We officially have just six Saturdays remaining before we'll get what might be the wildest week of conference championship games in college football history on Saturday, December 7.
For the first time in the history of the sport, the winner of these four games — the ACC, SEC, Big Ten, and Big 12 champions — will automatically qualify for the College Football Playoff and, barring something unforeseen from the Group of 5 champion, they'll lock up a coveted first-round bye, as well.
With a 12-team College Football Playoff, the loser of these games may not be out of postseason contention, but they will not control their own destiny. Here's a look at the races for each of the Power-4 conferences heading into Week 9.
ACC
The ACC is currently a three-team race with room for a few others to still get involved depending on how things play out down the stretch. Here's a look at the teams with no losses or only one loss in conference play heading into this week:
- Clemson (5-0)
This week: Idle
- Miami (3-0)
This week: vs. Florida State
- SMU (3-0)
This week: @ Duke
- Pittsburgh (2-0)
This week: vs. Syracuse
- Duke (2-1)
This week: vs. SMU
- Syracuse (2-1)
This week: @ Pittsburgh
- Virginia Tech (2-1)
This week: vs. Georgia Tech
Big 12
There are currently only two teams in the Big 12 with undefeated conference records, but there is a whole host of one-loss teams that could factor into the mix if they fall at some point this eason.
- BYU (4-0)
This week: @ UCF
- Iowa State (4-0)
This week: Idle
- Kansas State (3-1)
This week: vs. Kansas
- Texas Tech (3-1)
This week: @ TCU
- Cincinnati (3-1)
This week: @ Colorado
- Colorado (3-1)
This week: vs. Cincinnati
Big Ten
Just like the ACC, there are currently three teams undefeated in Big Ten conference play, and none of them play one another, meaning that we could end up with a three-way tie for the conference championship that would then be determined by tie-breakers.
- Indiana (4-0)
This week: vs. Washington
- Oregon (4-0)
This week: vs. Illinois
- Penn State (3-0)
This week: @ Wisconsin
- Illinois (3-1)
This week: @ Oregon
- Wisconsin (3-1)
This week: vs. Penn State
- Ohio State (2-1)
This week: vs. Nebraska
SEC
Down in the SEC, we've got two teams who are undefeated and a whole host of one-loss teams. After this weekend, we'll be down to just one remaining undefeated team in conference play because LSU and Texas A&M will square off against one another Saturday evening.
- Texas A&M (4-0)
This week: vs. LSU
- LSU (3-0)
This week: @ Texas A&M
- Georgia (4-1)
This week: Idle
- Tennessee (3-1)
This week: Idle
- Missouri (2-1)
This week: @ Alabama
- Texas (2-1)
This week: @ Vanderbilt
- Vanderbilt (2-1)
This week: vs. Texas
Stay tuned into Saturday Blitz as we give you the latest from across the landscape of college football.