Why was there such surprise from college football fans when
the 1st College Football Playoff Rankings were released a few weeks
back? You didn’t think a 1-loss Alabama team should be in the playoff ahead of
8 other undefeated teams? What about
Notre Dame and their resume that lacks a big win?
Guess what, it doesn’t matter what you think. ESPN runs the College Football Playoffs. They pick the teams and given the chance,
they are picking big names like Alabama and Notre Dame. Look at last year, #3 TCU beats Iowa State
55-3 the final week of the season and they DROP 3 spots in the standings to
make room for Ohio State, who jumped up from #5 (outside the playoff) to #4 (in
the playoff). Who do you think gets more
eyes on the television, Urban Meyer and Ohio State or TCU? Who has a bigger fan base? Who has a rich football tradition and who is
still somewhat new to the national picture in college football?
Yes, Ohio State won the national championship, I realize
that. But does that justify them even getting into the playoff? TCU then went on to beat the #9 team in the
nation 42-3 in their bowl game. How do
we know they don’t do the same thing to Alabama in the Playoff Semifinal? That #9 team that TCU beat was Mississippi. The same Mississippi team that handed Alabama
their only regular season loss last season.
Last year it was Ohio State, this year it is Notre Dame.
Notre Dame brings eyes to the television. ESPN knows this. That is why if Notre Dame wins their last 2
games, they will be in the playoff, deserving or not.
That is also why I am hoping for mass chaos over the final
few weeks of the season. Consider these
possibilities, this is what I’m rooting for.
IN THE ACC:
Clemson wins their final 2 regular season game. Finish regular season 12-0
North Carolina wins last 2 games of regular season. Finish regular season 11-1
NORTH CAROLINA WIN ACC CHAMPIONSHIP.
Both teams finish 12-1.
Clemson wins their final 2 regular season game. Finish regular season 12-0
North Carolina wins last 2 games of regular season. Finish regular season 11-1
NORTH CAROLINA WIN ACC CHAMPIONSHIP.
Both teams finish 12-1.
IN THE B1G:
Iowa wins out in regular season, finishes 12-0.
Michigan State wins out in the regular season to finish 11-1.
Ohio State loses to Michigan State, but beats Michigan. Finishes 11-1
MICHIGAN STATE BEATS IOWA IN B1G CHAMPIONSHIP.
All 3 teams from Big Ten have 1 loss. 2 coming in the final 3 weeks.
Iowa wins out in regular season, finishes 12-0.
Michigan State wins out in the regular season to finish 11-1.
Ohio State loses to Michigan State, but beats Michigan. Finishes 11-1
MICHIGAN STATE BEATS IOWA IN B1G CHAMPIONSHIP.
All 3 teams from Big Ten have 1 loss. 2 coming in the final 3 weeks.
OR
Iowa wins out,
going 12-0
Ohio State loses both of their final 2 games, finishing at 10-2
Michigan wins their fins 2 games, finishing 10-2
Michigan State beats Ohio State, but loses to Penn State
MICHIGAN BEATS IOWA IN B1G CHAMPIONSHIP.
2-loss Michigan gets bid over 1-loss Iowa?
Ohio State loses both of their final 2 games, finishing at 10-2
Michigan wins their fins 2 games, finishing 10-2
Michigan State beats Ohio State, but loses to Penn State
MICHIGAN BEATS IOWA IN B1G CHAMPIONSHIP.
2-loss Michigan gets bid over 1-loss Iowa?
OR
Iowa loses to
Nebraska, finishes 11-1
Ohio State wins out. Finishes 12-0
IOWA BEATS OHIO STATE.
Both tied at 12-1
Ohio State wins out. Finishes 12-0
IOWA BEATS OHIO STATE.
Both tied at 12-1
IN THE SEC:
Florida loses to Florida State, finishes the season 10-2.
Alabama wins out, going 11-1
FLORIDA BEATS ALABAMA.
Both teams from SEC have 2 losses
Florida loses to Florida State, finishes the season 10-2.
Alabama wins out, going 11-1
FLORIDA BEATS ALABAMA.
Both teams from SEC have 2 losses
OR
Florida loses to
Florida State, finishes the season 10-2.
Alabama loses to Auburn, finishes 10-2.
