CFP Rankings 1.0: Michigan Docking Due To Its Bad Schedule, TCU Has An Uphill Battle
Dan Walken takes a look at the biggest surprises and biggest notes from this season’s top ranked college football game.
USA Today
The important thing to remember about rank 1 college football is that it doesn’t make sense.
The crucial confrontations that will define the National Championship chase come fast and furious, beginning with Saturday’s indispensable duo between #1 seed Tennessee and #3 Georgia.
Later in November, the Big Ten will be decided between No. 2 Ohio State and No. 5 Michigan, a crowded race atop the Pac-12 will be reduced to one or two teams, and the Big 12 will either submit an unbeaten team of champions to the playoffs inclusion or settle at home in List of six cup games for the new year.
The playoff format date tells us that all answers will be given by the first Sunday in December.
For now, what we can get From the first rankings for the 2022 season Is that the commission loves the SEC — and there’s no big surprise there, obviously. The committee is also low at number seven in the TCU and higher at number 4 in Clemson’s electorate USA coaches survey TODAY Sports AFCA.
First order: Tennessee leads Ohio in the preliminary rankings
Pot predictions: Losing won’t significantly hurt college football game chances in Georgia, Tennessee
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These teams and conferences top the list of winners and losers from the top qualifier rankings:
Winners
Supreme Education Council
Well, let’s prepare them. Tennessee is in first place and no surprise there. The Volunteers put together an impressive resume and could put an obstacle ahead with their Saturday win over the Bulldogs, who relegated to third place. Alabama is No. 6, as the highest-rated team with one loss enters Saturday’s game against No. 10 LSU, the highest-rated team with two losses. Just behind the Tigers is No. 11 in Mississippi. So, to summarize: Of the top 11 teams in the standings, five are from SEC. The league has multiple ways to place two teams in the playoff.
Clemson and ACC
It wasn’t as bad for the ACC as they thought before entering the rankings, starting with the fact that Clemson came in ahead of Michigan to get close to the top four. With the easier schedule remaining for any of the top playoff contenders, the Tigers should feel very positive about their chances of returning to the semi-finals after a year-long absence. Clemson came fourth and is set to win against three other ACC-ranked teams: No. 20 Syracuse, No. 21 Wake Forest and No. 22 North Carolina State. (North Carolina was the ACC’s fifth representative at 17th.) The committee respects the first third of the conference and how Clemson rose to the top of the league.
Tolen
Tulane comes out on top of the five teams at 19, thanks in large part to his no-conference win against 13th seed Kansas State. The Green Wave is the only unbeaten team in American play heading into two crucial games in November against Conference champions Cincinnati, and No. 25 in Central Florida, the only other team in the quintet in the rankings. Sitting in the driver’s seat to view the access bowl might give you enough room to take over for a foul as losing in one of those two games, if avenged in an American Conference Championship game would not prevent the green wave from finishing in front. from the packaging.
losers
TCU
Falling in seventh place in the number one ranking illustrates the hurdles TCU must overcome to reach the national semifinals. Being behind so many undefeated teams from the Power Five is one thing, even if The Horned Frogs have a strong case to compete for fifth in Michigan and even No. 4 Clemson. Here’s what really hurts: TCU is one place behind Crimson Tide. It shows the committee’s affection for the Securities and Exchange Commission and underscores how at least one team and possibly two single losers of the conference can stay ahead of even the undefeated Horned Frogs the rest of the way. The TCU will need help to climb the ladder and break the top four.
University of California
It’s a hair split to argue so much about the relative merits of UCLA’s No. 12 and Southern California’s, that neither of them seems likely to win the Pac 12 Championship with just one loss and finish in the top four. However, getting the Trojans ahead of rival Bruins seems to ignore each team’s appeal and schedule strength. USC has one win against a team with a winning record, No. 23 Oregon. UCLA has three: Southern Alabama and Washington, and No. 14 in Utah. While the Bruins have only one win on the road, this win over Utah is one of the best teams of any one losing team.
