The 2015 Regular Season has been chaotic, as teams and conferences continue to cannibalize each other's chances each week! The appointed Playoff Committee will release its first official top 25 poll this Tuesday.
The format of these projections go something like this: we'll talk about three tiers consisting of four teams each. The first tier is made up of teams that are still in the discussion for a playoff appearance, but these particular teams are in need of outside help from another team(s), lack a serious strength of schedule or a combination of the two. The next tier features the first four teams who are just outside of the playoff, with some needing the top-tier teams to lose or are awaiting their chance to face them later in the season.
Finally, the top tier is my expert projection of which four teams would be selected for the second-ever FBS Playoff.
Let's find out which teams are contenders after week nine:
Still in the Discussion:
4. Iowa Hawkeyes
The Hawkeyes have gone 8-0 to start the season and face a four-game stretch to end their regular season where they've certainly got a chance to run the table. Iowa will travel to Indiana before hosting Purdue and Minnesota and traveling to Nebraska for their regular season finale. If the Hawkeyes are able to win these four remaining games, they would have to knock off whoever comes from the opposite division in the Big 10 Championship to grab a spot in the playoff.
3. Florida Gators
The Gators' defense continues to impress this season, and despite Florida's week seven loss to LSU, the Gators can seal a SEC East Championship with a win over Vanderbilt this weekend. If they can run the table this season with wins over South Carolina and bitter-rival Florida State along with whoever they'll likely matchup with in the SEC Championship, then the Gators have a legitimate shot at cracking the playoff with one-loss.
2. Stanford Cardinal
The Cardinal has certainly bounced back from their week one stumble against Northwestern, rattling off seven straight wins. Stanford was awfully close to losing their first conference game against Washington State in a late-night/early-morning thriller to those of us that watched it on the east coast. Stanford's remaining schedule includes several tests that could eliminate them from playoff contention, including games where they host Oregon, Cal and Notre Dame in three straight weeks. If David Shaw's team can battle through the gauntlet of those remaining games and win the PAC-12 Championship, they could potentially sneak into the final four teams despite their early-season hiccup.
1. Notre Dame Fighting Irish
The Irish survived a difficult matchup against a Temple team that's been extremely surprising in 2015. The one-loss Notre Dame team still has Pitt and Stanford left on the remainder of their schedule. If they can run the table and get some outside help, the committee might be able to look past their 24-22 loss to the Clemson Tigers.
The First Four Out:
4. Baylor Bears
The Bears remain undefeated but suffered a huge loss with the injury of starting quarterback Seth Russell during Baylor's win over Iowa State in week eight. The Bears travel to Kansas State for a Thursday-night game this week
3. Oklahoma State Cowboys
Oklahoma State is one-of-three undefeated teams in the Big 12 that are fresh on the minds of the Playoff Committee one-year removed from the conference not being selected for the 2014 Playoff. With the Big 12 not having a championship game after the season, there's potential for the Big 12 cannibalize itself yet again this season, as all three of the undefeated teams in the conference face each other in the remaining weeks.
2. Alabama Crimson Tide
Nick Saban's squad is on the other side of the fence this week, due to their early-season loss against Ole Miss. This weekend's game against LSU is the biggest game on the schedule for both teams, and LSU can actually knock the Tide out of the playoff picture altogether with a huge road win. Alabama goes into the matchup against the Tigers favored by a touchdown.
1. Michigan State Spartans
The Spartans remain unbeaten with four games left, including an enormous bout with the Ohio State Buckeyes in late-November. Michigan State travels to Nebraska and hosts Maryland in the two weeks prior to their meeting with Ohio State, and it's essential that the Spartans win these two games.
If the Committee Selected Today...
4. TCU Horned Frogs
TCU, like their Big 12 foes listed above, enters the last four weeks of the regular season facing their toughest tests of the season. In the last four weeks, Gary Patterson's team will travel to both Oklahoma State and Oklahoma while hosting Kansas and Baylor, with Baylor being the finale. As of right now, I think TCU is the most likely candidate from the Big 12 to grab one of the final four spots.
3. Clemson Tigers
The Tigers have beaten some quality teams, and if they can get through the rest of the regular season unscathed then their hopes will rely on the ACC Championship Game. To get there, Clemson will have to take care of Florida State at home this weekend, and their only threat after that game before the ACC Championship would be against in-state rival South Carolina, who now sits at 3-5 on the season.
2. LSU Tigers
LSU has put a ground attack on display that rivals any team's in the country. The Tigers will have to continue to play at an elite level, as they face three ranked opponents in their final four games. If LSU can continue to utilize the star-talent of running back Leonard Fournette and keep him healthy, they could easily represent the SEC in the playoff. The task at hand, however, is facing Alabama in Tuscaloosa this weekend in what will be the biggest game of the year for the SEC.
1. Ohio State Buckeyes
In lieu of the news about quarterback J.T. Barrett's two-game suspension, the Buckeyes are still the top-ranked team in the country as the regular season rolls into week 10. The Buckeyes host Minnesota before traveling to Illinois in the next two weeks before two big showdowns against Michigan State and bitter-rival Michigan, which will be played in the Big House. The Buckeyes shouldn't have any trouble the next two weeks, but Urban Meyer's team will certainly be tested in their final two games.
The pieces of the College Football Playoff puzzle will continue to assemble themselves over the next month, as we continue to witness games that represent huge impacts to the playoff equation. As always, thanks for reading and be sure to follow me on Twitter @griffaldo.
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