Baylor No. 9 in College Football Playoff Rankings: What it Means

After beating Texas 24-10, Baylor moved up to No. 9 in the latest College Football Playoff Rankings. The Bears were previously ranked No. 14.

The Bears are now above every two loss team. It seems unlikely any of those teams could pass a one loss Baylor.

One loss Baylor has to worry about Alabama—if they can knock off Auburn, Utah—if they beat Colorado and Oregon, Georgia if they win their next two games and Minnesota (if they can run off two wins in a row).

The Bears are in an okay spot if they win out. They need some help. Baylor would be in an interesting place if it comes down to Baylor, Utah and Alabama. The Utes and Crimson Tide don’t have very good wins. But each has an understandable loss. Utah lost to top 25 USC without the Utes QB. Alabama lost to the No.2 team, and they have a history of being one of the top two programs. The latter shouldn’t matter, but it does. I think each would get in over Baylor, but my confidence level in either of those teams over Baylor is not high. The Bears will have a much better slate of wins, and unlike Alabama, they’d have a conference title and 13 games.

We’ll know a lot more after this week. If Alabama loses, then we’ll have a week of arguments about Utah v. the Big 12 title winner for the final spot. But Georgia beating LSU in the SEC title game could make any discussion of the final spot moot. The committee doesn’t seem likely to drop LSU below Utah or the Big 12 champ, even with a loss in the title game. We are all Tigers. Go Auburn and LSU.