There are only three more weekends before the College Football Playoff committee announces its first Top 25. Clemson football continues to make a strong resume argument why it should be in the conversation for a playoff spot.
Following six full weekends of football, we are starting to see the resumes of the top teams start to sync with the AP Top 25. Some of the teams that were over-ranked have dropped a few games, and the teams that should have been ranked higher are getting better wins now that they are playing Power Five teams instead of Group of Five and FCS exclusively.
The AP Top 5 are the same teams, just in a different order.
#1 Georgia – Resume score: 23
Georgia returns to the #1 spot in the AP poll after a one-week absence but falls to third in the resume rankings. The Bulldogs had a solid win over Auburn, but home wins don’t earn the same kind of credit as road wins. Georgia will have the chance to pad their resume over the final five weeks of the season, so if they are still getting the benefit of a great eye test, then they are in a good position.
#2 Ohio State – Resume score: 19
Nobody benefits from reputation and eye test more than Ohio State. They just got their first road win of the season in Week 6, and they have been rewarded by the AP voters by being bumped ahead of Alabama. Ohio State only has three more road games and only two more ranked teams on their regular season schedule. Ohio State is in a good position if they keep winning, but if they lose a regular season game, their resume will hurt their chances of qualifying for the playoff with a loss.
#3 Alabama – Resume score: 24
The Crimson Tide had a close game at home against the Texas A&M Aggies, and it hurt their eye test. As a result, they have fallen from #1 to #3 in the AP Poll. When it comes to resume, Alabama passed Georgia for the 2nd best score. There is one main reason: Texas is ranked again following their shutout of Oklahoma. Bama’s win over the Longhorns was already good because it was a road win, and now it is a road win over a Top 25 team.
#4 Clemson – Resume score: 26.25
The example of 2022 Clemson is good for justifying the argument that even after eight full seasons with a playoff committee that typically focuses on resumes, the AP voters still tend to base their votes on pre-conceived notions and eye tests. Clemson defeated two AP Top 25 teams in Weeks 4 and 5, but it wasn’t until Michigan had a dull first half against Indiana that the AP voters decided to move the Tigers ahead of the Wolverines.
#5 Michigan – Resume score: 21
There are a lot of people who are trashing Michigan right now as a team that never should have been ahead of Clemson at any point this season because they never had the resume to justify their ranking. Those people are right. The question now is why aren’t those same people calling out Ohio State? The Buckeyes have an even worse resume, and the Wolverines beat them last season. Fortunately for Michigan, they are in the same situation as Ohio State: if they keep winning, which includes beating OSU for a second season, they will be fine.
This is the current Resume Top 25
1. Clemson: 26.25
2. Alabama: 24
3. Georgia: 23
T4. USC: 22 – The Trojan fans are as happy as they can be. Meanwhile, everywhere else, they have become the bad guys. They now have to go on the road to play Utah. The unfortunate thing for USC is that the Utes will almost certainly drop out of the Top 25 if the Trojans win. It would still be a road win against a P5 team.
T4. TCU: 22 – College football’s rising star. The Horned Frogs beat Kansas in Lawrence, and the Jayhawks weren’t penalized by the AP voters. That was a best-case scenario for TCU – ranked wins on the road give you a huge resume boost. They have yet another test coming this weekend when they host the Fighting Mike Gundys of Oklahoma State.
T6. Michigan: 21
T6. Ole Miss: 21 – Lane Kiffin is fun, and Ole Miss looks like the white knight that everyone hopes will slay the Crimson beast. One problem: their best wins are against Georgia Tech and Kentucky, both at home. Kentucky is still in the Top 25, and I think the voters had sympathy for the Wildcats because of Levis’s injury, but that won’t save them for long. It will be November before the Rebels have a chance against more ranked teams.
T8. Ohio State: 19
T8. Penn State: 19 – Once a leader in the resume rankings, the Nittany Lions have fallen back a bit with an early bye date. If they beat Big Blue in Ann Arbor, their score will bounce back wonderfully.
T8. Tennessee: 19 – My niece’s school. I’m pulling for them against Alabama this weekend, but Vols Nation is the current poster child for not understanding how ranked wins work on a resume. “We have three ranked wins!” No, you don’t. All the teams you defeated have fallen out of the AP Top 25. It doesn’t matter where they were then, it matters where they are now. Vols fans should pull for Pitt, Florida & LSU to win and get ranked again.
11. UCLA: 18 – Two weeks ago, the Bruins had a weak resume. Two Top 25 wins later, they are flirting with the top ten. Both wins were at the Rose Bowl, which is officially home for UCLA. Next, they must go on the road to take on….
12. Oregon: 16.75 – …..the Ducks, who have won five straight games since the blowout loss to Georgia. They’ve won twice on the road. They get the Bruins at home.
T13. Wake Forest: 15 – This is why they are still ranked despite a home loss to Clemson. Outside of the close game against Liberty (when they were looking ahead to the Tigers), Wake has played very well this season.
