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College Football Playoff Rankings, Week 10: 5 biggest takeaways

By Nathaniel Reeves

Oct 29, 2016; College Station, TX, USA; Texas A&M Aggies players celebrate the win over the New Mexico State Aggies at Kyle Field. Texas A&M Aggies won 52-10. Mandatory Credit: Thomas B. Shea-USA TODAY Sports
Oct 29, 2016; College Station, TX, USA; Texas A&M Aggies players celebrate the win over the New Mexico State Aggies at Kyle Field. Texas A&M Aggies won 52-10. Mandatory Credit: Thomas B. Shea-USA TODAY Sports /
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Oct 29, 2016; Charlottesville, VA, USA; Louisville Cardinals quarterback Lamar Jackson (8) runs with the ball past Virginia Cavaliers linebacker Chris Peace (13) in the fourth quarter at Scott Stadium. The Cardinals won 32-25. Mandatory Credit: Geoff Burke-USA TODAY Sports
Oct 29, 2016; Charlottesville, VA, USA; Louisville Cardinals quarterback Lamar Jackson (8) runs with the ball past Virginia Cavaliers linebacker Chris Peace (13) in the fourth quarter at Scott Stadium. The Cardinals won 32-25. Mandatory Credit: Geoff Burke-USA TODAY Sports /

3) Louisville’s playoff hopes are in real trouble

For the most part, the first edition of the College Football Playoff rankings don’t matter much to the top teams. The four undefeated Power Five schools will be in should they win out, while even a one-loss team like Ohio State controls its own destiny by virtue of having a game against Michigan to close out the season.

However, the rankings did mean quite a lot for one contender in the playoff picture. Louisville should be very disappointed with its No. 7 ranking, and will now need a lot of things to go right elsewhere to have a shot at the top four.

Behind Heisman favorite Lamar Jackson, the Cardinals have put together a terrific 7-1 season that includes a 63-20 beatdown of Florida State. Louisville’s only loss is by six points on the road at night to Clemson, earning the Cardinals the No. 5 spot in the AP Poll.

Again, the committee really dinged the Cardinals for some recent substandard performances. Following the loss to Clemson, the Cardinals were sluggish in a win against Duke and needed a touchdown pass from Jackson in the final seconds to beat Virginia last week.

With how things are shaping up, seventh is not a good spot to be in. The Cardinals will likely need Texas A&M, Washington and Ohio State to each lose at least once, as their remaining schedule is not good enough to jump them otherwise.

In addition, Louisville needs some style points and can’t afford any more close games against the bottom teams in the ACC. The Cardinals’ ranking feels a bit harsh, as their loss to Clemson shouldn’t have hurt them more than Ohio State’s defeat at the hands of Penn State.

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