It’s Week 1, College Football Playoff Rankings!

Yeah, it’s exciting, but it’s only the initial ranking. There’s plenty of football to be played. 

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Late October has arrived and that means only one thing for college football fans across the country. Each Tuesday evening we’ll see how teams rank in the quest to participate in the season-ending College Football Playoff. Over the each of the next five weeks, the CFP Committee will hunker down, analyze hours of data and tape, discuss, and then come up with the teams they believe to be the top 25 squads in the country.

 

Die-hard college football fans will see where their favorite team ranks or doesn’t rank. Overreactions are to be expected, too. The thing to keep in mind is that this week’s rankings aren’t likely to be exactly the same next week–and almost certainly won’t be the rankings we’ll see in early December when the final call is made.

The lesson? DON’T PANIC if your team isn’t in the Top Four. There’s still a lot of football to be played. And that’s precisely what makes college football so much fun!

What are some of the storylines to watch for tonight? Here’s my take.

1. Georgia or Alabama? – I think it is safe to say that the SEC will occupy the first two spots in the tonight’s rankings. The Dawgs and Tide are the best teams in the country.

Keep in mind that the eventual #1 team will play a national semifinal game in New Orleans at The Sugar Bowl. Both Georgia and Alabama would love that opportunity. Why? It’s because #2 will have to travel across the country to play a semifinal match-up in The Rose Bowl.

2. Where does Notre Dame fit? – The Irish are off to a strong start with only a single loss–by a 1-point margin–to Georgia. If the Irish keep winning, I think ND is all but guaranteed a spot in the Top 4 come December. If that happens, then which conference “pays” for Irish excellence? If the season ended this week, I think it would be either the Big 12 or PAC-12. Of course, the committee’s work will become much easier if ND stumbles between now and season’s end. Me personally? I love chaos. Roll, Irish, roll!

3. What to do with Wisconsin? – Sure, the Badgers are 8-0, atop the Big 10 West … and comfortably so. But just how good are these Badgers? It’s tough to say.

The non-conference slate included Utah State, BYU, and Florida Atlantic. Yawn! The Big 10 West is feeble. And the cross-over schedule with B1G East teams includes only one major competitor, Michigan. Is there any way that an undefeated Big 10 champion Badgers team could be left out? I doubt it. But … if there’s a year where it could happen, I think this is the year. There’s no question about it: UW must win the West and the B1G Championship game to have a shot at the CFP.

4. How high will the PAC-12 be ranked? – The PAC-12 is having another rough year. Washington lost early. Cinderella WSU has two losses. USC got blown out by Notre Dame. Yikes! What shoe will drop next? If Georgia and Alabama arrive at the SEC title game undefeated–and Notre Dame finishes 11-1–I see NO path for the PAC-12 champion to the CFP. In the meantime, keep an eye on Washington. If the Huskies rank outside the Top 10 tonight (and I think that’s probable), I believe it will be extremely difficult for UDub (and the PAC-12) to make up the ground necessary to get into the CFP.

5. With a loss to an unranked team, where does Clemson figure in? – It is amazing what can happen when you lose to an also-ran team–Syracuse–a team that had lost earlier in the year (at home) to Middle Tennessee (3-5).  In a span of less than four hours, Clemson went from national championship contender to outcast.

Still, though, I suspect that Clemson will fall in the #6-8 range when the rankings are released tonight. That’s perfect positioning. If  Clemson wins out, I believe the Tigers are a lock to make the Final Four for the third year in a row. If so, that would be quite an accomplishment for Dabo and the Tigers.