Pittsburg is one of the oddest teams in the country. Some games they look like the most explosive offenses in the country putting up 41+ points in five games. At other times, they look like a very average to below average P5 team in tough losses to Western Michigan and Miami. The reality however is that if Pittsburg didn’t beat Clemson and Tennessee, both of those squads are likely ranked right now.
If we are looking at recently bias the Nitty Lions probably shouldn’t even be ranked. Fortunately for them, the committee tends not to depend on recent game success that much (barring injuries of course). Two of their losses came from Iowa and Ohio State. While the Illinois game looks ugly, their wins over an improved Wisconsin and Auburn teams will greatly help their ranking.
Writing essentially the same caption as Penn State seems appropriate right now. The Wildcats seemed to have finally really turn a corner this season before losing back to back games to Georgia and Mississippi State. Lucky for them, their toughest remaining game is against Tennessee, who isn’t exactly playing their best football right now.
Iowa, oh Iowa. The Hawkeyes at one point were shoe-ins for at least a shot at the College Football Playoff. With exactly zero ranked opponents on their schedule after Penn State, the Hawkeyes have dropped two straight games to Wisconsin and Purdue.
Again, the committee won’t only look at momentum so their wins over Iowa State and Penn State will keep them ranked relatively high.