Power Rankings: Week 13

Two weeks remain in the college football regular season, and we still have plenty to sort out.

Week 12 did not provide a ton of clarity in the race for the College Football Playoff, but a new variable must be considered: how good is Alabama without Tua Tagovailoa?

There will be little time for the Crimson Tide to answer that question, with a “warm up” game against Western Carolina from the FCS ranks before closing the year with Auburn. The Tigers lost, 21-14, last week to Georgia, but remain a formidable foe that would give the Crimson Tide a quality win without Tua at the controls.

The Bulldogs, meanwhile, were tabbed No. 4 by the CFP Committee last week. Adding another good win only bolsters that position, and I have moved them ahead of Alabama this week. The Bulldogs’ defense is very good, but the offense leaves a lot to be desired. To say they are a shaky No. 4 is an understatement, and they very well may need an upset win over LSU in the SEC Championship game to hold onto their top-four status.

Ahead of them, LSU, Ohio State and Clemson cruised to easy victories. Ed Orgeron’s Tigers outscored Mississippi, the Buckeyes dispatched Rutgers and defending national champion Clemson routed Wake Forest to finish unbeaten in ACC play. Dabo Sweeney’s Tigers are off this week, and finish with South Carolina, which owns the head-scratching victory over Georgia.

While LSU and Clemson don’t have major hurdles left before their conference championship games, Ohio State has a gauntlet. The Buckeyes take on Penn State this week, then close out November with the rivalry game against Michigan. While this squad has been the most consistent all season, a late-season slip up could change their postseason outlook entirely.

Staying in the Big 10, Minnesota saw its undefeated season run end with a close loss at Iowa. Despite that, the Golden Gophers have been impressive the last two weeks against ranked opponents. They get a bit of a reprieve and likely bounce back against Northwestern, then finish the regular season home against Wisconsin. Should they win out and get to the Big 10 Championship game, they will still be in the CFP Playoff mix.

Their fellow darkhorse unbeaten team was Baylor from the Big XII, but the Bears finally saw luck go against them. After dominating the first half against Oklahoma, Baylor was stunned with a furious Sooner comeback. This surely eliminates the Bears from playoff contention, but gives a glimmer of hope to the Sooners going forward.

The problem for Oklahoma is that it seems to be positioned firmly behind the Pac-12 in the mind’s of the CFP Committee. One-loss teams Oregon and Utah teams cruised to victories last week, and both have road games at the struggling Arizona schools coming up. Neither is expected to face much of a test this week, and they remain on a collision course for the Pac-12 Championship game, which could be a play-in game to the playoff if the dominoes fall properly around the country.

As it stands, there are three things that will hurt the Pac-12’s chances of placing a team in the playoff: 1) Oregon, especially, or Utah suffers a loss before the Pac-12 Championship game, 2) Alabama blows out Auburn without Tua, and 3) Georgia beats LSU in the SEC Championship game. An outside fourth scenario would include undefeated Ohio State losing a close game to one-loss Minnesota in the Big Ten title game.

Let’s go ahead and take a look at the National Top 10 and Pac-12 Power Rankings for Week 13.

National Top 10

1. Ohio State (10-0, 7-0 Big 10 East)
Last Week: Won at Rutgers, 56-21
Next Game: Saturday vs. Penn State

The Buckeyes get defensive star Chase Young back from a two-game suspension just in time for the decisive two-game closing stretch against Penn State and Michigan.

2. LSU (10-0, 6-0 SEC West)
Last Week: Won at Ole Miss, 58-37
Next Game: Saturday vs. Arkansas

The Tigers’ defense continues to show leaks, but no one can stop Joe Burrow and the LSU offense. Two very winnable home games remain before the SEC Championship game.

3. Clemson (11-0, 8-0 ACC Atlantic)
Last Week: Won vs. Wake Forest, 52-3
Next Game: Nov. 30 at South Carolina

A late-season bye week for Dabo Sweeney’s squad before closing out the regular season with a non-conference game against rival South Carolina.

4. Georgia (9-1, 6-1 SEC East)
Last Week: Won vs. Missouri, 27-0
Next Game: Saturday at Auburn

The Dawgs delivered a much-needed performance on the road at Auburn, and now vault into the top four here for the first time since losing to South Carolina. Still, this has as much to do with Alabama losing Tua Tagovailoa as it does with Georgia’s strength, as its offense still remains a question mark.

5. Alabama (9-1, 6-1 SEC West)
Last Week: Won at Mississippi State, 38-7
Next Game: Saturday vs. Western Carolina

Losing Tua Tagovailoa is obviously a big loss. The Crimson Tide don’t have much time to impress onlookers that they can fill the void and be worthy of playoff consideration, but after this week’s cakewalk, the Nov. 30 game at Auburn looms large.

6. Utah (9-1, 6-1 Pac-12)
Last Week: Won vs. UCLA, 49-7
Next Game: Saturday at Arizona

Since its loss at USC in September, few teams have been more impressive than the Utes. Struggling Arizona isn’t expected to challenge Utah this week, but the Wildcats have toppled highly ranked opponents in November before.

