

I did not believe that Lana Del Rey could top her debut album, Born To Die, but it's 2014 and here we are. Ultraviolence was a sultrier, rocker version of Lana Del Rey that was made apparent by the first single off of the album called "West Coast". The song sounds like something you would hear at the beginning of summer before you have that summer fling with the person you meet while surfing. The video really nails that point on the head by showing Del Rey and a male love interest on the beach. Once Lizzy Grant, Lana Del Rey has proved that she has staying power on "West Coast" and tracks like "West Coast" on the new album.

NOTE: Lana first performed the song live at Coachella in April. 

#7. Nicole Atkins "Girl You Look Amazing"

The one change that I have noticed since I stopped making weekly top 20 music countdowns, is that I don't tire of upbeat songs if I hear them a few times and it's not new or fresh anymore. One shining example of that is "Girl You Look Amazing", which premiered in January with one of the most charming videos of the year. The video is of Nicole Atkins having a great date with either an invisible man or just plain nobody. It's sort of tragic in a way but, with such an upbeat soundtrack, how could you not have fun and dance in your chair to this? It's Atkins' most upbeat song yet after two albums of trying to be the female equivalent of Roy Orbison (and doing so pretty successfully).

NOTE: Atkins was born in Neptune.... New Jersey that is. You're welcome for this useless information.

#6. Janelle Monae featuring Solange "Electric Lady"

On the third-best album of 2013, there were three songs worthy of making my year-end top 40, "Primetime" (#18 in 2013), "Dance Apocalyptic" (#4 in 2013) and "Electric Lady" (#6 this year) all came off of Monae's fantastic The Electric Lady album. "Electric Lady" is the perfect funk track for Monae' as she sings about a seemingly fictional character over horns and raps to break it down to get her point across to the listener. The video matches the enthusiasm she shows in the song as she leaves her mom to go to a party with her letterman jacket on. This isn't your average party either, it's a parade of music all-stars all gathered in one place to have fun and party with the marching band. It's the most-Outkastian video yet from a singer recruited by Big Boi.

NOTE: The music video features Estelle, Joi, Kimbra, Monica, Esparanza Spalding, T-Boz of TLC and T.I.

#5. Phantogram "Black Out Days"

Since Phatogram's 2009 album, Eyelids, there was not a song of theirs that I could tell was a Phantogram song. Before "Black Out Days", I could have heard a Phantogram song and been convinced that it was a song by Little Dragon. The second single off of Voices is one of the best darker, wailing, indie electronic songs I've heard. The song got me extremely excited for music in 2014 (only to be somewhat disappointed by the lack of great music being put out this year) and there wasn't a song that I was more excited to hear on the college radio stations than this one. Phantogram is one of the better under-the-radar acts in 2014 that everyone should keep their eyes on for the future.

NOTE: #5 last year? "Reflektor" by Arcade Fire.

#4. Bleachers "I Wanna Get Better"

When I heard that Jack Antonoff of the band Fun. was going to branch off and create a side-project with producer John Hill, I was all in on whatever that album was going to sound like. I knew there was some real talent in the band Fun. but, their songs outside of "We Are Young" never really reached their full potential. On "I Wanna Get Better", Antonoff shows that he is the MVP of Fun.. The song is the pop-rock anthem of 2014 that everybody can shout along the chorus to. The video stars Antonoff as a therapist who deals with listening to his patients' relationship issues after having been broken up with earlier that day. The video is entertaining and goes along with the song quite well.

NOTE: The video was directed by Antonoff's girlfriend and Girls creator Lena Dunham.

#3. Mark Ronson featuring Bruno Mars "Uptown Funk"

I'm on many artist's bandwagons but I've been on Mark Ronson's bandwagon since he produced Amy Winehouse's Back To Black album and then released an album featuring Winehouse, Lily Allen, Santigold, Ghostface Killah and a whole bunch of funkified remakes of older songs. "Uptown Funk" is an original song that is somewhat unoriginal in that it captures the best parts of Earth, Wind & Fire and the "Apache" song by The Sugarhill Gang. It's the most fun song of 2014 and it's going viral as I type. The song is funny with Mars' brag-heavy lyrics and the backing track couldn't be more perfect to create a successful funk song in 2014. The video matches the vibe of the song with cool cars, confident dancers and a touch of humor with Mars getting his hair done at a Barber Shop. It's the most fun song of the year and I cannot wait to hear what Mark Ronson has in store for the world next. (He's bringing back Mystikal, what can't he do?).

