Power Ranking College Football's Best 1-Loss Teams
On paper, Week 8 looked like a bit of a break in the 2015 college football season. There was only one matchup of teams ranked in the Associated Press Top 25, with No. 15 Texas A&M traveling to No. 24 Ole Miss. But as we’ve come to realize, some of the best action happens when you least expect it in this game.
By night’s end, a pair of Top 10 teams (No. 3 Utah and No. 9 Florida State) tumbled from the ranks of the unbeaten, with the Seminoles watching their 28-game ACC winning streak end on a final-play blocked field goal returned for a touchdown by Georgia Tech.
As we approach the final month of the regular season, more wild times are certainly ahead, and while we still have 12 unbeaten teams left in the FBS, there is a group just behind them poised to strike should they stumble. A year ago, only Florida State reached the College Football Playoff unbeaten, and expect similar chaos before the second CFP field is revealed in early December.
If you have one loss, you’re not out of the playoff conversation yet. Not at all. As we roll into the final month of the regular season, 13 FBS teams have one loss, including 10 Power Five schools. Let’s take a look at those 10. This is how we see them stacking up.
10. North Carolina
1 of 10
Sometimes, a first impression isn’t always the best impression. That’s certainly the case with North Carolina. Coming off a disappointing 6-7 2014 season, the Tar Heels laid a major egg in the opening game of college football’s opening night, falling 17-13 to South Carolina thanks to a pair of back-breaking end-zone interceptions from quarterback Marquise Williams.
South Carolina has been bad (the Gamecocks are 3-4, and veteran coach Steve Spurrier has already retired), but North Carolina has put that ugly night behind. The Tar Heels are 6-1 and right in the mix to win the ACC Coastal alongside Duke and Pitt.
New defensive coordinator Gene Chizik has led a major improvement on what was a woeful unit a year ago, allowing 16.7 points per game, No. 16 nationally. Offensively, tailback Elijah Hood has emerged as a horse, rushing for 646 yards and eight touchdowns.
Thursday night, UNC must go to Pitt, and the Heels host archrival Duke a week later. That will decide their Coastal fate, but it’s clear that this is a much-improved team from a year ago.
9. Pittsburgh
2 of 10
If they’re smart, Pitt fans will send a thank-you card to Wisconsin for hiring away Paul Chryst. While it was the program’s fourth coaching change this decade, it might have allowed the Panthers to break through frustrating mediocrity. New coach Pat Narduzzi has Pitt rolling at 6-1 and tied for first in the ACC Coastal.
Pitt’s only loss came at Iowa when Marshall Koehn hit a 57-yard field goal on the game’s final play. The Panthers are riding a four-game win streak with all four victories coming by a touchdown or less, and the final two coming on field goals in the game’s closing moments.
The loss of reigning ACC Player of the Year James Conner to a season-ending knee injury was a blow, but Qadree Ollison has filled in just fine, with 662 rushing yards and seven touchdowns. Wideout Tyler Boyd (53 receptions, 489 yards, four touchdowns) is one of the nation’s top pass-catchers.
The schedule gets tougher soon, with a Thursday night visit from North Carolina followed by Notre Dame and a trip to Duke. But the Panthers look like a sure bet to win more than seven games for the first time since 2010, which is a major relief in the Steel City.
8. Duke
3 of 10
What David Cutcliffe has done at Duke is one of the nation’s most impressive stories. Cutcliffe took one of the most downtrodden programs in America and turned it into a consistent winner. Saturday’s wild 45-43 four-overtime win at Virginia Tech clinched the Blue Devils’ fourth consecutive bowl berth, an unthinkable run before Cutcliffe took over. At 6-1, Duke is on track to win at least nine games for the third consecutive season.
Of course, the Blue Devils are thinking higher. Cutcliffe’s group is a prime candidate to win the ACC Coastal, entering the homestretch unbeaten in league play alongside North Carolina and Pitt. Thomas Sirk has been excellent as the new starting quarterback. He has 1,530 yards with 11 touchdowns and three interceptions, and he also leads the team with 434 rushing yards and two touchdowns.
The defense is also stingy, allowing 14.1 points per game, No. 6 nationally. Safety Jeremy Cash is one of the nation’s best defensive backs and an All-American candidate. Duke’s only loss came to Northwestern, and while a College Football Playoff bid is unlikely, its Coastal fate will be decided in back-to-back November games against the Tar Heels and Panthers.
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7. Utah
4 of 10
Utah’s run in the Top 10 ended with a thud Saturday night with a 42-24 loss to a talented Southern California team finding itself following Steve Sarkisian’s firing. The Utes were one of the nation’s most surprising teams, rising to No. 3 in the AP poll while building on 2014’s nine-win campaign.
Kyle Whittingham has done an impressive job with the Utes, especially finding talent like tailback Devontae Booker, who has 845 yards and eight touchdowns. Quarterback Travis Wilson (nine touchdowns against seven interceptions) needs to be more consistent.
The schedule won’t be easy down the stretch, with November bringing trips to Washington and Arizona before the season ends with a two-game homestand against UCLA and Colorado. But it’s clear that this team isn’t going away without a fight.
6. Oklahoma
5 of 10
Following a highly disappointing 2014 season, Bob Stoops cleaned house on his offensive staff and hired offensive coordinator Lincoln Riley away from East Carolina to install the Air Raid offense. That looks like it was the right move. The Sooners are 6-1, and Riley’s new offense has thrived, with the only exception a stunning 24-17 Red River Rivalry loss to Texas.
New starting quarterback Baker Mayfield has been a perfect fit, throwing for 2,087 yards with 21 touchdowns against four interceptions. Tailback Samaje Perine’s numbers are well off from his breakout freshman season, but he still has 621 rushing yards and seven touchdowns, and he is a dangerous back.
