Contender or Pretender?

There was a ton of movement in the AP Poll this weekend with many top 10 teams losing and being undefeated no longer. From Notre Dame to Ole Miss, the tides have clearly shifted and the college football world is in utter chaos. I love it. But this begs the following question: who is an actual contender for the playoffs? Let us take a look at some of the teams that moved up this week and possibly down.

5 Utah (Pac-12)

With a 4-0 record underneath their belts, Utah looks to be riding high once again, but are they really a great team? Let's take a look at their schedule so far: Michigan, Utah State, at Fresno State, and at Oregon. Their win over Michigan is looking a little bit better every week since Michigan is now 3-1 and ranked in the top 25. Discounting the two cupcake games in weeks two and three, we are left with the Oregon game. Oregon was blown out 62-20 and was ranked 13 at the time of this loss. Now they are nowhere to be seen in the polls.

In an earlier post, I had Oregon losing to Arizona being the nail in the proverbial playoff coffin. I was definitely wrong about this. Oregon is beginning to look like a flash in the pan after the Mariota era came to a close. This win could start to look like just a blowout of a nothing team depending on how they play.

Looking at their statistics, Utah looks to be heavy on the run, accumulating 816 yards among all of their running backs. More than half of these yards are from their starting back, Devontae Booker. He also leads the team with 4 rushing touchdowns.

Defensively, they have held all of their opponents under 25 points per game. This is a decent statistic, but they have not faced a top tier offense yet to be truly tested. While Oregon is ranked 10 currently, that win is still trending downward. Other rankings of offense are as follows: Michigan (77), Fresno State (125), and Utah State (117). These are not even in the top half.

Contender or Pretender?

Pretender: With three ranked matchups left against Cal, USC, and UCLA, I do not foresee a PAC-12 Championship in Utah's crystal ball.


11 Florida (SEC)

Florida single-highhandedly decimated Ole Miss this past weekend, a team stacked on both sides of the ball. Grier seemed to have had no issue while being sick during the game, passing for 271 yards and four touchdowns. Taking a look at their schedule, the Gators took care of their cupcake games easily, outscoring their opponents 92-37. Granted, the game against East Carolina was a one score game, but they did play earlier this year in a bowl game.

As for SEC games, the Gators only beat UK 14-9. This does not look impressive, seeing that UK is never a football powerhouse. Florida also had a huge comeback win against Tennessee a few weeks back with only seconds left in the 4th quarter.

What about their upcoming schedule? Florida still has three ranked match-ups on their slate and two of them are on the road. They will go to LSU, the current favorite to win the SEC with Leonard Fournette at the helm. This game is their hardest and I honestly believe that this will be a mark in the loss column for the Gators.

Then the traditional neutral site meeting between the Gators and the Bulldogs will happen the following week. If Georgia has any chance of contending for the SEC title, this game is a must win for them.

Finally, the Gators play in-state rival Florida State in the final week of the regular season. This game is in the swamp and as of right now, the Gators look to have the upper hand with the Seminoles struggling to get to the quarterback and have an effective passing game.

Contender or Pretender?

Contender: This is for right now, but we will know more after the Tigers play the Gators in two weeks.

12 Florida State (ACC)

High off of a 29-game win streak from 2012-2015, the Seminoles are still trying to pursue perfection in some way, shape and form. A current 26-game ACC win streak is also in jeopardy this season. So far, the Noles have not looked very impressive, but have still remained undefeated as such. ESPN just recently named them the "worst undefeated team." This could be an exaggeration (considering Toledo is 24 and undefeated), but of the Power 5, I believe it is true.

The Noles took care of their cupcake teams like most Power 5 schools do, outscoring Texas State and USF 93-30. In ACC play against Boston College, they won a heavy defensive game 14-0 on a Friday night, a night HC Jimbo Fisher has explicitly stated he despises when playing football. This past weekend, the Noles even struggled against Wake Forest, a team who scored their first touchdown against the Noles since 2011. FSU only won by eight points.

The team is mostly based around three people: RB Dalvin Cook, CB Jalen Ramsey, and K Roberto Aguayo. Cook is currently a Heisman candidate and has had a prolific start this year, rushing for 570 yards and six scores. He was taken out of the Wake Forest game due to a pulled hamstring. Fisher says he is day-to-day.

Ramsey is a top five player heading into this year's NFL Draft and ranked as one of the top three defensive players. With the defense currently ranked 13 in the country, a fan would be happy with this; but the Noles have yet to face a high ranking offense.

With Clemson and Florida on the horizon for the Seminoles, it is hard to determine what will happen in the upcoming weeks. I believe it will all depend on the play of QB Everett Golson, the transfer from Notre Dame. If he can return to the level he played at during the 2012 season, Florida State should look to be a force in the College Football Playoff.

Contender or Pretender?

Pretender: This is until we see something come from Golson. If he continues to plateau, the Seminoles are in trouble.