The ways Carolina could make or miss the Orange Bowl.
Since the Tar Heels’ stunning blowout of Miami, the college football political game has swung into overtime about which four teams should make the College Football Playoff. Hopefully, that won’t affect UNC’s chances of going to a major bowl game for the first time since 1950.
The Heels have to move ahead of Miami in the College Football Playoff rankings, just as they did in the AP poll that came out Sunday. Carolina jumped from No. 20 to No. 15, while the Hurricanes fell 11 spots down to No. 19.
UNC also has to avoid getting knocked out of the Orange Bowl by the second place team in the ACC, either Notre Dame or Clemson. It would seem that the unbeaten and second-ranked Irish are going to the CFP whether they beat the Tigers for a second time this season in Charlotte or if they lose a competitive game.
However, if they both don’t make the playoffs, the one that doesn’t goes to the Orange Bowl by virtue of its higher ranking than Carolina. That is far more likely to be Clemson if it loses to Notre Dame for the second time in six weeks. The ACC has a contract with the Orange Bowl to send its second (or third) highest ranked team to Miami to play either an SEC or Big Ten opponent.
Right now that is slated to be 7-1 Texas A&M, which is getting some consideration for the final four because of its difficult conference-only schedule. The Aggies are coached by former Florida State boss Jimbo Fisher and would present the toughest possible opponent for the Tar Heels.
The big brouhaha, of course, is over the number of games different schools have played due to schedule variations chosen by conferences and various cancellations caused by COVID. The SEC is lobbying hard for having a 10-game regular season with 69 out of 70 being played. The ACC, which revamped its schedules to have 11 games has played 86, by far the most in college football.
Because the Big Ten cancelled its entire schedule last August and then reversed course and began play in late October, Ohio State will have played only six games after the Big Ten championship Saturday.
The Buckeyes are ranked third in the latest AP poll and are expected to remain in the CFP rankings as long as they beat Northwestern for the Big Ten championship. Should they lose to the Wildcats, that would almost assure both Notre Dame and Clemson make the playoffs — and the Tar Heels go to the Orange Bowl.
It’s a season unlike any other, and the playing field is more than titled.
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