Ohio State, Louisville move up behind Alabama in AP poll

Clemson lost in a similar manner to Pittsburgh. MI also fell to Iowa back then, with current Coach Jim Harbaugh at quarterback.

Washington, ranked No. 4, lost to USC 26-13 as Sam Darnold had 287 yards passing and a pair of touchdowns.

The biggest losers from Saturday are two SEC teams: Texas A&M and Auburn. Auburn 8-2 19. Nebraska 8-2 20.

So which four teams do you think ultimately make the playoffs?

The undefeated Huskies rose one spot to No. 4 in the College Football Playoff committee’s second rankings of the season Tuesday. So those leagues having the coveted strength-of-schedule component and wins over.500-or-better teams the committee covets. And speaking of: ESPN’s “College GameDay” crew next week will row the boat to Kalamazoo, Mich., where 10-0 Western Michigan will host Buffalo. Barring another upset loss, Clemson is headed to the conference title game and a win there could keep it in contention for a playoff spot. But the Wolverines just lost to four-loss Iowa, which could not beat FCS power North Dakota State in Iowa City. Wisconsin might even control its own destiny now; granted, knocking off the Buckeyes or the Wolverines in the Big Ten title game would be no easy task, but don’t put it past the No. 6 Badgers. But things are also tricky moving forward. Oklahoma’s playoff rate, however, bumps up to 56 percent, when combined with a Louisville loss to Houston on Thursday.

After the Great Upset Saturday of 2016, it could happen again. It’s not an upset of national title effect, but the Tar Heels’ hopes to advance to the ACC Championship Game are greatly diminished. The only other ACC team with a shot at the #Playoffs is Lamar Jackson and the Louisville Cardinals, and Clemson has already beat them head-to-head. It was the highest ranking for Colorado since 2002. MI and Clemson both managed to stay in the top 5 at No. 4 and No. 5, respectively, but the two-loss Wisconsin Badgers leapt over the No. 7 Washington Huskies following their demolition of IL.

Ohio State is back up to No. 2 in the AP Top 25, jumping four spots after dominating Maryland, 62-3 – the same score as the previous week’s game when the Buckeyes crushed then-No.

Michigan: Win the final two games versus IN and at Ohio State, win the Big Ten Championship. Ohio State subsequently won the national title, defeating Alabama in the semis and OR in the final. If the Huskies win out, they’ll be conference champs and sitting at 12-1 overall.

MI (9-1) and Clemson (9-1) each slipped two spots to Nos. Clemson played a tougher non-conference schedule.

Clemson’s home loss was stunning/not stunning.

Will the committee be that kind to Louisville, which lost to the Tigers? The senior, who came back from a neck injury that ended is junior season, suffered a gruesome leg injury during a blowout loss against No. 9 Oklahoma. Well, they lost and they are still alive, barely. I might make an exception for two-loss Florida if it ends the season with wins over LSU, Florida State and ‘Bama, but the chances of that happening are about equal to winning Powerball or Miley Cyrus getting a Cabinet position. Even if the Nittany Lions don’t get into the Big Ten title game, they could land in the Orange Bowl. That is certainly possible and something that will be debated heavily by the committee. They need help, but of the teams in this category, they may need the least amount. That sounds pretty good, but would it be enough to beat out a two-loss team from the Big Ten that doesn’t win that conference’s championship? This would also nearly guarantee two spots for the Big Ten as Ohio State would be in also. Maybe No. 11 West Virginia and the Big 12, which has had dirt thrown on it for weeks. “One team walked out with a win …”

That opened the door for Washington move into the top four, leaving the four undefeated Power 5 teams – the others being Alabama, Clemson and MI – filling out last Tuesday’s bracket.

And the pool just got deeper. This time around, it may spell their much-needed second chances.