CFP bracket bubble: Making case for and against Tennessee, Texas, Indiana

If hyperbole reigns in July, then hypotheticals rule in November.

If this team does this, and that team does that, who’s making the College Football Playoff? And, who’s getting snubbed?

The CFP picture gained no clarity Saturday. In fact, it became more opaque after No. 3 Georgia fell to Ole Miss and No. 4 Miami went down against unranked Georgia Tech.

Miami and Georgia remain in the mix, but make room for Ole Miss. It’s getting crowded on that playoff bubble, and you’d need a spreadsheet to tell you who’s best in line to make the SEC championship game.

On this edition of “SEC Football Unfiltered,” a podcast from the USA TODAY Network, hosts Blake Toppmeyer and John Adams engage with a few CFP hypothetical situations in which there are too many teams for too-few spots, and they determine who’s in and out in each situation.

Here are a few highlights.

(Note: Each hypothetical assumes Notre Dame finishes 11-1 and claims an at-large spot. For the sake of ease, let’s also pencil in Ohio State and Penn State into at-large spots. That leaves four holes to fill.)

TOPPMEYER: Brian Kelly asks question we’re all wondering after Alabama whips LSU

ADAMS: Pop the champagne! Florida is keeping Billy Napier!

CFP bracket hypothetical 1

Situation: Georgia beats Tennessee on Saturday. Texas beats Texas A&M on Nov. 30.

The list of at-large contenders come December includes:

∎ Texas (11-1)

∎ Ole Miss (10-2)

∎ Georgia (10-2)

∎ Tennessee (10-2)

∎ Alabama (10-2)

∎ Indiana (11-1)

The verdict: One of the five SEC teams would earn a bye via winning the SEC championship. The other four SEC teams would receive at-large bids. Indiana is OUT.

Why? Indiana’s strength of schedule and lack of a marquee victory leaves it vulnerable.

A caveat: If Georgia blows out Tennessee, while Indiana loses a close game to Ohio State, the Hoosiers…

Source link : https://sports.yahoo.com/cfp-bracket-bubble-making-case-111028130.html

Author : Knox News | The Knoxville News-Sentinel

Publish date : 2024-11-12 11:10:28

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