College Football Playoff 2017: Latest NCAA Predictions After Week 1 Standings

Nothing is decided after an initial full slate of NCAA football, but there is useful information available to better forecast the College Football Playoff thanks to an eventful Week 1.

Alabama and most of the Big Ten emerged as major winners over last weekend, and both looked primed to make a serious push for spots in the playoff. Meanwhile, other conferences are not sitting as pretty due to injuries and difficult schedules.

With that in mind, let us take a look at the latest developments in the chase for the national championship. Take a look at the new AP and Coaches Top 25 polls.

ACC in Danger of Postseason Miss

There was a large contingency with the belief that the ACC was the nation's toughest league last season. Yet, one week into this year, the conference could be headed for some turmoil.

Florida State not only dropped its mammoth season-opener 24-7 to the Crimson Tide, but the physical contest saw the Seminoles lose quarterback Deondre Francois to a year-ending leg injury. This could force an unproven signal-caller, possibly true freshman James Blackman, to lead an offense that already needed to replace over 37 percent of its total yards with the departure of Dalvin Cook.

Even with an uber-athletic and fast defense, Florida State looks destined to sustain at least one more loss and miss the playoff, particularly with challenging games with Miami and North Carolina State rapidly approaching to close out September. 

This leaves Clemson as the ACC's greatest hope, but new players and a tough schedule make it no guarantee the Tigers will earn a chance to defend their title.

The losses of stars Wayne Gallman, Jordan Leggett, Deshaun Watson and Mike Williams provide a heavy blow offensively. Quarterback Kelly Bryant looked good leading Clemson in its 56-3 blowout win over Kent State, and Deon Cain is a star on the outside. However, do the Tigers have enough proven firepower to score all over legitimate opponents? That is still to be determined.

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Notes || The offense amassed 665 yds in the opener, 5th-most in Clemson history.

8️⃣ caught the first TD on a 61-yd deep ball from KB2   pic.twitter.com/5ol4TWrImj

— Clemson Football (@ClemsonFB) September 3, 2017"

Defensively, the secondary is still a concern after losing Jadar Johnson and Cordrea Tankersley to graduation. Run defense should still be fine with Kendall Joseph, Dexter Lawrence and Christian Wilkins all back to man the front seven.

The potential for Clemson to drop a game or two this season is there, especially with early games to exploit some of that inexperience. An Auburn team loaded with playmakers on both sides of the ball visits this week, followed by road trips to Louisville and Virginia Tech in September.

Tack on road battles with NC State, a sneaky good South Carolina team and a home game with Florida State, and Clemson could easily lose at least two games this season.

As for the rest of the ACC, Week 1 was not promising on Saturday, as ESPN's David Hale put it:

Lamar Jackson appears even more polished as a passer and is still arguably the country's top player, but the rest of the Louisville team needs serious work after nearly falling to Purdue, which has won nine games since 2013. Discipline is a real issue, considering the Cardinals committed 16 penalties and three turnovers in Week 1.

Virginia Tech could have some promise, along with Miami, but both need a greater body of work before emerging as playoff contenders. NC State's championship dreams are now all but done with its loss.

Unless Clemson can quickly rise to last season's level, these factors will surely lead to the ACC producing zero undefeated teams. The Tigers are the only real threat to have just one loss, but that is a mighty challenge. Could the playoff go on with the ACC? Very much so.

Defense Will Still Carry Playoff Hopes

Offense typically receives most of the fanfare in today's age of high-powered spread attacks and video-game statistics and scores. Yet, the old adage of defense winning championships still holds true in college football.

After three years of the College Football Playoff, 10 of the 12 qualifying teams finished the season in the top 25 nationally in points allowed per game, and all 12 ranked in the top 30. There is no better example of defensive importance than Alabama, who finished top-five nationally in points allowed per game in each of the last three years while ranking at least in the top 11 in yards allowed a night over the same span. That unit is on a similar pace again, per Aaron Suttles of the Tuscaloosa News:

Alabama's offense? It finished top 20 nationally once over the last three seasons in yards gained per game. Still, the Crimson Tide are the only school to reach the playoff in all three years.

By contrast, the high-flying Big 12 only landed Oklahoma in 2015 as its lone playoff team. This tends to be the result of high volatility in the conference, as a league loaded with offense results in high scores and unpredictable losses.

Led by Alabama, defense will anchor the playoff, and Week 1 showed glimpses of this.

Ohio State's Nick Bosa, Sam Hubbard and Tyquan Lewis compose arguably the nation's best defensive line, as the defense held Indiana in check as the Buckeyes struggled mightily to score in the first half. Michigan allowed just 11 rushing yards and nine first downs to a talented Florida side, lifting an offense that conceded two pick-sixes. Wisconsin's defense was on the field for most of the first half as the offense gained two first downs total before its first touchdown midway through the second quarter. LSU was able to grind out a win by not letting BYU cross midfield all night.

On the other hand, USC's highly anticipated campaign was nearly derailed by an inability to stop Western Michigan, who led for much of the game before falling off late in the fourth quarter. Defense could spell trouble for the Trojans' playoff hopes, especially with a power-running team like Stanford up next, which Joey Kaufman of the Orange County Register helps point out:

Questions abound also for Oklahoma, which will not be tested until this week with a trip to Ohio State after the defense was roasted for nearly 30 points a game last season. Oklahoma State once again looked vulnerable after giving up 17 points in the second quarter, and the Washington defense was a shell of its former dominant self with Rutgers controlling most of the first half. 

Expect a similar defensive trend to continue for this year's edition of the playoff. No matter how great an offense is, a team is always exposed with questionable defense. The playoff generally consisted of the four best teams in the nation thus far, and having a complete squad on both sides of the ball is undoubtedly part of the criteria.

Statistics are courtesy of cfbstats.com unless otherwise noted.