The initial College Football Playoff rankings were released on Tuesday evening, and while the focus was on how the top three teams would be ranked, where Clemson and Michigan would fall, and who the top Group of 5 team would be was still intriguing.
Beyond just those questions, John and Hugh look deeper into the rankings and found a few teams who, will a little bit of luck or chaos, can still play their way into the College Football Playoff.
Ole Miss: Despite losing by 25 to LSU and not controlling its own destiny in the SEC, No. 11 Ole Miss is patiently waiting to see if it will face a top-10 Alabama team in a week. If Alabama knocks off LSU on Saturday than the Rebels will control their destiny into the SEC title game and possibly into the Playoff.
Illinois: How could a team that lost to Indiana be in this discussion? Because the No. 16 Illini have reeled off six-straight wins since then and still have premier games with Michigan and possibly Ohio State in the Big Ten Championship Game. Wins over both and the committee would have to consider Bret Bielema's team.
LSU: The only two-loss team in this group and the highest ranked two-loss team by the College Football Playoff Committee, No. 10 LSU has a chance to take a big step on Saturday with a win over Alabama. Already having a win over Ole Miss (one loss was to non-conference FSU), the Tigers control their own destiny into the SEC title game. A win over whomever escapes Athens with a victory on Saturday in that game could push them over the top.
It would be interesting to see how the committee would react if any of these three teams run the table the remainder of the season and win their conference championship.