Auburn, Ole Miss, Mississippi State, Florida State, Georgia Tech, Baylor, TCU, Arizona, Notre Dame and Marshall are the remaining undefeateds.   How many can run the table?  Throw out Marshall because it doesn't matter if they do.
 
The SEC teams play one another so at least two of them will not.
If GaTech gets by Clemson/GA, they'll likely face FSU in the ACC champ.
FSU plays ND so one of them will be eliminated.
Baylor plays TCU this week so one of them is done.
Arizona doesn't have a tough game on the schedule(USC/UCLA seems to have imploded) so they could make it then face Oregon/Stanford in the championship so it still seems unlikely.

Therefore, it seems to me, that at least 3 one loss teams will be in.  There's no way to look at a game in Sep/early Oct and say "Yep, they lost to them so they can't be in over them."

Posted by moranis on 10/7/2014 8:33:00 AM (view original):
Ole Miss is undefeated.  Alabama has a loss to OLE MISS.  And it isn't like you can claim Alabama's schedule is so much better that you can disregard the actual results on the field.  The reality is there is no world except those living in imaginary delusional worlds where Alabama is ahead of Ole Miss at this point in the season.  Now sure, by the end of the year Alabama might very well be ahead of Ole Miss, but right not that sentiment is just nonsense.

Results do actually matter, unless of course it is the Big Ten, right Mike.  They are out no matter what happens.  

I'm projecting the best 4 at the end of the season.   The playoffs do NOT start tomorrow.   Do you think Ole Miss is better than Alabama?

Posted by moranis on 10/7/2014 8:37:00 AM (view original):

Posted by tripleh595 on 10/7/2014 12:38:00 AM (view original):
So, the "best" team always wins & if so, by how much? I can't imagine that you would believe that every game that is within a touchdown margin had the better team winning. This isn't just about MikeT23 pulling some hypothetical games out of his head & saying: "Yep, Bama's better".

A loss is a loss & that loss is already in Bama's loss column, but that's all it counts for... a single loss on one Saturday. It doesn't automatically make Ole Miss better than Bama. That's what MikeT23 knows & that's what anybody who watched Ole Miss have to pull away from a Boise State squad with an absolutely broken offense in the 4th quarter. Remember... no excuses. Yes, they beat Boise State & that's a win in the win column & that's it. Without context, as MikeT23 was adding to the discussion, you could say that: Washington State is better than Utah, Kentucky is better than South Carolina, Arizona is better than Oregon.

How many of the 3 above assertions would you stand behind & then we'll review them at season's end to see if you get any right?

Have you actually looked at the criteria the selection committee uses to determine who the four "best" teams are.  

1. Strength of Schedule
2. Head to Head Results
3. Comparison of results against common opponents
4. Championships won
5. other factors

Under that criteria, please explain how Alabama is better than Mississippi right now.  

The playoffs DO NOT start right now.

By your reasoning, Arizona over Oregon over MSU right now, correct?

By your reasoning, MSU cannot make the playoffs over Oregon, correct?

Posted by MikeT23 on 10/5/2014 5:47:00 PM (view original):

My top 5:

FSU
Auburn
Baylor
ND
Bama

Sorry, MS, I need to see more.

This is not a projection of end of the season.

Posted by MikeT23 on 10/7/2014 8:46:00 AM (view original):
By your reasoning, Arizona over Oregon over MSU right now, correct?

well yeah, right now, of course.

right now my playoff would be

1. FSU
2. Auburn
3. Baylor
4. Notre Dame

If I'm projecting out, I believe ND and Baylor will be out and replaced by the Pac 12 champion and a 1 loss SEC non-champion (Auburn with Alabama as the conf. champ), but there is a ton of football left to be played.

Posted by MikeT23 on 10/7/2014 8:46:00 AM (view original):
By your reasoning, MSU cannot make the playoffs over Oregon, correct?

nope.  never implied that either.  in fact I think I implied the exact opposite when I said by the end of the Alabama might very well be ahead of Ole Miss, but they aren't right now.

Posted by moranis on 10/7/2014 11:35:00 AM (view original):

Posted by MikeT23 on 10/5/2014 5:47:00 PM (view original):

My top 5:

FSU
Auburn
Baylor
ND
Bama

Sorry, MS, I need to see more.

This is not a projection of end of the season.

Sure it is.   If they can maintain their current level of play. 

Notice the "Sorry, MS, I need to see more" part.  I don't think either MS team will maintain their level.  But they will have every opportunity.

My guess is FSU will expose ND(unlikely that anyone else on their schedule is capable).   I expect Baylor to blow one to another B10 team.   I didn't put Oregon in there because they can't block.  Maybe they'll fix that but I need to see it.   I expect Auburn to lose 1 or maybe 2.    If I had to project out to who I think will be the 4 best, which would include fixing their problems, it's FSU, Bama, Auburn, Oregon.

moranis,

Let's go down the criteria that the committee will use & see:

1) Strength of schedule - Bama (though it may be narrowly)
2) Head to head results - Ole Miss (also narrowly)
3) They have zero common opponents as of now.
4) Championships won - Neither this season, if historically... Bama
5) Other factors - Bama.

