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The shake on Saturday saw three more undefeated slumps, the Associated Press's top 10 ranking at 5-4 – three of the winning teams having survived the scare – and five ranked teams losing to unclassified opponents.
Clarity is at the top of the photo of the college football playoffs. If Alabama, Ohio State, Clemson and Notre Dame continue to win, they will be your national semifinalists.
But these are not the only teams that can do the series without help, and some are not so obvious.
Watch the series
Stock up: LSU and Michigan
Both made emphatic statements with resounding home wins. LSU defensive coordinator Dave Aranda confused Jake Fromm with the Georgia game in the Tigers' 36-16 win, appearing several times in the zone blanket instead of his usual blitz-heavy stratagem. Ed Orgeron channeled his Inner Miles game by scoring 4-4 on the fourth drop, and the Tigers dominated and outclassed the Bulldogs in all three phases.
Michigan, meanwhile, dominated Wisconsin in 38-13, leaving the ball on 320 of its 444 yards, accumulating more than 37 minutes of possession time and even controlling the Badgers by playing "Jump Around" on the PA stadium late in the game. As Teddy Greenstein pointed out in his Big Ten recap, the Wolverines have a perilous trajectory towards the 12-1 score (at Michigan State, vs. Penn State, at Ohio State, plus the Big Ten Championship game) but they win after a win. opening of the loss of the seven-point road to Notre Dame, they are in the playoffs without question.
The same goes for LSU, despite losing the sixth week in Florida. Georgia was the third team in the top 10 (at that time) that the Tigers beat and they get Alabama 's first place in Death Valley on November 3rd. If they succeed this surprise, defeat Texas A & M in the regular season finals and then send the SEC East champion into the title game of the conference, they could even be the No. 1 seed in front of all unbeaten potential.
Two other SEC teams could enter without help if they win. Georgia lost its margin of error on Saturday – the notion of losing to Alabama in the SEC championship game and qualifying for the playoffs is that of Kaput – but the Bulldogs are basically in the same situation as they were last year after a 23 point loss to Auburn. They did not lose again, including a rematch against Auburn in the SEC title game until their overtime loss to Alabama for the national title. (That said, Roquan Smith, Nick Chubb and Sony Michel are not coming out the door.)
And Kentucky, believe it or not, also holds his cards. The Wildcats' weak offensive in Week 6 overtime defeat against Texas A & M does not inspire confidence, but brings Georgia home on Nov. 3 and wins the Bulldogs and Alabama or LSU victories. under the title of the SEC – as unlikely as possible. that might seem – would increase their resume beyond that of a Big 12 or Pac-12 champion to a defeat. (As for Florida, because of its loss to Kentucky, the Wildcats would have to lose again to take SEC East.)
The ninth team that could win a playoff spot without help could be even more unlikely. But the North Carolina state remains undefeated before Saturday's Clemson event. A trip to Syracuse follows. After that, the schedule would no longer have a curriculum vitae before the ACC title match, and even then the Coastal Division would look like a pile of mediocrity. It may be difficult to qualify an undefeated team from the state of N.-C. with this corpus of work better team than that of Texas, Oklahoma or Oregon with a single loss. But it's even harder to see the committee reject an undefeated Power Five champion.
What about Iowa? If the Hawkeyes won, they would win the Big Ten 12-1 title, just like Michigan, and add victories to Penn State and the Big Ten title match. But their defeat at home against Wisconsin, as well as their generally easier path in the Big Ten West, could prevent them from skipping a Big 12 or Pac-12 champion to a defeat.
And the trio of unbeaten – Central Florida, South Florida and Cincinnati – at the American Athletic Conference? The UCF was 12th in the CFP final ranking last year despite a 12-0 record. There is no indication that the committee would treat them differently this time.
Stock down: Pac-12
A week ago we wrote about the Pac-12s and the Big 12s, who were struggling to get a playoff team into the game. The Pac-12's top two hopes then sank on Saturday when Washington fell from 30 to 27 in overtime to Oregon and Colorado was exposed to a 31- 20 loss to USC.
This leaves the Ducks as probably the only realistic candidate left. If they manage to win against Stanford, their last blazing task, they may be in a position to capitalize if one or more of the top four players stumble. Washington State is theoretically in the same situation, with only a three-point loss to USC, but the remaining Cougars schedule includes Oregon, Stanford, Colorado and Washington.
Heisman watch
Collect: Dwayne Haskins
Injuries could be the only thing that could derail Tanda Tagovailoa's heisman trophy's wild campaign, and Alabama's quarterback aggravated a sprained right knee when the third quarter slipped against Missouri. While Nick Saban said that afterwards, Tagovailoa could have come back if necessary, the situation deserves to be monitored. If Tagovailoa misses any moment or fails, Haskins probably took the second position with another huge game (33 of 44, 412 yards, three touchdowns, no losses) against another opponent surpassed by the 30-14 win. of the Ohio State on Minnesota. In addition, the mediocre and mysterious racing game of the Buckeyes (92 yards in 32 races) means that they may continue to lean heavily on Haskins.
Low stock: Will Grier
This is the second consecutive week in this space for the West Virginia quarterback, and it is likely to jeopardize his chances of success. Grier was under constant strain during the 30-14 Mountaineers' loss to Iowa State, finishing 11 of 15 for just 100 yards with a touchdown, interception and ESPN QBR of 16.6. He was not even the best quarterback on the field as Cyclones rookie Brock Purdy totaled 293 yards and three touchdowns.
Stat of the week
Weekend coup of the week
Feud of the week
Florida's defensive coordinator, Todd Grantham, apparently hated Vanderbilt almost as much as staying in a job long (four in the last six years). In 2011, as a defensive coordinator for Georgia, Grantham met James Franklin, coach of the Commodores at the time, after a party in Nashville. On Saturday, he had words with Vandy 's coach, Derek Mason, while Gators coach Dan Mullen took it on the offensive, after he was out. a Florida player was sent off for targeting a block during a return kick return of the second quarter.
Mason, who stood near the sideline in Florida to monitor his injured player, said that a comment from a Gators player had made the situation worse. Mullen chose not to talk about it after the match by saying, "We will not go into the details publicly. Derek is a very good friend very close. On our sidelines, we have to make sure that we are cleaner in this situation, and he probably thinks the same thing. "
Grantham, Mullen and the Gators had the last word, eliminating a 21-3 deficit in the first half to win 37-27.
Parent of the week
LSU defender Breidon Fehoko is from Honolulu, where his father, Vili, was a costumed performer at football and volleyball games in Hawaii from 2000 to 2011, calling himself "Vili the Warrior". join his father on the field for halftime performances.
Now, the Fehokos brought the Haka into the Death Valley, as Saturday's "Tiger March" showed.
Tweet of the week
Can not Virginia fans enjoy the school's biggest win in 16 years against number 16 in Miami, without remembering the shame of the Cavaliers Basketball?
Dude, it's cold.
Week 8 games to watch
Michigan to Michigan State Saturday 11am, FOX-32
Both teams enter a summit after the big week 7 wins. The Spartans have won eight of the last ten meetings and would like to crush the Wolverines' renewed title hopes.
Oklahoma at the TCU Saturday at 11 am, ABC-7
The Horned Frogs were sentenced to eight penalties and three turnovers in a nasty loss Thursday night against Texas Tech. QB Kyler Murray will seek to complete his Heisman CV.
State N.C. in Clemson 2:30 pm in the afternoon. Saturday, ESPN
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