College Football Playoff Eliminator: Which Teams Are Out Or Alive For A Berth After Week 10

One of nan awesome things astir nan 12-team College Football Playoff is nan description of teams that tin legitimately opportunity they are successful nan hunt heavy into nan season. That was nan lawsuit past twelvemonth and it surely is again successful a play that is trending toward being 1 of nan astir chaotic nan athletics has had. 

As nan action committee prepares to meet connected Tuesday successful Dallas for nan first clip to rank teams, I looked astatine nan full section to spot which teams are removing themselves from CFP contention aft taking losses—or simply not playing well. 

Enter The Eliminator, wherever we’re cutting teams and seeing which ones still person (an often mathematical) chance to play for nan nationalist title. Here’s wherever things guidelines aft Week 10.

36 teams, 26% of FBS

Teams eliminated aft Saturday

Out of nan playoff chase

100 teams, 74% of FBS

ACC

Alive: Georgia Tech, Virginia, Pittsburgh, Louisville, SMU, Duke, Miami

It was a devastating play for nan ACC’s chances of landing 2 teams into nan section pinch a precocious grade of confidence, but that dream hasn’t been wholly extinguished. There’s a chance we could beryllium looking heavy into nan convention manual’s tiebreakers arsenic location mightiness beryllium arsenic galore arsenic 4 teams tied pinch 7–1 records successful convention play hoping to get to nan convention title game. The Hurricanes person nan biggest uphill climb arsenic they request a ton to hap to moreover person a changeable astatine landing nan automatic bid. Their apt only way will beryllium moving nan array and hoping their beardown nonconference résumé gives them nan separator complete a weaker Big 12 aliases SEC candidate. Week 13 could beryllium cardinal successful nan ACC pinch Louisville going to SMU and Pitt walking to Georgia Tech.

Eliminated: Wake Forest

The Demon Deacons mustered only a 19-yard touchdown thrust successful nan last fewer minutes of getting blown retired astatine Florida State to debar a shutout connected Saturday. That gave them a 3rd nonaccomplishment successful ACC play to extremity immoderate playoff permutations, but they should still beryllium branded an overachiever for moreover being successful nan speech astatine this constituent successful nan twelvemonth arsenic they person 4 shots to get vessel eligible. 

Out: Cal, Boston College, Clemson, Florida State, NC State, North Carolina, Stanford, Syracuse, Virginia Tech

Alive: BYU, Cincinnati, Texas Tech, Utah, TCU

The Big 12 tiebreakers tin either beryllium very elemental aliases they could get very complicated. Week 11 features nan Cougars travelling to Lubbock for what could beryllium some schools’ biggest crippled successful complete 15 years. It could beryllium a chance for nan Red Raiders to astir fastener up a berth successful nan convention title crippled if they win. While nan Bearcats sewage perfectly tally complete by Utah precocious connected Saturday night, they stay successful nan hunt pinch only 1 nonaccomplishment successful convention play and get BYU astatine location successful a fewer weeks positive TCU successful nan regular-season finale. The Utes request thief pinch immoderate of nan tiebreakers, but it’s not inconceivable that results autumn their measurement to make it to nan Big 12 title and they could moreover stay successful at-large information astatine 10–2.

Eliminated: Kansas State, Houston

The Wildcats looked for illustration they were going to propulsion disconnected immoderate Little Apple voodoo earlier Texas Tech wholly flipped a move to manus them a 5th nonaccomplishment of nan play (and 3rd successful convention play) to much firmly destruct them from nan faint hopes of postseason glory. As for nan Cougars, they inexplicably mislaid astatine location to West Virginia to return their 2nd nonaccomplishment of nan season. Houston could still decorativeness 10–2 but has specified a anemic nonconference schedule which would clasp them it from immoderate at-large consideration. Houston is besides acold down successful nan pecking bid for tiebreakers fixed nan nonaccomplishment to Texas Tech and their different communal opponents. 

Out: Arizona, Arizona State, Baylor, Colorado, Iowa State, Kansas, Oklahoma State, UCF, West Virginia

Big Ten

Alive: Ohio State, Indiana, Oregon, Iowa, Michigan, USC, Washington

It wouldn’t beryllium nan worst point for nan Big Ten’s chances to get much than 3 teams into nan CFP if nan Ducks mislaid a adjacent 1 to either USC aliases Washington. As things stand, this is simply a large period for Dan Lanning’s squad arsenic 4 convincing victories, starting this Saturday astatine Iowa, would apt fastener up a CFP first-round crippled astatine Autzen Stadium. 

Eliminated: Nebraska

You can’t opportunity nan Cornhuskers didn’t person it location for nan taking against USC connected Saturday night, amid nan blackout conditions and a furious crowd against a squad that typically finds ways to suffer connected nan roadworthy retired east. Instead, Nebraska mislaid its backmost for nan remainder of nan season and now beryllium .500 successful Big Ten play pinch 3 tricky contests that could beryllium origin for encouragement aliases make that Matt Rhule extension look rather foolish.

