There are still two weeks of important college football left to be played before the final Playoff ranking is released.
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Kelly’s comments came before the Irish dropped two spots to No. 6 in the rankings.
Both pairs of these teams will play each other, Iowa and Michigan State/ Notre Dame and Stanford, and will effectively eliminate at least two from the equation, but OSU needs to jump three of these teams to make it to at least the No. 4 ranking. Also, common opponents matter in this kind of setup. The Fighting Irish now have wins over No. 25 Temple and No. 15 Navy, along with good victories over Pitt and USC – each probably better than No. 24 Toledo.
According to oddsmakers at MyBookie.ag, Iowa actually is listed with 18/1 odds to win the college football playoffs, which is seventh of teams listed. Should Stanford win out, it will more than likely finish ranked fifth, which I unknowingly wrote about before the season.
“In our view, Oklahoma is better than Iowa”, said committee Chairman Jeff Long, Arkansas’ athletic director. 2 – and it nearly collapsed late against the Horned Frogs.
Notre Dame’s problem is the fact Oklahoma plays Oklahoma State this week. Given that only one other team above them, No. 4 Iowa or No. 5 Michigan State, is assured a loss, they really need someone besides OU to win the Big 12.
Iowa was ranked fourth, followed by Michigan State, Notre Dame, Baylor, Ohio State, Stanford and Michigan. Like once in a decade lucky. I’ll tell you why. “We feel like we need to win another game to still be considered”. That’s pretty definitive if you ask me.
The Sooners are still stinging from the way they lost last year’s Bedlam game, so its’ fairly evident that both teams will enter the contest with something to prove and with a chip or their shoulder. And that’s it. The rest is up to a committee, and we knew that coming into the season. I wrote an Armageddon piece earlier this year that the Big-12 would not have a single undefeated team and they would eliminate themselves from the playoff. For example, Notre Dame has gotten “dinged” for beating Wake Forest at home by 21. So basically, you’re hoping for Ole Miss to beat Mississippi State, Auburn to beat Alabama, and Ole Miss to beat Florida. Despite Kizer’s shaky ball control against Boston College, he’s proven that he can be one of the most effective quarterbacks in the country.
Believe it or not, the college football season is already starting to wind down. Point being, just because they are 3-8 doesn’t mean that it’s a walk in the park to play them. That is exactly where you want to be. Also, injuries are playing a part in the committee’s decision making process (see above comments on the Sooners), yet Notre Dame doesn’t seem to be getting the benefit of the doubt in that area.
-RB C.J. Prosise eclipsed the 1,000-yard plateau on the season with his second carry of the game against Boston College, a 31-yard scamper.
There is a lot of football to be played but things don’t look so good for Notre Dame right now.
ESPN analyst Kirk Herbstreit said as long as Alabama keeps winning its spot in the top four remains secure.
#12 Florida at #13 Florida State – Florida doesn’t have a very strong resume as a 1-loss team right now, but if they beat FSU and Alabama they could rocket up the rankings and find their way in the playoffs. But the Sooners are a win away from punching their ticket.
No. 12 Florida (10-1) can make the top four only if it wins out.
There is even an outside chance for two-loss Stanford, provided it can close with wins against Notre Dame and the Pac-12 South champion.
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The best way for the Irish to continue to do that is to dish out punishment like men against the Cardinal.