NOTE: "Uptown Funk" has made it up to #3 on the Billboard Hot 100.

#2. Sia "Chandelier"

Sia is 2014's female version of Pharrell. A songwriter who has been in the game for a decade but, had yet to achieve mainstream success with a song of her own. Thankfully, the "Chandelier" video instantly went viral due to the incredible choreography and dancing of 12-year old Maddie Ziegler. The dancing performance took on a life of it's own at Sia's live performances since Sia's success has caused her anxiety to take over and she's refused to show her face in public for fear of people judging based on appearance instead of performance. The song is sung from the perspective of a "party girl" who has a drinking problem. Sia's vocal performance is the strongest of her career and easily the most effort put into singing this year.

NOTE: "Chandelier"'s video was parodied by Jim Carrey, Kate McKinnon and Iggy Azalea on Saturday Night Live's best skit of their 40th season so far.

#1 songs of year's past
2006. P!nk "Stupid Girlz"
2007. Amy Winehouse "Rehab"
2008. Kanye West ft. Dwele & Connie Mitchell "Flashing Lights"
2009. Santigold "L.E.S. Artistes"
2010. Yeah Yeah Yeahs "Skeletons"
2011. Adele "Someone Like You"
2012. Santigold "The Keepers"
2013. Arcade Fire "Afterlife"

The #1 song of 2014                                       

St. Vincent "Birth In Reverse"

St. Vincent went full-force into the best song of the year with sick guitar riffs and vibrant feel. The video for "Birth In Reverse" is exactly what we've come to expect from Annie Clark, creepy doll-like movements that make it appear as though she's being controlled by a puppeteer, surrounded by smoke and dust flying off of her hair, it's not the most exciting video but when that beat kicks in at the beginning, nothing is stopping St. Vincent from taking over the listener's ears. Not to mention, it's the most bad-ass song to drive to (which I'm pretty sure I've stated for another song already). Thank you, St. Vincent for creating the best song of 2014.

And thank you for reading. The top 20 albums of the year will be posted before 2014. Think you have a good hold on what my taste in music is and can guess the #1 album of 2014? Leave a comment, you're probably wrong.

Best of 2014 <--- Spotify playlist of the top 40.

Let's Go "Bowl"ing: My 2014-15 Bowl Game Picks

Remember how bad Michigan football was this year? I'm pretty sure that they were one upset over Ohio State away from being bowl game-eligible. If that's not a sign that there are way too many bowl games, I don't know what is. As in previous years, people just need to realize that there are only a few bowl games with two ranked teams that have any major importance and this year, playoff implications. It's a shame that the importance of making a bowl game has been watered down so much but, it does give college football fans everywhere a chance to watch/scout teams they don't usually watch like Louisiana-Lafayette or South Alabama. Plus, some really unexciting schools have exciting players.

ERIC DRAPER — ASSOCIATED PRESS
Fresno State is the only team to make a bowl game despite finishing 6-7.

Saturday, December 20th
New Orleans Bowl
Nevada v. Louisiana-Lafayette. Louisiana-Lafayette may have won this bowl the past three seasons but my man-crush on Nevada Senior QB Cody Fajardo's explosive style of play knows no bounds.

Pick: Against better judgement, Nevada.

New Mexico Bowl
Utah State v. Texas-El Paso. The Mountain West Conference > Conference-USA. Utah State may have lost 3 Quarterbacks to injury (way to go, O-line) but, it all comes down to which team's success do you trust the most based on strength of scheduling? I'm really intrigued to see how UTEP's RB Aaron Jones performs after a very nice season.

Pick: Utah State.

Las Vegas Bowl
Utah v. Colorado State. Other than one embarrassing play, The Utah Utes had one of the most anonymous seasons among the top-25 ranked teams. Meanwhile, Colorado State was tearing apart most of the nation in a season which inspired Florida to hire their head coach, Jim McElwain, and a season which opened the country's eyes to 1st team All-American WR Rashard Higgins.

Pick: Utah.

The Famous Idaho Potato Bowl!
Western Michigan v. Air Force. Still my favorite bowl game name, THE Famous Idaho Potato Bowl features the great offense of Western Michigan and second year Head Coach P.J. Fleck versus the inconsistent Air Force Falcons. Air Force knows how to run the ball so Western Mich. may want to work on their run defense as passing is very optional in the Air Force football team.

Pick: Western Michigan.

Camellia Bowl? What the hell is that?
South Alabama v. Bowling Green. I wasn't aware South Alabama existed as a football entity until I saw this match-up. Bowling Green's color scheme confuses me but, one thing that's clear is nobody should really know anything about these two teams unless they watched Mid-week MACtion this season or are attending South Alabama's university.

