Undefeated After Week 9

The first College Football Playoff rankings of the season came out yesterday, with Clemson garnering the top seed, followed by LSU, Ohio State, and Alabama.  The selection committee's rankings are released each Tuesday evening, so I'll be taking a look at the remaining undefeated teams each Wednesday.  Because you care.

The selection committee certainly undervalued Memphis at #13.  The Tigers are sitting at 8-0 and beat Mississippi (currently ranked #18 in the CFB rankings) pretty handily a few weeks ago –- a better win than #3 Ohio State, #4 Alabama, #5 Notre Dame, #6 Baylor, #8 Michigan State, #9 Iowa, and #11 Stanford have on their respective resumes.

Meanwhile, in the MAC, Northern Illinois ended #24 Toledo's perfect season last night at the Glass Bowl.  That leaves us with ten undefeated teams in the FBS.  Of course, many of these undefeated teams will play each other in the coming weeks, so the list should dwindle.  We could still end up with five undefeated teams at the end of the regular season, which would create a quandary for the selection committee, even if one of the undefeated teams is a non-Power Five team. 

Looking at the remaining games, Clemson has the second-easiest schedule, with only one team with a winning record (#16 Florida State this Saturday in Death Valley).  Assuming they get past FSU, the Tigers should cruise until the ACC Championship game, and should probably win that game as well, since there is no team in the Coastal Division on Clemson's level.

The next four weeks are going to be insane in the Big 12.  The remaining three undefeated Big 12 teams –- #6 Baylor, #8 TCU, and #14 Oklahoma State –- will all play each other and #15 Oklahoma (who is 7-1), so only one Big 12 team could possibly end the season without a loss.  We could once again see a situation where Baylor and TCU are both undefeated when they meet on November 27 in Fort Worth, potentially knocking each other out of the CFB Playoff for the second year in a row.  Oklahoma State plays TCU, Baylor, and Oklahoma at home.  We could also see a situation where Oklahoma State beats TCU and Baylor to set up a huge Bedlam game with Oklahoma in Stillwater on November 28.  Of course, if there are several one-loss Big 12 teams, I think they will all get screwed out of a spot in the Playoff because of the lack of a conference championship game.

In the Big Ten, #3 Ohio State and #7 Michigan State play each other in Columbus on November 21, which will determine the champion of the East Division.  Meanwhile, #9 Iowa has the easiest schedule left of any of the unbeatens and should cruise to the West Division title without a loss, assuming they can get past –- cough –- my 4-4 Hoosiers this Saturday in Bloomington.  This would set up a Big Ten title game between an undefeated OSU or MSU and an undefeated Iowa.

Only one of the two non-Power Five teams –- Memphis and Houston –- can make it through the regular season unscathed because they play each other in Houston on November.

Here is a breakdown of the undefeated teams and each team's remaining games (rankings are CFB Playoff Committee rankings):

#1 Clemson 8-0

11/7 – #16 Florida State (7-1)

11/14 – at Syracuse (3-5)

11/21 – Wake Forest (3-6)

11/28 – at South Carolina (3-5)

12/5 – ACC championship game (Charlotte) - TBD

Remaining opponents' combined record:  16-17 (.485)

#2 LSU 7-0

11/7 – at #4 Alabama (7-1)

11/14 – Arkansas (4-4)

11/21 – at #18 Mississippi (7-2)

11/28 – Texas A&M (6-2)

12/5 – SEC championship game (Atlanta) - TBD

Remaining opponents' combined record:  24-9 (.727)

#3 Ohio St. 8-0

11/7 – Minnesota (4-4)

11/14 – at Illinois (4-4)

11/21 - #7 Michigan State (8-0)

11/28 – at #17 Michigan (7-2)

12/5 – Big Ten championship game (Indianapolis) - TBD

Remaining opponents' combined record:  23-10 (.697)

#6 Baylor 7-0

11/5 – at Kansas State (3-4)

11/14 - #15 Oklahoma (7-1)

11/21 – at #14 Oklahoma State (8-0)

11/27 – at #8 TCU (8-0)

12/5 – Texas (3-5)

Remaining opponents' combined record:  29-10 (.744)

#7 Michigan St. 8-0

11/7 – at Nebraska (3-6)

11/14 – Maryland (2-6)

11/21 – at #3 Ohio State (8-0)

11/28 – Penn State (7-2)

12/5 – Big Ten championship game (Indianapolis) – TBD

Remaining opponents' combined record:  20-14 (.588)

#8 TCU 8-0

11/7 – at #14 Oklahoma State (8-0)

11/14 – Kansas (0-8)

11/21 – at #15 Oklahoma (7-1)

11/27 - #6 Baylor (7-0)

Remaining opponents' combined record:  22-9 (.710)

#9 Iowa 8-0

11/7 – at Indiana (4-4)

11/14 – Minnesota (4-4)

11/21 – at Purdue (2-6)

11/27 – at Nebraska (3-6)

12/5 – Big Ten championship game (Indianapolis) - TBD

Remaining opponents' combined record:  13-20 (.394)

#13 Memphis 8-0

11/7 – Navy (6-1)

11/14 – at #25 Houston (8-0)

11/21 – at #22 Temple (7-1)

11/28 – SMU (1-7)

12/5 – Conference USA championship game (hosted by divisional champion with best record) - TBD

Remaining opponents' combined record:  22-9 (.710)

#14 Oklahoma St. 8-0

11/7 - #8 TCU (8-0)

11/14 – at Iowa State (3-5)

11/21 - #6 Baylor (7-0)

11/28 - #15 Oklahoma (7-1)

Remaining opponents' combined record:  25-6 (.806)

#25 Houston 8-0

11/7 – Cincinnati (5-3)

11/14 - #13 Memphis (8-0)

11/21 – at Connecticut (4-5)

11/27 – Navy (6-1)

12/5 – Conference USA championship game (hosted by divisional champion with best record) - TBD

Remaining opponents' combined record:  23-9 (.719)