Week 4: Playoff Rankings

Another week of college football, another week of upsets that are going to shake up the College Football Playoff rankings. Heading into the week, it seemed the SEC and the media mouthpiece for the conference was upset with Indiana being ranked as the 5th overall team in the country, and in the projection would host a first round playoff game while also challenging the Hoosier’s schedule as a part of their ranking, and they felt it was undeserved. They got what they wanted with Indiana getting blown out by Ohio State and we saw they tumbled in the rankings to 10th in the polls. What they didnt expect though that the 6 to 8 teams Greg Sankey and ESPN was saying deserved it more because of the depth of the SEC would get upset to bring the number of playoff worthy teams to 3. 

Alabama, Ole Miss, and Texas A&M all lost to unranked teams on the road, and some of them were bottom level teams in the conference. They all got their 3rd loss of the season, but the Aggies still have a chance to make the SEC championship game with a win over Texas this weekend. 

The ACC and Hoosiers benefited the most from the upsets. Miami and SMU looks to be the match up for the ACC Championship game as both won this weekend, and SMU locked in a spot as they still maintain a perfect record in conference, but continue to be ranked lower than the Hurricanes. Clemson might still be alive despite having two loses but a win against South Carolina could be big for their playoff poll rankings.

The Big 12 had some more shake ups this weekend as well. Colorado, which started a 6 game win streak, lost to Kansas, and all but eliminated them from the Big 12 Championship game, and playoff chances. Arizona State had a big win against BYU, who was the top team going into the weekend for the conference, but after the fans were cleared from the field after a premature rush, they stopped BYU from a last play Hail Mary attempt. The Sun Devils and Iowa State are now the leading favorites in the Big 12 race, and they might only get 1 team in the playoff with the conference champion. 

This weekend is the last week of the regular season, and we will have more clarity about who is in contention, and who can sneak their way into the playoff with a conference Championship win. 

Here is how our staff voted this week and our composite list of the top 12 teams.

Buckeye50 Playoff Bracket

 

Who is your top 12?  Be sure to leave your comments below