Hours before the College Football Playoff Selection Committee evicted Notre Dame from its No. 4 perch in the rankings Tuesday night, Brian Kelly lamented the lingering flaw that finally caught up with the Irish.
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The Big 12 benefited from those tumbles, as 10-1 Oklahoma jumped from No. 7 last week to No. 3 in the latest rankings.
No. 8 Ohio State at No. 10 Michigan: The biggest rivalry in college football, and arguably all of sports is here, and with a Michigan State loss against Penn State, this game could decide who goes to the Big Ten championship game, and who goes to the College Football Playoff. The Cowboys tumbled five spots after losing to Big 12 rival Baylor for their first loss of the season.
Long said the committee took into account that Oklahoma quarterback Baker Mayfield sat out the second half of the Sooners’ victory against TCU last Saturday.
If the Hawkeyes can avoid an upset Friday at Nebraska, the Big Ten title game also could be a playoff play-in game – ESPN analyst Kirk Herbstreit said that’s “for sure” the case in light of the latest rankings. With wins this weekend, Iowa and Michigan State would meet in the Big Ten championship game in what would amount to a CFP play-in game. The Irish can not overlook this unsafe squad so, before they start scoreboard watching themselves, they need to focus on beating the ninth best team in the country.
As soon as the seconds ticked off the clock this past Saturday, what seemed like dreams of an undefeated season and a trip to the only postseason that matters were dashed, or so we thought. That carries some weight especially since Oklahoma and #5 MI State both lost to unranked teams.
No. 7 Baylor at No. 19 TCU: Both teams are now without its starting quarterbacks, but last week, TCU’s coach showed me one thing by going for two against Oklahoma. That’s the biggest obstacle, but far from the only one.
First off, Notre Dame has to take care of business this weekend as an underdog on the road against Stanford – a venue in which the Irish have not won since that disastrous 2007 campaign. “We feel like we need to win another game to still be considered”. Does the SEC get shut out with a two-loss Florida that has a win over Alabama?
The Irish still have some strong arguments for inclusion into the playoff, should they defeat Stanford. The two teams moved up at the expense of Ohio Stateand Notre Dame. Final Score: Ohio State 24, MI 23. It’s hottest team might be #10 MI, a two-loss team and the last of the conference’s four teams.
North Carolina: Don’t laugh, just think. If Clemson can keep North Carolina’s only signature win against Pitt, there’s no way Michigan State’s remaining schedule will allow the Tar Heels to jump them.
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While there’s a high probability that we get that scenario and once again the folks running the playoff are popping champagne on New Year’s as they see sky-high ratings, there’s also the chance for chaos to reign supreme. Notre Dame averages 35 points scored per game while Stanford averages 37 points scored per game. The Buckeyes, who began the season as a unanimous No. 1 and slipped to No. 2 earlier this month, fell to eighth. After coming in at No. 4 last week, Notre Dame dropped to No. 6 this week. An SEC loss. And beating Florida State before beating Alabama in the SEC championship game should be enough to put them in the top 4. (On a side note, I wonder why Oklahoma is getting so much more respect than Oklahoma State too but this article is about Notre Dame).
