Ohio State: 3 Predictions For The Playoff Rankings Prior To “The Game”
By Ryan Rosko
The Ohio State Buckeyes jumped into the College Football Playoff rankings last week. Will there be more changes with them in this week’s rankings?
The amount of playoff rankings are decreasing as we get closer to Bowl Season in college football. As we wait for such festivities to begin, a lot of football still has to be played. In addition, exactly where Ohio State falls in all of this will continue to be unknown.
Yes, the Buckeyes made it to number two last week. However, they just got by Michigan State last weekend with a score of 17-16. There is the possibility that Ohio State can and should remain (as long as they win out) in the playoff rankings without appearing in their championship game.
However, getting the chance to win their conference would have benefited the university more. Regardless, nothing in general is set in stone yet, although Alabama’s number one ranking sure seems like a lock. So, what could we see in Tuesday night’s rankings?
No One Flips Flops In Top Four
Everything stays as-is, which it should since there were no losses among the top four teams. However, Ohio State’s and Michigan’s wins on Saturday are nothing to get their respective fan bases excited about.
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Sure, it is great wins occurred, which is all that matter. However, it would have been better had Ohio State been able to add style points and/or simply played a more consistent game overall. Changes obviously will occur after this weekend’s set of games.
Alabama will continue to do their thing. They are the top team in the nation for a reason. The team ranked among the top four teams that should be on guard is Clemson. I am not buying them Too many times they easily could have lost games this season. Their quarterback Deshaun Watson’s interceptions and issues with progressions and decision making could hurt the team now and him in the draft process in future.
The compelling question is how if, at all will Penn State affect the rankings if they end up winning on Saturday versus Michigan State.
Louisville Falls (Obviously) But How Far?
There is the chance that Louisville remains in higher ranking than Penn State following their loss to Houston. However, I am not buying that. The Big Ten quieted the haters thanks in large part to Ohio State and Michigan. That said, both Penn State and Wisconsin have also taken care of business.
Wisconsin and Penn State will be sixth and seventh respectively. The Big Ten has shown to be a factor and will continue to be that way. Louisville meanwhile falls from fifth to ninth. Had the Cardinals not scored at all versus the Cougars, I’d be more inclined to say that they would fall out of the top 10.
Ohio State Has Reached Their Ceiling
As mentioned earlier, nothing will change in the top four tonight. In fact, even if Ohio State ends up winning Saturday (and in a potential Big Ten Championship game), Alabama will remain on top. Going through the SEC is extremely tough.
On the other hand, Ohio State was not expected to be in this position after the amount of talent that was lost from last year’s team. Still, ranked second in the nation is something to be extremely proud. That is after all until the Buckeyes get to the national championship.
Nothing will be seen tonight that will impact Ohio State directly. However, indirectly is a different question. Due to the upcoming conference championship games and other teams rising, Ohio State’s ranking will be interesting to watch. This week’s rankings will be the ground work in determining the Buckeyes’ ranking, among others soon.
Next: Michigan-OSU: Tale of the Tape
So, for the next few weeks, any hope that Ohio State somehow moves to number one needs to stop. The Buckeyes have to only hope they stay where they are as the rankings play out going forward. Remember, Alabama is still undefeated. Had they not been, perhaps there would be some potential of OSU surpassing ‘Bama.