We just witnessed one of the biggest weeks this season, and saw some huge games. Clemson played at home and beat bitter rival Florida State, and Alabama beat LSU in Bryant-Denny Stadium in a game featuring two top four teams. TCU was crushed by Oklahoma State, and undefeated Memphis lost to Navy. After a huge week, here are the College Football Playoff committees newest rankings, where Clemson remained #1 and Alabama jumps two spots to #2.
1. Clemson Tigers
Clemson is playing better than any team in the country right now, and they look scary good. Coming off of a huge win over #16 Florida State, the Tigers have one thing left to do: win out. If the Tigers win out, which they very easily can, they will be the top seed in the playoffs. They have the best win of any team this season- a 24-22 victory over #4 Notre Dame in the pouring rain, and they have a top defense and one of the best QBs in the NCAA.
Key Wins: 24-22 over #4 Notre Dame, 23-13 over #16 FSU
Key Games Remaining: ACC Championship against #23 North Carolina
2. Alabama Crimson Tide
The Tide showed that they probably have the toughest defense in the country to move the ball against. Leonard Fournette has ran the ball for over 150 yards in every single game this season, but against the Tide, he ran for just 31. That is impressive. This man has ran over every team this season, but on Saturday, Bama made this man look silly. He was a Heisman front-runner and all, but not after facing Alabama. Alabama will need to win out, and if they do (which they should), they will be in the playoffs again, and likely face Ohio State again.
Key Wins: 35-17 over #25 Wisconsin, 19-14 over Tennessee, 30-16 over #9 LSU
Key Games Remaining: #17 Mississippi State this Saturday, at Auburn on November 28th, and the SEC Championship against #11 Florida.
3. Ohio State Buckeyes
Ohio State has played well enough to win, but they haven’t played impressively. Their offense with Cardale Jones doe not put up much points, but with JT Barret, they are scary. They haven’t had a tough schedule so far, but with big games coming up, the Buckeyes need to lookout.
Key Wins: 42-24 over VT, 38-10 over Penn State
Key Games Remaining: #13 Michigan State on November 21st, at #14 Michigan on November 28th
4. Notre Dame Fighting Irish
The Fighting Irish have played well in the past few weeks, and the committee likes what it sees. With their only loss coming against the top team in a close game in the pouring rain, the Irish look good. They have key wins against Temple and Navy, and they have a meeting with #7 Stanford coming up. If they win out, the Irish will make the playoffs.
Key Wins: 30-22 over GT, 41-24 over #20 Navy, 24-20 over #22 Temple
Key Games Remaining: at #7 Stanford on November 28th.
5. Iowa Hawkeyes
The Hawkeyes haven’t done anything special accept for go undefeated (which is very impressive). They have played close games against teams that they should have beaten handily. The Hawkeyes schedule isn’t as strong as an undefeated Baylor, but they have gotten the nod ahead of Baylor. Oklahoma State just beat TCU and looks better than Iowa, but the Hawkeyes have gotten the nod. They probably feel disrespected because no one believes in them, so lets see if the Hawkeyes are able to win the B1G. If they do beat Ohio State, Michigan, or Michigan State in the Big Ten Championship, they do deserve to make the playoff.
Key Wins: 10-6 at #25 Wisconsin, 40-10 at #18 Northwestern
Key Games Remaining: B1G Championship Game against Ohio State, Michigan, or Michigan State
6. Baylor Bears
I personally feel that the Bears should be ranked fourth or fifth because their offense has been unstoppable. Even with their starting QB getting injured, he has been replaced well as Jarrett Stidham threw for 419 yards against Kansas State. Their defense is a liability though, as it allows a lot of points in every game. The Bears have a lot of big games to be played still, so if they stay undefeated, I can’t imagine them being held out of the playoffs again.
Key Wins: 63-35 over Texas Tech
Key Games Remaining: this weekend against #12 Oklahoma, November 21st at #8 Oklahoma State, and November 28th at #15 TCU
7. Stanford Cardinal
Stanford lost to Northwestern in the first week of the season in a game that was played at 9 AM PST. The time of the game has given Stanford a bye with the committee. Christian McCaffrey has ran the ball all over defenses this season, and if the Cardinal win out (beating #4 Notre Dame), and win the PAC-12 Championship, they will make the playoffs.
Key Wins: 41-31 at USC, 56-35 over #19 UCLA
Key Games Remaining: November 28th against #4 Notre Dame
8. Oklahoma State Cowboys
The Cowboys came off a huge 49-29 victory over undefeated TCU last Saturday, and only came to 8th? I think the Cowboys deserve to be the 4th or 5th spot, but with upcoming games against Oklahoma and Baylor, the Cowboys will get shots to prove that they deserve to be in the playoff. Another thing to remember about their upcoming schedule: their only remaining road game is at 3-6 Iowa State
Key Wins: 49-29 over #15 TCU
Key Games Remaining: November 21st against #6 Baylor, November 28th against #12 Oklahoma
9. LSU Tigers
The Tigers just got bulldozed. Alabama ran the ball all over their defense (Derrick Henry finished with 3 TDs and 210 yards), and Alabama shut down LSU’s offense (most notably holding Leonard Fournette to 31 yards on 19 carries). LSU was able to run the ball over everyone this season (Fournette had 150 yards in every other game), but Alabama out muscled the Tigers BIG TIME. LSU will be cheering for Mississippi State and Auburn to beat Alabama, and if Bama slips, LSU will still get to play for the SECCG in a rematch with the Gators. If they win, they will make the playoffs. If chaos ensues across the country, LSU may make the playoff along with Bama. They just need to win out now. Fournette couldn’t run against Bama, but he will run all over every other defense. They just need to forget about Bama and keep winning.
Key Wins: 21-19 at #17 Mississippi State, 35-28 over #11 Florida
Key Games Remaining: November 21st at Ole Miss, November 28th against Texas A&M
10. Utah Utes
The Utes slipped up big time against USC, but if they can win out, and beat Stanford in the PAC 12 Championship Game, the will have a shot at making the playoffs. They have great wins against Michigan and Oregon, and if Michigan ends up beating Ohio State, that win looks even better. Utah needs to win out to have a chance.
Key Wins: 24-17 over #14 Michigan
Key Games Remaining: November 21st against #19 UCLA
Other Notable Teams
#11 Florida: The Gators looked bad in a 9-7 win over Vandy, but if they win out and win the SECCG, they should be in the playoffs. Florida has one goal: win out. They still have to beat FSU, but that game is in “The Swamp” this year, so that gives the Gators an advantage. The Gators have the best chance to make the playoff compared to any other team outside of the top 10.
#12 Oklahoma: The Sooners control their own destiny. They have one loss to bitter rival Texas, but if they can win out (they have to beat Baylor, TCU, and Oklahoma State), they will have a great résumé. Three wins against the best of the BIG 12 in the last three weeks of the season, and two of them are away? I think that is enough to give the Sooners some recognition and possibly get them in.
#13 Michigan State: Sparty finally fell after a valiant run. Nebraska got to them though, beating them 39-38 this past weekend. The Spartans have a big game against #3 Ohio State, and if they win that and the B1G Championship, they will be highly considered to make the playoff. The loss to Nebraska hurts though, and may hold the Spartans out of the playoff.
