CLEMSON FOOTBALL

For the College Football Playoff, Clemson needs to win out, others need chaos

For the College Football Playoff, Clemson needs to win out, others need chaos


by - Senior Writer -

Clemson’s path to the College Football Playoff seems clear – win out and they’re in.

But with this committee, who knows?

The second College Football Playoff rankings were released Tuesday night, with LSU ascending from No. 2 to No. 1 after beating Alabama, which fell to No. 5. Ohio State and Clemson finished at No. 2 and No. 3, respectively.

Then came the biggest surprise of the night: Georgia moving up two spots from No. 6 to No. 4, with the worst loss (of any of the top teams) to lowly South Carolina. And that’s where the “who knows” part of this committee comes into play.

However, we will start with Clemson – the Tigers dispatched NC State this past weekend to move to 10-0 on the season. The Tigers vaulted Alabama and Penn St. (formerly at No. 4 but dropping to No. 9 after losing at Minnesota) into the number three spot, and their path seems clear. Win out and they’re in.

Here is what committee chair Rob Mullens had to say about Clemson.

“Clemson is also dominant on both sides of the ball,” Mullens said. “Although its schedule is not as strong as some others, Clemson is an excellent undefeated team. They have gained more than 500 yards of offense in each of their last five games. The committee is impressed with what it sees.”

We think the Tigers are in if they win out. The committee has shown in the first two weeks that with some teams it valued the eye test, others ranked wins, and others dominance.

The brings us to Georgia, which owns wins over two ranked teams (Florida and Notre Dame) but also that loss at home to South Carolina. The Gamecocks have just four wins and lost at home to Appalachian State last weekend (and the Mountaineers are No. 25 in this week’s rankings).

Social media was aflame with comparisons to Georgia and Alabama – they both have the one loss – but Mullens said it was more about Georgia’s win than comparing the losses (to LSU and South Carolina).

“Georgia, with wins against both Florida and Notre Dame, put them at No. 4 in the rankings this week,” he said. “The committee spent a lot of time comparing Georgia and Alabama. In the end, Georgia's two wins over ranked teams made the difference in the No. 4 spot. Alabama clearly is a strong team, but the committee gave the edge to Georgia.

“It's certainly a part of the discussion, no doubt. We're aware of the South Carolina loss for Georgia and that Alabama's loss was against a team that was ranked No. 1, so that's clearly on the board when we're comparing them. But we're also looking at Georgia's wins against top-20 teams Florida and Notre Dame.”

Mullens was then asked about Alabama – he had mentioned a couple of times how the Crimson Tide had played just one conference game against a team with a winning record (like Minnesota) and then lost a top ten matchup at home. Minnesota on the other hand, won its matchup against Penn State yet still trails Bama in the rankings. Mullens was asked the difference in the two teams, and in true football fashion, he punted.

“I would have been out of the room for much of that, so I don't know the answer to that if they were put up side by side,” Mullens said. “I've shared about Minnesota, obviously. The non-conference was a concern. The win against Penn State was big. When you see Alabama, obviously their only loss was to the team that's now ranked No. 1 in the country, and prior to that they had been dominant against their schedule, and so we see a very, very good football team.”

Alabama fans took to Twitter and the message boards delighted with their ranking – they understand that someone will lose between Georgia and LSU in the SEC Championship, and their thought process is the committee wants a CFP rematch between the Tide and LSU. Their thought process is that if they simply win out, they are back in the College Football Playoff as a one-loss team that didn’t play for a conference championship.

That kind of hubris might be a little premature, however. The committee might have ranked Oregon behind the Tide because Oregon didn’t play this week. Oregon and Utah are sitting at six and seven, and they are trending towards playing each other in the Pac-12 Championship Game.

Let’s say Oregon wins out – they have games against Arizona, Arizona St., and Oregon St. remaining – and then defeats a Top 10 Utah team in the championship. My guess is that a one-loss conference champion – with its only loss to Auburn on a neutral field to start the season – would trump Alabama.

What Alabama needs is chaos.

Chaos is what this committee is likely to deliver. Welcome to November.

