5 Things College Football Playoff Committee Should Be Watching for in Week 4

If the 13 members of the College Football Playoff selection committee are truly on top of their job every Saturday, this is what they need to do: Tell everybody to get out of their house—wives, grandkids, in-laws, Eli, Peyton...everybody—and plop themselves in front of at least three TV sets with a computer, a phone and a tablet readily available to keep up with all the games and social media chatter.

That's what I do.

But since they're fallible human beings, they can't measure up to such impossible standards. They might slip up by going to the kitchen to grab a sandwich, taking a call from a former president or rushing down to the sideline to argue with an official.

So I'm here to help. To keep things simple, let's just look at the big picture and leave the nitty-gritty to the computers. They should focus on these five things for this week:

Game	Time	TV	Line
Auburn @ Kansas St.	7:30 p.m. (Thur)	ESPN
Virginia @ BYU	3:30 p.m.	ESPN
Florida @ Alabama	3:30 p.m.	CBS
Oklahoma @ West Virginia	7:30 p..m.	FOX
Clemson @ Florida St.	8 p.m.	ABC

1. Is Florida State really No. 1?:

The Seminoles did not look particularly impressive in their season-opening win over Oklahoma State, and now comes their ACC opener against Clemson. After his latest indiscretion, reigning Heisman winner Jameis Winston will have to sit out the first half in what could be the toughest test in-conference for the defending national champs. Though Clemson was soundly beaten by Georgia, this game should at least provide some clues as to whether FSU should be No. 1, or even a playoff lock.

2. Moment of truth (September edition) for the state of Alabama:

Both Auburn and Alabama are near the top of the polls after cruising to relatively easy September victories. But this week things might get a bit messy. Auburn travels to Manhattan to face an always-ornery Bill Snyder-coached Kansas State team while Alabama opens SEC play at home against Florida. The Gators didn't look like world beaters in a 3-OT win over Kentucky, but they'll be a bit more jacked up for this one.

3. Transitive property time for Oklahoma:

Let's see, last year Oklahoma beat Alabama by 14 in the Sugar Bowl, but Alabama claims its heart wasn't in it. This year, Alabama labored to beat West Virginia at a neutral site and now Oklahoma has a chance to top the Tide's 10-point margin of victory when it visits Morgantown. If the committee values common-opponent comparisons, then this game should mean a whole heck of a lot.

4. The case of BYU:

What to do about BYU might be the committee's biggest headache come selection time, particularly if the Cougars finish the season undefeated. They host a Virginia team that's coming off an upset of previously-ranked Louisville and outplayed UCLA in its season-opening loss. This will be BYU's second common opponent with the Bruins, who also struggled to beat Texas—a team that BYU destroyed with ease. The fact that BYU is ranked far below UCLA in the polls makes little sense and the committee should take note.

5. Make sure to keep Northern Illinois on the radar:

The Huskies vexed the BCS in its final two years and they're at it again. NIU is off to a 3-0 start, including a victory over Northwestern. If it wins at Arkansas this week then the Huskies must be in the conversation when it comes to picking the best "Group of Five" champion for the New Year's Six bowl lineup. Without the BCS standings to rank teams somewhat objectively, it'll be completely up to the committee to pay attention so it can make a reasonable selection.