The College Football Playoff committee surely isn’t concerned with how Notre Dame football coach Brian Kelly feels about their evaluation of which four teams should gain access to the National Playoff, however, the coach was prescient in divulging his thoughts early Tuesday prior to the Fighting Irish being named to one of the coveted spots later that day. The Horned Frogs will try to get back on the winning track after losing their first game of the season last week to Oklahoma State, while the Jayhawks are still trying to record their first win in 2015.
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This week, Clemson, Alabama, Ohio State and Notre Dame were ranked in the top four, in that order.
Baylor stayed put at #6, with Stanford, Oklahoma State, LSU and Utah rounding out the top 10.
This may all be a mute point if Notre Dame wins out. While teams like Notre Dame and Alabama play tougher schedules, Baylor’s none conference included the likes of Lamar and SMU; not exactly world beaters.
Alabama moved up to No. 2 after knocking off previously unbeaten LSU, 30-16, in Tuscaloosa. The Tide (8-1) is home this Saturday to play No. 17 Mississippi State (7-2).
The loser in all of this in the end could be the Big 12 Conference, which doesn’t see the need to play a league championship game like the other four Power 5 conferences. Florida is 11th, followed by Oklahoma, Michigan State, Michigan, and TCU. After last weekend that number is down to two and will nearly certainly- keep dwindling.
LT Spencer Drango and Baylor’s offense line vs. LB Eric Striker and the Oklahoma pass rush. If it wins out, Notre Dame’s only loss would be to the No. 1 Tigers on the road, in the rain, with a backup quarterback.
The order of the Top 4 is debatable, but the committee has made at least one thing clear- if Clemson sweeps the remainder of its season, it will be one of those four teams.
Meanwhile, the other newsmaker in the top 10 was Stanford. So, something else must happen for LSU to move up two spots. That would eliminate the Irish.
“It’s Notre Dame”, ESPN analyst Kirk Herbstreit said. Sure, they can claim otherwise, but you can’t look at the five examples above and tell me the same logic was applied to all five teams.
FORT WORTH, Texas With TCU undefeated no more and its playoff chances likely done, coach Gary Patterson is reminding everyone of the significant goals still in reach. “And that challenge is Wake Forest”.
The reason that North Carolina is ranked so low at this point is the schedule. You shout. You take to Twitter in nonsensical rants as if the four playoff teams have been decided. Which means the Committee feels that the Heels are six spots lower than a team that can not make the playoff.
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The Buckeyes play the Spartans in their final home game November 21.
