College Football Playoff Eliminator: Week Six Edition
October 08, 2019 | Sports,
By Justin Parmer
Regular Season Elimination Method
Group-of-five Method (and any independent not named Notre Dame)
- Suffering a single loss on the season
Power-five Method (and Notre Dame)
- Losing two games
- Losing to a group-of-five school
- Losing to an FCS school or lower
- Losing a game by 30 or more points.
Teams remaining safe (12)
ACC (2)
Clemson, Wake Forest
Big Ten (4)
Minnesota, Ohio State, Penn State, Wisconsin
Big 12 (2)
Baylor, Oklahoma
SEC (5)
Alabama, LSU, Georgia, Florida
On the brink of elimination (9)
Auburn (5-1)
Alright Tigers in orange and blue, you may have escaped the jaws of the eliminator week one with your come-from-behind victory against Oregon, but it will not allow you to get away from the Gators. To best describe how the Tigers played would be best described as a swamp: dull, messy and infested with Gators. Too many turnovers led Auburn to the cliff of elimination. That cannot happen in their final seven games.
Auburn can easily make it into the postseason if they win out. The only problem is winning out. With Alabama, LSU and Georgia left to go, as well as an all but guaranteed rematch against either the Gators or the Bulldogs should Auburn make it to Atlanta, it’s hard to imagine Auburn making it through November with only one loss. Take it easy during the bye week Auburn. You’re going to need all of the rest you can get.
Arizona State (4-1)
No changes. Bye week.
Iowa (4-1)
The eliminator has just one question for the Hawkeyes: what in the world happened to Nate Stanley? The senior didn’t throw a single pick in the first four games of the season, yet threw three against a Wolverines defense who was completely exposed two weeks ago. Yes, the eliminator knows you played three cupcakes and an overrated Cyclone in bad weather, but that shouldn’t explain the Hawkeye’s total ineptitude on offense on Saturday.
Iowa needs to figure out what went wrong on the offensive side of the ball in a hurry, because Penn State visits Iowa City next week. The Nittany Lions haven’t given up more than two touchdowns all season, including a 59-0 shutout against Maryland. This team might not even be in the top 25 by the time next week rolls around.
Michigan (4-1)
The eliminator warned you this would happen. For those of you wishing for the khaki-loving Wolverines to meet the hand of the grim reaper, the eliminator has some bad news. Michigan is still a good football team and can still make the battle for Toledo the decisive game for the Big Ten East. They took a gigantic step forward on the road to redemption by beating Iowa. Unless Lovie Smith and the Illini can spring a trap in Champaign, the eliminator expects Michigan to make it to the “White Out” with only one loss on its resume.
Notre Dame (4-1)
The only thing noteworthy related to South Bend Indiana this week was the Irish getting College Gameday next year in Ireland. Other than that, it was just the Irish beating up on 1-4 Bowling Green squad 52-0. We’ll check back in with this team next week.
Oregon (4-1)
The Oregon Ducks live on for another day. It was a lot closer than what they may have hoped for, but the game was never really in doubt. Oregon had more gas in the tank than the Golden Bears., and that was all they needed to get over the hump. The Pac 12’s best chance at making the postseason remains alive for now. The Ducks will have no chance to rest up, however with Colorado, the Washingtons, and USC on the horizon. The rest of October will be the true test of the Pac 12’s legitimacy in the college football playoff race.
Texas (4-1)
The Longhorns received quite a scare from the Mountaineers. With Austin Kendall passing for 367 yards and three touchdowns, West Virginia proved that they still had a fight within them. Yet, it was the Longhorns who prevailed victorious in your stereotypical high-scoring Big 12 affair. This of course begs the inescapable question of the hour. Is Texas back? The eliminator isn’t so sure.
If the Longhorns are to return to the pinnacle of the college football landscape, let alone survive the eliminator, they’ll have to prove themselves in the Cotton Bowl. The stadium, not the bowl game. This of course means going through Oklahoma and early Heisman trophy contender Jalen Hurts in one of college football’s greatest rivalries. Will Texas be up for the task? Only the Red River will reveal all to us.
Utah (4-1)
No changes. Bye week.
Virginia (4-1)
No changes. Bye week.
Eliminated (4)
California
Method of elimination: Two losses
The Cinderella run had to come to an end at some point. It would have taken another miracle to pull off the upset in Oregon. California just didn’t have the capabilities to match Oregon in the second half. Reality now sets in. Even with their 4-0 start, the Golden Bears will likely be fighting for a low tier bowl game the rest of the way. Perhaps even fighting to make a bowl game. Only in the PAC 12 can the college football world be blessed with the craziest highest of highs and the lowest of lows.
Kansas State
Method of elimination: Two losses
It was nothing personal Kansas State. Baylor is a top 25 team no matter what the heads at the AP poll think. You just happened to be the unfortunate soles to face the Bears this week. Then again, the Bears didn’t need to do much against you throughout the second half. It just seems like the magic pixie dust remaining from the Bill Snyder era ran out. The Wildcats got bigger fish to fry though, as they are on the bubble for making a bowl game despite starting off 3-0. Keep an eye out for the Kansas State Wildcats on the bubble come November.
