With one more week to go, the playoff spots are still up for grabs, but at least one team locked up a sport. Who’s in and who’s out?
Let me point out on my philosophy on these rankings – you’re most recent OOC results count a lot, and you’ll see me reference that throughout the season.
We’ll give each conference a relative strength value 1-10.
Let me explain my relative rankings
0-5 : Conference lacks depth no elite teams
6-7: Conference lacks depth, and there are 0-2 elite teams, and 1-2 quality teams
7-8: At least 2 elite teams, and at least 2 quality teams.
8-9: 3 elite teams, and at least 2 quality teams
9-10: 1/2 of conference is elite and/or quality teams.
1) Big 12 – 7.1
TCU end up beating Baylor in a monsoon, and I think the Big 12 is as tough 1-4 as any conference in the country.
Oklahoma should have locked up a playoff spot by destroying Oklahoma State. I can’t see anyway they are left out.
Playoff Contenders
Oklahoma
In the Playoff Picture
NONE
2) Big 10 – 7.05
Iowa and Michigan State took care of business. The winner of their championship game makes the playoff. It’s that simple.
Ohio State is not dead yet. If Clemson and Stanford go down in their conference title games, the Buckeyes could add a 2nd Big 10 team to the playoff mix.
Playoff Contenders
Michigan State, Iowa
In the Playoff Picture
Ohio State
3) SEC – 6.9
The SEC’s 2nd highest ranked team Florida lost at home to Florida. Kentucky went down to Louisville and as expected South Carolina lost Clemson. The SEC went 1-3 against the ACC, with only Georgia beating Georgia Tech. Clemson was the only heavy favorite, and you could make an argument that SEC could be even lower on this list.
Alabama is national title contender, but after that the SEC is in as bad of shape as it’s been in years. That South Carolina beat UNC in game 1 is the only reason I give the SEC the edge over the ACC here. That loss still counts even if the Heels would beat the Gamecocks 9 out 10 times now.
Alabama plays Florida in the SEC Championship, and the Gators have zero and I mean zero chance of beating the Tide. Florida wouldn’t beat Alabama if they started every drive at mid-field.
Playoff Contenders
Alabama
In the Playoff Picture
NONE
4) ACC – 6.85
As I said last week if Florida State, Clemson, and Louisville beat Florida, South Carolina and Kentucky I was moving the ACC ahead of the Pac 12. That’s exactly what happened. Even lowly Georgia Tech only lost to Georgia 13-7. The ACC went 3-1 against SEC this past week.
With 1 game left Clemson makes the playoff if they beat UNC. UNC may be just a little too far back to reach the playoffs, but if the College Football poll has them in the top 10, they may have a shot with some help.
Playoff Contenders
Clemson
In the Playoff Picture
North Carolina
5) Pac 12 – 6.8
Stanford beat Notre Dame which was a strong win for the Pac 12, but overall it’s been a disappointing season for the conference.
There is still hope though. If Clemson loses to UNC, and Stanford wins the Pac 12, the Cardinals may be taken over the Heels.
Playoff Contenders
NONE
In the Playoff Picture
NONE
The Rest
When Notre Dame choked away a victory at Stanford their playoff chances went with them.
Playoff Contenders
NONE
In the Playoff Picture
NONE
My Current Playoff Teams
As my personal criticism of the playoff committee, I don’t think the top 4 seeds order should be released until the final rankings. The playoff committee’s inconsistent and ever changing criteria is causing unnecessary frustration and confusion. It’s one of the improvement points I’d have for them.
If I had a vote this is who I would put in the playoff right now.
In – Oklahoma | Alabama | Clemson | Michigan State
Just Missed – 5) Iowa 6) Ohio State 7) Stanford 8) North Carolina
