College football’s regular season wrapped up this past weekend and what an impactful weekend it was with Michigan’s upset of Ohio State the highlight among several unexpected results. The Wolverines locked up a spot in the Big Ten title game and essentially, a berth in the College Football Playoff.
LSU and Clemson were also beaten in upset fashion, all but eliminating them from CFP contention, while TCU and USC fortified their playoff resumes with impressive wins. All that’s left for those two teams to do to join Michigan and Georgia in the playoff field is to win their conference championship games this weekend. It won’t be easy, however, as neither the Horned Frogs (versus Kansas State) nor the Trojans (versus Utah) are favored by more than a field goal. And USC is out to avenge its only loss of the season.
Let’s take a closer look at my final regular-season strength indicators heading into Championship Week, with most of the other bowl-eligible teams having wrapped up their schedules.
Power Ratings
Defending champion Georgia finishes the regular season atop my Power Ratings, with a PR of 72.5. That is 2.5 points better than Ohio State and 3.0 points better than Alabama. As you’ll see, the Buckeyes’ strength indicators took a serious hit after their performances of the last two weeks. Michigan made the biggest upward move of the top teams, landing on a season-high 68 after their rout at Columbus. Tennessee rounds out the top five with a PR of 67.5 after demolishing Vanderbilt on Saturday. However, keep in mind that because QB Hendon Hooker’s season-ending injury occurred so late in the season, his absence is deducted from my ratings on a game-by-game basis, so effectively, the Volunteers’ PR for their bowl game will be 63. Texas, Penn State, TCU, Utah, USC and Kansas State round out the top 11 and the group with a PR of 60 or higher.