Today, college football puts its best foot forward with seven games featuring ranked opponents. While Texas Tech isn't participating in one of those contests, this could still be a fantastic day for the Red Raiders.
Of course, Tech must first take care of West Virginia in Lubbock. Though the Red Raiders have an 89.4% chance of prevailing according to ESPN.com's Matchup Predictor, the Mountaineers can't be overlooked given their prolific offense, which averages 35.9 points per game (21st most in the nation).
Still, Tech should be expected to take care of business at home. If that happens, head coach Joey McGuire and his team could take a huge step toward earning a top-12 spot in the next College Football Playoff rankings, which will be revealed on Tuesday evening.
In the first set of rankings, released earlier this week, Tech checked in at No. 15. That was disappointing to Red Raider fans given how many two-loss teams were ranked higher than the 7-1 Red Raiders.
Today could provide an opportunity for McGuire and Co. to rise above some other playoff hopefuls, though. So let's take a look at how Texas Tech fans should hope today's games shake out.
A rooting guide for Texas Tech fans
No. 3 Utah over No. 9 BYU
Today in Salt Lake City, Texas Tech needs Utah to defend its home field. That's because a BYU loss would drop the Cougars behind the Red Raiders in the Big 12 race (assuming Tech takes care of West Virginia).
If BYU wins, though, it is possible that Tech, Utah, and BYU could all end up with 8-1 records in Big 12 play. In that scenario, Tech would be left out of the Big 12 title game due to a tiebreaker that would be decided by the Red Raiders' loss to Cincinnati. So Tech fans need to be pulling for the Utes in today's "Holy War".
No. 18 Missouri over No. 7 Texas
Whenever Texas plays, regardless of the sport, Texas Tech fans hope they lose. That's especially true today, though, as the Longhorns travel to Missouri.
Texas is one of the two-loss teams ranked ahead of the Red Raiders. A loss today would likely put UT two games behind Tech in the loss column.
What's more, Texas still has to play at No. 14 LSU and at arch-rival Texas A&M. Therefore, a loss against Missouri might put the Longhorns on the brink of a 4-loss season, which might just be enough to eliminate UT from the playoff picture.
No. 23 Oregon over No. 12 Ohio State
It is strange to see Ohio State on the outside of the playoff picture, but that's where they currently sit given that one spot is guaranteed to go to a Group of 5 team. What's more, a loss at home today to Oregon might sink the Buckeyes' playoff hopes.
Ohio State has two losses this year. One more today would put them on the brink of elimination. While three of their last four games are at home (including the final game of the season against Michigan), all three could be tricky given that the Buckeyes are without starting QB Julian Sayin for the foreseeable future.
No. 6 Kentucky over No. 13 Tennessee
Tennessee is another multi-loss team from the SEC getting the benefit of the doubt over Texas Tech. That could change today if the Volunteers fall at home to Kentucky.
Tennessee still has to play at A&M and host LSU in November before closing things out against Vandy. Therefore, a loss to Kentucky could send them into turbulent waters down the stretch and take them out of the playoff hunt.
No. 5 Alabama over No. 14 LSU
It seems there is nothing Alabama could do to drop out of the playoff picture. Even though their resume this year is weak, the committee still put them at No. 5 in the first ranking.
So since the Tide seems destined for a playoff spot (unless they shut down the program before December starts), Tech fans might as well pull for them to knock LSU down a peg tonight in Baton Rouge. If the Tigers fall to 6-3 on the year, the Red Raiders would jump them in the next ranking if Tech can get to 8-1 by Sunday morning.
No. 2 Georgia over No. 10 Ole Miss
Another two-loss SEC team ahead of the Red Raiders is Ole Miss. The Rebels have a huge chance to cause some chaos today, though, as they host Georgia.
Tech needs Georgia to win this game convincingly. If the Bulldogs secure a multi-score win, it will sink the perception that Ole Miss is an elite team. That, combined with a dominant Texas Tech win over the Mountaineers, could be enough for the Red Raiders to jump the Rebels.
No. 1 Miami over No. 11 Notre Dame
The playoff committee and the television networks desperately want Notre Dame in the 12-team field. The rest of America, not so much.
Today, the Irish could be pushed out of that picture by losing at home to Miami. If Notre Dame can't get this win, its resume will be pathetic at the end of the season.
The Irish have already lost one marquee game to BYU, and another nationally scrutinized defeat would sour the perception of them even further. What's more, all that is left on Notre Dame's schedule after today is Boston College, SMU, and Syracuse.
None of those games will move the needle. So if the Irish can't pick up a signature win today, they won't have much of a case for inclusion in the playoff field, no matter what the network executives want. But if they take down the Hurricanes, they will waltz into the playoff, and a conference like the Big 12 will see its chances of getting two teams into the field shrink significantly.
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