Oklahoma moved into the prized top four this week in the College Football Playoff standings. But coach Brian Kelly had said earlier Tuesday he believes they will be in if they close the regular season with a win at Stanford (9-2), which is No. 9 in the CFP rankings. It would be easy for the committee to scratch a four-loss Pac-12 champ from the top four. No. 1 Penn State (11-0) and No. 3 Oklahoma (10-1) faced each other in the Orange Bowl for what was advertised as the national title game.
Advertisement
And if everything plays out as expected, it’s hard to picture an Alabama win over Florida being enough to move the Tide past the Clemson. 5 and 6, respectively.
As Notre Dame was struggling with the Eagles, cellar dwellers in the Atlantic Coast Conference, No. 5 MI State was handing Ohio State its first loss of the season. Meanwhile in Stillwater, Oklahoma pulls out the win over Oklahoma State but in unconvincing fashion.
Note to the Irish: Now would be a good time to break out a 2014 Ohio State whipping over Wisconsin as a last impression. The SEC and Big XII have four teams each and the ACC has three.
SALT LAKE CITY After a disappointing loss to UCLA Saturday, Utah has dropped 10 spots in the latest College Football Playoff rankings. If it wins this game, many believe the Sooners will have a spot in the championship tourney.
Ohio State travels to play MI in a game that could put the Buckeyes back in the playoff conversation, and a win for Notre Dame at Stanford could do the same for the Irish. If Iowa beats the Cornhuskers and wins the Big Ten title next week, it’s in the playoff.
It also appears that the Big XII will not be left out of the playoff, after the league’s controversial absence in last year’s bracket.
Navy (9-1) remained the top Group-of-5 team this week, with the Midshipmen moving up a spot from No. 16 to No. 15. They’re 11-0 so far, and if they beat Nebraska in Lincoln, they’ll stay on course for the playoffs (playing in the conference championship anyway). Another Big 10 East team, will be eliminated(seemingly) by missing out on the Big 10 championship game. ESPN’s Paul Finebaum typically discusses SEC football, but he couldn’t resist talking about the Big Ten.
The only now ranked opponent Alabama has beaten is No. 21 Mississippi State. Then Stanford beats Notre Dame. “It was more about the performance of Oklahoma and MI State against top-ranked teams”. Ohio State (10-1, Big Ten) 9. And what about Oklahoma’s defense nearly blowing the lead and allowing TCU to come within a 2 point conversion attempt of winning the game? Do you really MI to try backdoor their way into the Big Ten Championship like they did in the Sugar Bowl during Brady Hoke’s first year? In that scenario, Baylor would serve as the Big 12 champion by virtue of its head-to-head win over OSU. Florida (10-1, SEC) 13. They’d have to work their way over Baylor and Notre Dame, but a clear-cut, one-loss conference champion probably has a stronger case. The junior running back is off to a stellar season with career-highs of 1,254 yards rushing and 17 touchdowns.
I’ve said this for a while: I think how teams are seeded within the top four will start getting scrutinized more in Year 2 of the playoff.
Advertisement
No. 19 MS at No. 23 Mississippi State. However, the Yellow Jackets have lost eight of their last nine games and that one possession win over a 3-8 squad looks less impressive. Following the Mids and rounding out the top 20 areNorthwestern, Oregon, Ole Miss, TCU and Washington State.
