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B1G Thoughts: The penultimate CFP rankings have the Big Ten in a good spot!
JordanW330 via our friends at Land-Grant Holy Land
Visit their fantastic blog and read the full article (and so much more) here
Photo by Justin Casterline/Getty Images
The regular season has come to an end, and with only conference championship games left the Big Ten is looking at four playoff teams.
Every week after the Big Ten games, I will bring you some B1G thoughts on everything that happened! This will include analysis, stats, key players, moments, and more. With the Big Ten expanding from 14 teams to 18 teams in 2024 we will have a bunch of storylines to follow.
Ryan Day and Ohio State are all in for the 2024 season. Is Oregon a national championship contender or will they stumble in their first Big Ten season? How do the former members of the Big Ten West fair in the new divisionless format?
We will track all these storylines and more as the Big Ten hopes to win back-to-back national championships. Check out the I-80 Football Show for more in-depth analysis and to preview the next week of B1G games.
The Penultimate Playoff Ranking!
The regular season has come to an end, and with it we’ve received the penultimate rankings from the College Football Playoff committee.
With only the conference championship games left, it’s safe to assume that four Big Ten teams — Oregon, Penn State, Ohio State, and Indiana — will all make the 12-team playoff field.
After much debate, Indiana secured a spot due to the chaos of the last couple of weeks, and Ohio State, with two top-five wins, was never going to fall out of the top 12 even with a shocking loss to Michigan. While there may be some changes to the seeding in the official bracket that releases on Sunday, Dec. 8, let’s take a look at some of the potential matchups.
If Oregon, which is currently favored, beats Penn State in the Big Ten Championship game and Texas beats Georiga, Penn State will most likely end up with the No. 5 seed, leading to a matchup against Arizona State in a game they would probably be favored by at least 10 points. Until the playoff seeding is adjusted, the No. 5 seed is the best, as Penn State would have a clear path to the semi-finals if they were to defeat Boise State in the second round.
Many Penn State fans were unhappy with their season outlook after losing to Ohio State, but now they seem to be in the driver’s seat. If they win on Saturday they could end up with the No. 1 seed in the playoffs and a first-round bye, and if they lose they most likely end up with the most coveted seed in the bracket.
After much debate on social media, the College Football Playoff committee respects Ohio State’s resume over that of Tennessee, which I believe is the right decision. They are both 10-2 teams with disappointing losses, but Ohio State has two wins over eventual playoff teams and a one-point loss to Oregon, the current No. 1 seed and favorite to win the national championship.
If Texas beats Georgia causing the Bulldogs to end up with three losses, Ohio State could move up to the No. 7 seed and a potential rematch against Indiana, but as currently projected Ohio State would get to host Tennessee in the first round.
Ohio State was a complete no-show against Michigan offensively, but their defense has been the best in the country since the Nebraska game and should be able to stop Tennessee’s limited offense. A win over Tennesse would lead to a rematch against Oregon, a game that we expected to see in the Big Ten championship game. That Ohio State-Oregon rematch could be the eventual winner of the national championship, but I’m sure Ohio State is hoping to end up opposite of Oregon in the bracket. I would imagine the Buckeye would rather face Indiana and Texas over Tennessee and Oregon to reach the playoff semi-finals.
Indiana is in the playoff, but would probably appreciate a better draw than Georgia or Ohio State. The system is setting up for Indiana to go home after a first round loss on the road, but we shouldn’t count out the Hoosiers. If Indiana gets a chance to play the Georgia team that showed up against Georgia Tech they could easily win that game.
Indiana is in a win/win situation, they went 11-1 in the first season under Cignetti and made the 12-team playoff. They are officially playing with house money with a chance to play spoiler on the road. Who has it better than the Hoosiers right now?
I’m sure Oregon wants to win the Big Ten in their first season, but you have to wonder how upset they would be if they landed the No. 5 seed. Despite the first-round bye, Oregon is in line to play Ohio State, Tennesse, or Georiga in the second round and all of those teams would have a real chance to upset them in the playoffs. Oregon is a good team that won’t run from a challenge, but playing Penn State followed by an Ohio State rematch or a game against Tennessee or Georgia isn’t the ideal playoff run.
With one weekend left the Big Ten is in a great position entering the playoffs with a strong chance to repeat as national champions. When the Big Ten voted to expand to 18 teams, this is the scenario they hoped for! We’ll have the final bracket soon enough, but the conference should feel good about the penultimate rankings.
Follow The I-80 Football Show on YouTube: @GetDefensiveSportsNetwork.
Subscribe to the podcast: RSS | Apple | Spotify | Google Podcasts | iHeart Radio
Connect with me on Twitter: @JordanW330
Follow I-80 Football Show on Instagram: @I80FootballShow
Continue reading...
