Playoff Selection Committee Drops Ohio State and Notre Dame with Two Newcomers Fighting for Final Four Invite
Written by Ryan Wright
Twitter: @HogManInLA
Win or lose, each week a finicky College Football Playoff Selection Committee can dock a team for the smallest or biggest of things quickly putting a season into high alert. Case in point, Notre Dame eked out a three-point win at Fenway Stadium over Boston College but was demoted from No. 4 to No. 6 putting their last game against Stanford as a showcase final four play-in contest.
The other big shakeup from Week 2 to Week 3 in the selection committee’s standings was the fall of 2014 college football champions Ohio State from No. 3 to No. 8. The Buckeyes lost 17-14 on a last second field goal kick at home to Michigan State. Ohio State fans must now cheer for Penn State to knock the Spartans off for a chance to remerge into playoff consideration by winning the East and beating No. 10 Michigan on the road.
The beneficiary to Ohio State’s loss, other than Michigan State, was Iowa. The Hawkeyes have secured their spot in the Big Ten Championship Game but must take care of Nebraska to stay in the playoff hunt for another week and then top whoever ends up winning the Big Ten East.
A forgotten blueblood has emerged from the Big 12 shadows to stake a claim at No. 3, Oklahoma. The Sooners get a chance for another ranked team win after beating TCU last week going to Stillwater to play Oklahoma State. Baylor is the only other team with a game in Week 14 out of the Big 12. If the Big 12 is to get a seat at the playoff table should Oklahoma lose to OSU, Baylor needs to win out and hope Notre Dame, Iowa, and Michigan State stumble along the way, potentially Ohio State as well.
Florida struggled to a 20-14 win against Florida Atlantic but has two chances left to get top quality wins, Florida State and Alabama in the SEC Championship Game. Florida, Stanford, and North Carolina appear to be the only longshots still able to contend for a spot in the playoffs if they are able to win their final regular season games and conference championship games.
Playoff Selection Committee Rankings Week 3 (Nov. 24, 2015)
- Clemson
- Alabama
- Oklahoma
- Iowa
- Michigan State
- Notre Dame
- Baylor
- Ohio State
- Stanford
- Michigan
- Oklahoma State
- Florida
- Florida State
- North Carolina
- Navy
- Northwestern
- Oregon
- Ole Miss
- TCU
- Washington State
- Mississippi State
- UCLA
- Utah
- Toledo
- Temple
Photo credit: thehawkeye.com; No. 16 C.J. Beathard drops back to pass for Iowa.