Welcome to the College Football Top 10 Power Rankings Week 11 As it Should Be. Even though only half of the top 10 teams were in action, there was still significant movement in the rankings. The more information we have, the better more accurate the rankings get. The first edition of the CFB Playoff CommitteeTop 25 will be released on Tuesday. It will be interesting to see if they reward the named brand preseason top 5 teams or the teams with the best resumes. Rankings should be fair and unbiased, but that’s not the world we live in when preseason polls ultimately affect the final rankings.
We always think there will be chaos in college football, but it rarely happens. However, this season it is clear that nothing can be taken for granted.
The Big Ten will have just a good of a “we should have two teams in the CFB Playoff” as the SEC, even though neither should get two when Oklahoma, Oregon, and Utah can play with anybody in the nation.
College Football Playoff
We now have enough information to start putting together CFB Playoff scenarios. So here is how it should shake out at this point.
- Undefeated Big Ten Winner- (Ohio State/Penn State). But Minnesota could mess everything up by winning the Big Ten with one loss. Assuming that loss is to Penn State or Wisconsin, Minnesota would still have a real chance to get in.
- SEC Champion- This gets a little complicated because Georgia, Alabama, and LSU could all win the conference and the winner could have 2 losses. Or you could have 1-loss Georgia beating an undefeated Alabama or LSU.
- Clemson- They have no competition in the ACC so they will finish undefeated with a string of blowout victories.
- Pac-12 Champion- (Oregon/Utah) If both teams finish the season 11-1 the conference championship game will featured a top 10 showdown. And both teams are playing exceptional football right now.
The way this season is shaping up, everyone may be on board with an 8 team playoff. There will be so many 1 loss teams who will be deserving of a chance to play for a championship. Wouldn’t it just make more sense to have the five Power 5 champions and highest-ranked Group of 5 team to get automatic bids? There would still be two spots left for at-large bids. You would always get the best and most deserving teams in the tournament. That might actually cause teams to schedule better non-conference games because they would know they could still get in the CFB Playoffs with 1-2 losses. Fans would then get better games.
The Rules: No Bias, No Bull College Football Rankings
There is no more unbiased ranking out there than Unafraid Show’s College Football Top 10 Rankings Week 6. I get criticized from time to time by people who only want to see the college football world through the lens of the AP Poll. These rankings are not going to look like the AP Poll. Open your eyes to see a different view of evaluating the top 10. Most polls including the College Football Playoff Committee give college blueblood teams a massive “benefit of the doubt.” I don’t believe in that. Teams are ranked by the correct criteria: quality wins, schedule played, and dominance. After the preseason rankings, only games played matter. No consideration is given for future games.
I re-rank the top 10 every Sunday from scratch. The previous week’s rankings do not factor into the next week. So, the rankings will change, sometimes drastically every week because we will have new information. So make sure to come back every Sunday. For reference, you can check College Football Top 10 Power Rankings Week 10.
College Football Top 10 Rankings Week 10:
Next Up: Minnesota, Florida, Michigan
10. Oklahoma Sooners (7-1)
Last Week: at IDLE
People are writing the Sooners out of the playoff, but it’s much too early, and way too many games left to do that. They still have games against TCU, Iowa State, Oklahoma State, a top 15 matchup with Baylor, and the Big 12 Championship game. There is still so much football left to be played to say a team is left for dead.
I bet Lincoln Riley took this off week to focus on his defense that was run over by Kansas State. If Oklahoma gets their defense fixed, there is no question about this team’s ability to hoist the crystal trophy.
9. Baylor Bears (7-0)
Last Week: 17-14 West Virginia
If wasn’t pretty against West Virginia, but a win is a win, especially when that win is a midweek game. Playing on Thursday nights should be reserved for Group of 5 teams instead of Power 5 schools. We still don’t know a ton about Baylor because they haven’t played a ranked team and their dominance is questionable. However, they ave jumped through all the requisite hoops in front of them and beat the team (K-State_ that beat Oklahoma.
