CFP Rankings Released
Unbeaten Bearcats, Sooners, & Deacs trail one-loss teams

College Football Playoff Rankings

On Tuesday night, the College Football Playoff Committee released the first set of rankings for the 2021 season.

Georgia has been the clear No. 1 so far this season, so it’s no surprise the Dawgs landed the top spot. However, the CFP Committee offered a drastically different view of the college football landscape from the media (AP Poll) and coaches (AFCA Coaches Poll).

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The 8-0 Bearcats, one of two teams in the playoff discussion with a win against another Top-10 opponent (24-13 at #10 Notre Dame), were given little to no respect in the initial rankings, slotted at No. 6 behind in-state rival, Ohio State.

One-loss Alabama took the No. 2 spot ahead of unbeaten Michigan State.  It’s hard to complain about the Crimson Tide’s ranking seeing as Nick Saban & Co. are annual playoff participant and look like the biggest obstacle to Kirby Smart’s Bulldogs.

Aside from Cincinnati, fellow unbeatens, Oklahoma and Wake Forest, have clearly not done much to impress the Committee, siting at No. 8 and No. 9, respectively, behind one-loss Michigan.

The playoff field continues to take shape. Here is where college football stands heading into the first week of November.

SEC

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In control of their own destiny: Georgia and Alabama

Eliminated: Ole Miss, Kentucky, Auburn, Mississippi State, Arkansas, Texas A&M, LSU, Tennessee, Florida, Missouri, Vanderbilt, and South Carolina

Georgia ‘s win over Florida has extended beyond the field as Dan Mullen melted  down this week over a simple question about recruiting that was brought on in part by Kirby Smart’s postgame comments.

The Dawgs clinched the SEC East thanks to Mississippi State’s 31-17 victory against Kentucky, officially eliminating the Cats from any outside shot at a playoff spot.

Another contender with outside hopes of either sneaking into Atlanta or a playoff spot, Ole Miss, was officially eliminated with a 31-20 defeat on The Plains against an Auburn team that has proven to be a tough matchup week in and week out under Bryan Harsin.

Alabama celebrated Nick Saban’s 70th birthday during the bye week, but the Tide are back at it this week, welcoming LSU into Tuscaloosa.

Key Games This Week:

• Missouri at #1 Georgia
• LSU at #2 Alabama

ACC

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In control of their own destiny: Wake Forest

Eliminated: Pitt, NC State, Clemson, Florida State, Louisville, Boston College, Syracuse, Virginia Tech, Virginia, Georgia Tech, North Carolina, Miami, and Duke.

Bye bye, Pitt!

The Panthers could not follow-up a big time win over Clemson with a winnable home date against the Canes.

Wake Forest, on the other hand, left no room for doubt, beating Duke 45-7, and, as predicted, the Demon Deacons have entered into November with an unbeaten record still in tact. If Wake can run the UNC, NC State, Clemson, and BC gauntlet, they will undoubtedly have a strong enough resume to easily qualify for a playoff spot. I suspect I’m like many of you out there…I don’t believe Wake is a high level playoff caliber team on paper, but running the table deserves respect and should the Demon Deacons get it done, they deserve a shot at the title…but let’s hope Wake Forest is not our final hope standing between Georgia and a potential national title.

Key Games This Week:

• #9 Wake Forest at North Carolina

Big Ten

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In control of their own destiny: Michigan State and Ohio State

Technically alive but unlikely: Michigan

Eliminated: Iowa, Penn State, Maryland, Indiana, Rutgers, Minnesota, Purdue, Wisconsin, Illinois, Nebraska, and Northwestern.

The Wolverines outgained Michigan State by nearly 200 yards, but Mel Tucker’s Spartans, following the theme of their season, found a way to claw victory out of the jaws of defeat to remain unbeaten. MSU, the only Big Ten school outside of Ohio State to record a playoff appearance, claimed the No. 3 spot in the initial playoff rankings while running back Kenneth Walker vaulted to the top of the Heisman race with 197 yards rushing and five touchdowns against Michigan.