Pick: Bowling Green.

Monday, December 22nd
Miami Beach Bowl
Brigham Young v. Memphis. Brigham Young has shown the capability of getting by without QB Taysom Hill (broken leg) and Memphis is a team without a definition other than they are an average team, skating by an easy schedule.

Pick: BYU

Tuesday, December 23rd
Boca Raton Bowl
Marshall v. Northern Illinois. Northern Illinois was a much more successful team with Jordan Lynch under center in 2013 but, their defense is still in tact and Marshall hasn't looked like BIG SCARY MARSHALL in a month. Rakeem Cato is nice but, Northern Illinois has the experience necessary to dispose of a Conference-USA team.

Pick: Northern Illinois

Poinsettia Bowl
Navy v. San Diego State. If you get the time to watch this game, don't expect to see the next Tom Brady or Aaron Rodgers. Navy's offense is strictly a ground and pound offense featuring about 5 separate running backs/fullbacks and mobile QB Keenan Reynolds (who led the team in rushing with 1,182 yards this season). San Diego State at least tries to throw the ball every now and then, despite their superior ground game. RB Donnell Pumphrey is one of the most under-the-radar 1,700 yard rushers in the nation and he will get a test on Tuesday against Navy's run defense.

Pick: Navy

Wednesday, December 24th
Bahamas Bowl
Central Michigan v. Western Kentucky. The MAC's most average team versus the team that crushed Marshall's hopes. Central Michigan has no idea what they're in for against QB Brandon Doughty, considering they haven't faced any Quarterback of note this season. This will be a wild one with Western Kentucky's lack of defense.

Pick: Western Kentucky

Hawaii Bowl
Fresno State v. Rice. Ignoring the frustration that is a 6-7 team qualifying for a bowl game in one of the best vacation spots in the world, Fresno State knows what they're about: Passing and a lot of passing. Rice just gave up 76 points to Louisiana Tech. I don't think I need to talk about a team that gave up 76 points to Louisiana Tech past the point of mentioning that they gave up 76 points to Louisiana Tech.

Pick: Fresno State

Friday, December 26th
Heart of Dallas Bowl
Illinois v. Louisiana Tech. I'm trying to imagine what a bowl with the Heart of Dallas inside of it looks like... Kind of gross. I have seen Illinois play football multiple times this season and changed the channel within minutes of the kickoff. Illinois is a bad football team.

Pick: Louisiana Tech in a blowout.

Quick Lane Bowl
Rutgers v. North Carolina. Rutgers started the season as a respectable team, beating Michigan, Navy, and Washington State and sticking with Penn State in a close loss. They WERE 5-1. Rutgers finished 7-5 with a point differential of -111 over their final six games. North Carolina was wildly inconsistent and finished at .500 after beating Georgia Tech & Duke but, losing painfully to NC State and Virginia Tech. Who can collect themselves and get the whole team in a must-win attitude? Somebody has to win!

Pick: North Carolina

St. Petersburg Bowl
NC State v. Central Florida. UCF barely lost any steps after losing Blake Bortles and Storm Johnson to the NFL's best college team in Jacksonville. One 9-3 season after their best team in years and they look like they have some serious potential to be realized before 2016. NC State does not know what a defense is but, QB Jacoby Brissett will keep them in contention for most of the game.

Pick: Central Florida (UCF)

Saturday, December 27th

Eric Francis/Getty Images

Military Bowl
Cincinnati v. Virginia Tech. Gunner Kiel, other than being the best name for a Quarterback right now, was once the next 1st round bust to be taken out of Notre Dame. Now, he's achieving accolades at a pace that Notre Dame would be perfectly fine with right now (nobody turns the ball over like Everett Golson). Virginia Tech seems like they could go 1-11 and still qualify for a bowl game. No offense to Va.Tech fans but, I find the team to be a nuisance. I always think "okay, they have a solid history. They'll probably still be good enough to take a team like Wake Forest" but no... They lost 3-6 in double overtime to Wake Forest in one of the worst games of the NCAA football season. Not to mention, I always confuse them with Virginia. Dammit Virginia, get your football teams together!

Pick: Cincinnati

Sun Bowl
Arizona State v. Duke. Arizona State's QB situation (Taylor Kelly + Mike Bercovici) hurt their chances at the college playoff this year, as did the faltering defense that was once a great defense in 2013. Kelly has something to prove as this is his final game for Arizona State and Duke's defense is known for stalling better offenses. Expect this game to be close as Duke has an under-the-radar NFL head coaching candidate in David Cutcliffe.

