How USC can still make the College Football Playoff after loss to Utah

The USC Trojans will need a few things to happen for them to make the College Football Playoff after suffering their first loss of the season on Saturday night to the Utah Utes.

While the USC Trojans are exponentially better than they were a year ago, they have tasted bitter defeat for the first time under new head coach Lincoln Riley.

USC fell in Salt Lake City on Saturday night by the slimmest of margins, 43-42. While Utah was the No. 20 team in the country and will be moving up after beating the Trojans in Rice-Eccles, keep in mind that the Utes are a two-loss team and are not in consideration to make the College Football Playoff. Although the Trojans have a massive brand, they will need some help to still make it in…

Here is what must happen for USC to make the playoff for the first time even after the Utah loss.

What needs to happen for USC Trojans to still make the College Football Playoff

This loss will sting a bit longer for the Trojans, as they will be on their annual bye in Week 8. However, their remaining five games set up favorably for them to potentially make the playoff.

• Week 8: Bye (10/22)
• Week 9: at Arizona Wildcats (10/29)
• Week 10: vs. California Golden Bears (11/5)
• Week 11: vs. Colorado Buffaloes (11/11)
• Week 12: at UCLA Bruins (11/19)
• Week 13: vs. Notre Dame Fighting Irish (11/26)
• Pac-12 Championship Game: Las Vegas (12/2)

USC will have one guaranteed game against a ranked opponent left. That would be at crosstown rival UCLA on Nov. 19. The Trojans’ three other remaining Pac-12 opponents are far from world-beaters in Arizona, Cal and Colorado. With this being the first year under Marcus Freeman in South Bend, the Trojans should have no issues putting away the Notre Dame Fighting Irish this season.

To even have a chance, USC has to win out and finish the regular season with a 11-1 (8-1) record. If the Trojans get to Las Vegas for the Pac-12 Championship Game, they will have a shot at getting in should they prove victorious. In the meantime, it serves them to see UCLA keep on winning until they meet next month. Keep in mind that College GameDay will be in Eugene for UCLA at Oregon…

In terms of Pac-12 title-style points, the Trojans would prefer to face either UCLA, Oregon or Utah in the conference title bout. Oregon State and Washington only have two losses on the year as well, but USC would need its potential conference championship opponent to be ranked throughout the process. The Bruins, Ducks and Utes check that box over the Beavers and Huskies.

While the College Football Playoff Selection Committee may find a way to shoehorn a one-loss Pac-12 Champion Trojans team into the four-team field, even that may not be enough this year. USC really needs the ACC and the Big 12 champions to have one or more losses. The Pac-12 is up this season, but the conference has taken a beating over the last several for Larry Scott reasons…

Even if the Trojans get help from ACC and Big 12 cannibalization, they still may need the Big Ten and SEC to not send multiple teams into the playoff. While the Big Ten only has four teams with a chance (Michigan, Ohio State, Penn State, Illinois), we could potentially see four SEC teams with one or fewer losses on the season (Alabama, Georgia, Tennessee, Ole Miss). This is problematic.

For now, the best thing USC can do is win out and hope for teams like Clemson, TCU and Syracuse to stumble. They will have a great shot at getting in as a one-loss Power Five champion over who potentially comes out of the ACC or Big 12 for USC branding reasons. However, they cannot afford to have a Big Ten/SEC division runner-up finish 11-1 or a 12-0 division winner lose in a title bout.

Overall, the Pac-12 is a lot better than in years past. Six teams have a shot at winning 10 games. While USC’s return to prominence is a huge reason for that, the conference really needs the ACC and Big 12 to fade. The Big Ten and the SEC are getting in at least one team apiece. No, it would not be shocking if the Big Ten or the SEC got multiple teams in this year. USC cannot afford that.

The Trojans need to win out, the Pac-12 to remain strong and the ACC and Big 12 to fade to get in.

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