College Football Playoff: Top 20 Ranking Of Teams With A CFP Path – Page 4

Top 5 College Football Playoff Chase Rankings

5. USC

Odds To Win the College Football Playoff: +2180
Must Win Game: at Utah, Oct. 15
Landmine To Sidestep: at Oregon State, Sept. 24
Where It Could All Go Wrong: at UCLA, Nov. 19

Bottom Line: It seems to be lost on everyone – at least when it comes to the College Football Playoff discussion – that Lincoln Riley is really good and USC just got itself an all-star team through the transfer portal.

The starting 22 is as talented as any in the country, there’s no Oregon or Washington on the slate, and the team will be favored in every game except for – most likely – the trip to Utah and possibly the home date against Notre Dame. 12-1 with a Pac-12 Championship absolutely gets the Riley and his bunch into the CFP.

Will USC Make the College Football Playoff? Want … to make … the call of YES. However, that trip to Utah is a problem, and there will be a slip somewhere, so go with this. If the Trojans win two of the three games against Utah, UCLA, and Notre Dame, it’ll be deep in the discussion.
USC Preview | Top 10 Players | Schedule Analysis

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4. Georgia

Odds To Win the College Football Playoff: +375
Must Win Game: Florida (in Jacksonville), Oct. 29
Landmine To Sidestep: Tennessee, Nov. 5
Where It Could All Go Wrong: Oregon (in Atlanta), Sept. 3

Bottom Line: All things considered, the schedule isn’t that horrible for an SEC team that has to start the season against a loaded Oregon. And why? The four road games are South Carolina, Missouri, Mississippi State, and Kentucky – that’s not totally awful, relatively speaking. The Dawgs aren’t as strong as the 2021 national champion version, but they’re still full of NFL parts, veterans, and enough to be amazing again.

Will Georgia Make the College Football Playoff? A soft no, but I can’t get to a hard yes on USC, Oklahoma, or a slew of other contenders. There will be one loss when things don’t quite right against a South Carolina or a Tennessee or maybe a Kentucky, but it’ll be tough to get to two in the regular season. 11-2 with an SEC loss won’t get it done.

3. Clemson

Odds To Win the College Football Playoff: +1060
Must Win Game: NC State, Oct. 1
Landmine To Sidestep: at Wake Forest, Sept. 24
Where It Could All Go Wrong: at Notre Dame, Nov. 5

Bottom Line: The party line is that Clemson will roll right into the College Football Playoff thanks to an easy schedule. It’s mostly SEC people at that party. The slate has its problems – at Wake Forest, at Florida State, NC State, at Notre Dame, Miami, South Carolina – but it’s not like dealing with the SEC West. The Tigers will have one of the nation’s best defenses, and the offense will show a spark that wasn’t there in 2021. So …

Will Clemson Make the College Football Playoff? Yup. It’ll lose once along the way – at Notre Dame is possible, and it could drop a thriller to Florida State, Miami, or South Carolina – but it almost certainly isn’t losing twice. 2021 will feel like an aberration.
Clemson Preview | Top 10 Players | Schedule Analysis

2. Ohio State

Odds To Win the College Football Playoff: +315
Must Win Game: Michigan, Nov. 26
Landmine To Sidestep: at Maryland, Nov. 19
Where It Could All Go Wrong: Wisconsin, Sept. 24

Bottom Line: There’s way too much offensive firepower. At least six of Ohio State’s games will be over after the first quarter, and now the defense should be good enough to carry a bit of the load. It’s not a breeze of a slate, but the nasties games – Notre Dame, Wisconsin, Iowa, Michigan – are all at home, and there are just four road dates.

Michigan State and Penn State will be challenging, and don’t blow off the Maryland game – the Terp O is going to be a problem this year – before the finale against Michigan. Even so, it’s College Football Playoff or bust.

Will Ohio State Make the College Football Playoff? Yes. The Buckeyes will lose once along the way – watch out for the road trip to Penn State – but they’re not losing twice, and they’re not losing the Big Ten Championship game.
Ohio State Preview | Top 10 Players | Schedule Analysis

1. Alabama

Odds To Win the College Football Playoff: +181
Must Win Game: at LSU, Nov. 5
Landmine To Sidestep: at Arkansas, Oct. 1
Where It Could All Go Wrong: at Texas, Sept. 10

Bottom Line: The good: there isn’t any one team in the SEC West who appears to be ready to survive the gauntlet to take over the division this year. The bad: EVERYONE in the SEC West is good enough to beat Alabama on the right day.

Almost anyone else with road games at Texas, Arkansas, Tennessee, LSU, and Ole Miss would be just hoping for a restaurant quality bowl game, but it’s going to take something catastrophic for this Crimson Tide team to lose twice.

Will Alabama Make the College Football Playoff? Yes, but it’s going to take an SEC Championship win to do it. There will be a loss somewhere – pick any one of those five road games and you might be right – but again, there won’t be a second.
Alabama Preview | Top 10 Players | Schedule Analysis

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