There are four teams in line right now to play for the Playoff. But really, there are five, if you count the definite play-in game. No. 4 Iowa and No. 5 Michigan State will meet on Saturday in the Big Ten Championship, with the winner locking up a spot.
The next-to-final College Football Playoff rankings are here, with Ohio State and Stanford hoping for chaos
The Playoff committee’s new top 25 shows one clear group of contenders, then a smaller group in need of madness. The whole thing’s below.
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This means the group in need of mayhem starts at No. 6, where it’s Ohio State and then Stanford.
There’s not much opportunity for that mayhem, as a loss by No. 1 Clemson to No. 10 North Carolina could just mean the high-scoring, one-loss Tar Heels taking a place. Oklahoma’s schedule is already done, since the Big 12 doesn’t have to worry about a title game.
Florida has too far to climb even with an unlikely win over Alabama, so anyone looking for a sure opportunity is rooting for the Gators.
Stanford has ground to gain. A win over newly ranked USC would clinch the committee’s nebulous conference title bonus. That means the Buckeyes have no way to accomplish anything other than by politicking, which Urban Meyer did masterfully as Florida’s coach during the 2006 debate, when he helped create the SEC’s strength-of-schedule image. That was the polls-and-computers era, though, and now we’re talking about a committee. Does it work now?
So, with mere hours of college football left until the only rankings of the season that matter matter, here’s the new top 25:
| Playoff committee ranking (last week) | S&P+ ranking | Best win, per S&P+ | Worst loss, per S&P+ | If the season ended today | |
| 1 | Clemson (12-0) | 2 | Florida State | Orange Bowl vs. Iowa | |
| 2 | Alabama (11-1) | 1 | LSU | Ole Miss | Cotton Bowl vs. Oklahoma |
| 3 | Oklahoma (11-1) | 3 | at Baylor | Texas | Cotton Bowl vs. Alabama |
| 4 | Iowa (12-0) | 29 | at Wisconsin | Orange Bowl vs. Clemson | |
| 5 | Michigan State (11-1) | 11 | at Ohio State | at Nebraska | Rose Bowl vs. Stanford |
| 6 (8) | Ohio State (11-1) | 4 | at Michigan | Michigan State | Fiesta or Peach |
| 7 (9) | Stanford (10-2) | 15 | Notre Dame | at Northwestern | Rose Bowl vs. Michigan State |
| 8 (6) | Notre Dame (10-2) | 9 | Navy | at Stanford | Fiesta or Peach |
| 9 (13) | Florida State (10-2) | 5 | at Florida | at Georgia Tech | Fiesta or Peach |
| 10 (14) | North Carolina (11-1) | 31 | at NC State | vs. South Carolina | |
| 11 (19) | TCU (10-2) | 19 | Baylor | at Oklahoma State | Sugar Bowl vs. Ole Miss* |
| 12 (7) | Baylor (9-2) | 8 | West Virginia | at TCU | |
| 13 (18) | Ole Miss (9-3) | 7 | at Alabama | at Memphis | Sugar Bowl vs. TCU |
| 14 (16) | Northwestern (10-2) | 51 | Stanford | Iowa | |
| 15 (10) | Michigan (9-3) | 6 | at Penn State | at Utah | |
| 16 (17) | Oregon (9-3) | 34 | at Stanford | Washington State | |
| 17 (11) | Oklahoma State (10-2) | 25 | at West Virginia | Baylor | |
| 18 (12) | Florida (10-2) | 16 | Ole Miss | at LSU | |
| 19 (NR) | Houston (11-1) | 54 | Navy | at Connecticut | Fiesta or Peach |
| 20 (NR) | USC (8-4) | 21 | UCLA | at Oregon | |
| 21 (NR) | LSU (8-3) | 13 | Western Kentucky | Arkansas | |
| 22 (25) | Temple (10-2) | 33 | Penn State | at South Florida | |
| 23 (15) | Navy (9-2) | 12 | at Memphis | at Houston | |
| 24 (23) | Utah (9-3) | 39 | Michigan | at Arizona | |
| 25 (NR) | Tennessee (8-4) | 26 | Bowling Green | Arkansas |
* The Big 12’s three-way tiebreakers actually matter here. If Baylor beats Texas on Saturday, this changes. Here’s a full look at how next weekend could change the whole bowl picture.
And here’s our explanation of our top four, from earlier in the day: Clemson, Alabama, Oklahoma, and Iowa.
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