Pick: Arizona State

Independence Bowl
Miami (FL) v. South Carolina. Steve Spurrier misses Jadeveon Clowney. South Carolina's defense put up some pretty uninspiring numbers this year and with Duke Johnson still a Hurricane for at least one more game, SC will have trouble stopping THE U.

Pick: South Carolina. Threw you for a loop there, didn't I? I still think this a game that comes down to coaching and Steve Spurrier > Al Golden.

Pinstripe Bowl (What is this?? A game for zebras?!)
Boston College v. Penn State. Christian Hackenberg's sophomore season didn't go anywhere near as well as planned. Penn State's defense is still one of the most underrated defensive units in the nation and Boston College has trouble passing the ball. Expect a low scoring battle with many un-watchable drives. It doesn't seem like the ideal television scenario to have two teams as mediocre as these to face each other, alas it is 2014, and more bowl games is what we asked for at some point in the past.

Pick: Boston College

Holiday Bowl
Nebraska v. USC. After Bo Pelini's ugly exit, Nebraska is going to be coached by Tim Beck. I know nothing about Tim Beck other than he owns two turntables and a microphone and isn't the coolest dude around (some might even refer to him as a "loser"). USC will have a field day against Nebraska's underachieving and lackadaisical defense.

Pick: USC

Monday, December 29th

Arkansas Head Coach Bret Bielema

Liberty Bowl
Texas A&M v. West Virginia. Outside of the playoff games, this was the hardest game to envision. I like what I've seen from Kyle Allen but, I'm just not sure if he's ready to win a bowl game. Clint Trickett is the opposing QB for West Virginia and has the experience necessary to pull off an upset win over the SEC in this likely entertaining game.

Pick: West Virginia

Russell Athletic Bowl
Oklahoma v. Clemson. My Heisman pick for next year is a bit vague. I'm taking one of the three Oklahoma Sooner stars (if they all return) and those three are QB Trevor Knight, RB Samaje Perine, and DE Eric Striker. One of those guys will win the Heisman next year. Clemson is still Clemson, Cole Stoudt is starting at QB and the team is a disaster waiting to happen.

Pick: Oklahoma

Texas Bowl
Arkansas v. Texas. Wait a minute... I smell something fishy... Texas in the Texas Bowl? Did they specifically create this game to satisfy the University of Texas's needs? Arkansas is on a bit of a hot streak after winning their first SEC game but, Texas? in the Texas Bowl? It's a trap! Get away!

Pick: Texas

Tuesday, December 30th

Chuck Burton / Associated Press

Music City Bowl
Notre Dame v. LSU. Bahahahaha. Have you seen Notre Dame since they lost (wrongfully) to Florida State?

Pick: LSU

Belk Bowl
Georgia v. Louisville. Louisville has an explosive receiver (Devante' Parker) with nobody to throw it to him. It would have been nice if Todd Gurley could have stayed healthy long enough to play during the bowl season but, Nick Chubb has done enough to prove himself. Georgia misses Todd Gurley but, not in a "We can't win without him" way.

Pick: Georgia

Foster Farms Bowl
Maryland v. Stanford. Yadayadayada wacky jerseys. That's all anybody mentions when they talk about the Maryland Terrapins. I'm here to tell you that, yes those ARE the only notable things going on with this school's football. C.J. Brown is an interesting Quarterback with mobility and average passing ability but, there aren't a whole lot of things pulling viewers to ESPN for this bowl game. Stanford returned to dominance with their 31-10 upset of UCLA on November 28th.

Pick: Stanford

Wednesday, December 31st
Peach Bowl
Ole Miss v. TCU. How will TCU respond to going from third to sixth in the rankings? Can Bo Wallace and company keep up with TCU's offense? A very intriguing battle between two top nine teams in the nation, TCU was one of my favorites to be crowned the best team in the nation at one point this season. It's a shame they couldn't beat Baylor or look like a real contender against Kansas but, such is life. Ole Miss was also off to a hot start until reality stepped in and pushed the Ole Miss offense down a flight of stairs with the injury to the team's #1 WR Laquon Treadwell.

Pick: TCU

Fiesta Bowl
Boise State v. Arizona. Boise State's offense is crazy fun with a mobile QB in Grant Hedrick and one of the nation's best Running Backs in Jay Ajayi. The defense isn't anything special but, it must be good enough as the Broncos enter on an eight game winning streak. Arizona has a good offense that nearly matches Boise State's talent. The real deciding factor will end up being Scooby Wright III who will feast on Boise State's O-Line.

