Alabama escaped. Georgia wasn’t so lucky. In the Southeastern Conference and elsewhere, it was another Saturday loaded with changes to the College Football Playoff race — two of last week's top four (Georgia and Notre Dame) in the CFP rankings lost.
These teams played their way in and played their way out of the championship picture (for now):
PLAYED IN
Miami (Fla.). This is obvious. While Miami’s win a week ago against Virginia Tech changed some minds, the Hurricanes were still pegged as a pretender among the top teams in the Playoff poll. Then came Saturday’s win against Notre Dame. If nothing else, the quality of win proves that Miami belongs. But think about the upcoming Playoff rankings. While headed for the top four, it’s not crazy to expect the Hurricanes to be ranked as high as second, if not in the conversation with Alabama for the top spot.
Auburn. The talk for the past few weeks has been about Auburn’s opportunity to play its way into the Playoff, despite two losses, by beating Georgia and Alabama in November. Now, after ripping through Georgia, the Tigers are one step closer to making the most of its chance. Beating the Bulldogs by 23 points says a lot about Auburn, which showed the combination of offense and defense to match up well with any team in the country.
Wisconsin. One week after scoring 55 points against Ohio State, Iowa managed just 66 yards of total offense against Wisconsin. It’s hard not to be impressed. Wisconsin has come under a microscope for its lagging strength of schedule, and rightfully so. But this sort of win against a ranked team will boost the Badgers’ credibility, and that’s not all: As more and more contenders struggle to keep their hopes alive, the Playoff selection committee should take note that Wisconsin continues to put together wins every seven days without fail.
PLAYED OUT
Georgia. The Bulldogs took their first test since September’s win against Notre Dame and failed miserably. In every way, Georgia was outplayed and outright dominated by Auburn — and definitely out coached, as Georgia couldn’t maintain any bit of composure as the Tigers pulled away. It’s not all bad, since the Bulldogs can still get into the top four with an SEC title, but the ugliness of the loss, combined with Notre Dame’s loss, means Georgia’s going to drop in this week’s rankings.
Notre Dame. So Georgia lost twice on Saturday, if you think about it. Not only did the Bulldogs fall to Auburn but the Fighting Irish were pushed around by Miami, meaning Georgia’s résumé suffers. And Notre Dame? After a nice two months and a two-week stint in the Playoff top four, the Irish will no longer be in the title race. It’s not all bad: Getting to double-digit wins one year after going 4-8 would be a nice rebound.
TCU. The Horned Frogs are out of the picture after falling to Oklahoma, because if a two-loss team does get into a semifinal — and it’s looking more and more like that could be the case — it won’t be from the Big 12. While Oklahoma is looking the part of one of the nation’s best teams, consider the chance for the Big 12’s nightmare scenario: OU is 11-1 heading into December but loses the conference title game to 10-2 TCU, which will likely finish second in the league’s final regular-season standings.
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