Top 10 College Football Playoff contenders after Week 9

2. Tennessee

The Vols could have a few avenues to the College Football Playoff. The most obvious is winning out but since that would mean beating Georgia and Alabama again, that’s a tall order.

Let’s say Tennessee drops a close game to Georgia this week and the Bulldogs knock out Alabama later in the SEC title game.

If everyone else wins out, Georgia, Ohio State, TCU, and Clemson would probably make the playoff. But if one of those teams losses, the decision could come down to a Pac-12 champion such as Oregon, an 11-1 Tennessee team with a win over Alabama, and an 11-1 Michigan.

If Tennessee plays Georgia a lot closer than Oregon’s loss, that could be enough to get the Vols in the playoff. Or if they beat Georgia and then lose to Alabama, the Vols would have a strong resume at 12-1, but would still need Clemson or TCU to lose at least once.

1. Georgia

Georgia is another team that controls its destiny but one that should cheer for teams like Clemson and TCU to lose just in case.

If the Bulldogs beat Tennessee and then lose to Alabama, they would have a strong resume, especially if Oregon won the Pac-12 and Tennessee finished 11-1. But even comparing Georgia to an undefeated Power-5 champion is hard to do.

I can easily see Georgia getting a berth over Oregon if it comes to that. But if the Bulldogs lose, they will need an undefeated team or two to lose in order to back into the playoff as it did a season ago after losing to Alabama.