College Football Playoff Rankings: Biggest Takeaways from Week 6
Week 6 dazzled from start to finish, bookended by crazy Pac-12 games in which ranked teams suffered defeats.
The week started on Thursday when Washington upset USC and ended—unless you stayed up to watch the Hawaii game, in which case, smart idea—when Utah stymied Cal's fourth-down offense in the final minutes of a six-point game.
Only one Top 10 team from the Associated Press poll lost, but a week of near-misses still had major effects on the landscape of the College Football Playoff, shaping how the next two months will unfold.
.jpg?w=256 "Ohio State Team Doctor")
Here's a quick look at what we learned.
The Year of Survive and Advance
One week after barely beating Indiana, No. 1 Ohio State was tied with Maryland—Maryland!—after 35 minutes.
Two weeks after barely beating Texas Tech, No. 2 TCU needed its second frantic comeback in three games to beat Kansas State.
Four weeks after barely beating Oregon—can we please stop pretending that's a quality win?—and one week after barely beating Purdue, No. 4 Michigan State barely beat Rutgers.
All three of those teams have serious issues, as does No. 12 Florida State, which barely beat Miami at home.
But all four of those teams are still undefeated, which is more than one can say of No. 10 Oklahoma. The Sooners became the highest-ranked casualty in a week of near-misses, losing to 1-4 Texas, its biggest rival.
In a year devoid of true, legitimate favorites, there's nobility in just getting by. Ohio State, TCU, Michigan State and Florida State must address their separate issues at some point—otherwise they won't get by for long—but at least they didn't pull an Oklahoma.
Style points won't matter this year as much as they mattered last year. No team has so few flaws to win each game with style. All that will matter is records—cold wins versus losses—when the playoff committee gathers in early December.
Avoid an Oklahoma and you're fine.
Don't Call Michigan a "Contender"
That would be selling it short.
Call Michigan what it really is: a favorite.
The Wolverines won their fifth straight game against No. 13 Northwestern, destroying the Wildcats 38-0, and now enter Michigan State week on fire. They've won their past three games 97-0, becoming the first FBS team in 20 years to pitch three straight shutouts, according to ESPN:
After losing at Utah in Week 1, it looked like head coach Jim Harbaugh would need at least a few months to get his alma mater rolling. But the Utes have since ascended into favorites of their own, and in hindsight losing by seven points in Rice-Eccles Stadium looks fine.
Iowa transfer Jake Rudock played another clean game at quarterback, completing 17 of 23 passes with no interceptions for the second time in three games. He's only thrown one pick in his last 93 attempts after five in his first 78.
"I am absolutely ecstatic to see Jake Rudock graduate," Northwestern head coach Pat Fitzgerald told reporters after the game. "He has been a thorn in our side at two institutions."
If Michigan has a quarterback who won't throw it out of games, which Rudock finally looks like he can be, there's no ceiling on how far it can go. Especially with Ohio State and Michigan State in minor states of disarray—both face as many questions as they possibly could without losing a single game—there is room to maneuver.
Michigan is not some plucky underdog with a talent-deficient roster and an us-against-the-world mentality. It's a blue-chip program with a blue-chip coaching staff and blue-chip players at every level.
What more can one ask for in a playoff favorite?
Next Week Might Decide the SEC
Three undefeated teams remain in the SEC: Florida, LSU and Texas A&M. One-loss Alabama entered the Week at No. 1 on Football Outsiders' S&P+ ratings.
All four are playing one another next weekend.
The Aggies had a bye in Week 5 to prepare for Alabama, which despite early struggles posted a nice win over Arkansas. LSU posted a thorough win against South Carolina, while its Week 6 opponent, Florida, exacted revenge for last year's Homecoming Massacre in a 21-3 win at Missouri.
The SEC has been turned on its head this season, but this week—for once—the rankings held. Texas A&M and Florida began the year unranked and have huge opportunities next weekend. Alabama and LSU began the year with questions that, in some ways, still need answers.
Ole Miss still controls its own fate in the SEC West, but the narrative of the conference will be rocked by next weekend's two matchups. At the very least, these outcomes will prove important.
Order ruled for one week in the nation's most famous league.
But next week, expect more entropy.
.jpg?w=480 "Ohio State Team Doctor")
