Week 4 of the college football season is here with six ranked matchups part of this Saturday’s slate. As we head into conference play, this is the point of the season when we begin to learn who these teams really are.
With the 12-team playoff format, there is more room for error than we saw in the past, but teams certainly do not want to drop multiple games early in the season. That makes this weekend’s slate even more intriguing with so many pivotal matchups with serious implications. Let’s look at which teams that are legit CFP contenders must win in Week 4 to keep their College Football Playoff hopes alive.
Michigan (vs Iowa)
Michigan may be 3-0, but not all wins are created equal, especially that Week 1 win over Western Michigan, which is not your typical victory and likely will not be treated as such by the playoff committee. The Wolverines do have a big win over Oklahoma, but that victory may not be as impressive as we once thought given how the Sooners have looked early in the season. Now the Iowa Hawkeyes come to town for what should be a physical and defensive-heavy football game that will be won at the line of scrimmage. A loss to Iowa would put a ton of pressure on Kyle Whittingham’s team as they get into Big Ten play, with matchups against Penn State, Indiana, Oregon and Ohio State still on the schedule. While this team is undefeated, the Wolverines have yet to put together a complete four-quarter performance that makes people take them seriously. A win in this one would do that, allow Michigan to turn the page on a shaky start, and take a ton of positive momentum into the rest of the season.
Texas A&M vs LSU (Both)
It may be early, but this one feels like a College Football Playoff elimination game. After Saturday night, one of these teams will be sitting at 2-2 overall and 0-2 in SEC play. Texas A&M is coming off an embarrassing loss to Kentucky in which the Aggies looked far from a playoff contender. On the other hand, LSU is coming off a valiant defeat to Ole Miss, but the Tigers now have some questions after their first-half performance in that game, Sam Leavitt’s play, and the fact that their dominant Week 1 win over Clemson is not looking all that impressive anymore. Both teams still have a difficult SEC schedule ahead, making this an extremely important game for both. The loser would have an uphill battle to climb and little to no room for error over the final eight games if they want to remain in the playoff conversation.
Oregon (vs USC)
This is a big one in the Big Ten out west, where the Ducks will be looking to avoid a 2-2 start to the year after coming into the season looking like arguably the best team in college football. On the other side is a USC team led by Lincoln Riley that has been starving for a win in a big game like this and has the perfect opportunity to get one at home against an Oregon team that has struggled. A loss here for Oregon is the type of defeat that could swing this season in the wrong direction fast, and most notably would put them at two losses with a trip to Ohio State still on the schedule. After all the hype surrounding the Ducks coming into the season, it’s crazy to think they could be in a must-win scenario this early, but it certainly feels like that is the case for Dan Lanning’s team on Saturday night.
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