How pivotal will Week 8 turn out to be in the playoff race?
With five undefeated teams going down on Friday and Saturday, there are just six unbeaten teams remaining with six weeks to go in the regular season. Will all six make the College Football Playoff?
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We don’t think so. Here’s our latest playoff field projection. Remember, the first set of rankings from the playoff committee comes out on Nov. 4.
1. Ohio State (7-0, projected Big Ten champion)
The Buckeyes look a lot like the 2022 Georgia Bulldogs. Georgia, you may remember, won the national title at the end of the 2021 season and reloaded for an even more dominant season in 2022. Georgia went 15-0 in 2022 and beat Ohio State by a point in the Peach Bowl before destroying TCU in the national title game.
That Georgia defense gave up 14.3 points per game. This Ohio State defense is allowing 5.9 points per game after shutting out Wisconsin on Saturday. The Buckeyes are outscoring their opponents by 30 points per game and just who, exactly, is going to give them a game? After an off week in Week 9, Ohio State hosts Penn State on Nov. 1. So much for that being a massive game in the playoff race.
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2. Indiana (7-0, at-large)
If there were somehow any doubts about Indiana’s legitimacy, they can be put to rest. Great teams take care of business after big wins. And Indiana did just that with a 38-13 win over Michigan State on Saturday. Fernando Mendoza threw as many TDs (four) as he did incompletions, and the Indiana defense had five sacks. Like Ohio State, it’s hard to see who is going to give Indiana much of a game the rest of the regular season.
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3. Alabama (6-1, projected SEC champion)
We’re ready to write off Alabama’s Week 1 loss to Florida State entirely. It was not an accurate reflection of either team. The Tide were dominant in a 37-20 win over Tennessee on Saturday night as they look to be the premier team in the SEC once again. Ty Simpson is doing his best to keep up with Mendoza in the Heisman race as he was 19-of-29 for 253 yards and two scores.
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4. Oregon (6-1, at-large)
Take a moment to appreciate how good Oregon’s offense was on Saturday night against Rutgers if you haven’t already. And even if you have, it’s still worth marveling at what the Ducks did again.
Seven of Oregon’s eight TDs were 20 yards or longer. The Ducks had 750 yards — yes 750 yards — of total offense on 60 plays. That’s 12.5 yards per play. Oregon rushed for 415 yards on 36 carries and four players had a run of at least 35 yards. Like Indiana and Ohio State, Oregon also doesn’t have any ranked opponents remaining in the regular season.
Here’s what Nick Bromberg’s College Football Playoff picture looks like after Week 8. (Taylar Sievert/Yahoo Sports)
No. 12 South Florida (6-1, projected American champion) at No. 5 Georgia (6-1, at-large)
The Bulls are our new American representative after Memphis’ loss to UAB. Since losing 49-12 at Miami, South Florida has won four consecutive games by at least 27 points. And guess who USF plays on Saturday? Yep, Memphis. We’ll see if Tigers QB Keaton Lewis can play after he was injured against the Blazers.
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Georgia won yet another shootout on Saturday after its defense finally got a stop in the fourth quarter against Ole Miss. Gunner Stockton is getting more comfortable every week as Georgia’s starting QB and had his best game of the season against the Rebels.
No. 11 Georgia Tech (7-0, at-large) at No. 6 Texas A&M (7-0, at-large)
Georgia Tech was a road underdog against Duke on Saturday and pulled away in the second half for a comfortable win. The Yellow Jackets were No. 7 in the AP Top 25 on Sunday for their highest ranking since the 2009 season and have a clear path to the ACC title game.
Texas A&M, meanwhile, looks more and more like an SEC contender every week. The Aggies’ offense didn’t miss a beat without RB Le’Veon Moss against Arkansas and head to LSU in Week 9 against a desperate Tigers team after LSU lost to Vanderbilt. If Texas A&M gets through that game, Aggies fans have every right to dream big.
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No. 10 Ole Miss (6-1, at-large) at No. 7 Miami (6-1, projected ACC champion)
All is not lost for the Rebels but it’s worth wondering if Austin Simmons will get his job back after the way the fourth quarter unfolded in Athens. Trinidad Chambliss played well for the first three quarters, but Ole Miss’ offense couldn’t do anything in the fourth as Georgia took over. Simmons started the first two games before a left ankle injury in Week 2 against Kentucky. Will he get run against Oklahoma in Week 9?
Miami’s path to a bye in the playoff is still very viable. But all the good vibes about the Hurricanes disappeared with Carson Beck’s four interceptions against Louisville. Miami needs to get right against Stanford in Week 9.
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No. 9 Notre Dame (5-2) at No. 8 Texas Tech (6-1, projected Big 12 champion)
Notre Dame looks more and more like a playoff team every week. The committee is not going to count Notre Dame’s losses to Miami and Texas A&M very much against the Irish as long as both the Hurricanes and Aggies are in the playoff field.
Texas Tech almost pulled out a miracle win against Arizona State late in the fourth quarter before the Sun Devils scored a TD with 34 seconds left for the win. Tech was playing without starting QB Behren Morton, however, and we still think they’re the favorites in the Big 12.