Pick: Arizona

Orange Bowl
Mississippi State v. Georgia Tech. The Triple-option offense is a strange offensive design that has worked miracles for the Yellow Jackets all season long. Things will change when G.Tech's run-heavy offense gets smothered by Mississippi State's defense. Dak Prescott was a Heisman candidate until the final couple weeks of the season and he should outshine Georgia Tech's solid defense as the Bulldogs are full of pent-up anger from their loss to Ole Miss.

Pick: Mississippi State

Thursday, January 1st, 2015
Outback Bowl
Auburn v. Wisconsin. Living in the state of Wisconsin, I am only slightly biased as I do make myself watch every Badger game for at least a portion of the time so that I'm fully aware what the conversations might be locally. Auburn is coming off of a widely disappointing season after making the championship last season. AD Barry Alvarez is once again stepping down from his box to coach this game in light of Gary Anderson's betrayal departure. What does that mean for Wisconsin? Probably nothing.

Pick: Auburn

Cotton Bowl
Michigan State v. Baylor. In another match-up of two top ten teams, the Spartans have been excelling despite an overrated offense and a slightly-less-talented-than-last-year defense. Their reputation and the Big Ten's reputation could take a hit with a big loss to an overpowering, pissed off Baylor squad.

Pick: Baylor

Citrus Bowl
Missouri v. Minnesota. Missouri surprised quite a few by making the SEC Championship and followed that up by surprising virtually nobody by losing to Alabama. Minnesota overachieved with a talented running back (David Cobb) and nice but not TOO nice defense in the Big Ten. Speaking of defense, Missouri's Defense is outstanding and if they can stop the run, then they can stop Minnesota.

Pick: Missouri

Rose Bowl
#2 Oregon v. #3 Florida State. In one of the two playoff head-to-heads, Oregon is heavily favored by college football fans despite Florida State not losing a game in two years. Good luck with that one, America. The Ducks are missing future-pro corner Ifo Ekpre-Olomu and will be complacent with their average defense since their offense is the real star of the university. It's a shame that we'll have to hear that ear-splitting tomahawk chant for another week but again, such is life.

Pick: Florida State

Sugar Bowl
Alabama v. Ohio State. Is there any scenario college underdog fans would love to see more than Nick Saban get upset by a third-string Quarterback from a lesser conference. The one thing that I've learned in my years of watching college football is that the widely-considered evil entity always wins. I mean... Nick Saban will have had a full month to game-plan for a third-string Quarterback! How do you expect this game to finish?

Pick: Alabama

Lesser Importance Bowl Games happening between the first round of 4 and the championship

Friday, January 2nd
Armed Forces Bowl
Houston v. Pittsburgh.
Pick: Pittsburgh

TaxSlayer Bowl
Iowa v. Tennessee.
Pick: Tennessee

Alamo Bowl
Kansas State v. UCLA. This is actually a nice game between two ranked teams but, all the outside buzz will be gone once we know the championship match-up and begin our non-stop analysis.

Pick: Kansas State

Cactus Bowl (ouch)
Washington v. Oklahoma State. 
Pick: Oklahoma State

Saturday, January 3rd
Birmingham Bowl
East Carolina v. Florida.
Pick: Florida

Sunday, January 4th
GoDaddy.com Bowl
Toledo v. Arkansas State. Why are we holding this game? Especially on an NFL playoff Sunday!
Pick: Toledo

Monday, January 12th
National Championship Game
Florida State/Oregon v. Alabama/Ohio State. Considering my picks for the first round are Florida State and Alabama, I think I'll choose one of those two teams to win it all. Sounds like a good plan, no? Jameis Winston and Jimbo Fisher versus Nick Saban and Amari Cooper, Florida State's defense versus Alabama's defense although, never at the same time. It could set up to rival last season's incredible win for Florida State over Auburn. In fact, it could even mirror last season's finish with a Florida State win over an SEC powerhouse.

Pick: Alabama 38 - Florida State 31.

Threw you for a loop again, didn't I? Alabama might not have the world's best Quarterback or running game as they've had in years past but, it's still Nick Saban, it's still a fantastic offensive line and most importantly, Jameis Winston is ridiculously turnover prone. Can that change against Bama's defense? It's possible but, I really don't think that happens. So, roll tide or whatever, I guess.

Enjoy the bowl season! but don't enjoy too much or you'll suffer from bowl game hangover before the most important game.

