The main argument we hear on the College Football Playoff Rankings Show and the sports debate shows is, what matters more? Talent/”eye test,” or resume?
This weekly column will add to that 2nd part. It answers the question of which teams have the best playoff resumes in all of FBS college football. Let me be clear, I will not be reacting to the CFP rankings or making a case for who I think the 12 playoff teams should be. But, I think it’s interesting to try to definitively rank the best teams strictly according to their resumes.
Before I unveil this week’s rankings let me explain the methodology of them:
I’ve developed a points system for each team’s resume and it goes as follows.
- 3 points for each win against a ranked opponent (WARO). The qualifier is those opponents need to be ranked in the most recent CFP rankings . For example, I don’t care that Clemson was ranked Georgia Tech beat them in week 3. They are not ranked now so that does *not* count as a win over a ranked team for the Yellow Jackets.
- 2 points for each win against bowl eligible opponents that are unranked (WABEO)
- 1 point for each win against opponents with a .500 or better record that are unranked (WAWO)
- -1 point for every loss
- -1 additional point for every loss against an opponent with a losing record (LALO) For example, Texas has 3 losses so whatever their point total is after accounting for the teams they’ve beaten we subtract 3 points from it to get their total resume points. However, one of their losses is to Florida and they have a losing record. So we will subtract an additional point from their total. Thus, in all, Texas would lose 4 points from whatever their point total is after accounting for the teams they’ve beaten. Let’s say they have 10 points before their losses are accounted for. In that instance the Longhorns would end up with 6 points because they’d lose 3 points for their 3 losses and another because one of their losses was to a losing team.
Clear as mud? Alright. Here are this week’s College Football Playoff Resume Rankings
LOCAL TEAMS OUTSIDE TOP 12
20 Utah 4 points | #15 in CFP rankings | 10-2 record
WABEO: 3 Arizona State, Cincinnati, Kansas State
TOP 12
T11 Tulane 8 points | #20 in CFP rankings (Top G5 team) | 10-2 record, Tied 1st in American
WABEO: 5 Northwestern, Duke, East Carolina, Memphis Army
T11 Texas Tech 8 points | #4 in CFP rankings | 11-1, Tied 1st in Big 12
WARO: 3 #15 Utah, #11 BYU, #21 Houston
T9 Alabama 9 points | #9 in CFP rankings | 10-2 record
WARO: 2 #3 Georgia, #14 Vanderbilt
WABEO: 3 LSU, Missouri, Tennessee
T9 Notre Dame 9 points | #10 in CFP rankings | 10-2 record
WARO: 1 #16 USC
WABEO: 4 Boise State, Navy, NC State, Pittsburgh
T6 Oklahoma 10 points | #8 in CFP rankings | 10-2 record
WARO: 2 #19 Michigan, #9 Alabama
WABEO: 3 Missouri, Tennessee, LSU
T6 Texas A&M 10 points | #7 in CFP rankings | 11-1 record
WARO: 1 #9 Notre Dame
WABEO: 4 LSU, Missouri, UTSA, Utah State
T6 Georgia 10 points | #3 in CFP rankings | 11-1 record
WARO: 3 #7 Ole Miss, #13 Texas, 22 Georgia Tech
WABEO: 1 Tennessee
T4 James Madison 11 points | #25 in CFP rankings (#3 G5 team) | 11-1 record, 1st in Sun Belt
WABEO: 6 Georgia Southern, Louisiana, Old Dominion, Texas State, Coastal Carolina, Troy
T4 Oregon 11 points | #5 in CFP rankings | 11-1 record
WARO: 2 #16 USC, #23 Iowa
WABEO: 3 Minnesota, Northwestern, Washington
3 Indiana 12 points | #2 in CFP rankings | 12-0 record, Tied 1st in B1G
WARO: 2 #5 Oregon, #23 Iowa
WABEO: 3 Old Dominion, Kennesaw State, Illinois
2 BYU 13 points | #11 in CFP rankings | 11-1 record, Tied 1st in Big 12
WARO: 2 #15 Utah, #18 Arizona
WABEO: 4 East Carolina, Iowa State, TCU, Cincinnati
1 Ohio State 14 points | #1 in CFP rankings | 12-0 record, Tied 1st in B1G
WARO: 2 #13 Texas, #19 Michigan
WABEO: 4 Minnesota, Washington, Ohio, Illinois
