2024 Week 6 12-team College Football Playoff Prediction
So much for the notion that week six of the college football season would be uninteresting. Despite the fact that there was only one, top-25 matchup, the week provided plenty of chaos.
While that top-25 game, a 41-10 Texas A&M win over No. 9 Missouri, didn't deliver much intrigue, a handful of upsets turned the college football world on its head. One of the upsets that took people by surprise was No. 11 USC's loss to unranked Minnesota.
Meanwhile, No. 4 Tennessee fell at Arkansas, 19-14. That was shocking considering that Tennessee was thought to have the best offense in the country prior to that game.
Also falling victim to the upset wave on Saturday was No. 10 Michigan. Falling 27-17 at Washington, the defending champions dropped their second game of the season and now appear to be long shots to have a chance to defend their title.
But the game that caputred the nation's attention was No. 1 Alabama's 40-35 loss to lowly Vanderbilt. That upset will go down as one of the biggest upsets of this era of the sport.
Other top-25 teams that lost this week include No. 25 UNLV and No. 22 Louisville. UNLV was in many playoff projections prior to falling to Syracuse in overtime and they can still make the field if they can win the Mountain West Conference but now, Boise State has to be considered the favorite in that league.
So with all of the chaos behind us, let's look at what the playoff field might look like. Here is our playoff projection following week 6.
Rank | Team | Big | Previous Rank |
|---|---|---|---|
1 | Ohio State | Big Ten Champ | 2 |
2 | Texas | SEC Champ | 5 |
3 | Clemson | ACC Champ | 3 |
4 | Iowa State | Big 12 Champ | 4 |
5 | Penn State | At-large | 8 |
6 | Oregon | At-large | 9 |
7 | Miami | At-large | 10 |
8 | Alabama | At-large | 1 |
9 | Georgia | At-large | 7 |
10 | Notre Dame | At-large | N/A |
11 | Tennessee | At-large | 6 |
12 | Boise State | MWC Champ | 12 |
It is no surprise that the SEC leads the way with four teams in the field. Meanwhile, the Big Ten has three. Those two leagues have led the way all season in terms of bids.
The ACC has two teams that make the top 12 thanks to Clemson's recent run of dominance and Miami's back-to-back narrow escapes. However, that could change if the Hurricanes finally get caught playing with their food as they have the last two games.
Many people will have Texas as the top team in the poll but their biggest win of the season, their week-two victory at Michigan, is less impressive following the Wolverines' loss this week. Meanwhile, Ohio State steamrolled Iowa this weekend to rise to the top of the field. The Buckeyes are loaded with talent across the board and have the look of a true title contender.
Now, we have come to one of the biggest weeks of the season with several high-profile games set for October 12. Thus, next week's playoff projection is certain to be full of changes.
feed