Projected 2020 College Football Playoff Top 25 rankings for Week 15

For the Trojans to remain a top 20 team in the College Football Playoff selection committee’s estimation, they will have to win their game against Washington State on Sunday evening. USC was forced to cancel its game against Colorado due to COVID-19 cases on their roster, and the game this week against the Cougars was pushed back a day to accommodate players returning from quarantine and isolation.

Clay Helton’s team entered Week 14 as the top-rated team from the Pac-12 in the committee’s Top 25 rankings. Even then, they barely clocked in at No. 20 behind seven one-loss teams, four two-loss teams, and even three-loss North Carolina. While the passing attack ranks 14th in the nation at 323.3 yards per game, the Trojans also rank 107th in the FBS in average yards per completion.

Barring a comprehensive blowout of Washington State, the committee will probably remain skeptical of the Trojans. The regular-season finale against UCLA will offer one more chance to sway the selectors to bump them further up the top 25, though a spot in the College Football Playoff itself is probably out of reach at this point even if USC goes on to win the Pac-12 with a 6-0 record.