Ohio State clings to second in playoff rankings; Penn State 7th

If they don’t, then will the committee pick Penn State, and jump them over MI even though both have two losses and MI beat them in the regular season? The Wolverines have had a great season, but Curtis Samuel’s 15-yard touchdown in double-overtime likely knocked MI out of a spot in the College Football Playoff. That seems to be what the committee could be thinking, keeping the Wolverines ahead of both the Badgers and Lions in this set of rankings. Ohio State beat MI 30-27 in double overtime last week, so it’s possible No. 5 Washington could supplant the Wolverines in the Top 4.

Louisville. It’s been hard to take Louisville too seriously as a title contender all season, since the Cardinals could tout wins against Florida State and … that’s it. Kirby Hocutt, chairman of the College Football Playoff committee, said the difference between Washington and MI is “very, very small”, while implying the Huskies’ strength of schedule works against them in a résumé comparison with the Wolverines.

The same probably goes for Wisconsin (10-2) beating Penn State (10-2) in the Big Ten championship game.

4, and MI is No. 5. At one point Hocutt added that the difference between the Wolverines and Huskies was “razor thin”.

Ohio State is the only assumed lock from the Big Ten to get to the playoff, and that’s even with the Badgers winning the championship. The highest rated team from that league is No. 9 Oklahoma, followed by No. 10 Oklahoma State.

Who gets in: Big Ten champ Wisconsin or MI? Yes! For me it’s as simple as this: Clemson or Washington lose and MI should be in. Top-10 wins over Michigan, Wisconsin and Oklahoma – the latter two on the road – should ensure Columbus sleeps soundly this weekend. No. 3 MI was taken down by No. 2 Ohio State in Columbus in double overtime after a questionable 4th-and-1 placement.

Finally, Colorado is also seemingly locked out of the playoffs. MI has a loss at Iowa. It began when they were undefeated at 8-0 and continued even after losing to Iowa on November 12 and after seeing the Wolverines play without their starting quarterback, Wilton Speight, against Indiana. How is the selection committee going to drop them down?

What if there’s a fluke and one of these sure-fire teams lose their conference championships? That would outweigh a head-to-head result that was a very competitive game won by the home team. Penn State; 8. Colorado; 9.

It really comes down to whether or not the teams that are selected into the playoff are the four best teams or the four most deserving. With a win over Ohio, Western Michigan will meet both of those guidelines.

MI will have the better résumé, conference championship or not. “And I think you can make the argument that the Big Ten is as strong or stronger than any conference in the country”.

A double-overtime classic has Ohio Statesitting pretty in the new College Football Playoff rankings, while Michiganis on the outside looking in entering the final weekend. If it came down to Ohio State and Oklahoma as the final two teams for the fourth spot, Ohio State blew out Oklahoma in Norman, so it would go to the Buckeyes.