College Football 2014 Conference Championship Previews

Coming Soon: End of the year wrap-ups including the top songs & albums in music of 2014, Bowl game picks, NFL Season recap and before you know it, it'll be 2015 and I'll be in basketball mode!

The College football conference championship matchups are decided and we can now rejoice... until a few upsets murky up the playoff/bowl picture even more than they already have been by rivalry week. If you have troubles keeping track of which teams are in which divisions or conferences, don't worry because you are not alone (Georgia Tech in the ACC? 16 teams in the SEC? What!?). It's not really worth remembering which teams are where they are unless they're above .500 at the end of the year since, in all likelihood, they'll be in the race for the conference championship season finale. Before I get to previewing the conference games, here is my Top 25 rankings and a Heisman update in a week that made me change my mind on which player should get the esteemed award.

The AT (Andy Todd) Top 25
#1. Alabama Crimson Tide - Okay, I get it. They've beaten Auburn 55-44 in a game where Blake Sims was forced to finally show us his full potential and after a putrid first half, he started looking for the one reason this team is #1 in the ranks, Wide Receiver Amari Cooper (13 catches, 224 yards, 3 TD's). It's been a while since I've last seen 'Bama as a #1 team but, with their reputation, coaching, and only weakness being at Quarterback, it's hard to find enough reasons to not put them at #1 (other than the fact that Florida State is undefeated).

Alabama QB Blake Sims threw 3 TD's and 0 INT's after 1 TD, 3 INTs and backup Jake Coker warming up on the sidelines.

#2. Oregon Ducks - If their shutdown of a win over rival Oregon State (47-19 and it wasn't even THAT close) didn't impress you, nothing will. Mark Helfrich has done enough to prove that he's not just a lesser coach being used in mop-up duty with Chip Kelly's players. The defense appears to be playing at full strength consistently for the first time since the now-Eagles coach left and the O-Line is playing better as they get healthier. Oregon will be a force in the final four for certain if they win the Pac-12 Championship.

#3. Florida State Seminoles - I'm tired of defending this team. Florida State is nowhere near as good as they were last season and despite being undefeated, has yet to impress me in any major act outside of pulling out clutch wins. The point-shaving rumors have gone away but the closeness of some of these games and the suddenly-turnover prone Jameis Winston (4 INT's this Saturday) have made me at least a tad suspicious even though I really don't think that's what is going on. If I'm an NFL general manager, Winston has not shown me enough to consider him a first-round pick. The underlying story behind this 12-0 team's struggles is how bad the defense is compared to it's greatness last season. They won't be winning the championship if they play like they did in their uninspiring 24-19 win over Florida.

#4. TCU Horned Frogs - Still a very good team, TCU will still only get the #4 spot due to the sterling reputation of Nick Saban, Marcus Mariota, and an undefeated team. Head Coach Gary Patterson's squad has made a very good case for the playoffs with a 48-10 win over Texas where they outplayed the Longhorns in every facet of the game in the fourth quarter. The defense is closer to being on the same level as it was back in 2011 and Trevone Boykin is a slightly better college Quarterback than Andy Dalton was. TCU was an incredibly dominant team under Patterson in 2011 and I could see them winning the NCAA Championship if the rankers get the Horned Frog's ranking correct.

#5. Ohio State Buckeyes - The Big Ten Championship is going to be the most interesting and unpredictable of all this weekend's games thanks to the sad injury of Heisman candidate Quarterback J.T. Barrett (Broken Ankle, out for the year). Barrett's injury should not affect the Buckeyes' ranking in any way but, Ohio State's performance this Saturday should and they performed well with both Barrett and his backup, Cardale "We ain't come to play SCHOOL" Jones. With a 42-28 win over Michigan and with Mississippi State's loss, Ohio State should move up a spot even though they might not be there for long with a tough match-up against Wisconsin coming.

Never forget.

#6. Baylor Bears - Baylor better hope QB Bryce Petty is healthy. Once Seth Russell came in at Quarterback, Art Briles' team collapsed defensively for no good reason other than 4-8 Texas Tech is a pass-heavy team and they threw their way back into a game that should've honestly had at least gone to overtime (a failed two-point conversion ended up winning the game 48-46 for Baylor). Since the Big-12 has no championship game, Baylor gets Kansas State next week in a random game that's actually quite good and somewhat better than some of the actual championship games. Baylor's entire season depends on this weekend's game.

