After the latest College Football Rankings were released, No. 10 Auburn has been put in a position unlike any other team.
The Tigers have arguably the toughest remaining schedule in all of college football, with matchups against No. 1 Georgia this weekend and No. 2 Alabama on Thanksgiving weekend, with the possibility of a rematch against Georgia in the SEC title game.
The remaining schedule puts Auburn in the position of SEC playoff spoiler or, with defeats over Georgia and Alabama, SEC’s College Football Playoff hopeful.
When the College Football Playoff Committee ranked Auburn No. 14 in the initial College Football Playoff rankings, that made them the highest ranked two-loss team in the country. It put Auburn in prime position in the rankings, overlooked, but not out of the picture.
Over the history of the playoff in college football, a team outside of the Top 10 in the initial rankings has gotten into the playoffs two out of three years, putting Auburn in a position to still be in the running for a playoff spot.
Auburn has shined for the majority of the season, with six games scoring over 40 points. Five of those scoring outbursts came against SEC opponents.
Its only losses have come on the road against now ranked No. 4 Clemson and a much-improved LSU squad.
Now with No. 1 Georgia this weekend, an Auburn victory is needed for the Tigers to stay in the hunt for a playoff spot.
If Auburn somehow gets through the gauntlet unscathed, then they will have a rematch against SEC East champion Georgia in Atlanta.
After Auburn wins out, the possibility of Auburn getting left out of the playoff picture is real. The committee has not been nice with two-loss conference champions in the past, specifically Penn State last season.
Auburn could be a two-loss conference champion and Alabama, a non-conference champion, with one loss could get in over Auburn.
It is still a long shot for Auburn to make the playoffs, but with their impressive resume and tough schedule ahead, the Tigers have an opportunity to turn the college football world upside down and be the first two-loss team in College Football Playoff history.
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