With its two largest games of the regular season rapidly approaching, Ohio State remains very much in the College Football Playoff picture.
Urban Meyer's Buckeyes checked in at No. 3 in third set of the College Football Playoff rankings, released Tuesday on ESPN. It's the third time in as many weeks Ohio State's earned the same ranking from the committee. The Buckeyes are ranked No. 2 in both the USA Today Amway Coaches Poll and Associated Press Poll.
In the return of starting quarterback J.T. Barrett, the Buckeyes left Champaign, Illinois, with a 28-3 victory over the Fighting Illini Saturday to run their record to 10-0. It was the program's 30th consecutive Big Ten regular season victory and 23rd straight overall.
However dominant the team's defense looked in stopping Illinois' anemic offense, the offense struggled to protect Barrett with consistency but still managed to leave Memorial Stadium with a four-possession win. Saturday, Michigan State travels to Columbus in the first of two titan matchups for Ohio State: The Buckeyes visit Michigan next Saturday.
The Spartans defeated Maryland, 24-7, Saturday despite star quarterback Connor Cook leaving the game with a shoulder injury. At 9-1, they re-entered the top-10 of the rankings at No. 9 ahead of their battle with Ohio State. Michigan rose two spots to No. 12 following a 48-41 double overtime win at Indiana.
Multiple Playoff contenders fell over the weekend — Baylor, Utah, Stanford and LSU all lost — but those who entered play Saturday unbeaten stayed that way. Clemson, Ohio State, Iowa, Oklahoma State and Houston all left the weekend unscathed.
As a result, the Hawkeyes remained at No. 5 in the rankings. Other Big Ten schools in the Playoff top-25 are the Spartans, Wolverines, Northwestern at No. 20 and Wisconsin at No. 25.
The top six sits like this: Clemson, Alabama, Ohio State, Notre Dame, Iowa and Oklahoma State.
The full rankings can be seen here.
Ohio State and Michigan State kick off at 3:30 p.m. Saturday in Columbus.
| Rank | Team | Conf. | Record | Key Games |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | CLEMSON | ACC | 10-0 | ACC CHAMPIONSHIP (12/5) |
| 2 | ALABAMA | SEC | 9-1 | @ AUBURN (11/28) |
| 3 | OHIO STATE | BIG TEN | 10-0 | MICHIGAN STATE (11/21), @ MICHIGAN (11/28) |
| 4 | NOTRE DAME | IND | 9-1 | @ STANFORD (11/28) |
| 5 | IOWA | BIG TEN | 10-0 | @ NEBRASKA (11/27) |
| 6 | OKLAHOMA STATE | BIG 12 | 10-0 | BAYLOR (11/21), OKLAHOMA (11/28) |
| 7 | OKLAHOMA | BIG 12 | 9-1 | TCU (11/21), @ OKLAHOMA STATE (11/28) |
| 8 | FLORIDA | SEC | 9-1 | FLORIDA STATE (11/28) |
| 9 | MICHIGAN STATE | BIG TEN | 9-1 | @ OHIO STATE (11/21), PENN STATE (11/28) |
| 10 | BAYLOR | BIG 12 | 8-1 | @ OKLAHOMA STATE (11/21), @ TCU (11/27) |
| 11 | STANFORD | PAC-12 | 8-2 | NOTRE DAME (11/28) |
| 12 | MICHIGAN | BIG TEN | 8-2 | @ PENN STATE (11/21), OHIO STATE (11/28) |
| 13 | UTAH | PAC-12 | 8-2 | UCLA (11/21) |
| 14 | FLORIDA STATE | ACC | 8-2 | @ FLORIDA (11/28) |
| 15 | LSU | SEC | 7-2 | @ OLE MISS (11/21), TEXAS A&M (11/28) |
| 16 | NAVY | AAC | 8-1 | @ HOUSTON (11/27) |
| 17 | NORTH CAROLINA | ACC | 9-1 | VIRGINIA TECH (11/21), NORTH CAROLINA STATE (11/28) |
| 18 | TCU | BIG 12 | 9-1 | @ OKLAHOMA (11/21), BAYLOR (11/27) |
| 19 | HOUSTON | AAC | 10-0 | NAVY (11/27) |
| 20 | NORTHWESTERN | BIG TEN | 8-2 | @ WISCONSIN (11/21) |
| 21 | MEMPHIS | AAC | 8-2 | @ TEMPLE (11/21) |
| 22 | OLE MISS | SEC | 7-3 | LSU (11/21), @ MISSISSIPPI STATE (11/28) |
| 23 | OREGON | PAC-12 | 7-3 | USC (11/21) |
| 24 | USC | PAC-12 | 7-3 | @ OREGON (11/21) |
| 25 | WISCONSIN | BIG TEN | 8-2 | NORTHWESTERN (11/21), MINNESOTA (11/28) |
