CFP Rankings: Is Wake Forest football’s playoff window still open?

Just the other day, I had declared that the Atlantic Coast Conference would not have any representation in the College Football Playoff this season. My reason for saying so was the fact that North Carolina had “upset” unbeaten Wake Forest football in Chapel Hill, leaving the league with no undefeated teams remaining.

Considering that some were arguing the Deacs would not even be worthy of a spot in the bracket at 13-0, them being dealt a defeat at the hands of a four-loss team should have knocked them out of the majority’s playoff bubble for sure.

However, with the new CFP rankings that came out Tuesday, it appears as if Wake Forest just might have a path that can still be trekked.

The Demon Deacons, who were previously ranked ninth in the poll, now sit at 12th, which is noticeably higher than most folks (myself included) had expected them to land.

The reason why they have been given such a minute punishment for their loss is unknown. However, I would assume that it mainly boils down to how their loss looks compared to those of the teams that surround them.

In regards to teams that are ranked above Wake Forest, how many have losses, and just how bad are they?

In descending order, some examples that stood out to me the most are names like Oregon, Michigan State, Notre Dame, Oklahoma State, and Texas A&M. All of these teams have the same amount of losses as the Deacs (except for the Aggies, who have two).

Their defeats are as follows: Oregon fell to three-win Stanford, MSU lost to Purdue by 11, Notre Dame lost to Group of Five Cincinnati by 11 (at home), Oklahoma State fell just short to Iowa State, and Texas A&M lost to both Arkansas (who is currently No. 25 in the CFP) and an unranked Mississippi State.

Upon taking in all of those failures, people must ask themselves: is falling to UNC — by a score of 58-55 in Chapel Hill — that bad? The Tar Heels were a preseason top-10 power, mind you; not to mention that their quarterback is Sam Howell, and their head coach is Mack Brown.

Now I do not endorse the concept of giving teams “passes” for losing games, and the Wake Forest Demon Deacons are no exception. But, their are certainly worse teams to lose to, and under worse circumstances.

As for teams ranked below the Deacs (two-loss Baylor, two-loss BYU, two-loss Ole Miss, and so on), I feel that they make Wake’s case for 12th even more understandable. Comparing both the loss counts and the qualities of the losses in question, how much lower should Wake Forest possibly be placed? And when thinking that over, don’t forget that their offense still looks unstoppable.

Whether or not Wake Forest could actually make the playoffs upon winning out is not an easy question to answer. But one thing is for sure: a lot would have to go their way for such a thought to come to life.

Not only would the Demon Deacons have to look virtually unbeatable between now and Selection Day, but a good deal of the names above them would have to basically collapse. Yet considering how lame the bulk of the top-10 looked this last weekend, such an occurrence may not be impossible.

Nonetheless, the committee just fired off a warning shot to the Deacs; if they lose again, they will surely plummet. But looking on the bright side, they have a date with No. 16 NC State this Saturday. If Wake takes that one, they may be right back in the top 10 as if they never even left.