After a pretty quiet week amongst the top four, the Spartan Red Zone gives you their projected top four before a rivalry week that features major Playoff implications. There won’t be any top-four places locked up after this weekend, but there are high-profile matchups featuring teams in and around the Playoff race. With most of the major conference championship games already in place, the focus of college football will again be on the Iron Bowl between Alabama and Auburn, with the stakes just as high as they were in 2013’s classic.
Kyle Turk (@KyleTurk5)
- Alabama
- Miami
- Oklahoma
- Clemson
Bubble: Wisconsin, Auburn, Ohio State, Georgia
It seems as though these are all eight of the teams worth discussing for a Playoff bid at this stage, and to tell you the truth I’m not really upset with any of these options. Personally, I think Miami, Wisconsin, and Auburn will all end up winning their conference title games and join Oklahoma in the field of four, once the Sooners play their inexplicable round-robin title game, potentially to the team it lost to earlier in the season, Iowa State.
I see no real changes in the entire top ten, unfortunately. Unless the committee sees Notre Dame’s tight win over Navy as a negative (which seems unlikely), there’s simply no reason for a team to drop. Wisconsin’s game against Michigan was solid, and the Badgers did what they had to do, but Ohio State is still clearly the best team remaining on their schedule. Win that game, and they’ll be in, obviously, but I think Ohio State’s a bit too unpredictable to feel strongly about picking such an even game.
Joey Ellis (@Jellis1016)
- Alabama
- Clemson
- Miami
- Oklahoma
Bubble: Wisconsin, Auburn, Georgia, Ohio State
Wisconsin picked up another top-25 win to add to their resume with a Big Ten Championship looming with top-10 Ohio State in two weeks. Auburn remains in control of their own destiny with a huge SEC West showdown with Alabama in the Iron Bowl. Georgia also remains in control of their path, needing a win in the SEC title game against either Alabama or Auburn. Ohio State is in a similar boat as Auburn, except they’ll need a bit more help from teams ahead of them. The Buckeyes need to win out, and win out convincingly and hope for some slip-ups from teams in front of them.
Andy Chmura (@andy_chmura)
- Alabama
- Clemson
- Miami
- Oklahoma
Bubble: Wisconsin, Auburn, Georgia, Ohio State
Wisconsin picked up their second straight win over a previously-ranked opponent. They’ll stay at No. 5, but that’s exactly where they need to be. With the inevitable Clemson vs. Miami matchup in the ACC Championship looming, one of those two teams will almost certainly fall from the top four, leaving room for the potentially undefeated Badgers.
Like Wisconsin, Auburn and Georgia also control their own destiny. Sitting at No. 6, Auburn can beat an undefeated Alabama team in the Iron Bowl and beat Georgia in the SEC Championship Game to punch their ticket as the first two-loss Playoff team. The one-loss Bulldogs are poised to face either Alabama or Auburn in the SEC Championship Game, where a victory would leapfrog both teams and the loser of the ACC Championship Game en route to the Playoff.
Ohio State still needs a little help. For starters, they need to win out and beat an undefeated Wisconsin team in the Big Ten Championship Game. With this, they would leapfrog the Badgers and likely the loser of the ACC Championship Game and Notre Dame. However, in the event that Georgia beats Alabama in the SEC Championship Game, chances are that both SEC teams still make the Playoff leaving the two-loss Buckeyes as the odd man out.