Michigan State
Method of elimination: Two losses
Somebody had to play Ohio State, and it was the Spartans’ turn this week. The Spartans couldn’t keep up with the Justin Field’s lead Buckeye offense. This is now the second time the Buckeyes have knocked out a top 25 Big Ten team. On the bright side, Michigan State was the first team to keep Ohio State under 40 points this season. This could have been avoided if you didn’t have twelve men on the field against Arizona State. The two losses, not losing to the Buckeyes. Don’t worry Spartan fans you only have to go through Wisconsin, Penn State, Michigan and Maryland. Hmmm, the Spartans might be on the bowl bubble after all.
Oklahoma State
Method of elimination: Two losses
Wait, out of all of the teams to give you your second loss, it was Texas Tech? The biggest problem for the Cowboys was playing Big 12 football, when file 1_st_quarter.exc failed to cooperate. All the Red Raiders had to do was match whatever points the Cowboys put on the board. Oklahoma State’s top 25 run was fun while it lasted, the eliminator guesses?
Washington
Method of elimination: Two losses
Washington beat USC, USC beat Stanford, Stanford beat Washington, Washington beat USC, USC beat Utah, Utah beat BYU, BYU beat USC, Washington beat BYU. Everything you see above exists together in a delicate balance. As a viewer of PAC 12 after dark, you need to understand that balance and respect all the teams, from the mighty Trojans to the independent Cougars. And so, they are all connected in the great Circle of Suck. Seriously though, what has happened to the Washington Huskies? They didn’t even put up a fight in the second half. As a result of this failure to beat Stanford, the Huskies are now officially eliminated from the postseason.
Total number of teams Eliminated: 109
Remaining Teams Games
The following are between teams that still have a shot a making the college football playoffs. Here are the elimination games for week seven. All times are eastern standard time.
10/12 Oklahoma vs Texas (12:00Pm)
10/12 Penn State vs Iowa (7:30Pm)
10/12 Florida vs LSU (8:00Pm)
Elimination games
The following games are elimination games, because no matter who wins, one team will meet a criteria that will deem them unworthy of entering the college football playoffs. Here are the elimination games for week seven. All times are eastern standard time.
None.
Previously Eliminated
Week 5
Boston College (ACC)
North Carolina State (ACC)
Virginia Tech (ACC)
Nebraska (Big Ten)
Iowa State (Big 12)
Texas Tech (Big 12)
Washington State (PAC 12)
Mississippi State (SEC)
Week 4
Navy (AAC)
Louisville (ACC)
North Carolina (ACC)
Northwestern (Big Ten)
TCU (Big 12)
Arkansas (SEC)
Kentucky (SEC)
Texas A&M (SEC)
Week 3:
Pittsburgh (ACC)
Illinois (Big 10)
Indiana (Big 10)
Maryland (Big 10)
Colorado (PAC 12)
USC (PAC 12)
Stanford (PAC 12)
South Carolina (SEC)
Week 2:
Cincinnati (AAC)
Tulane (AAC)
Miami (ACC)
Syracuse (ACC)
Rutgers (Big Ten)
Kansas (Big 12)
Oregon State (Big 12)
West Virginia (Big 12)
Northern Illinois (MAC)
Western Michigan (MAC)
Vanderbilt (SEC)
Week 1:
Houston (AAC)
Duke (ACC)
Florida State (ACC)
Georgia Tech (ACC)
Purdue (Big 10)
FAU (Conference USA)
Middle Tennessee (Conference USA)
Kent State (MAC)
Miami (OH) (MAC)
Mississippi (SEC)
Tennessee (SEC)
UCLA (Pac 12)
Week zero:
Arizona (Pac 12)
Preseason:
Connecticut (AAC)
East Carolina (AAC)
Memphis (AAC)
SMU (AAC)
Temple (AAC)
UCF (AAC)
Alabama-Birmingham (Conference USA)
Charlotte (Conference USA)
Florida International (Conference USA)
Louisiana Tech (Conference USA)
Marshall (Conference USA)
North Texas (Conference USA)
Rice (Conference USA)
Southern Mississippi (Conference USA)
Texas San-Antonio (Conference USA)
Western Kentucky (Conference USA)
Akron (MAC)
Ball State (MAC)
Bowling Green (MAC)
Buffalo (MAC)
Central Michigan (MAC)
Eastern Michigan (MAC)
Ohio (MAC)
Toledo (MAC)
Air Force (Mountain West)
Boise State (Mountain West)
Colorado State (Mountain West)
Fresno State (Mountain West)
Hawaii (Mountain West)
Nevada (Mountain West)
New Mexico State (Mountain West)
San Jose State (Mountain West)
UNLV (Mountain West)
Utah State (Mountain West)
Wyoming (Mountain West)
Missouri (SEC)*
Appalachian State (Sun Belt)
Arkansas State (Sun Belt)
Coastal Carolina (Sun Belt)
Georgia State (Sun Belt)
Georgia Southern (Sun Belt)
Louisiana (Sun Belt)
Louisiana Monroe (Sun Belt)
South Alabama (Sun Belt)
Troy (Sun Belt)
Texas State (Sun Belt)
Army (Independent)
BYU (Independent)
Liberty (Independent)
New Mexico State (Independent)
UMass (Independent)
*Missouri is bowl ineligible but is currently in the appeals process.
Edited by Emma Moloney | ehm3gd@mail.missouri.edu