7. Oregon (9-1, 7-0 Pac-12)
Last Week: Won vs. Arizona, 34-6
Next Game: Saturday at Arizona State

The Ducks’ defense stifled the Wildcats in Autzen, now it tries to do the same against the Sun Devils in Tempe. Could Oregon get caught looking ahead to the suddenly intriguing Civil War?

8. Oklahoma (9-1, 6-1 Big 12)
Last Week: Won vs. Iowa State, 42-41
Next Game: Saturday at Baylor

The Sooners survived once again, this time doing so in comeback fashion. Questions remain about the defense, but if receiver Cee Dee Lamb returns, the offense can propel Oklahoma to a Big XII title and possibly sneak back up into the CFB Playoff race.

9. Florida (9-2, 6-2 SEC East)
Last Week: Won at Missouri, 23-6
Next Game: Nov. 30 vs. Florida State

Dan Mullen’s team has taken care of business all season except for narrow losses at LSU and in the neutral site rivalry game against Georgia. After a bye, the Gators can get their 10^th win of the season against Florida State.

10. Minnesota (9-1, 6-1 Big Ten East)
Last Week: Lost at Iowa, 23-19
Next Game: Saturday at Northwestern

The Gophers may have suffered their first loss, but the last two weeks have proved they are a worthy top-10 caliber team. They should have no trouble bouncing back at Northwestern, then get another big game against Wisconsin. Win that one, and Minnesota moves on to the Big Ten Championship game with possibly a CFB Playoff berth on the line.

Dropped Out: None.

Pac-12 Power Rankings

South Division

1. Utah (9-1, 6-1 Pac-12)
Last Week: Won vs. UCLA, 49-7
Next Game: Saturday at Arizona

The Utes dismantled surging UCLA and now must avoid stumbling as a heavy favorite at Arizona and against Colorado to end the regular season.

2. USC (7-4, 6-2 Pac-12)
Last Week: Won at California, 41-17
Next Game: Saturday vs. UCLA

Clay Helton’s resilient squad closes out the regular season this weekend as their final bye week comes Thanksgiving week. Should they defeat the Bruins, they have an outside chance at the Pac-12 South title if Utah would fall this week to Arizona or next week against Colorado.

3. UCLA (4-6, 4-3 Pac-12)
Last Week: Lost at Utah, 49-3
Next Game: Saturday at USC

Just when it appeared Chip Kelly’s team had things clicking, they ran into the monster that is the Utah defense. Now Kelly gets a crack at toppling the Trojans in a game that could really shake things up in Southern California.

4. Arizona State (5-5, 2-5 Pac-12)
Last Week: Lost at Oregon State, 35-34
Next Game: Saturday vs. Arizona

Herm Edwards rolled the dice and went for two, but came up empty and has now lost four in a row. The elusive sixth win to obtain bowl eligibility may have to wait another week with Oregon coming to town.

5. Arizona (4-6, 2-5 Pac-12)
Last Week: Lost at Oregon, 34-6
Next Game: Saturday vs. Utah

You can add an injury-plagued offensive line to the list of questions for the Wildcats, which already included defensive issues and quarterback play. While Arizona has a reputation for upsetting teams in November, it’s hard to see that happening this week against Utah.

6. Colorado (4-6, 2-5 Pac-12)
Last Week: Idle
Next Game: Saturday vs. Washington

Rested off a bye, the Buffaloes have the difficult task of taking on Washington and Utah in the closing weeks of the regular season.

North Division

1. Oregon (9-1, 7-0 Pac-12)
Last Week: Won vs. Arizona, 34-6
Next Game: Saturday at Arizona State

Oregon remains unbeaten in the Pac-12 and has winnable games at Arizona State and home versus Oregon State to close things out. Can the Ducks finish the job?

2. Washington (6-4, 3-4 Pac-12)
Last Week: Idle
Next Game: Saturday at Colorado

Following a bye, Chris Petersen’s squad must stop a capable Colorado offense and get its own maligned offense back on track. An eight-win season is still possible, if not likely.

3. Oregon State (5-5, 4-3 Pac-12)
Last Week: Won vs. Arizona State, 35-34
Next Game: Saturday at Washington State

With a win over ASU, Jonathan Smith may have emerged as the frontrunner for Pac-12 Coach of the Year. Now the Beavers need to win one of their last two games on the road to become bowl-eligible, but it won’t be easy doing so in Pullman or Eugene.

4. Washington State (5-5, 2-5 Pac-12)
Last Week: Won vs. Stanford, 49-22
Next Game: Saturday vs. Oregon State

Wazzu’s final home against Oregon State is a big one as one team becomes bowl-eligible with a victory.

5. Stanford (4-6, 3-5 Pac-12)
Last Week: Lost at Washington State, 49-22
Next Game: Saturday vs. California

Stanford’s injury-plagued and perplexing season is drawing to a close and needs consecutive homes wins over rivals California and Notre Dame to extend their bowl streak.

6. California (5-5, 2-5 Pac-12)
Last Week: Lost vs. USC, 41-17
Next Game: Saturday at Stanford

Chase Garbers returned, but the Golden Bears’ defense couldn’t match up with the Trojans’ offense. Road games at Stanford and UCLA present an opportunity for Justin Wilcox’s team to earn a bowl bid.

View last week’s rankings here.

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