College Football Conference Power Rankings: Week 7
Here’s how the Power Five conferences stack up heading into Week 7 of college football action.
Another thrilling Saturday of college football around the nation is in the books, as the College Football Playoff picture looks significantly different after a few key results.
The most important score of the day came from outside the Power Five, as Navy stunned then- No. 6 Houston 46-40. While there’s a lot of football left to be played, it would take something chaotic to get a Group of Five team to the playoff with the Cougars likely out of the picture.
Saturday featured a few other important contests across the country, particularly in the SEC. Texas A&M moved up to sixth in the top 10 after holding off No. 9 Tennessee in double overtime, while No. 1 Alabama steamrolled Arkansas in Fayetteville.
Despite some of the dramatic ranked matchups, Week 6 brought absolutely no change at the top ahead of Houston. Alabama’ 19-point win was the narrowest margin of victory for any of the top five teams in the nation, as Clemson, Michigan and Washington all enjoyed huge blowout.
The SEC, ACC and Big Ten have clearly separated themselves from the other two conferences, although the Huskies give the Pac-12 some legitimacy as a legitimate title contender. Here’s how the Power Five conferences stack up heading into Week 6.
5. Big 12
As easily the longest shot for the playoff, the Big 12 ranks well behind the other four major conferences, and has been disappointing as a whole in 2016.
No. 11 Baylor and No. 20 West Virginia are the only two undefeated teams in the conference and were on byes this week. While the schedule is about to get much tougher for both teams, they could meet in a de facto Big 12 championship game in the final week of the season.
There is some good news for the conference, as No. 19 Oklahoma seems to be figuring things out after a horrid nonconference. A week after a narrow road win over TCU, the Sooners held off Texas 45-40 to reclaim the Red River Rivalry following last year’s shocking upset.
The same can’t be said for the Horned Frogs, who narrowly beat Kansas after being pegged as a preseason conference title contender. Texas, Oklahoma State and Texas Tech also hoped for better campaigns in 2016.
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The Big 12’s two undefeated teams matches number in the SEC and tops the ACC, but both Baylor and West Virginia have a lot to prove before they should be considered playoff threats.