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Subject (Replies: 57) Author
spacer TNET: For the College Football Playoff, Clemson needs to win out, others need chaos
TigerNet News®
spacer Re: TNET: For the College Football Playoff, Clemson needs to win out, others need chaos
Oculus
spacer so much for comparing common opponents
Neal in NC®
spacer Re: TNET: For the College Football Playoff, Clemson needs to win out, others need chaos
Fever®
spacer I wonder if it's for legal reasons?
mrmatt
spacer Re: TNET: For the College Football Playoff, Clemson needs to win out, others need chaos
CUAg98
spacer Re: TNET: For the College Football Playoff, Clemson needs to win out, others need chaos
pawsrule4evr
spacer It seems to work perfectly for us.***
Neal in NC®
spacer Re: It seems to work perfectly for us.***
ddclemson
spacer Re: It seems to work perfectly for us.***
gotigrz
spacer Please explain to me how this waters down the regular season
Topher
spacer You mean like how the reg season mattered when LSU beat Bama
Clemsnman®
spacer Re: You mean like how the reg season mattered when LSU beat Bama
KEG3
spacer Re: You mean like how the reg season mattered when LSU beat Bama
Topher
spacer Re: Please explain to me how this waters down the regular season
gotigrz
spacer see ncaa tournament, it started with like 8 teams now 68
jgtiger
spacer Re: see ncaa tournament, it started with like 8 teams now 68
KEG3
spacer Re: TNET: For the College Football Playoff, Clemson needs to win out, others need chaos
8992Tiger
spacer People that want 8 forget the original purpose of playoff
jgtiger
spacer Re: TNET: For the College Football Playoff, Clemson needs to win out, others need chaos
The Other NPH
spacer Re: TNET: For the College Football Playoff, Clemson needs to win out, others need chaos
jmw_clemson
spacer Re: TNET: For the College Football Playoff, Clemson needs to win out, others need chaos
TigerHawk76®
spacer In 5 years the SEC has gotten exactly 1 more team in
TigersAndCubs
spacer Re: TNET: For the College Football Playoff, Clemson needs to win out, others need chaos
mpercy®
spacer Re: TNET: For the College Football Playoff, Clemson needs to win out, others need chaos
Valley Boy
spacer Re: TNET: For the College Football Playoff, Clemson needs to win out, others need chaos
crawdad64
spacer Re: TNET: For the College Football Playoff, Clemson needs to win out, others need chaos
Tatorchip
spacer Re: TNET: For the College Football Playoff, Clemson needs to win out, others need chaos
ddclemson
spacer "What's a Ute?"
TigerHawk76®
spacer Why does the AD at Oregon leave the room for a discussion of
RoperMtn®
spacer Re: Why does the AD at Oregon leave the room for a discussion of
Topher
spacer Re: Why does the AD at Oregon leave the room for a discussion of
crawdad64
spacer Re: Why does the AD at Oregon leave the room for a discussion of
CU13®
spacer If you beat an SEC team your losses get ignored?
Completely Solid Orange
spacer Just let the Conference Winners in...
quadtiger
spacer And seriously...
quadtiger
spacer if only conference winners are in non-conf games
Neal in NC®
spacer Alabama needs miracle type chaos.
ctigers_fan
spacer Re: Alabama needs miracle type chaos.
CU13®
spacer Re: Alabama needs miracle type chaos.
ctigers_fan
spacer Re: Alabama needs miracle type chaos.
CU13®
spacer Re: Alabama needs miracle type chaos.
ctigers_fan
spacer Re: Alabama needs miracle type chaos.
ctigers_fan
spacer Re: Alabama needs miracle type chaos.
ctigers_fan
spacer Re: Alabama needs miracle type chaos.
CU13®
spacer Re: Alabama needs miracle type chaos.
ctigers_fan
spacer Let's be transparent here
silvavocati
spacer Your transparency is admirable...
Salty55®
spacer Re: Your transparency is admirable...
CUAg98
spacer the problem is the argument of Bama vs. UGA
TigerCook®
spacer Re: TNET: For the College Football Playoff, Clemson needs to win out, others need chaos
85tiger2010
spacer Re: TNET: For the College Football Playoff, Clemson needs to win out, others need chaos
85tiger2010
spacer Re: TNET: For the College Football Playoff, Clemson needs to win out, others need chaos
85tiger2010
spacer Re: TNET: For the College Football Playoff, Clemson needs to win out, others need chaos
85tiger2010
spacer Re: TNET: For the College Football Playoff, Clemson needs to win out, others need chaos
Mogambu®
spacer Re: TNET: For the College Football Playoff, Clemson needs to win out, others need chaos
TexasTiger80
spacer Re: TNET: For the College Football Playoff, Clemson needs to win out, others need chaos
jameschu
spacer Re: TNET: For the College Football Playoff, Clemson needs to win out, others need chaos
jameschu