BEST 2 SEC TEAMS WITH 2-losses BEFORE THE SEC CHAMPIONSHIP
Alabama loses to Auburn, finishes 10-2.
BEST 2 SEC TEAMS WITH 2-losses BEFORE THE SEC CHAMPIONSHIP
OR
Florida wins out,
goes 11-1.
Alabama loses to Auburn, finishes 10-2.
Mississippi wins out and finishes 9-3.
Arkansas loses 1 of their last 2, finishes 7-5.
MISSISSIPPI BEATS FLORIDA
SEC Champ has 3 loses.
Alabama loses to Auburn, finishes 10-2.
Mississippi wins out and finishes 9-3.
Arkansas loses 1 of their last 2, finishes 7-5.
MISSISSIPPI BEATS FLORIDA
SEC Champ has 3 loses.
IN THE BIG XII &
PAC-12
In both of these conferences there are still so many possibilities, I just checked out some of the extremes.
In both of these conferences there are still so many possibilities, I just checked out some of the extremes.
In the PAC-12, there are only 5 teams that can possibly play
in the conference title game. 2 of the teams
already have 2 losses, the other 3, each have 3 losses. We could conceivably have conference champion
that have 3 or 4 losses.
Stanford could
finish 8-4, win the title game and finish at 9-4
USC could end up the same, 8-4 in the regular season, but a 9-4 conference champion.
Oregon, Utah and UCLA could all finish 9-3, meaning a 3-loss conference champion.
USC could end up the same, 8-4 in the regular season, but a 9-4 conference champion.
Oregon, Utah and UCLA could all finish 9-3, meaning a 3-loss conference champion.
The Big XII at least has a possible playoff team remaining,
but they also backloaded their schedule so that every team that has a chance has
to play a brutal schedule down the stretch.
Here is what the Big XII schedule looks like the final 3
weeks.
#6 Oklahoma State – vs #10 Baylor, vs #7 Oklahoma
#7 Oklahoma – vs #18 TCU, @ #6Oklahoma
#10 Baylor - @ #6 Oklahoma, @ #18 TCU, vs Texas
#18 TCU - @ #7 Oklahoma, vs #10 Baylor
Sure Oklahoma State could run the table and be undefeated after this stretch and play their way into the playoff. Or all 4 teams could end the season 10-2 in a 4-way tie. Nice job Big XII!
#6 Oklahoma State – vs #10 Baylor, vs #7 Oklahoma
#7 Oklahoma – vs #18 TCU, @ #6Oklahoma
#10 Baylor - @ #6 Oklahoma, @ #18 TCU, vs Texas
#18 TCU - @ #7 Oklahoma, vs #10 Baylor
Sure Oklahoma State could run the table and be undefeated after this stretch and play their way into the playoff. Or all 4 teams could end the season 10-2 in a 4-way tie. Nice job Big XII!
We didn’t even mention Notre
Dame yet. With 2 games left, the
Irish still leave plenty of questions, a lot of which sit with their opponents
and schedule this season.
Notre Dame could still lose to Boston College today or Stanford next week. But even if they win out, who is their best win (Temple, USC, Stanford, Pitt, Navy)? Tough to find one in that group. Even worse would be for Notre Dame to win out, but Clemson loses once or maybe even twice. They have hung their hat on having the best loss. Well if Clemson suddenly isn’t #1, then what does Notre Dame have going for them?
Notre Dame could still lose to Boston College today or Stanford next week. But even if they win out, who is their best win (Temple, USC, Stanford, Pitt, Navy)? Tough to find one in that group. Even worse would be for Notre Dame to win out, but Clemson loses once or maybe even twice. They have hung their hat on having the best loss. Well if Clemson suddenly isn’t #1, then what does Notre Dame have going for them?
What if Notre Dame wins out AND Oklahoma State wins
out? Who does the committee take, an
undefeated Big XII champ or a 1-loss Independent team?
Oh yeah… What about Houston,
they are still undefeated too. If chaos ensues, does a 2-loss Power 5 team get
in over an undefeated Houston team? A Houston team that would have 2 wins over
Power 5 schools and 2 wins over ranked opponents and the same “best win” as
Notre Dame (Navy).
Lots of question still to be answered over the last 3 weeks. I don’t know what will happen, nobody does,
but I do know who I will be rooting for.
LET’S GO CHAOS!
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