#7. Arizona Wildcats - Behind Running Back Nick Wilson's three touchdowns, Arizona snuck out a win over in-state rivals and #13 as of last week, Arizona State. This isn't Arizona's first huge victory. The Wildcats are the one team to defeat Oregon this season and with Scooby Wright on defense, they are certainly in contention for a playoff spot with a rematch this week on FOX at 8 PM CT. It'll be the most tense, non-Iron Bowl face-off of the year so far.

#8. Wisconsin Badgers - Melvin Gordon has broken the Big Ten record for rushing yards in a season with eleventy-billion yards (more like 2,260 rushing yards if we're feeling specific). Joel Stave might be an incredibly mediocre Quarterback but, with Gordon, an above-average offensive line, and one of the nation's most underrated defenses, Wisconsin is suddenly within spitting distance of a playoff spot (but don't get your hopes up, Badger fans) if they can beat Ohio State's bruised team. 

Any team listed ninth or lower practically has no chance at making the playoffs so this is where I stop talking about the pros and cons of each squad and just leave a small note as to where the team is at currently. 

#9. Mississippi State Bulldogs - They needed to beat Ole Miss to stick with the one-loss teams.
#10. Kansas State Wildcats - Seriously impressive 51-13 crushing of Kansas.
#11. Michigan State Spartans - Wake me up when they face a real opponent.
#12. Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets - This team is succeeding despite their Quarterback and defense will be key against Florida State.
#13. Missouri Tigers - Winning the SEC-west was nice, now Alabama is a serious test.
#14. Ole Miss Rebels - They won the Egg Bowl and that might be it for their once feel-good season.
#15. Georgia Bulldogs - Their losses are weak and their wins are strong. I'm just impressed by the resiliency within their run game.
#16. Boise State Broncos - Jay Ajayi is an incredible college Running Back and Grant Hedrick is a good QB.
#17. UCLA Bruins - The most disappointing team in college football this season.
#18. Clemson Tigers - DeShaun Watson is playing with a Torn ACL? Sounds dangerous for both player and team.
#19. Arizona State Sun Devils - The collapse is in full motion after losing to Arizona.
#20. Oklahoma Sooners - How will Samaje Perine perform in his first game since 427?
#21. Auburn Tigers - They needed to take full advantage of their game against Alabama and instead, ended up firing DC Ellis Johnson.
#22. Louisville Cardinals - Barrrrrrrrrely beat Kentucky.
#23. Minnesota Golden Gophers - QB Mitch Leidner has been exposed as a passer.
#24. Utah Utes - Etching out a win over 2-10 Colorado is only enough to move you past Marshall.
#25. LSU Tigers - Texas A&M might not be as "quality" of an opponent as they were at the beginning of the season but, a win is a win.

Falling from the Ranks: #24 Marshall Thundering Herd. I am so glad I went out of my way, specifically to watch the Herd face Western Kentucky on FOXSports1 at 11 AM Friday morning because, it was the craziest game I've seen all season. Just take a look at these stats...

- UWK QB Brandon Doughty threw for 491 yards, 8 touchdowns and 2 interceptions against a defense that had not allowed more than 27 points (!) in a game this year. I really like what I saw from Doughty and judging on his numbers this year, he could make a significant impact with a bigger football school next season.

 Mark Zerof-USA TODAY Sports
I really liked what I saw and think the NFL could be in Brandon Doughty's future.

- Marshall QB Rakeem Cato threw 7 touchdowns and 4 interceptions. I have lost all trust I previously had in Cato. His field vision is weak.

- For the second time in FBS history, BOTH teams had a Running Back rush for 200+ yards (Leon Allen of W. Kentucky & Steward Butler for Marshall).

- A kicker got hurt on a blocked field goal.

- No defensive touchdowns were scored.

- Marshall's leading receiver, Davonte Allen, was ejected for having two unsportsmanlike conduct penalties.

- Western Kentucky and Marshall combined for 133 points. Including Friday's game, SMU has scored 106 points all season.

- The game was decided by a two-point conversion in Overtime when Western Kentucky's Head Coach Jeff Brohm decided he did not want a second overtime.

and according to ESPN...

- The Westgate Las Vegas SuperBook knew there was going to be a lot of points scored in Western Kentucky-Marshall, as the 76 over/under was the 2nd-highest mark of any of the games today or tomorrow (behind the 80 in Baylor-Texas Tech). The over hit with 7:23 remaining in the 2nd quarter.

Best. Game. Ever.

Heisman Race

#1. Oregon QB Marcus Mariota
#2. Wisconsin RB Melvin Gordon III

Nobody else is even close to those two.

 (Ryan Kang/Emerald)
It's impossible to argue against someone with just 2 interceptions this season.

