The Missouri Tigers have been plagued by mediocrity for a large portion of recent memory. The last four seasons, the Tigers have a combined regular season record of 23-23; a perfect .500 record. Coming into this season, many media outlets projected Mizzou to finish last or second to last in the conference, but something clicked for the Tigers, they seemed to be firing on all cylinders and as of today sit at 8-2 on the year and are tied for third overall in the SEC. While they are an incredible team, many people do not consider them good enough to make the playoffs, after all, a two loss team has never made the playoffs, not to mention one that will not be playing in a conference championship, but on Nov. 14, the College Football Playoff Committee came out with their top 25 poll ahead of the second to last week of the season and Missouri’s ranking shocked a large number of people. The Tigers came in at no. 9 only behind the five unbeaten power five teams and Oregon, Texas and Alabama, all who have one loss. They all were placed higher than teams like Ole Miss who beat an LSU team Mizzou lost to,  Oregon State who is also 8-2 and can still make the PAC-12 championship, and Louisville who only has one loss of the season. The esteem that the committee holds Mizzou in has got me wondering, can Mizzou make the College Football Playoff? Is it probable? Is it even possible? Most likely no, but I grew up a Nebraska fan and have been plagued by disappointment my whole life, so let me be delusional as I go through the things that Mizzou would need to have happen to make the playoffs.

1. The Tigers must win out.

This one seems like a no-brainer but it has to be talked about. If Mizzou wants any chance at the playoffs, they have to win their final two games and probably do so in dominating fashion. Lucky for the Tigers, the bulk of their schedule is behind them. They have already played five ranked opponents going 3-2 against them on the season. They also have a win over 8-2 Memphis who very well could make and win the AAC. Their final two games are against Florida and then a road trip to Arkansas who are a combined 8-12 on the year. Considering their performance against teams much better than them, Mizzou should have no problem getting to 10-2, but after that it is out of their control, and a lot of things need to happen. 

2. Georgia needs to blow past everyone left on their schedule

As much as this may pain some Tiger fans, if they want to keep their slim playoff hopes alive, they need to become the biggest Bulldog fans outside of Athens, Georgia. This happening would accomplish two goals. First off, it would make Mizzou only losing to Georgia by nine a much bigger accomplishment if the Bulldogs blew out their last three opponents, especially since Georgia plays two more ranked teams in Tennessee and Alabama. Secondly, it would hand Alabama their second loss of the season. Now, if this were to happen, Alabama would be 11-2 assuming they win their other games, but that would still give Mizzou one less win that the Tide, and even if the hypothetical situation of Georgia blowing out the Tide, Alabama would probably still have a better case than Mizzou as they would have a better record as well as having a win over an LSU team that Mizzou could not top, which leads me to the third thing that must happen

3. The Tigers need the Tigers 

As stated before, even if Alabama gets blown out by Georgia, if they won their final two games, they would probably get in above Mizzou, with Alabama’s game this weekend is against Chattanooga, who I will safely assume they beat, Mizzou has to rely on their fellow Tiger friends; Auburn. While Auburn will play Alabama with a 6-5 or 7-4 record, and Alabama will most likely be 10-1, being in Auburn and being one of the greatest rivalries of all time, the record does not matter. Two years ago a 6-5 Auburn hosted a 10-1 Alabama team and the game went into quadruple overtime, and Alabama won by just two points. If the pendulum swings the other way and Alabama loses and then loses in Atlanta, it would greatly help Mizzou. Even if everything goes right in the SEC for Mizzou, they would still need help around the rest of the country.

4. Midwest Madness

The Big Ten has two teams left fighting to get into the playoffs; bitter rivals Ohio State and Michigan who both sit at 10-0. If Mizzou wants a chance, the team that wins between the two in the final week of the season must lose this upcoming weekend. It really does not matter which one finishes 12-0 and makes the Big Ten championship and who finishes 10-2, but for the sake of simplicity, well say it is Ohio State who wins out and Michigan who loses their final two for a couple of reasons. 1) The committee respects Ohio State more, having them a spot or two above Michigan in every poll this season and 2) Ohio State hosts Minnesota this weekend and has never lost to a Big 10 West team at home while Michigan has to go on the road. If one of these teams loses this weekend, but wins in the final week of the season, the whole thing falls apart as they would both be 11-1. The winner would make the Big Ten Championship while the loser would be sealed at 11-1 and be above Mizzou. The 12-0 team would need to then win the Big Ten title to get to 13-0. 