So, basically... it proves what I stated: Ole Miss has a head to head win over Bama, it doesn't automatically make them superior by ANY OTHER criteria other than head to head result.

moronis just wants to argue with me.    We've practically got the same final 4(I say "Oregon", he says "PAC12 champ" but you'd be hardpressed to find a post where he doesn't disagree with everything I've posted.    He's mad because I make fun of OSU and point out that the B10 is ****.

It's not MSU's fault but they had one chance to prove they belong.   And they lost.   They can't get a quality win now(unless Nebraska proves to be a quality team as the season progresses).

Posted by tripleh595 on 10/7/2014 3:15:00 PM (view original):
moranis,

Let's go down the criteria that the committee will use & see:

1) Strength of schedule - Bama (though it may be narrowly)
2) Head to head results - Ole Miss (also narrowly)
3) They have zero common opponents as of now.
4) Championships won - Neither this season, if historically... Bama
5) Other factors - Bama.

So, basically... it proves what I stated: Ole Miss has a head to head win over Bama, it doesn't automatically make them superior by ANY OTHER criteria other than head to head result.

A similar schedule and a team wins head to head and you want to put the loser ahead of the winner.  Whatever sense you had left has clearly disappeared.

Posted by MikeT23 on 10/7/2014 3:32:00 PM (view original):
moronis just wants to argue with me.    We've practically got the same final 4(I say "Oregon", he says "PAC12 champ" but you'd be hardpressed to find a post where he doesn't disagree with everything I've posted.    He's mad because I make fun of OSU and point out that the B10 is ****.

It's not MSU's fault but they had one chance to prove they belong.   And they lost.   They can't get a quality win now(unless Nebraska proves to be a quality team as the season progresses).

I merely call you on your nonsense and your constant and consistent misquoting (and that is kind) of basically everyone that has posted in this thread.  Your inconsistency and hypocrisy is off the charts.  One loss early in the season doesn't matter, except when it does to fit your agenda.  Losses don't matter, except when they do to fit your agenda.  Unbeaten teams playing tough schedules don't matter because they just don't look like a good team.  

Pick a position and stick with it.  Don't flip flop all over the place because your position no longer fits your end game.


And the Big Ten is pretty weak this year, but if OSU or MSU ends the season with 1 loss.  And there aren't 3 or more undefeated or 1 loss teams from the major conferences, I'd be surprised if OSU or MSU was not in the playoffs.  That is what happens when you win a major conference.  You get rewarded.

Posted by moranis on 10/7/2014 5:55:00 PM (view original):

Posted by MikeT23 on 10/7/2014 3:32:00 PM (view original):
moronis just wants to argue with me.    We've practically got the same final 4(I say "Oregon", he says "PAC12 champ" but you'd be hardpressed to find a post where he doesn't disagree with everything I've posted.    He's mad because I make fun of OSU and point out that the B10 is ****.

It's not MSU's fault but they had one chance to prove they belong.   And they lost.   They can't get a quality win now(unless Nebraska proves to be a quality team as the season progresses).

I merely call you on your nonsense and your constant and consistent misquoting (and that is kind) of basically everyone that has posted in this thread.  Your inconsistency and hypocrisy is off the charts.  One loss early in the season doesn't matter, except when it does to fit your agenda.  Losses don't matter, except when they do to fit your agenda.  Unbeaten teams playing tough schedules don't matter because they just don't look like a good team.  

Pick a position and stick with it.  Don't flip flop all over the place because your position no longer fits your end game.


And the Big Ten is pretty weak this year, but if OSU or MSU ends the season with 1 loss.  And there aren't 3 or more undefeated or 1 loss teams from the major conferences, I'd be surprised if OSU or MSU was not in the playoffs.  That is what happens when you win a major conference.  You get rewarded.

Example, please.    My position has been pretty clear.   I'll offer one(with a comparison).

SC got smoked by TAMU.   Fine, not good but not the end of the world.   They had GA, Mizzou, Auburn and Clemson on the schedule.  All top 25 teams by most accounts at the time of the loss.  Possibly a conference championship game against the West.  Plenty of time to make amends for a loss to TAMU.

MSU lost by 19 to Oregon.    Fine but they can make amends by beating Nebraska and, uh, errr, uh, surely there's another top 25 team on the schedule, right?  No?  ****, they can't make up for their loss.

I've been about quality wins rather than early season losses.   Losses now are worse.  Simply because there is less time to make up for them and we now know who most teams are.   GA, Mizzou and Clemson are going to struggle to stay top 25 if they don't suddenly start playing better(Clemson is already out and Mizzou took a week off before climbing back in).    MSU has no quality win opportunities left.    It's just that simple

I don't think you know what happens under this new set of rules.   Do you have an "inside source" that no one else does?

I think your problem is that you believe any statement made in September must apply in December.  It doesn't.  Teams evolve and we have more info.   I don't care if SC wins out and crushes Bama/Auburn in the SEC championship.   They have proven that they aren't ready for big boy football in the last two weeks.  One game for them means nothing.   

Of course a couple of teams on MSU's schedule might start rolling teams.  Maybe, all of sudden, MSU can get a couple of quality wins.  I don't see it but it's possible.   Now, if in December, I say "Looks like MSU should be in", you'll have a fit and quote every post where I said they shouldn't.   But that's two months from now.   Things can change.