Out: Minnesota, Illinois, UCLA, Maryland, Michigan State, Northwestern, Penn State, Purdue, Rutgers, Wisconsin

Alive: Texas A&M, Alabama, Georgia, Mississippi, Vanderbilt, Texas, Missouri, Oklahoma

It’s early November and does anybody genuinely person an thought astir really bully Texas is? The Longhoens won conscionable 1 Power 4 crippled by much than 1 people and that one, against Oklahoma, came arsenic nan Sooners’ backmost was hardly 2 weeks removed from manus surgery. Scoring a touchdown astatine Ohio State ages amended successful retrospect, but nan Longhorns’ last 2 games against apical 5 opponents will show america for judge if nan preseason No. 1 squad is still legitimately a contender.

Eliminated: Tennessee

It speaks to nan modern pressures that caput coaches look that a vocal number successful nan Vols’ instrumentality guidelines is abruptly retired connected Josh Heupel pursuing a CFP-eliminating one-score nonaccomplishment astatine location to Oklahoma. Tennessee was ever ticketed toward immoderate regression successful 2025 fixed nan roster turnover it faced. You would deliberation that getting into nan bracket past twelvemonth would person bought Heupel immoderate grace fixed really disastrous things were anterior to his arrival. The adjacent nonaccomplishment to Georgia was still doing a batch of activity astir nan Vols’ reputation, but Saturday’s crippled against nan Sooners should let for a due readjustment astir this team.

Out: LSU, Florida, Auburn, South Carolina, Arkansas, Kentucky, Mississippi State

Independent

Alive: Notre Dame

How overmuch of nan Irish playing pinch their nutrient astatine Boston College was because they were possibly doing a small spot of beforehand prep activity for Navy’s action this Saturday and really overmuch of it was conscionable a lawsuit of a squad struggling during their first roadworthy travel successful a month? Either way, that’s six consecutive wins for Marcus Freeman’s team, which abruptly person 2 much shots astatine value wins successful November betwixt nan one-loss Midshipmen and a red-hot Pitt squad aft that.

Out: UConn

Alive: Navy, Tulane, Memphis, South Florida, North Texas, East Carolina

In retrospect, whoever was successful complaint of making nan American’s schedule this play deserves a raise because it seems for illustration each week location is simply a monolithic crippled of consequence that has an effect connected nan playoff picture. The convention remains a prohibitive favourite to unafraid nan Group of 5 bid, but has to beryllium mindful of immoderate tiebreaker scenarios that could unfastened nan doorway for a bid thief elsewhere if a two-loss programme wins nan conference.

Eliminated: Temple

It was rather an upset to spot Owls backmost Evan Simon look rather mortal (11 of 20, 80 yards) successful throwing his first interception of nan play successful a crippled that sewage distant from them quickly against East Carolina. Temple was ever an extracurricular changeable to make it to nan American title game, but it’s still a awesome play arsenic K.C. Keeler has nan programme connected nan verge of its first vessel crippled since 2019.

Out: Army, Charlotte, FAU, Rice, Tulsa, UAB, UTSA

Conference USA

Out: Kennesaw State, Jacksonville State, Western Kentucky, Missouri State, Liberty, Delaware, Louisiana Tech, Florida International, UTEP, New Mexico State, MTSU, Sam Houston 

Out: Miami (Ohio), Central Michigan, Ohio, Buffalo, Western Michigan, Toledo, Ball State, Kent State, Akron, Bowling Green, Northern Illinois, Eastern Michigan, UMass

Mountain West

Alive: San Diego State

It would beryllium somewhat ironic if nan squad that winds up preventing nan Aztecs from getting a bid to nan playoff astatine 12–1 is really a early convention opponent—and 1 of nan 2 programs that approved SDSU’s Pac-12 membership—in Washington State.

Eliminated: Boise State, UNLV

Broncos fans person been agitating for a backmost change, and erstwhile that happened pinch Maddux Madsen’s injury, it wasn’t pretty. The Broncos sewage housed connected nan bluish turf by Fresno State connected Saturday. Meanwhile, nan Rebels took themselves retired of nan playoff pursuit acknowledgment to that nonaccomplishment against New Mexico.

Out: Hawai’i, New Mexico, Fresno State, Utah State, Wyoming, San Jose State, Colorado State, Air Force, Nevada

Out: Washington State, Oregon State

Sun Belt

Alive: James Madison

The Dukes person nan No. 11 scoring defense successful FBS, a top-30 discourtesy and narrowly mislaid a crippled astatine Louisville for their only blemish of nan season. This is not only nan people of nan Sun Belt aft 2 consecutive blowouts successful midweek action, but they stay firmly successful nan operation to capitalize if nan American starts to eat its ain down nan stretch. It judge would thief their résumé if Liberty tin triumph CUSA arsenic an other information constituent for nan action committee. 

Out: Coastal Carolina, Marshall, Old Dominion, App State, Georgia Southern, Georgia State, Southern Miss, Troy, Arkansas State, UL Monroe, Louisiana, South Alabama, Texas State

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