5. Washington versus a two loss team

Out west, Mizzou also needs to cheer hard for the Washington Huskies. They would first need to win out to give Oregon State another loss and win the PAC-12 championship. It does not matter who Washington beats in the PAC-12 championship, except for one caveat, if it does happen to be Oregon, the Ducks need to lose one more game on the season. Outside of Washington, there are only three teams left looking to get into the PAC-12 championship, Arizona already has three losses and Oregon State would have three loses as they play Washington this weekend. If Oregon finished 11-2 as PAC-12 runner ups and their only losses were to Washington twice, they would absolutely have a better resume than Mizzou. Oregon still has to play Arizona State and Oregon State with the most likely loss coming to the latter of the two. In this scenario, Washington would be 13-0 and everyone else in the PAC-12 would have three or more losses most likely putting them below Mizzou. 

6. Kentucky and Florida implosion

In the ACC, Florida State and Louisville are the last two teams that have a shot at the playoffs. While they are both very good teams, they have both had very close calls. To help Mizzou out, they need the teams that share a state with the Seminoles and Cardinals need to turn those close calls into losses for the two. Florida State has to play North Alabama and then go into the Swamp to play Florida. Now, I am going to safely assume that Florida State is going to beat North Alabama, I am not sure I can say the same about Florida. While Florida has been mediocre all season, they are 4-1 at home this year and have not lost to Florida State at home since 2017. On top of that with a loss to Mizzou, that would put Florida at 5-6 and in a win or go home situation and in prime position to pull off an upset. Louisville is 9-1 and has two games left that are not exactly easy. First off, they have to go on the road to play Miami. The Hurricanes have only lost one game this season and that was due to one of the worst coaching blunders of the 21st century that if I talk about more my editor will yell at me (Quentin I hope you’re the one editing this). Finally they have to play Kentucky who, while they have struggled this season, have had Louisville’s number for quite some time. The Cardinals have not beaten Kentucky since 2017 and have not won at home since 2014. Even when the Cardinals had a Heisman winner at quarterback, they could not beat the Wildcats. If North Carolina wins out there is a slim chance they make it to the ACC championship over a Louisville team that loses to Miami, so we will assume that North Carolina takes a loss to either Clemson or NC State. This would put Louisville against Florida State in the ACC championship. Mizzou would then need Louisville to knock off Florida State, preferably in blowout fashion. This scenario would accomplish two goals. Firstly, it would make it so the ACC champion has three loses and Florida State has two. Secondly, Mizzou would have wins over teams that Florida State and Louisville could not beat in Florida and Kentucky respectively. While Florida State would have one more win than Mizzou as well as a win against LSU, I believe Mizzou would make it in above them as both teams played LSU early in the season and it is hard to make a case for a team that lost their two final games of the season. 

7. Kansas State needs to come out of Big 12 cannibalism as champions 

The Big 12, like most years, is a hot mess that is eating itself alive. It is the only conference in the Power Five without an undefeated team and only has one team left in the playoff race being Texas. Right now, the fates of many teams are up in the air as on Nov 18, 2023, the Big 12 came out and clarified their championship tiebreaker rules that many outlets are taking as rule changes. Nonetheless, Missouri needs two major things to happen in the Big 12. They need Texas to lose one more regular season game and they need Kansas State to win the Big 12. Texas needs to lose one more game because even if Texas loses in the Big 12 title game, an 11-2 Longhorn team would probably make it in above Mizzou since they have wins over teams like Alabama. Mizzou also needs Kansas State to win the Big 12 because that would be a massive resume booster. Mizzou beat Kansas State earlier this year and having a win over a Power Five champion would look incredible for them. 

8. The Tigers need even more Tigers

While this last one is not absolutely necessary, it would be incredibly helpful. Memphis winning out and winning the AAC would be a great look for Mizzou as they also beat Memphis earlier this year. Having two wins over conference champions would be even better for Mizzou.

9. Conclusion

If all of these things were to happen, I would predict a final poll that looked something like this near the top:

1. Georgia (13-0)
2. Ohio State (13-0)
3. Washington (13-0
4. Mizzou (10-2)
5. Louisville (10-3)
6. Kansas State (10-3)
7. Florida State (11-2)
8. Texas (10-3)
9. Alabama (10-3)
10. Michigan (10-2) 
11. Oregon (10-3)

Again, are the chances of this high? No, probably not, but it is fun to think about. The Tigers have had a great season thus far, but how much better would it be if they managed to make history.