Conference Championship Previews
Pac-12 Championship (9 PM ET on FOX): Oregon v. Arizona in Santa Clara, CA

(AP Photo/The Register-Guard)
This stripping of the ball was the difference in Arizona's upset over Oregon earlier in the year.

Arizona's defense has come through in the clutch many times this season and their reward for that is another difficult matchup with Oregon. The Wildcats have already upset Oregon 31-24 in October and nearly didn't even complete that as Mariota committed one of his 3(!!!) turnovers all season thanks to Linebacker Scooby Wright. Coach Rich Rodriguez needs not only for his defense to hold steady but for QB Anu Solomon to go back to exceeding expectations as he was earlier in the season but, has lost down the home stretch. Meanwhile, Oregon's defense needs to show up the way they did against Oregon State and shut down every receiver on the field.

My Pick: Arizona 42-33

Conference USA Championship Game (12 PM ET on ESPN2): Louisiana Tech @ Marshall

(Photo: Dacia Idom/Gannett Louisiana)
Can LA Tech QB Cody Sokol recreate the magic that he had last week against Rice?

Louisiana Tech is coming off of a 76-31 win over Rice and Marshall, a 66-67 loss to Western Kentucky. Those are real football scores, not basketball. The CUSA is chock full of teams with no defense whatsoever but, considering Marshall's success against teams within the conference, there should at least be some semblance of defense in West Virginia Saturday morning. This game's result all comes down to how downtrodden Marshall looks after one of the most painful losses for any football team in 2014.

My Pick: Marshall 41-20

SEC Championship Game (4 PM ET on CBS): Alabama v. Missouri in Atlanta, GA

Can Missouri's defense contain T.J. Yeldon or will they be too focused on other Crimson Tide weapons?

Alabama has rolled over every opponent this season besides a streaky Ole Miss squad that played superior defense one afternoon in October. It's December now and that means it's Saban season in the SEC. No other coach in the conference has had the success he's had and with Les Miles not involved in this game, I like his chances. Missouri has shown that they too are pretty talented on defense and should be able to keep up with Alabama until the fourth quarter when everyone realizes that one team has Amari Cooper and the other (Missouri) does not.

My Pick: Alabama 27-10

ACC Championship Game (8 PM ET on ABC): Florida State v. Georgia Tech in Charlotte, NC

Georgia Tech's #1 weapon in the passing game (WR DeAndre Smelter) is out with a torn ACL.

Florida State's streak of constantly winning close games is on the line as they face state-neighbors Georgia Tech. Unlike any of Florida State's close matchups, Georgia Tech has zero passing game period with their only passing option (WR DeAndre Smelter) injured. Jameis Winston will probably have moments where he looks like he's trying to hand Georgia Tech the game but, this team is no match for the defending national champions.

My Pick: Florida State 20-0 (Boring game, watch the next game instead)

Big Ten Championship Game (8:17 PM ET on FOX): Wisconsin v. Ohio State in Indianapolis

In my personal favorite matchup of the day, two defenses will be the deciding factors on who wins the Big Ten.

Consider this the Cardale Jones - Joel Stave game. Which Quarterback will look the closest to competent? Urban Meyer has already replaced one injured Heisman candidate (Braxton Miller) with another (J.T. Barrett), why can't he do it again if only for two games? The underlying story of this matchup is two of the more underrated defenses in the nation with future-NFLers like Ohio State's Joey Bosa & Michael Bennett and Wisconsin's Peniel Jean & Michael Caputo. It will be a hellish game for both QB's and Wisconsin Running Back Melvin Gordon will probably be figured out at some point (I mean, he's due for one bad game, right?) by a rival defense.

My Pick: Wisconsin 35-17

Mountain West Championship Game (10 PM ET on CBS): Fresno State @ Boise State

Boise State RB Jay Ajayi isn't talked about nationally but, his results (like Boise State's field) are loud.

Fresno State isn't the same team as they were last season. Davante Adams and Derek Carr aren't walking onto that blue field. Jay Ajayi and QB Grant Hedrick ARE walking onto that blue field, however, and will likely tear apart the Bulldogs' average defense.

My Pick: Boise State 56-34

Other games (involving ranked teams) taking place on Saturday
12:00 PM ET: (ABC) Iowa State @ TCU
3:30 PM ET: (FOX Sports 1) Oklahoma State @ Oklahoma
7:45 PM ET: (ESPN) Kansas State @ Baylor

Best of luck to your team or teams of interest and enjoy conference championship weekend!