Michigan was not written off by the playoff  committee, holding onto the No. 7 spot despite the loss.   A road trip to Penn State and a regular season finale against the Buckeyes will determine whether the Wolverines can work their way back into the Big Ten title game.

Ohio State feasted on weak competition for the better part of a month, so a lackluster performance against an underwhelming Penn State team may signal that the Buckeyes are not as far along as they had hoped. This Buckeyes team is by far the most talented in the conference, but this is the year for another team to strike and wrestle the league title away from OSU. I’ll believe when I see it, but back to back dates with Sparty and The Team Up North will test Ohio State.

Key Games This Week:

• #5 Ohio State at Nebraska
• #3 Michigan State at Purdue
• Indiana at #7 Michigan

Big XII

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 In control of their own destiny: Oklahoma

Technically alive but unlikely:  Oklahoma State and Baylor

Eliminated: Texas, Iowa State, TCU, Texas Tech, Kansas State, Kansas, and West Virginia

Oklahoma QB Caleb Williams threw for over 400 yards and six touchdowns and, once again, the inconsistent Sooners showed the upper limits of their potential. Despite some ugly performances, should OU finish strong, they will be given the benefit of the doubt by the CFP Committee likely due to Williams’ presence.

A week after dropping their first game, Oklahoma State bounced back in a big way, holding Kansas to under 150 yards of offense while holding the Jayhawks to 0-13 on third down. A 55-3 win moves the Cowboys to 7-1 with West Virginia, TCU, Texas Tech, and OU remaining.

Baylor dug itself out of a 21-10 hole in the second half to pull off a 31-24 win against Texas. The Bears face TCU and Oklahoma in the next two weeks.

Three-straight wins put Iowa State back in the race for the Big XII, but a loss to West Virginia should knock the Cyclones out of contention for a conference title.

Key Games This Week:

• #11 Oklahoma State at West Virginia
• #12 Baylor at TCU

Pac-12

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In control of their own destiny:  Oregon

Eliminated: Arizona State, Oregon State, Stanford, Washington State, Washington, Cal, Utah, UCLA, USC, Colorado, and Arizona

Oregon scored a 52-29 victory over Colorado and now turns their attention north toward the Washington Huskies.

Oregon-Washington is an underrated rivalry on the national level and the Dawgs will be ready for the Ducks. UW head coach Jimmy Lake created a stir this week when he insisted his program did not directly compete with Oregon with any regularity on the recruiting trail,

“That is way more pumped up than it is,” Lake said. “Our battles are really, the schools that we go against, have academic prowess, like the University of Washington, Notre Dame, Stanford, USC. We go with a lot of battles, toe to toe, all the way to the end, with those schools. So I think that’s made up and pumped up in [the media’s] world. In our world, we battle more academically prowess teams.”

Group of Five/Independent
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 In control of their own destiny: Cincinnati

Technically alive but unlikely:  Notre Dame

Road wins over Indiana and Notre Dame have clearly not done much to impress the CFP Committee. Back to back mediocre performances, however, did not do the Bearcats any favors, but should Luke Fickell’s team close out with a zero in the loss column, it will be hard to keep Cincinnati out of the playoff field. One thing we now know…despite the polls pushing Cincinnati up to the No. 2 spot, it will be close to impossible for the Bearcats to impress the CFP Committee enough to potentially earn the top seed. Qualifying will be enough of a chore at this point.

Notre Dame has worked its way back into the edge of the playoff picture with three-straight wins to improve to 7-1. Navy, Virginia, Georgia Tech, and Stanford, stand in the way of an 11-1 campaign. The Irish are not likely to work their way into a playoff spot, but if they can continue to win, they will be in the hunt for a playoff spot or a boon to the Bearcats’ resume.