T13. Oklahoma State: 15 – Why is the Cowboys’ score this low? They have only played five games. This does put them a bit behind. Next week is an away game at TCU, so if they win their resume will catch up.
T13. Kansas: 15 – The loss to TCU hurts, but the resume outside of that game is still strong. The upcoming schedule is challenging.
T13. Coastal Carolina: 15 – The Chants are undefeated, but unranked thus far in the AP Top 25. Coastal doesn’t have a game against the Power Five until late November, and it’s at Virginia. It’s winnable, but not enough to get Coastal anywhere close to the playoff. It will be enough to get them to the New Year’s Six as the obligatory Group of Five entrant if they keep winning.
T17. North Carolina: 14 – The three teams tied at 17th in the resume rankings all have the same issue: they dropped a game that now makes us scratch our heads. Just imagine if UNC hadn’t dropped that game to Notre Dame. Still, the Tar Heels are in the driver’s seat in the ACC Coastal.
T17. Mississippi State: 14 – Same story. Mississippi State lost to LSU and all of us are looking at it in hindsight and wondering how it happened.
T17. Tulane: 14 – This one must sting the most. Tulane upset Kansas State, who is now ranked. They could have been in the lead for the G5’s NY6 bid, but they lost at home to Southern Miss, who has a losing record. Cringeworthy.
T20. Kansas State: 13 – let’s keep this theme going. The Wildcats lost on their home field to the Green Wave. That hurts the resume.
T20. Illinois: 13 – This is where I must end the theme about games the teams dropped. Illini fans shouldn’t worry about that at all. Yeah, the loss to Indiana sucked, but who cares when your team has a legit chance to win the Big Ten West. We see you, Urbana-Champaign.
T20. James Madison: 13 – This makes me happy. They play Louisville in a month. That should be a fun game.
23. Florida State: 12.25 – FSU has lost two games now, and they were worthy opponents, so no biggie there. The problem is the continued coaching howlers. The play-calling at the end of the Wolfpack game was bizarre. I can’t help but wonder if such things catch up with Mike Norvell eventually, even if the overall record has notably improved.
T24. NC State: 12 – The Wolfpack has slowly ascended into the Resume Top 25. We will keep an eye on the quarterback situation. It’s funny how Leary can be criticized for not living up to expectations, but when he gets hurt everyone thinks State’s fortunes could drop if he doesn’t play.
T24. Syracuse – The Orange haven’t played the toughest schedule, but that changes this week. NC State comes to town, and then they visit Clemson on Homecoming weekend.
T24. Purdue – Just as I say Syracuse hasn’t played a tough schedule, one of the teams they defeated sneaks into the Resume Top 25 with two losses. How? Two road wins against P5 opponents in the past two weeks. The Boilermakers are in a good position in the Big Ten West as well.
Here are the teams that are ranked in the AP Top 25 but don’t have a top 25 resume:
#20 Utah – Resume score: 9
Like the other teams on this list, it is fair to question why voters still have the Utes ranked. I’m not saying they are a bad team, but they haven’t done anything to prove they are Top 25 worthy. Both losses were on the road, but the impressive wins aren’t there. Somehow, they are favorites against USC this weekend. We’ll see.
#21 Cincinnati – Resume score: 10
The Bearcats’ resume score isn’t awful, it just isn’t that impressive, so it’s fair to question why they are ranked. It’s 2022, and Desmond Ridder isn’t walking through that door. When you add the eye test, things get sketchy. Their P5 win is over Indiana at home, and they squeaked by against South Florida. How is this team ranked?
#22 (tie) Texas – Resume score: 8.5
I don’t think Texas found itself back in the Top 25 because they curb stomped Oklahoma. I think they are ranked because Quin Ewers is back, and voters have rationalized that the Longhorns wouldn’t have lost to Texas Tech if Ewers was healthy. I think some still think they would have beaten Alabama if Ewers hadn’t been hurt. Voters should probably make Ewers and Texas prove it a bit more. Their chance is coming: on the road the next two games at Oklahoma State and Kansas State, then hosting TCU.
#22 (tie) Kentucky – Resume score: 6
The most egregious example by far. Yes, I know Levis didn’t play against South Carolina. It still counts. Kentucky won on the road against an unranked Florida. Otherwise, they have two wins against the MAC and a win over the FCS. C’mon man.
This weekend looks very entertaining. Not only does Clemson hit the road to Doak Campbell Stadium in the ACC, but additionally:
- Syracuse hosts NC State, who might/might not have Devin Leary.
- The greatest basketball rivalry in existence takes the football field in Durham as the Blue Devils host North Carolina.
- The 2-3 Miami Hurricanes visit Blacksburg. (This game isn’t consequential to anything. I just enjoy pointing out that Miami is 2-3.)
Elsewhere:
Alabama visits Rocky Top in a Top 10 matchup
Penn State visits the Big House in a nearly Top 10 matchup
Oklahoma State visits TCU to determine who will take the lead in the Big 12
USC gets its biggest (yet still not big) test of the season when they visit Utah
James Madison plays their first game as an AP Top 25-ranked team on the road against Georgia Southern