Oklahoma, Iowa into top four in latest College Football Playoff rankings

This week the Playoff looks like this: No. 1 Clemson, No. 2 Alabama, No. 3 Oklahoma, No. 4 Iowa.

The Sooners (10-1) seem to be in solid shape with only one game to play. Notre Dame fell to No. 6 after an ugly win against Boston College and Ohio State is now No. 8 after their loss to Michigan State.

And despite its own upset loss at Nebraska, if MSU can beat Iowa on a neutral field it would have a resume that also includes the road wins over OSU (down to No. 8 in Tuesday’s rankings) and MI (up to No. 10), along with an early-season win over OR (up to No. 17) that keeps increasing in value with the return and play of quarterback Vernon Adams.

Before taking a look at the rest of the teams in the conversation, remember that this is all under the assumption that the Spartans win this weekend and beat Iowa in the Big Ten Championship. Michigan State (10-1), 6. They may be out of the playoff race, but this is still a very good football team. They’ve already ruined a flawless year for Michigan State (although the Spartans managed to bounce back from that) and can do it against a team they have plenty of hate towards, derailing them from making the playoffs, although they can’t stop them from playing for the Big Ten title. If Alabama ends up defeating Florida in the SEC Championship Game, as expected, the SEC may have only one team in the top 15.

The title chase in the Big Ten East is still a three-team race between Ohio State, Michigan and Michigan State.

Meanwhile, Notre Dame slipped two spots to No. 6.

With just two weeks left in the season, we will now begin to examine ONLY teams that have a realistic shot to make the playoff.

That has Big 12 fans understandably wondering if the league is setup for another fall from No. 3 even if the Sooners take care of business in Stillwater.

Penn State: The James Franklin era continues to be about beating up most of the small teams but losing the big games.

Michigan State made some moves as well, and now lurk on the perimeter of the playoff.

Things haven’t played out that way, as TCU has been ravaged by injuries, and Baylor has lost not one, but two quarterbacks for the year.

In the 2012 game between Stanford and Notre Dame, Stepfan Taylor (above) was ruled down on a controversial fourth-and-goal call that gave the Irish a 20-13 overtime win. A team with a two-point loss at Clemson stands in line behind teams with losses to Ole Miss and mighty Texas. If the committee views this win as a quality win over an opponent who was undefeated at the time, it could help Notre Dame. In addition to being a potent threat on the ground, he’s also been able to haul in a team-high 34 receptions for 416 yards and three more touchdowns. That was in 2001, and with Nebraska falling in an improbable upset to Colorado the day after Thanksgiving that season, the door was open for No. 4-ranked Oklahoma to move up and into position to play for a second consecutive national crown. The rankings Tuesday are no guarantee, but they are a great indication, that an 11-1 Oklahoma would get the nod over an 11-1 Notre Dame. But, really, which teams can get it done?

Stanford and Oklahoma State are similar opponents.

Another game that could lead to a CFP shakeup is the Bedlam game between Oklahoma and No. 11 Oklahoma State. The Cardinal are sill in pursuit for a Pac-12 championship and have remote playoff aspirations, but it’s safe to say that whichever team loses this battle is effectively out of contention. And here’s the key part of that puzzle – the regular-season finale could royally mess up Notre Dame. Had the Buckeyes not laid an egg last week against Michigan State, this game would be even more significant.

If No. 3 Oklahoma loses to No. 11 Oklahoma State…

Iowa has clinched the West and will be in Indy, but if the Hawkeyes lose to Nebraska and then beat Michigan State, the Big Ten might be in trouble.