JordanW330 via our friends at Land-Grant Holy Land
Visit their fantastic blog and read the full article (and so much more) here
Photo by Justin Casterline/Getty Images
The regular season has come to an end, and with only conference championship games left the Big Ten is looking at four playoff teams.
Every week after the Big Ten games, I will bring you some B1G thoughts on everything that happened! This will include analysis, stats, key players, moments, and more. With the Big Ten expanding from 14 teams to 18 teams in 2024 we will have a bunch of storylines to follow.
Ryan Day and Ohio State are all in for the 2024 season. Is Oregon a national championship contender or will they stumble in their first Big Ten season? How do the former members of the Big Ten West fair in the new divisionless format?
We will track all these storylines and more as the Big Ten hopes to win back-to-back national championships. Check out the I-80 Football Show for more in-depth analysis and to preview the next week of B1G games.
The Penultimate Playoff Ranking!
The regular season has come to an end, and with it we’ve received the penultimate rankings from the College Football Playoff committee.
With only the conference championship games left, it’s safe to assume that four Big Ten teams — Oregon, Penn State, Ohio State, and Indiana — will all make the 12-team playoff field.
After much debate, Indiana secured a spot due to the chaos of the last couple of weeks, and Ohio State, with two top-five wins, was never going to fall out of the top 12 even with a shocking loss to Michigan. While there may be some changes to the seeding in the official bracket that releases on Sunday, Dec. 8, let’s take a look at some of the potential matchups.
If Oregon, which is currently favored, beats Penn State in the Big Ten Championship game and Texas beats Georiga, Penn State will most likely end up with the No. 5 seed, leading to a matchup against Arizona State in a game they would probably be favored by at least 10 points. Until the playoff seeding is adjusted, the No. 5 seed is the best, as Penn State would have a clear path to the semi-finals if they were to defeat Boise State in the second round.
Many Penn State fans were unhappy with their season outlook after losing to Ohio State, but now they seem to be in the driver’s seat. If they win on Saturday they could end up with the No. 1 seed in the playoffs and a first-round bye, and if they lose they most likely end up with the most coveted seed in the bracket.
After much debate on social media, the College Football Playoff committee respects Ohio State’s resume over that of Tennessee, which I believe is the right decision. They are both 10-2 teams with disappointing losses, but Ohio State has two wins over eventual playoff teams and a one-point loss to Oregon, the current No. 1 seed and favorite to win the national championship.
If Texas beats Georgia causing the Bulldogs to end up with three losses, Ohio State could move up to the No. 7 seed and a potential rematch against Indiana, but as currently projected Ohio State would get to host Tennessee in the first round.
Ohio State was a complete no-show against Michigan offensively, but their defense has been the best in the country since the Nebraska game and should be able to stop Tennessee’s limited offense. A win over Tennesse would lead to a rematch against Oregon, a game that we expected to see in the Big Ten championship game. That Ohio State-Oregon rematch could be the eventual winner of the national championship, but I’m sure Ohio State is hoping to end up opposite of Oregon in the bracket. I would imagine the Buckeye would rather face Indiana and Texas over Tennessee and Oregon to reach the playoff semi-finals.
Indiana is in the playoff, but would probably appreciate a better draw than Georgia or Ohio State. The system is setting up for Indiana to go home after a first round loss on the road, but we shouldn’t count out the Hoosiers. If Indiana gets a chance to play the Georgia team that showed up against Georgia Tech they could easily win that game.
Indiana is in a win/win situation, they went 11-1 in the first season under Cignetti and made the 12-team playoff. They are officially playing with house money with a chance to play spoiler on the road. Who has it better than the Hoosiers right now?
I’m sure Oregon wants to win the Big Ten in their first season, but you have to wonder how upset they would be if they landed the No. 5 seed. Despite the first-round bye, Oregon is in line to play Ohio State, Tennesse, or Georiga in the second round and all of those teams would have a real chance to upset them in the playoffs. Oregon is a good team that won’t run from a challenge, but playing Penn State followed by an Ohio State rematch or a game against Tennessee or Georgia isn’t the ideal playoff run.
With one weekend left the Big Ten is in a great position entering the playoffs with a strong chance to repeat as national champions. When the Big Ten voted to expand to 18 teams, this is the scenario they hoped for! We’ll have the final bracket soon enough, but the conference should feel good about the penultimate rankings.
Follow The I-80 Football Show on YouTube: @GetDefensiveSportsNetwork.
Subscribe to the podcast: RSS | Apple | Spotify | Google Podcasts | iHeart Radio
Connect with me on Twitter: @JordanW330
Follow I-80 Football Show on Instagram: @I80FootballShow
Continue reading...