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Coming off their big 44-10 win last week against Michigan State, along with some teams ahead of the Wolverines losing, Michigan moved up to 13 in the latest College Football Playoff Rankings. If they want their small chance of reaching the playoffs, some top 10 teams are going to have to start to fall.
This week we’re back to just three games for Michigan to keep their eye on, and one of them will be hard for some people to side with. Check them all out below.
Game 1: No. 6 Oregon vs. Arizona State
Oregon and Utah are the two PAC-12 teams that have a chance to go to the playoffs if they can win out, then beat the other team in the conference championship. While a loss in that game eliminates one, the other could still go. If one of those teams loses a game before playing in the conference championship, then win the conference, they might miss the playoffs.
Oregon has a higher chance of losing this week as they take on an Arizona State team that has some good fight in them. This would be Oregon’s second loss of the season and it would knock them out of the top 10, possibly further depending on the score. A chance to move up at least a spot is something Michigan needs.
Root for: Arizona State
Game 2: Texas A&M vs. No. 4 Georgia
Another team with one loss that could face a possible upset this week is Georgia as they take on Texas A&M. Georgia is most likely going to the SEC title game unless they lose two in a row. While those odds are slim, they could still lose one possible game that’s this week.
Georgia already lost to an unranked team earlier this season, and another loss to an unranked loss team could knock them down even further away from the top four spots despite possibly going to the SEC Championship game. If Georiga could be knocked down and possibly eliminated from the playoff hunt, that helps Michigan.
Root for: Texas A&M
Game 3: No. 8 Penn State vs. No. 2 Ohio State
While the saying “the enemy of my enemy is my friend” could be used this week as Penn State takes on Ohio State, it needs to be ignored. Ahead of the big game next week, Michigan doesn’t want Ohio State to be 10-1. Penn State defeating Ohio State shoots them up the polls and knocks Ohio State down somewhat and Michigan doesn’t get a chance to move up and beating Ohio State won’t be looked at as impressive.
Having Ohio State defeat Penn State pushes Penn State down the rankings, and depending on how many points they lose by, they could fall below Michigan or barely stay above them. For Michigan to move up as high as possible if they are able to upset Ohio State next week, them beating an 11-0 team is better than 10-1. Ohio State losing to Michigan would knock them down in the polls and could shake up the playoff race.