I would be willing to bet most college football fans can’t name two players off their team. So, I’ll help out…
QB: Charlie Brewer, RBs: John Lovett, JaMycal Hasty, WR: Denzel Mims, Tyquan Thornton
8. Georgia Bulldogs (7-1)
Last Week: 24-17 (W) vs Florida
That terrible loss to South Carolina clearly woke the Bulldogs up. Georgia put on a really good showing against Florida. They struggled running the football but still managed 100 yards on the ground. Their defense put Florida’s running game in a headlock, 1.1 yards per carry. They now have the inside track to the SEC East crown and date with either Alabama or LSU in the SEC Championship. As long as UGA doesn’t get tripped up by Auburn or TAMU before then their CFB Playoff dreams will remain alive.
7. Utah (8-1)
Last Week: vs 33-28 (W) at Washington
The Utes defense is for real. After starting slowly against the Washington Huskies, the defense buckled down and slowly bled them out. They confused Jacob Eason and forced him into two terrible interceptions including a pick-six. Utah has been able to dominate games on the ground without an explosive passing attack. They do a good job of winning first down and staying in 3rd and short.
Utah does not beat themselves. They play fundamentally sound and will be a real problem for ANY opponent. Some are even arguing they are better than the Oregon Ducks.
6. Oregon Ducks (8-1)
Last Week: vs USC
Oregon put an absolute whipping on USC. Since conservative play-calling caused their week one loss to Auburn, the Ducks have steamrolled the competition. Their defense and offensive line have led the way. This is Oregon’s best team since the 2015 team that went to the CFB Championship in 2015. East coast bias will try and dismiss the Ducks, but this is a complete football team. They are one of the few teams in the nation who are tops in the nation in scoring offense and scoring defense.
People thought the the Pac-12 was out of the CFB Playoff conversation. But ten weeks into the season Oregon and Utah are squarely back in the conversation.
Check out our Pac-12 Football Podcast, Pac-12 Apostles:
5. Clemson Tigers (9-0)
Last Week: 59-14 (W) vs Wofford
Without any obvious opportunities for quality wins on the schedule, it is crucial the Clemson’s dominance remains on max. Wofford was nothing more than a SEC-like November cupcake. I for one hate these games. It is a waste of time and does a disservice to fans. Who wants to watch that besides Wofford fans and Clemson’s third-string players’ families?
Is it possible that Clemson’s defense is better than last years’ with multiple first-round draft picks? They are still one of the most dominant teams in college football.
4. Alabama Crimson Tide (8-0)
Last Week: IDLE
There is only question on the mind of every college football fan, “How healthy is Tua?”. He had a procedure to shore up an ankle injury suffered in the Tennessee game. It feels like Bama’s entire season rests on this one game against LSU. It would be hard to imagine a scenario where the Bama loses to LSU and gets in the CFB Playoff. Their non-conference schedule is terrible and their conference schedule doesn’t have Georgia or Florida on it.
It sure will be nice to see the Crimson Tide play a good team this season. Eight wins and no games against teams currently ranked in the top 25. The fact they have been #1 in the AP poll makes ZERO sense.
3. Penn State (8-0)
Last Week: IDLE
It only took eight wins and an off week for the national media to recognize all the good work Penn State has done. So many people tried to minimize their quality win against Michigan. However, the Wolverines are 7-2 with their only losses against Penn State and Wisconsin. Ohio State is the popular pick out of the Big Ten, but the Nittany Lions won’t go down without a fight.
This week they get an opportunity for another quality win as they take on undefeated Minnesota.
2. LSU (8-0)
Last Week: IDLE
Nothing can go wrong if you don’t play. LSU has been so dominant and has qualities wins this season. There is nothing any team that played this weekend could have done to knock the Tigers out of the top 2. Everything is on the line against Alabama. This feel like the first time since Cam Newton was at Auburn that people believe anyone but Bama is the best team in the SEC.
1. Ohio State Buckeyes (8-0)
Last Week: IDLE
A week off is the perfect opportunity to get on the Chase Young Heisman train. He is by far the most dominant defensive lineman in college football. The scary part is that Nick Bosa and Young were on the same DL last year. Ohio State had at Purdue last year, but at the end of the season, they were one of the four best teams in the country. This year they are leaving no doubt.
OSU has proven they are the most complete team in the country. They are dominant on offense, defense, and special teams. Plus they have multiple top 25 wins. They are the #1 team in the country.
Check back next Sunday morning for the College Football Top 10 Power Rankings Week 11.