NCAA Football Report (Week 11)
The first week under the new College Football Playoff rankings was a somewhat uneventful one despite the struggles of the Big Ten.
The top four remained unchanged in the first week leaving the playoff together for a second week putting them closer to that top four ranking at the end of the season.
The way the season has been going though, everyone knew that this wasn’t going to be the final four at the end of the season.
This season had already seen so many upsets where top teams fell to unranked teams or to other top-ranked teams.
It seemed like every week another top contender put their season in jeopardy and the first week of the CFP rankings was one of the very few calmer weeks in the season.
That of course, was going to change at some point and it only took another week to change the face of the playoff.
Three of the top four teams in the rankings had some interesting games that would have all solidified their spots in the playoff.
The top team in the country, Georgia took on #10 Auburn in one of their tougher tests of the season.
The Tigers didn’t just beat the Bulldogs though, they easily beat the Bulldogs unseating the top team in the country.
The 40-17 win puts their great season into doubt as the Bulldogs are now a one-loss team and will move out of the top four in the league.
They were headed right to the SEC championship where they would likely see Alabama and the winner would enter the playoff.
The Bulldogs won’t be entirely out of it though as they can find their way back although that path is likely going to require an SEC title.
They have a good shot at getting there in their division but without beating either Alabama or Auburn in the title game they won’t make the playoff.
It is a tough road back for the Bulldogs but it isn’t entirely impossible that they find their way back to the playoff at the end of the year.
Their fellow SEC representatives were close to seeing the same fate as the Crimson Tide took on Mississippi State and had a lot of trouble with the Bulldogs.
They were in it throughout the game but eventually, the Tide came out on top just getting by the Bulldogs to keep their record intact.
The Crimson Tide seem to be headed for that top spot despite narrowly escaping their matchup with Mississippi State.
They remain undefeated and although they will still need to win the SEC title to get a playoff spot they should remain in the playoff before they take on Auburn in the Iron Bowl.
The SEC will still see a team in the top four and Georgia still has a chance to get back but for the Notre Dame Fighting Irish, the goal is a good bowl and nothing else.
Their game against Miami was one of the biggest of the week as the Hurricanes were #7 and had to get a big win to help them towards the playoff.
That big game came against the #3 Irish who needed this win to prove to everyone that they still belonged in the top four.
Notre Dame proved quite the opposite though as the Hurricanes did what they do best and punished Notre Dame on defence.
With four total turnovers, the Miami defence was playing exactly as well as they needed to while the Irish offence struggled to get anything going.
The 41-8 drubbing gave new life to the Miami season as they are sure to make some serious progress towards the playoff if they aren’t in the playoff come Tuesday.
Meanwhile, Notre Dame is in some trouble as they have now taken two losses on the season, albeit to top-ranked teams, and are not very likely to find themselves in the playoff the rest of the season.
Their year has not turned into trying to stay in the top ten and earn a berth into a big bowl rather than playing for the championship.
The second week under the CFP rankings was an interesting one and leaves a lot up in the air this season.
Alabama and Clemson are the only two left standing from the top four and both should move up in the rankings this week.
Oklahoma seemed like they were out of it until now as the losses should help them find a top-four spot after beating TCU this week.
Meanwhile, Miami should join the top four this week after beating a top three team and seeing a number of spots open up.
What will happen is up to the committee but the season is not finished yet and there is a lot of football left to play.
If the season continues like this anything could be coming as the top four at the start of the CFP rankings might not be the top four at the end of the season making the run towards the playoff that much more fun.
The Sport Addiction 