Connect four Teams in playoff position make up two perfect pairs
HE STAR power would be off the charts. It would be a ratings bonanza. With four weeks left in the regular season, the College Football Playoff is coming into focus, and the potential teams are eye-popping. As of now, with few obstacles in their way, a foursome of Alabama, Clemson, Michigan and Notre Dame is very realistic, juggernauts and national brands that would actually bring a muchneeded different flavor to the semifinals. You would get the defending national champion in Alabama and the likely Heisman Trophy winner, Tua Tagovailoa. There would be the team with the best chance to knock off the Crimson Tide: Clemson, its wunderkind freshman quarterback Trevor Lawrence and a defe nsive line full of NFL prospects. It ’s the game everyone wants to see, a fourth meeting between the last two champs in the playoff in the last four years. Then there would be the popular underdogs — Michigan and Notre Dame — two teams few pre- dicted to get to this point. It would mean Jim Harbaugh finally breaking through at Michigan, and Notre Dame, who everyone either loves or loves to hate, also reaching the playoff for the first time.
That’s not to say it’s a lock. Only undefeated Alabama, which some believe is making the argument to be included in greatest-team-ever debates, could probably afford a loss at this point out of these four teams. Notre Dame still has to face 13th-ranked Syracuse at Yankee Stadium on Nov. 17. Clemson visits No. 17 Boston College on Saturday. Michigan travels to Columbus for The Game against bitter rival Ohio State, ranked eighth, the Saturday after Thanksgiving.
But based on what we’ve seen this year, these are the four best teams, especially after what we witnessed on Saturday, when Alabama throttled LSU, Michigan manhandled Penn State and Notre Dame won going away at Northwestern. Michigan’s only loss was a seven-point setback at Notre Dame, and it has overwhelmed quality opponents Wisconsin, Michigan State and Penn State. Clemson is in another stratosphere from the rest of the ACC. And the Irish have that win over Michigan, their offense has become consistently productive since junior Ian Book became the quarterback in Week 3, and they can boast one of the best defenses in the country.
The dream scenario is very much in play. At this point, it seems likely. The College Football Playoff powers that be have to be salivating.
Rising Tide
A lot has changed for Alabama, but so much hasn’t. The pass-happy offense has become the premier unit in the sport, which is unique for Nick Saban. But the constant since he arrived in Tuscaloosa in 2007 — a dominant defense — remains, too. That has been forgotten amid the Tua hysteria. Saturday night was a reminder of what still powers the Crimson Tide. LSU held Alabama 22 points under its average and still had no chance. It was held to 12 rushing yards, the Tigers’ worst production since 1999. The nation’s fourth-ranked team at the time, which had scored 36 points against No. 5 Georgia, was held to 196 total yards and gave up five sacks. Alabama has the highest-scoring offense in the country. But it also has the 11th-ranked defense too. That’s somehow been overlooked.
Pac it in
The Pac-12’s forgettable season continued Saturday with more underwhelming results. It had only two teams — Washington State and Utah — ranked in the first week of the College Football Playoff poll , and that will be sliced in half on Tuesday after the Utes were manhandled by Arizona State. The Pac-12 South has to be the worst power conference division in the sport, with four mediocre three-loss teams — Utah, USC, Arizona and Arizona State — battling it out.