5 takeaways from the Week 13 College Football Playoff rankings

But with a highly-ranked opponent against which Notre Dame has played three consecutive close games, just emerging from California with an 11-1 record is the goal.

Last season, Texas Christian was third in the second-to-last playoff rankings and slipped to sixth in the final rankings, behind Ohio State and Baylor. We would like to be there now, and have been there all year, but unfortunately that’s not the way the table turned for us. The College Football Playoff Committee will announce the four teams for the playoff the next day at noon.

Kelly said the Irish haven’t let the adversity bother them.

“They have performed at a high level since then, so they’ve overcome that loss with their play on the field and the success they’ve had and the wins they’ve accumulated, with now six wins over teams with”. Baylor faced a good Kansas State team at home, posted a solid win, but still was being dragged down by its nonconference schedule and a loss at West Virginia, which finished in the middle of the Big 12. There are only two other entries from the SEC in this week’s rankings with in-state foes Ole Miss at No. 18 and Mississippi State at No. 21. Notre Dame (10-1, Independent) 7.

At No. 15, Navy is clearly the top team from outside the Power Five conferences. The Gators, on the other hand, have a stone-wall defense that teams not named LSU haven’t been able to beat. How about Oklahoma losing to a bad Texas team in October? Granted, the victory was in the first week of the season, but it has to play some role in the Committee’s final decision. If Toledo win the MAC title, they might end up as the highest ranked non-P5 team, getting that big bowl game berth. This might not bode well for the Big 12, again.

What could go either way?

I will be the first to admit that Notre Dame did not exactly help themselves last week. 19 TCU and has a win over No. 7 Baylor on the resume. “All we can do is try to get a win against Stanford, and hopefully the committee changes their mind”.

Think about it. If Iowa loses, it more than likely gets knocked out based on its strength of schedule. Victories for the Trojans and Midshipmen would enhance two of Notre Dame’s best wins. A strong comeback against a strong squad or come from behind victory against a team that was floundering at the time.

UNC would be a one-loss ACC champ (with two FCS wins and a awful loss to South Carolina). It was OU’s fourth win over a ranked opponent this season.

Who/What should Notre Dame root for?

The latest College Football Playoff Rankings have had some shakeups and Iowa finds itself as one of the top 4.

To add to all the hype and national attention, ESPN “College GameDay” will be in Stillwater for the game and it will be Senior Night, which is always a festive and emotional event that gives the home team an extra boost of adrenaline, as if that is really necessary to get up for a rivalry game.

BEST OF REST: CFL: Grey Cup, Ottawa Redblacks vs. Edmonton Eskimos (3:30 p.m., ESPN2 (31)); NFL: Buffalo Bills at Kansas City Chiefs (10 a.m., CBS (8)), New York Giants at Washington Redskins (10 a.m., Fox (5)), Pittsburgh Steelers at Seattle Seahawks (1:25 p.m., CBS (8)). A spot below the undefeated Hawkeyes.

What if Iowa beats Nebraska and then beats the East Division champion in the Big Ten Championship Game? With a magnetic quarterback in midst of a transcendent season and arguably the top defense in the Big 12 Conference, the Sooners shouldn’t have much difficulty punching their ticket to the College Football Playoff with a win Saturday. Or, at the very least, they’d like the Sooners and the Bears to lose.

The committee put Oklahoma in position to earn the spot over Notre Dame if both teams win out.

The Cardinal, ranked No. 11 in the College Football Playoff rankings, will play No. 4 Notre Dame on Saturday. They need to lose to North Carolina State this weekend or to Clemson in the conference championship. Alabama has two tough games left. Beat Auburn? Stay on course for the playoffs. There is plenty that would need to happen, and even beating Clemson in the ACC championship to finish 12-1 would still far from guarantee them a slot.