AP College Football Poll 2015: Updated Top 25, Projections for Week 13 Schedule
We've reached the final week of college football's regular season for most teams, but the drama is far from over.
Week 13 brings us seven battles of ranked opponents, including one that effectively serves as an elimination game in the College Football Playoff hunt.
While a handful of games will be played on Tuesday and on Thanksgiving, the fun really kicks off on Friday with six games featuring at least one ranked team.
.jpg?w=256 "Ohio State Team Doctor")
| Friday, Nov. 27 | |||
| 12 p.m. | No. 16 Navy at No. 21 Houston (-1.5) | ABC | HOU |
| 12 p.m. | Western Michigan at No. 24 Toledo (-9.5) | CBS Sports | TOL |
| 3:30 p.m. | Oregon State at No. 18 Oregon (-30) | FS1 | ORE |
| 3:30 p.m. | No. 20 Washington State at Washington | Fox | — |
| 3:30 p.m. | No. 3 Iowa at Nebraska (Even) | ABC | NEB |
| 7:30 p.m. | No. 7 Baylor at No. 15 TCU (Even) | ESPN | BAY |
| Saturday, Nov. 28 | |||
| 12 p.m. | No. 8 Ohio State (-2.5) at No. 12 Michigan | ABC | MICH |
| 12 p.m. | No. 1 Clemson (-15.5) at South Carolina | ESPN | CLEM |
| 3:30 p.m. | No. 11 North Carolina (-6) at N.C. State | ESPN2 | UNC |
| 3:30 p.m. | No. 2 Alabama (-13) at Auburn | CBS | BAMA |
| 3:30 p.m. | Penn State at No. 6 Michigan State | ESPN | — |
| 3:30 p.m. | No. 22 UCLA at USC (-3.5) | ABC | UCLA |
| 3:30 p.m. | No. 17 Northwestern (-3.5) at Illinois | ESPNU | ILL |
| 7 p.m. | Connecticut at No. 25 Temple (-12.5) | ESPNU | TEM |
| 7:15 p.m. | No. 19 Ole Miss (-2) at No. 23 Mississippi State | ESPN2 | MSST |
| 7:30 p.m. | No. 4 Notre Dame (-2) at No. 13 Stanford | Fox | ND |
| 7:30 p.m. | No. 14 Florida State at No. 10 Florida (-3) | ESPN | FSU |
| 8 p.m. | No. 5 Oklahoma (-3.5) at No. 9 Oklahoma State | ABC | OKLA |
Note: Due to injuries to Washington State quarterback Luke Falk and Michigan State quarterback Connor Cook, no spread has been posted for those games as of Monday morning. No against-the-spread pick has been made for these games.
Notable Matchups
No. 16 Navy at No. 21 Houston
Despite Houston's upset loss in Connecticut on Saturday, this game has significant implications on the New Year's Six bowl selections.
The winner of this game locks up the AAC West division and will advance to play either Temple or South Florida for the conference championship.
If either Navy, Houston or Temple wins out, it will likely earn a bid to one of the New Year's Six bowls as the highest-ranked team from the "Group of Five" conferences.
Prediction: Houston 28, Navy 24
No. 7 Baylor at No. 15 TCU
This was supposed to effectively be a quarterfinal matchup, when it appeared that both teams were on track to enter this game with perfect records. Unfortunately, injuries derailed that dream for both teams, and now Baylor and TCU are both likely to be left out of the playoff, even with a victory in this matchup.
But there is some hope for Baylor, depending on the outcome of the Oklahoma-Oklahoma State matchup.
If Baylor can knock off TCU, Bears fans need to pull for Oklahoma State on Saturday night. A Cowboys win would give Baylor the tiebreaker and the best chance to represent the Big 12 in the playoff.
With a TCU victory, the Horned Frogs would improve their chances of selection to one of the New Year's Six bowl games, but they will be left out of the CFP regardless.
Due to its losses to Oklahoma and Oklahoma State, TCU is unable to win the Big 12, and the committee has made it clear it will heavily favor conference winners in the playoff selection process.
Regardless of the playoff implications, this still has the potential to be an exciting matchup, depending on the health of both quarterbacks.
According to Brandon Chatmon of ESPN.com, Baylor freshman quarterback Jarrett Stidham is dealing with ankle and hand injuries that put his status in question.
As for TCU, Trevone Boykin sat out of the Frogs' loss to Oklahoma, but his status has not yet been updated for Friday's game.
Prediction: Baylor 31, TCU 28
No. 4 Notre Dame at No. 13 Stanford
This matchup is effectively an elimination game for the College Football Playoff.
A loss for Notre Dame in its regular-season finale would end all playoff hopes. A win, however, might guarantee the Irish a spot in the playoff.
Assuming an Irish victory, only the eventual Big 12 champion could jump them. However, with each Big 12 team now having at least one loss on its resume, an impressive victory at Stanford should be enough to lock up a playoff spot for Notre Dame.
For two-loss Stanford, the CFP is a long shot, but a win against the fourth-ranked Irish would give a significant boost to the Cardinal's resume.
Assuming Stanford beats Notre Dame and wins the Pac-12 Championship Game, its placement in the playoff would likely boil down to a choice by the committee between the Cardinal and the eventual Big 12 winner.
As for the matchup on the field, this game may come down to the health of Irish running back C.J. Prosise.
According to ESPN.com's Matt Fortuna, Prosise is doubtful for the game:
"C.J. Prosise is doubtful for Stanford game with high ankle sprain, per #NotreDame HC Brian Kelly. BK was encouraged.
— Matt Fortuna (@Matt_Fortuna) November 22, 2015"
Prosise has been Notre Dame's most consistent offensive weapon this season, rushing for over 1,000 yards in just 10 games.
Prediction: Notre Dame 24, Stanford 21
.jpg?w=480 "Ohio State Team Doctor")
