On Tuesday Night, the College Football Playoff committee will unveil its latest rankings ahead of the final weekend of the season. Week 13 didn't bring a ton of excitement, with only two games between Top 25 teams, while most of the Country played far inferior opponents. While there wasn't a ton of action in Week 13, the committee still has a ton to take into account.
The race for the Group of 5 bid into the Playoff is interesting as James Madison is having an incredible season, and added a win over Washington State this weekend, bolstering their resume. The only race more interesting than the Group of 5's is the race we're seeing in the ACC with 6 teams in contention heading into the final weekend creating a massive problem for the Playoff committee.
The College Football Playoff committee will solve these 3 questions
How does the committee juggle the ACC?
The most interesting storyline to follow this weekend is the race for the ACC Championship Game, as 6 teams are still in contention. The issue for the committee is that they view Miami as the best team in the conference, while SMU and Virginia have the best chance to play in the Conference Championship. If the committee ranks Tulane and James Madison ahead of SMU, who may win the league, it could set the committee up to keep the ACC out of the Playoff entirely.
Does Texas have a chance with 3 losses?
While the Texas Longhorns already have 3 losses on the season, they may still be in the race for a place in the College Football Playoff. Last week, the committee ranked Texas 17th, and the Longhorns are going to rise right back into contention. After the two teams directly in front of Texas lost this weekend, the Longhorns should be at worst #15 in the poll. If the Longhorns can knock off Texas A&M this weekend, the win may be big enough to vault them into the conversation ahead of conference championship weekend.
Will JMU finally make an appearance in the Top 25?
Every week, the College Football Playoff committee has had a team out of the American ranked ahead of the Sun Belt. While the committee has ignored James Madison every week, they may have no choice but to put them into the Top 25 this week. The Dukes are now 10-1 on the season with just one loss against a solid Louisville team that's fallen apart without Isaac Brown.
The committee is going to need to shake up the back half of the rankings as the #15 USC, #16 Georgia Tech, #21 Illinois, #22 Missouri, and #23 Houston all lost. James Madison jumping into the Top 25 would be significant, as it could show just how far the committee views them behind the American.