Projected 2020 College Football Playoff Top 25 rankings for Week 14
By Zach Bigalke
Pick Analysis. 4-0. player. 812. Scouting Report. canceled at Illinois due to COVID-19. Ohio State Buckeyes. 4
Ohio State already had one game canceled earlier in the season when Maryland was unable to field a sufficient roster due to COVID-19 cases on the team. Now the Buckeyes are facing the impact of the coronavirus in their own locker room, which forced the announcement on Black Friday that the game against Illinois would also be called off. The Buckeyes will remain No. 4 in the College Football Playoff selection committee’s Top 25, but the Big Ten title could be at stake.
The Big Ten requires teams to play at least six games to qualify for the conference championship game in this truncated, pandemic-impacted 2020 season. Already Wisconsin has been eliminated from contention by that clause, and if Ohio State has one more game canceled they too would become ineligible to win the league. How would that impact the selection committee, which asserts that conference championships matter — especially if Northwestern goes unbeaten and wins the league?
A trip to East Lansing to face Michigan State opens up December play, with the rivalry game against Michigan closing out the regular season slate. Failing to play either of those games could have serious repercussions for a team with national championship hopes.