Is Penn States loss the SECs gain?
The Nittany Lions fell to 3-2 with a stunning defeat to 0-4 UCLA on Saturday. The loss dropped Penn State from No. 7 to totally out of the AP Top 25 and could have also ended any realistic shot Penn State had of making the College Football Playoff.
And if Penn States out, whos in the playoff in their place?
Theres no good answer at the moment. The SEC is filled with a lot of very good teams but a great team or two has yet to really emerge from the pack and may not ever do so. Just look at Texas loss to Florida as proof of that premise. The Longhorns are also out of the top 25 altogether after the 29-21 defeat. Through the first six weeks of the season, 11 of the 16 teams in the SEC have at least one conference loss and only four teams are undefeated overall.
With Penn State out of the mix and Michigan still needing to sharpen some rough edges in the passing game to look like a real playoff contender, the Big Ten is staring at three playoff teams. If the ACC and Big 12 each only get one team in the playoff, there could be could be six SEC teams in the playoff.
Were not willing to go that far just yet. Theres still a lot of time for the SECs top teams to trade wins and losses. So were adding an ACC team with a very manageable schedule to the playoff instead.
Heres our latest CFP projection.
Minnesota had a fleeting moment of glory on Saturday with an early 3-0 lead. All Ohio State did from there was score 42 unanswered points in a blowout win that got the backups plenty of second-half playing time. Julian Sayin had his best game as a Buckeye with 326 yards and three touchdowns to just four incompletions. Jeremiah Smith caught two of those TD passes and the other went to Carnell Tate. He had nine catches for 183 yards.
Unlike the AP Top 25, were not going to drop the Ducks for simply being off in Week 6. Oregon should have enough schedule strength to withstand a potential loss to Ohio State in the Big Ten title game and still finish ahead of an undefeated Miami team. Speaking of schedule strength, Oregon faces Indiana on Saturday. Can the Hoosiers be more competitive than they were in their two marquee road matchups in 2024?
Miamis path to the ACC title game looks wide open after beating No. 25 Florida State. Georgia Tech and Virginia are the only two other ranked teams in the conference and the Hurricanes dont face either team. The Hurricanes toughest game remaining looks to be a visit to defending regular-season champion SMU. However, the Mustangs are 3-2 and dont look nearly as strong as they were a season ago.
No change for the Rebels this week after they were also off in Week 6. Ole Miss has its final non-conference game of the season in Week 7 when Washington State comes to Oxford before back-to-back road games at Georgia and Oklahoma.
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The Tigers finally got into the AP Top 25 at No. 23 on Sunday after demolishing Tulsa at home. The American has two ranked teams as South Florida is also back in the rankings. The Tigers and Bulls play each other on Oct. 25. Georgia easily dispatched Kentucky and heads to Auburn on Saturday night in what has the potential to be a tricky game for the Bulldogs.
Welcome to the playoff Georgia Tech. The Yellow Jackets have a plausible playoff path even with losses in their final two games of the season. Georgia Techs remaining ACC opponents are Duke, Syracuse, NC State, Boston College and Pitt. Those teams have a combined record of 15-13 and none are ranked. Georgia Tech should be favored in all of those games before playing Georgia to end the season and (potentially) Miami in the ACC title game. If the Yellow Jackets are 11-2 with losses to the Bulldogs and Hurricanes, theyll have a playoff case.
Texas Tech got QB Behren Morton back Saturday night against Houston and looked like the Big 12s best again. Morton was 28-of-40 passing for 345 yards and a TD.
We should learn a lot about both of these teams in Week 7 as Oklahoma plays Texas and Indiana visits Oregon. Well see if the Sooners have John Mateer back at quarterback after his hand surgery. If Mateer plays and is healthy, OU could make it a rout with the way that Texas offensive line played against Florida.
Indiana was off on Saturday ahead of its trip out west. Eastern and Central Time Zone Big Ten teams traveling to the Pacific Time Zone for a game are 1-3 this year after Penn States loss to UCLA.
The Tide are 10-0 at home since Kalen DeBoer took over after beating Vanderbilt on Saturday. Now Alabama travels to No. 14 Missouri in Week 7. In games away from home since DeBoer took over for Nick Saban, Alabama is 4-5.
Texas A&M had a very sluggish start at home against Mississippi State before pulling away in the fourth quarter for a 31-9 win. Reuben Owens II rushed 21 times for 142 yards and Mario Craver and KC Concepcion combined to catch 10 of Marcel Reeds 13 completions for 141 yards and two scores.