Projected 2020 College Football Playoff Top 25 rankings for Week 13

Historically, the College Football Playoff selection committee hasn’t held back from including Group of Five teams with solid records at the bottom of their weekly Top 25 lists, which could benefit Mountain West leader Nevada. Down 21-16 at halftime, Nevada pitched a 10-0 shutout in the second half to prevail 26-21 at home in Week 12. That kept the Wolf Pack undefeated as they moved to 5-0 for the first time since Colin Kaepernick lit up the field at Mackay Stadium in Reno.

Carson Strong was hardly Kaepernick, but he was solid enough in victory. Strong threw for 288 yards with two touchdowns and one interception on 31-of-46 passing, adding a single eight-yard run to the ledger on the ground. The Wolf Pack defense held San Diego State under 300 total yards of offense — and only 31 yards after the intermission as they adjusted and asserted themselves in the race for one of the two championship game spots.

Nevada looks on track to take one of those two spots in the Mountain West title game. The schedule is hardly a cakewalk, with a trip to Hawaii next on the docket in Week 13 on the Saturday after Thanksgiving. A home game against Fresno State precedes what could be a pivotal matchup against San Jose State on December 12.