4 Sleeper Teams the College Football Playoff Committee Should Take Seriously

There is no question that the AP and coaches polls will exert influence on the selection committee. How could they not? Whether you're watching the games, reading the papers or checking out the scores online, many teams' names are attached to a number, signifying their rankings.

But the trouble with the polls is that, since they start in the preseason, perception bias is always built in. Voters don't rank their teams from scratch week to week—as they should—but only slide them up or down as if there are fixed pole positions and a starting grid.

That's why you have the current absurdities such as Oklahoma being ranked three spots ahead of TCU (in the coaches poll) even though the undefeated Horned Frogs just beat OU last week. Or Oregon two ahead of Arizona even after losing at home to the unbeaten Wildcats, also last week.

In the BCS era, where you started in the polls often mattered greatly in where you finished since they accounted for two-thirds of the standings for most of BCS's run. In 2004, Auburn never got to play for the national championship even though it was the undefeated SEC champion because it began the year at No. 17 in the AP poll and could never catch up to USC and Oklahoma, which started 1-2 and finished 1-2 at the end of the regular season.

In the College Football Playoff, the selection committee will not release its rankings until the last weekend of October. The 13 committee members theoretically should be able to keep an open mind, as they're not beholden to any outside rankings. 

If that's the case, then they should have these "sleeper teams" on their radar because while they're not at the top of the polls, they deserve every consideration for the four-team playoff field if they continue to perform the way they have been this season.

Conference	Undefeated	One-Loss
ACC	Florida State, Georgia Tech	Louisville, Duke
Big Ten	None	MSU, OSU, PSU, Rutgers, Iowa, Minn., Neb.
Big 12	Baylor, TCU	Oklahoma, Oklahoma St., Kansas St.
Pac-12	Arizona	Oregon, OSU, UW, Cal, ASU, UCLA, Utah
SEC	Auburn, Ole Miss, Miss St.	Alabama, A&M, Florida, UGA, Mizzou, UK

TCU (AP ranking: No. 9)

The Horned Frogs spent their first two years in the Big 12 in rebuilding mode after double-digit-win seasons in their final four years in the Mountain West. The expectations for this year's team weren't very high either, as they were 35th in the preseason AP poll.

But after last week's upset victory over Oklahoma, people are beginning to take notice. If TCU can shock another Top Five team—this week at Baylor—it'll be in the driver's seat for the Big 12 title. With Gary Patterson's typically stout defense restored and Trevone Boykin at quarterback, this team is very much a dark horse for a spot in the playoff field.

Ohio State (AP ranking: No. 15)

OK, the Buckeyes are not your typical sleeper, as they were ranked fifth in the preseason AP poll. But after losing quarterback Braxton Miller before the season began and losing to Virginia Tech in the second game of the season, they have vanished from the list of playoff contenders.

But Urban Meyer has quietly restored order, and J.T. Barrett is now up to speed running the OSU offense, putting up at least 50 points in his last three games. With the Big Ten mired in mediocrity, the Buckeyes have only one remaining game against a ranked opponent. And if they can win at Michigan State on Nov. 8, they should be able to take the Big Ten title with a 12-1 record and possibly crash the playoff field.

Georgia Tech (AP ranking: No. 22)

Of the nine unbeaten power-five conference teams, the Yellow Jackets are by far the lowest ranked. And that has little to do with their performance on the field and everything to do with the fact that they didn't receive a single vote in the preseason AP poll, when Florida, Texas and even Louisiana-Lafayette all did.

But Georgia Tech is very much a threat to run the table in the ACC Coastal, as it has already beaten Virginia Tech and likely won't face a ranked team until its season finale at Georgia. Of course, the Jackets have lost the Clean, Old-Fashioned Hate 12 of the last 13 years, and even if they get past that, they'll in all likelihood face Florida State in the ACC title game. But for now, the committee should keep an eye on them.

Notre Dame (AP ranking: No. 6)

Jonathan Daniel/Getty Images

The Fighting Irish can be considered a sleeper because few gave them much of a chance to replicate their 2012 success. While Everett Golson returned at quarterback after a one-year absence, they were ranked only 17th in the preseason AP poll, as they faced what appeared to be a daunting schedule.

But look again now, and Notre Dame might be just one victory away from locking up a playoff spot and possibly even crashing the playoff field with one loss. The Irish play at Florida State in two weeks, and after that, they might not face another ranked team the rest of the season. How well they play against the defending champs will be key, as style points may very much influence the committee's decision at season's end.

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