Is it possible for the College Football Playoff to be held with just two teams? That might be wishful thinking, but the unpredictable nature of this season makes forecasting the entire field of four a difficult proposition.
Alabama and Georgia appear locks at this point as they continue on their paths toward an unbeaten showdown in the SEC title game that likely will just be for playoff seeding. Your guess on the other two teams could be as good as mine.
Oregon seems the easiest choice given the implosion of the Pac-12, but the Ducks again looked shaky at home as Arizona stayed close into the fourth quarter. Speaking of home struggles, Oklahoma now has three wins at home against Bowl Subdivision opponents by a combined 15 points. The Sooners finally hit the road this week with questions about their offense and whether they can keep winning close games.
The ACC and Big Ten can legitimately go any number of directions. The former is a complete mess with only Boston College and Wake Forest left unbeaten. The latter might be too difficult to produce a team that can make it through with fewer than two losses. Iowa in the West looks to have the easiest path.
For now, Oregon stays in the field and Iowa replaces Oklahoma in the playoff projection, but the field probably is the best bet.
Another unpredictable weekend also shook up the New Year’s Six bowls in a major way with Clemson, Texas A&M, Iowa State and Southern California all falling out of their spots. Moving in are North Carolina State, Mississippi, Penn State and UCLA.
Follow colleges reporter Erick Smith on Twitter @ericksmith
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: College football bowl projections: Iowa joins playoff field
