We're now through Week 7 of the College Football season, and which race for the College Football Playoff is taking shape. This weekend brought us a ton of Top 25 matchups, but it also brought us some stunning losses, which have reshaped the entire College Football Playoff picture.
Teams like Penn State, Clemson, and Florida State have gone from early-season contenders to out of the race, while some unexpected contenders have jumped into the race. As we enter the second half of the College Football season, the race for the Playoff is truly taking shape.
These 12 programs have the best chance to make the College Football Playoff
Falling out of the race after Week 7 are the Oklahoma Sooners, who suffered their first loss of the season. The Sooners have a gauntlet remaining and showed some serious flaws we'll need to see ironed out in the next few games.
As things currently stand, the Memphis Tigers look like the best team in the Group of 5 with a 6-0 record to start the season. This team quietly has both one of the best offenses and defenses in the Country, ranking in the Top 16 in both points for and against. The biggest games still lie ahead against USF and Tulane, which will end up determining this team's fate.
This weekend, the LSU Tigers held off the South Carolina Gamecocks, surviving another game many circled as a toss-up coming into the season. The Tigers' offense started to look much more like the group we expected, but Garrett Nussmeier's turnovers continue to hold the group back. The LSU defense, however, is one of the best units in the Country and will be the reason the Tigers crack the College Football Playoff.
The Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets are off to a 6-0 start, which is important as they've already beaten their toughest opponents in Clemson. Brent Key's team just needs to handle business against teams they're better than, as they won't face a ranked team until Georgia in the final game of the regular season.
The Alabama Crimson Tide has picked up 3 Top 25 wins in a row, adding the Missouri Tigers to their list of victims. Ever since the loss to Florida State, this Alabama team has looked far more focused, and Florida State suffering a 3rd loss takes a potential debate out of the picture in the College Football Playoff discussion. This team still has massive tests this weekend, starting with a matchup against Tennessee, but they look the part of a Playoff team.
Dan Lanning's Oregon Ducks saw their playoff hopes take a hit this weekend as the Indiana Hoosiers came into Autzen and handed them their first loss in the regular season since joining the Big Ten. This team has some issues to work through, but the good news is they won't face another ranked opponent until late in November when they host the USC Trojans.
In the Big 12 this season, there's Texas Tech and then there's everyone else, as this team is far more talented than the rest of the league. This weekend, Texas Tech lost its quarterback, Behren Morton, to injury, and it didn't matter as Cameron Dickey rushed for 263 yards and 2 touchdowns. This team has all the talent to dominate everyone they play, and they may not face a team as talented as them until the College Football Playoff.
It wasn't pretty again this weekend as the Bulldogs started slow to start a game once again, but Georgia picked up a win over Auburn. The biggest concern for Kirby Smart has to be getting this team to start better, as it will hurt them again against a team like Ole Miss this weekend.
Coming off the bye week, the Ole Miss Rebels looked sloppy, and it almost led to one of the shocking upsets we saw cost them last season. The Rebels are now, however, 6-0 and head into the hardest stretch of their season, facing Georgia and Oklahoma, both of which are road games. Winning one of these games while handling business everywhere else will likely send Ole Miss to the SEC Championship and even the College Football Playoff.
This weekend saw the Texas A&M Aggies pick up another key win as they beat a Florida Gators team that has already shown they can upset any team. There are only two unbeaten teams left in the SEC while several teams have shown flaws without losing in league play. Mike Elko may have the most complete team in the SEC which speaks volumes about the turnaround this program has gone through.
Indiana went to Eugene this weekend and made a statement telling everyone they're a legitimate contender this season. The Hoosiers' defense was dominant, putting pressure on Dante Moore the entire night, forcing him to throw a pair of interceptions. Indiana has an incredibly easy schedule he rest of the way, meaning they've likely already punched their ticket back to the College Football Playoff.
The Miami Hurricanes spent the weekend on the bye while teams like Florida State fell out of the race for the ACC Championship. There isn't a team that Miami will play that's in the same league talent-wise wise which makes it almost impossible for this group to miss the College Football Playoff unless they knock themselves out again.
As everyone around them continues to tumble, the Ohio State Buckeyes keep picking up wins as they knocked off a Top 25-ranked Illinois team. The race for the Big Ten Championship looks like it's a two-horse race between the Buckeyes and the Indiana Hoosiers unless either messes up. This team is starting to look more talented than the group we saw win it all last season, which is scary to say.
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