The most recent weekend of college football saw the country’s top five teams flex their muscles while few title pretenders bowed out of the hunt. Three of the top teams were at home and posted easy 30-plus-point wins. However, the two most influential results were key road wins. Top-ranked Georgia posted an impressive victory at Mississippi State and, as a result, jumped to the top of the list in three of my rating sets. TCU, a 7-point dog at Texas, strengthened its hold on the final CFP spot with a 17-10 win. Let’s take a look at all the strength ratings and how the Week 11 results affected the numbers.
Power Ratings
Heading into the weekend, Georgia and Ohio State were even atop my power ratings. Ohio State, a 41-point favorite, beat Indiana by 42 points, doing exactly what it was expected to do. Georgia, on the other hand, posted a 26-point win at Mississippi State as a 16-point favorite. That slight difference was enough to push the Bulldogs to the top of the list, 75 to 74.5. With Alabama sitting at third in the PRs and most likely on the outside of the playoff picture looking in, it’s looking more and more like a two-team breakaway. Fourth-rated Tennessee sits 7.5 points behind Georgia, and Michigan is 8.5 points back. TCU is rated 15 points below the Bulldogs. In looking at the top CFP contenders for the upcoming weekend, four of the top five face underrated road tests. Michigan is the only one at home, hosting Illinois.
1. Kansas State (+3.5 points)
Over its last three games, Kansas State has posted two incredibly impressive wins, the latest a 31-3 decision at Baylor. The Wildcats were a 2.5-point dog in the game and improved their record to 7-3, including 5-2 in the Big 12. Why is that important? It’s good enough for second in the conference and a spot in the league title game. All that stands in the way are games at West Virginia and home against Kansas.