Chaos in the first week of November!
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
Remember where you heard this?
“Next week Oklahoma plays Baylor, and I have a feeling that will be end of the line for Baylor’s playoff chances.” and that’s exactly what happened. Baylor went 2 1/2 months without playing anyone and when they lost by 10 at home to a rapidly improving Sooner team, they fell out of the playoff race. Oklahoma State and TCU survived games with bad Iowa State and a terrible Kansas team.
Next week Baylor plays Oklahoma State and TCU faces Oklahoma. Oklahoma is the only Big 12 team that I believe can make the playoffs with 1 loss.
Playoff Contenders
Oklahoma State
In the Playoff Picture
Oklahoma
2) Big 10 – 7.05
No changes in the Big 10 this week. Michigan State, Iowa, and Ohio State took care of business.
Next week the Ohio State plays Michigan State. The Spartans can make some playoff noise with a win. I like the Big 10’s depth of teams 1-5, but there is a big drop off after that.
The conference has 5 ranked teams, and that leads all conferences.
Playoff Contenders
Ohio State
In the Playoff Picture
Iowa
3) SEC – 7
The SEC has one very good team in Alabama, and that’s it. This is the thinnest I can remember the SEC. Florida has a nice record, but no one really believes that is an elite team. If the Gators win out though, they’l likely make the playoffs so you can’t ignore them. LSU got crushed at home by an Arkansas team that has losses to Toledo and Texas Tech. The Tide should cruise into the playoffs without breaking a sweat.
Only the Pac 12 has fewer top 15 teams.
Next week the conference has no games of consequence related to the playoff picture.
Playoff Contenders
Alabama
In the Playoff Picture
Florida
4) Pac 12 – 6.9
Top to bottom the Pac 12 is a quality league, but the lack of elite teams will keep it out of the playoffs. Oregon beat Stanford was a huge blow to the conference, and then Arizona knocked off Utah.
The league is too balanced for it’s own good. 9 out of the 12 teams I would classify as decent to good. Unfortunately there isn’t a playoff team in the bunch.
Playoff Contenders
NONE
In the Playoff Picture
NONE
5) ACC – 6.8
The Top of the ACC Clemson, UNC, and FSU all won Saturday. UNC in particular looked very impressive destroying Miami. That gives the conference 3 solid top 20 teams, but the ACC lacks depth. Pitt, Louisville and NC State are decent, but Duke and Miami are sinking and the bottom of the ACC is just bad.
Next week Florida State and Clemson shouldn’t have any problem with Chattanooga and Wake Forest. UNC goes to Virginia Tech in Frank Beamer’s last home game. The Heels are in the playoff picture and are worth a look. Obviously they need to keep winning and winning big to have a chance.
Playoff Contenders
Clemson
In the Playoff Picture
North Carolina
The Rest
Notre Dame beat Wake Forest, but Temple and Stanford losing could hurt the Irish’s playoff hopes. The Cardinals were Notre Dame’s last chance to impress the committee, but they lost this weekend. Houston beat Memphis to remain undefeated. They won’t make the playoffs but they are on the radar screen.
Playoff Contenders
Notre Dame
In the Playoff Picture
Houston
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 – Notre Dame | Alabama | Clemson | Ohio State
Just Missed – 5) Oklahoma St. 6) Oklahoma 7) Iowa 8) Florida
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