Oklahoma moved up four spots in the College Football Playoff ranking to No. 3, the playoff committee announced on Tuesday.
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The Badgers, who checked in at No. 25 each of the past two weeks, suffered a home loss at the hands of the Northwestern Wildcats on Saturday, and have fallen out of the committee’s good graces as a result.
What if Penn State beats Michigan State, Michigan beats Ohio State and Michigan beats unbeaten Iowa in the Big Ten Championship Game? But Iowa State is 3-8 this season; blowing a 35-28 lead with 1:31 to go in Saturday’s loss at Kansas State. Notre Dame dropped out of the top four to No. 6.
Once again, the No. 1 Clemson Tigers, and No. 2 Alabama Crimson Tide remained at the top of the College Football Playoff rankings.
The Sooners jumped to No. 3 from No. 7 in the latest CFP Rankings. A win over Penn State would send Mark Dantonio’s team to the Big Ten title game, where it would face Iowa. Oklahoma (10-1) climbed four spots on the strength of last week’s 30-29 victory over TCU in Norman, Okla. and became the first Big 12 team to fall within the four-team window of the projected playoff bracket. Oklahoma beating Baylor and TCU makes it hard to ignore them despite their one loss to Texas, but we’ve seen these things change last season on the final week. An upset there seems highly unlikely, though there could be some concern in the ACC championship game against North Carolina.
And, too, if OU wins, the Sooners would add a Big 12 title to their résumé. The Sooners will need star quarterback Baker Mayfield to step up with a strong performance on the road against an Oklahoma State side that came up short last week against Baylor, but will be gunning for a measure of redemption. Their mid-October loss to Texas, compared to Notre Dame’s Week 1 rout over the Longhorns, isn’t holding down Oklahoma. When comparing two teams, common opponents is one barometer. Iowa won the game 40-20 to improve to 11-0 on the season.
Iowa has clinched the West and will be in Indy, but if the Hawkeyes lose to Nebraska and then beat Michigan State, the Big Ten might be in trouble. Not even for Clemson and Alabama, the two teams most figure are the surest bets to reach the playoff field. McCaffrey is one of the most electrifying players in college football, a modern-day Reggie Bush, with the No. 5, versatility and Heisman-caliber resume to match the former Trojan. The fact that Florida still has just one loss this year is testament to the job that Jim McElwain has done. Still, folks in the Big 12 have to feel a lot better about its chances of having a league member in the playoff this time around. The Buckeyes remain barely alive, but they need tons of help for an invite to the four-team dance. The Spartans moved to No. 5.
No. 14 Florida State at No. 10 Florida.
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Western Michigan (plus 9) at No. 24 Toledo: Could be last game coached by Matt Campbell at Glass Bowl; Rockets coach should be a hot commodity in insane job market… There are only two other entries from the SEC in this week’s rankings with in-state foes Ole Miss at No. 18 andMississippi State at No.21.
