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Sorry for missing this last week but the real job took precedence and I just couldn’t get this put together. For points of reference though, last week would have been #1 Alabama, #2 Ohio State, #3 Clemson, and #4 Washington. Seems reasonable for that point in time.
This weekend was definitely a big weekend to assist in determining who belonged and who didn’t. While Michigan and Washington had a bye, who all year been contending for the fourth playoff spot, the Ohio State Buckeyes were taken to OT before pulling it out against the Wisconsin Badgers and the same goes for the Clemson Tigers against the NC State Wolfpack. In my opinion one of those wins is not like the other, but lets see what everyone else thought. Here is how everyone voted this week:
| "Writer" | Number 1 Seed | Number 2 Seed | Number 3 Seed | Number 4 Seed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Aaron Yorke | Alabama | Washington | Clemson | Ohio State |
| WhiteSpeedReceiver | Alabama | Clemson | Washington | Michigan |
| MNWildcat | Alabama | Ohio State | Clemson | Washington |
| Creightonm | Alabama | Michigan | Ohio State | Washington |
| AlnamaisIV | Alabama | Ohio State | Washington | Clemson |
| DJ | Alabama | Michigan | Washington | Ohio State |
| CandyStripes | Alabama | Ohio State | Clemson | Washington |
| GoForThree | Alabama | Clemson | Washington | Michigan |
| Graham | Alabama | Ohio State | Clemson | Washington |
| InsertName | Alabama | Ohio State | Michigan | Washington |
| LPW | Alabama | Michigan | Ohio State | Washington |
| StewMonkey13 | Michigan | Clemson | Alabama | Ohio State |
| zuzu | Michigan | Alabama | Ohio State | Washington |
| BigRedTwice | Alabama | Ohio State | Washington | Clemson |
And the Top 4 looks like this:
| No. 1 Seed | Alabama |
| No. 2 Seed | Ohio State |
| No. 3 Seed | Michigan |
| No. 4 Seed | Washington |
Runner up: Clemson
So what interesting games are there this week to possibly change the makeup of the top 4? Let’s look:
- The #1 Alabama Crimson Tide takes on the #6 Texas A&M Aggies. A win by Alabama would all but end any serious opposition to them taking the SEC West and a birth in the SEC title game. A win by A&M vaults them into the Top 4 for the playoff and in command of the West to potentially keep ‘Bama from the playoffs. This game is huge.
- #2 Ohio State takes on the Penn State Nittany Lions in State College where the game only has hundreds of tickets left. Ohio State should win this game handily but they’ve struggled on offense the past few weeks and the OT win over Minnesota seems to have been the turning point for Penn State.
- #3 Michigan is probably making bets on beating the 78-0 rout they put on Rutgers as they prepare to take on Illinois. This one could get ugly quick.
- Likewise, Washington is preparing to take on Oregon State in what likely will be a rout of a cellar dweller Pack 12 team.
- #4 Clemson is off as they prepare to take on Florida State the following week in a game that will be their last stiff competition before the ACC title game. If Clemson can win this and cruise to the title they will have all but locked up the ACC’s spot in the playoffs barring an upset.