Who’ll be the first non-Nike team to ever make the Playoff?

We’ve had four editions of the College Football Playoff dating back to 2014, and we’ve yet to see a school be outfitted by someone other than Nike.

This isn’t too surprising, given that Nike had 67.7 percent of the Power 5 contracts at the start of the 2017 season, per Football Scoop. And the two conferences that have had a team in every year, the SEC and ACC, have 67.9 percent of their member schools with Nike contracts as well.

First, we’ll start by listing all the non-Nike Power 5 teams, plus Notre Dame. A non-Power 5 team has never come close to making the Playoff, so this might as well be one of the requirements the committee looks for each season. While college sports used to be full of all sort of oddball brands, these days, there are mostly just two others. This doesn’t include Jordan Brand teams, because come on, that’s Nike.

If I had to put my money on a few teams over the next three or four years, I’d take Auburn, Miami, Nebraska, Notre Dame, or Wisconsin. After Adidas turned its horrible record of uniform design around somewhat, it can accomplish anything!

Auburn would have made it in last year, had it not lost to Georgia in the SEC Championship, and the Tigers didn’t have to go through a coaching change with Gus Malzahn sticking around. The Tigers also went 1-1 in BCS title games in the years shortly before the Playoff began.

Miami finished 10-3 last season, the Canes’ best season since 2003. The U’s Cinderella season came crashing down, but in a winnable division like the Coastal, Miami has a shot at the Playoff with Mark Richt at the helm.

Nebraska may sound like a long shot, but after what Scott Frost did at UCF in just two seasons — leading the Knights to a historic 13-0 season after a 6-7 year — you can’t help but expect the Huskers to win quickly. Plus the Big Ten West is a much easier draw for Nebraska:

If you’re the coach at Nebraska, and you handle your business, you are often going to have a chance to play two or three games to make the College Football Playoff: Wisconsin, the good team you draw from the Big Ten East, and the Big Ten Championship Game. The Big Ten champion is not going to be left out if undefeated, even if it sometimes plays in the weakest division in the Power 5.

The Fighting Irish have been in contention for a spot before. They ranked third in the country for a couple weeks last year, and they were in the top four in 2015, too. Notre Dame rotates ACC opponents each year, but still has marquee games against USC and Stanford, and it’ll get Michigan for the next two seasons.

Wisconsin went undefeated for the entire regular season and came a touchdown away from a Playoff bid. Wisconsin returns just 42 percent of its production on defense from last season, so replacing some reps there will be key in 2018.