Everyone knew Week 7 in college football was going to be big, but we got even more than we expected with several key games going down to the wire.
No game was bigger than Alabama-Tennessee, with the Volunteers winning a 52-49 classic with a last-second field goal. That outcome, along with the results in USC-Utah, TCU-Oklahoma State, Michigan-Penn State and Clemson-Florida State, gave the playoff picture its biggest shakeup of the season. Could the Tide’s playoff hopes be in trouble? Did the Tennessee win set up a potential threesome of playoff teams from the SEC? Are TCU, Clemson and Michigan worthy of joining the elite?
I’ll dig into some of those questions as we take a look at how my strength indicators reacted to a huge Week 7. If you want to dig deeper, check out the complete list of all of my Strength Ratings.
Power Ratings
For as popular of a consensus No. 1 team as Alabama was heading into the season, the team certainly hasn’t lived up to expectations so far. After what should have been a loss in Week 2 at Texas, the Tide also struggled in a four-point home win against Texas A&M before finally being knocked off by Tennessee on Saturday. Even though Nick Saban’s team always seems to get its opponents’ best efforts, the Tide was expected to cruise through the regular season. That said, they still control their destiny for another playoff appearance, and the Strength Ratings indicate they are only off by a point or two from preseason expectations. It just doesn’t feel like it. With Mississippi State coming up on Saturday and then road trips to LSU and Ole Miss following their bye week, the next three games will not be easy. Ohio State was off last week and maintains the No. 1 spot in the Power Ratings with a home game against low-scoring Iowa on tap. The Buckeyes will face a tough test after that when they travel to Penn State. Georgia leapfrogs Alabama after blowing out Vanderbilt and will have this week off before a treacherous four-game stretch starting with Florida. Michigan, after its rout of Penn State, is locked up at No. 4, followed by Tennessee a half point later.