Oklahoma’s fate will be decided by a season-ending stretch at Baylor, versus TCU and at Oklahoma State. All three teams are currently unbeaten and ranked in the Top 12 nationally. Win out, and this team stands an excellent chance of making the College Football Playoff. It’s already improved from a year ago.
5. Florida
6 of 10
Will Muschamp left behind a program in need of an energy boost, but he also left behind plenty of talent. That much is clear after watching the first seven games of Jim McElwain’s tenure. The Gators are 6-1, with the only loss a hard-fought 35-28 defeat at unbeaten LSU.
Moving forward won’t be easy without quarterback Will Grier, who’ll serve a yearlong suspension after testing positive for performance-enhancing drugs, but sophomore Treon Harris is capable of leading the offense.
The defense, led by junior cornerback Vernon Hargreaves III, is stingy, allowing 17.3 points per game, No. 19 nationally. Florida is in prime position to win the SEC East, with its toughest challenge coming in the annual neutral-site showdown against Georgia in Jacksonville on Saturday. A season-ending visit from Florida State will also be daunting, but if the Gators can run the table, they’ll be strong College Football Playoff contenders.
How’s that for a honeymoon, eh, Mr. McElwain?
4. Florida State
7 of 10
All good things must come to an end eventually. Florida State found that out the hard way Saturday night. The Seminoles let Georgia Tech hang around, and hang around, and the Yellow Jackets stung them. Roberto Aguayo’s 56-yard final-play field goal was blocked and returned for a touchdown, sealing a stunning 22-16 defeat and ending a 28-game win streak against ACC opponents.
That said, it should be hard for reasonable FSU fans to be angry about the job Jimbo Fisher has done. The Seminoles are 6-1 in a season that was always going to be about retooling following the loss of a raft of stars and talent, led by No. 1 overall NFL draft pick Jameis Winston. FSU hasn’t always looked pretty this season, but it took until Saturday for the year’s first turnover.
Sophomore tailback Dalvin Cook has developed into a star, rushing for 1,037 yards and posting 12 total touchdowns, and a young defense has been stingy, allowing 16.1 points per game, tied for No. 11 nationally. The Noles are on the fringe of the playoff discussion, and with a Nov. 7 road game at No. 3 Clemson looming, their reign atop the ACC could be ending soon. But this team isn’t leaving the national spotlight anytime soon.
3. Stanford
8 of 10
Entering the season, Stanford was expected to make a move back toward Pac-12 supremacy. The Cardinal won consecutive league titles in 2012 and 2013 before falling back to the pack last fall at 8-5. A season-opening 16-6 loss at Northwestern made that talk look like preseason hype, but David Shaw’s team hasn’t lost since.
Senior quarterback Kevin Hogan has been efficient, but the biggest difference has been sophomore tailback Christian McCaffrey, who has emerged as a star. He leads the nation in all-purpose yards per game and leads Stanford in both rushing (953 yards, six touchdowns) and receiving (21 receptions, 284 yards, two touchdowns).
The Cardinal remain in the College Football Playoff picture, but the remaining schedule is tricky. Up next is a trip to resurgent Washington State, and the season ends with a three-game homestand against Oregon, Cal and current No. 9 Notre Dame. Win out, and the Cardinal will be strong playoff contenders, but the loss to Northwestern will still sting.
2. Notre Dame
9 of 10
With 17 starters returning from an 8-5 team, Notre Dame was expected to be improved this season. That the Fighting Irish have thrived despite a raft of season-ending injuries (including starting quarterback Malik Zaire and starting tailback Tarean Folston) speaks to the depth of talent that Brian Kelly has assembled in South Bend.
Notre Dame’s only loss came at No. 3 Clemson in a driving rainstorm, and only a failed late two-point conversion finished a 24-22 defeat. Freshman DeShone Kizer has been just fine in Zaire’s stead, throwing for 1,370 yards with 10 touchdowns against four interceptions. Athletic C.J. Prosise has been excellent as the lead back, rushing for 922 yards and 11 touchdowns.
And wideout Will Fuller has been one of the nation’s best receivers, making 32 catches for 702 yards and eight touchdowns.
Notre Dame remains on the edge of the College Football Playoff picture, with trips to unbeaten and No. 21 Temple and No. 23 Pitt up next. But the biggest test could be a trip to current No. 8 Stanford in the regular-season finale. Kelly’s team is on the right track for, at the very least, a New Year’s Six bowl bid.
1. Alabama
10 of 10
One year ago, Alabama recovered from an early loss to Ole Miss, broke in a senior quarterback as its starter and rolled all the way to the College Football Playoff. Nick Saban would probably be just fine with pulling out the same blueprint this fall.
Since suffering a 43-37 home loss to Ole Miss, the Crimson Tide (7-1) have found themselves with a perfect road to another playoff berth. Saban’s bunch has won five consecutive games, including Saturday’s gutty 19-14 home win over rival Tennessee—its ninth consecutive victory over the Volunteers.
"They just found a way to win. We didn't play that great," Saban told Michael Casagrande of AL.com. "We had some really critical penalties on offense that stopped drives. We also had some negative plays that stopped drives. We've got a lot of work to do."
The Tide are No. 7 in the new AP poll, and winning the SEC West remains well within their grasp. Ole Miss must lose one more time, but the biggest game will be Nov. 7’s showdown with unbeaten LSU. A trip to No. 25 Mississippi State could also be treacherous.
Alabama is allowing 16.4 points per game, No. 15 nationally, but the season will ride on how effectively junior tailback Derrick Henry can run. He already has 1,044 yards and 14 touchdowns and has been a workhorse, with 180 carries and five 100-yard games.
.jpg?w=480 "Ohio State Team Doctor")
