Written by Tyer Pastorius
By no surprise, the top three spots in the College Football Playoff picture remain unchanged as none of the top three lost this past weekend. However, the Michigan Wolverines were victims to a strong outing by the Ohio State Buckeyes who suddenly found a strong defensive force. With that loss, the Bulldogs led by QB Jake Fromm were able to claim the No. 4 spot in the rankings with a dominant win over Georgia Tech. With some uneasy fans and some controversy of who should be in the fourth spot, the championship games this weekend will be a big factor in the final rankings.
- Alabama (12-0) –
2. Clemson (12-0) –
3. Notre Dame (12-0) –
4. Georgia (11-1) +1
5. Oklahoma (11-1) +1
6. Ohio State (11-1) +4
7. Michigan (10-2) -3
8. UCF (11-0) +1
9. Florida (9-3) +2
10. LSU (9-3) -3
11. Washington (9-3) +5
12. Penn State (9-3) –
13. Washington State (10-2) -5
14. Texas (9-3) –
15. Kentucky (9-3) –
16. West Virginia (8-3) -3
17. Utah (9-3) –
18. Mississippi State (8-4) –
19. Texas A&M (8-4) +3
20. Syracuse (9-3) –
21. Northwestern (8-4) -2
22. Boise State (10-2) +1
23. Iowa State (7-4) +2
24. Missouri (8-4) NR
25. Fresno State (10-2) NR
As mentioned above the Wolverines lost to Ohio State in a major blowout of 39-62. When it comes to one of the best rivalries in college football, this was a surprising game especially heading into the game with Michigan ranked at No. 4 and Ohio State being in the No. 10 spot with a very minimal defense that has appeared throughout the season. But the biggest takeaway from this game/the committee for me is that still with that big of a win over a top 4 team, Ohio State remains on the outside of the top 4. The biggest issue has been the lack of defense that Urban Myer’s team has played which in my opinion would be the only reason as to why they are not in the top 4 but when you dominate your rival school who is ranked fourth in the fashion that Ohio State did, I think they earn that spot or at least the No. 5 spot over Oklahoma. Oklahoma snuck out a game against the Mountaineers who are ranked a lot lower than both Michigan and Ohio, so it was surprising to see them ranked higher than the Buckeyes.
UCF remains undefeated but they may have a completely defeated locker room with the loss of the junior year Quarterback McKenzie Milton to a gruesome knee injury suffered in the victory over South Florida. In a positive light, McKenzie regained blood flow in his injured leg and his nerve is intact (which could have been a lot worse) – thoughts and prayers to him and his family. With that win, Central Florida moved up one spot to the No. 8 spot which isn’t bad. With the circumstances that happened against South Florida, it is hard to rank UCF higher with a Freshman QB taking over the reins of the offense. The Knights will be playing against Memphis in the AAC title game which could be big baring any of the top teams lose this weekend.
The University of Washington continues its impressive streak of going from unranked to almost cracking the top 10 throughout the weeks of the committee voting. The Huskies put together a dominant victory in the Apple Cup against Washington State in a game that started of fairly calm and then took a turn into the snowball cup. Senior QB Jake Browning continued his impressive showing in Apple Cup games by having 207 yards and completing the 4-0 record against WSU. Along with Jake, Senior (and most likely, NFL heading) running back Myles Gaskin put together a great night with 170 yards and 3 touchdowns. With the 28-15 victory, the Huskies moved up to the No. 11 spot and will play Utah State on Friday for the Pac-12 Championship. For Washington State, this knocked them down to No. 13 while prior to this game they were in talk of a potential top 4 team.
The Texas Longhorns remain in the No. 14 spot but will be facing off against the No. 5 Oklahoma Sooners and should be a closer game than most think. These teams matched up once already this season in which the Longhorns claimed a 48-45 victory but this time on Saturday when they matchup it is for the Big 12 Championship and for Oklahoma, a potential spot in the College Football Playoffs.
In arguably one of the biggest games of the season that will have the biggest implications on the College Football Playoff picture, the SEC Championship between No. 1 Alabama and No. 4 Georgia. With Kirby Smart heading the coaching of the Bulldogs, I think this is a game they look to make a statement and an upset. With a young team between Jake Fromm, D’Andre Smith (Sophomore running back), a stout defense, and a poised special teams unit, I think we see the Bulldogs celebrating a victory over the Crimson Tide. If they happen to win, this gives Alabama their first loss of the season, a huge win for UGA, and potential talks within the committee of who gets placed were amongst the top 4. Meanwhile, Ohio State will square off against Northwestern and if they manage to have a massive blowout victory as they did against the Wolverines, we may see the Buckeyes crack the playoff picture (in the event Alabama wins and Georgia drops its second game).
This week is the biggest week of College Football so far and will have key implications into who makes the Playoffs. There is a lot on the table for a lot of teams, will we see Jake Fromm and Kirby Smart make a run at the National Championship or will we see Urban Myer’s Buckeyes try to bring another Championship to the state of Ohio? What’s your thoughts on the new rankings and predictions for the games this weekend?
