All without starting quarterback Wilton Speight who injured his non-throwing shoulder against Iowa two weeks ago. The Game has big-time Big Ten East implications, and it’s most-likely a loser-it-out-type situation. In addition, Paul Chryst’s team has wins over LSU and Nebraska.
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This week, the committee went somewhere in between. “We spent a lot of time on those teams”. “People would definitely remember that team, definitely remember us”. “We do not”, selection committee chair Kirby Hocutt told reporters on Tuesday evening.
The question is: can the No. 15 Florida Gators avenge the 27-2 demolition it endured in 2015, improve to 9-2, and turn the rivalry with Florida State back in its favor? “The committee continues to be impressed with their three wins over current CFP top-25 teams”. There is no real second tier of contenders. But if it comes down to a bunch of teams with two losses the Big Ten seems to have a better chance to get two teams into the field than the Big 12 has to get one.
When asked directly if the separation between Ohio State and Penn State was small, given that the Nittany Lions beat the Buckeyes, Hocutt directly said “it was not”.
“We would be upset because we all know how much work we put in and we all know what our goals were”, MI senior safety Dymonte Thomas said. Wisconsin still deserves that, based on the body of work – two losses to No. 2 Ohio State and No. 3 MI, by a combined 14 points. Things then would pretty much would boil down to Penn State vs. Washington.
Ohio State QB J.T. Barrett vs. the MI defense.
On to the rankings themselves. 5 Louisville’s 36-10 loss to Houston last week.
The intrigue for the rivalry game this year makes sense.
I think it’s safe to say that at most 11 teams are conceivably in the hunt for the College Football Playoff.
Meyer is 4-0 against Michigan in his OSU tenure, and he has the Buckeyes playing their best football of the season as well, despite only defeating other conference rival Michigan State 17-16 last week.
Now that Harbaugh is coaching the Wolverines, how would he react if one of his players did that? He had said something similar in explaining USC’s big jump last week.
Washington rounds out the top five after moving up one spot. 14 West Virginia 56-28 in Morgantown.
Penn State came in ranked at No. 8 in both the AP Poll and the USA TODAY Coaches Poll this week. This is a trend we saw from the committee in the past two years (last year especially), but not really this year. They have the best resume of any team carrying two losses at this point in the season. If Michigan beats Ohio State, the Wolverines will claim the divisional crown.
The game between these two giants is scheduled on November 26 but the tension can already be felt in each squad’s locker room. This would put the committee in a very, very hard spot.
Did that Central Michigan loss become a win yet? “I’m just taking each week, trying to focus on the moment”.
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MI plays Ohio State and Alabama plays Auburn Saturday, rivalry games that could play havoc with the rankings. The Utah Utes have also been ranked in every single committee ranking. We know if it’s a win, we move on, lose you go home.
