Let the debate begin. The committee will soon announce their final rankings and the bowl matchups will begin trickling in from across the country. The big question on every college football fans mind is what four teams will be in the College Football Playoff. This season, the Peach and Fiesta Bowls will serve as the College Football Playoff semifinal games. Both Alabama and Clemson seem to be locks to make the playoff as conference champions. Ohio State was ranked just behind Alabama in the latest rankings, and it seems unlikely they would be left out. The debate for the fourth position is likely between Washington, Michigan and Penn State. It is difficult to imagine the Wolverines moving up in the rankings since they did not play this weekend and none of the teams ranked above them lost. All this leads to a highly anticipated unveiling of the final rankings. Click the arrow on the right side of the above image to see Heavy's predictions for the final College Football Playoff rankings. (Getty)
No. 10 Florida State Seminoles
Record: 10-3
Current CFB Playoff Ranking: 12th
Key Wins: Ole Miss, at Miami, Florida
What the Committee Will Like: Florida State turned what looked to be a disappointing season into a solid 2016 campaign. Florida State looks like they are headed to the Orange Bowl. The Seminoles are coming off their most impressive win of the season against Florida.
Areas of Concern: Florida State has plenty of blemishes most notably their three losses. The worst loss came against North Carolina. The Seminoles are not being considered for the College Football Playoff but are still likely headed to a New Year's Six bowl game. (Getty)
No. 9 USC Trojans
Record: 8-3
Current CFB Playoff Ranking: 11th
Key Wins: Colorado, at Washington, Notre Dame
What the Committee Will Like: No team is likely to benefit more from Colorado's blowout loss than USC. If the Trojans are ranked above the Buffaloes in the final rankings, USC can make the Rose Bowl. It would be a Christmas miracle given the way USC started the season. Some argue that the way USC is playing they belong in the discussion for the College Football Playoff. Their three early losses have kept them out of the discussion.
Areas of Concern: Proponents of USC as a top-four team forget that the first month of the season matters. It would be a disservice to teams that have been consistent all season long to award a College Football Playoff position to a team that essentially took a month off. Is USC one of the hottest teams in the country? Yes, but that does not mean they belong in the playoff. (Getty)
No. 8 Wisconsin Badgers
Record: 10-3
Current CFB Playoff Ranking: 6th
Key Wins: LSU, Iowa, Nebraska, Minnesota
What the Committee Will Like: Wisconsin survived a difficult schedule and are likely to finish inside the top ten. They have a non-conference win against LSU. The Badgers also won their division and have a number of key conference wins. Wisconsin had a chance to win the Big Ten but gave up a big lead to Penn State.
Areas of Concern: Wisconsin's resume would look a lot better with a Big Ten championship on it. If we are comparing Wisconsin to the playoff teams, their three losses disqualify them from the conversation. It should be noted that two of those losses were the narrowest kind to Michigan and Ohio State. (Getty)
No. 7 Oklahoma Sooners
Record: 10-2
Current CFB Playoff Ranking: 9th
Key Wins: TCU, Baylor, at West Virginia, Oklahoma State
What the Committee Will Like: Oklahoma may be the quietest Big 12 champion in recent memory. The top Big 12 teams have consistently been ranked below the top teams in other Power Five conferences. After dropping two of their first three games, Oklahoma has won nine straight games and are now a conference champion which the committee likes. Given their current ranking of ninth, it would be a complete shock if the committee moved them into the top four. The Sooners are likely headed to the Sugar Bowl.
Areas of Concern: The Sooners were dominated by Houston and Ohio State in two of their first three games. While the committee likes to reward teams who play a strong non-conference schedule, Oklahoma's performance in those two games looks like it will cost them a chance at the College Football Playoff. (Getty)
No. 6 Penn State Nittany Lions
Record: 11-2
Current CFB Playoff Ranking: 7th
Key Wins: Ohio State, Minnesota, Iowa, Wisconsin (Big Ten Championship)
What the Committee Will Like: Penn State's conference championship is putting pressure on the committee to make a difficult decision on what four teams make the College Football Playoff. The Nittany Lions fourth down stand sealed the Big Ten championship. Penn State is one of the hottest teams in the country and a case can be made that the winner of the strongest conference should be in the playoff.
Areas of Concern: Penn State lost by 39 points to Michigan. They also have a narrow loss to Pitt. The committee noted they believed there was a sizable gap between Ohio State and Penn State. It will be interesting to see how much the Big Ten championship impacts that gap. (Getty)
No. 5 Michigan Wolverines
Record: 10-2
Current CFB Playoff Ranking: 5th
Key Wins: Colorado, Wisconsin, Penn State
What the Committee Will Like: Michigan was part of #TeamChaos over the weekend as they rooted for Washington and Clemson to lose. The Wolverines have looked like one of the best teams in the country, but their overtime loss to Ohio State looks like it will prohibit them from making the College Football Playoff. The Wolverines are still likely to head to a New Year's Six bowl game.
Areas of Concern: The biggest concern for Michigan is falling below Washington in the rankings. Given it happened before the conference championships, Washington's resume is even stronger with a Pac-12 championship. Michigan had the advantage of playing their first five games in Ann Arbor. A stronger schedule might have given them an edge over Washington despite their two losses. (Getty)
No. 4 Ohio State Buckeyes
Record: 11-1
Current CFB Playoff Ranking: 2nd
Key Wins: at Oklahoma, at Wisconsin, Nebraska, Michigan
What the Committee Will Like: The Buckeyes gathered around the television in their pajamas to watch the college football conference championship games as they had the week off. Pajamas may be an exaggeration, but Ohio State may have been in the best possible scenario heading into the final week of the regular season. They started the weekend with a head start on the other top teams at number two in the rankings and are unlikely to fall out of the College Football Playoff.
Areas of Concern: Rankings aside, the committee is in a real bind with Ohio State. They have always stressed the importance of a conference championship. They now have a plausible scenario where a team could benefit from not playing in the conference championship game. While it would be shocking for Ohio State to not make the playoff, fans saw TCU drop from 3 to 6 in the final 2014 rankings despite the Horned Frogs winning their final game. We think the committee hedges a bit by putting them at four behind three teams with a conference championship. (Getty)
No. 3 Washington Huskies
Record: 12-1
Current CFB Playoff Ranking: 4th
Key Wins: Stanford, at Oregon, Utah, at Washington State, Colorado (Pac-12 Championship)
What the Committee Will Like: Washington has been the most scrutinized potential College Football Playoff team. They may not have the strongest strength of schedule, but the Huskies have looked like one of the most complete teams in the country. They made as strong of a final statement as a team can make with their blowout win over Colorado in the Pac-12 Championship. It was reminiscent of the style of victory they had over Stanford earlier this season. The committee could surprise us but if they were ranked ahead of Michigan before their conference championship it looks unlikely the Wolverines will move up in the final rankings.
Areas of Concern: Washington's schedule includes non-conference games against Portland State and Rutgers. Washington has also been hurt by the typical Pac-12 heavyweights having down seasons. Washington was at their worst in their home loss to USC, but everyone not named Alabama has a blemish on their resume at this point in the season. (Getty)
No. 2 Clemson Tigers
Record: 12-1
Current CFB Playoff Ranking: 3rd
Key Wins: at Auburn, Louisville, at Florida State, South Carolina, Virginia Tech (ACC Championship)
What the Committee Will Like: Clemson put another ACC Championship trophy in the case on Saturday night. The Tigers have been criticized for their inconsistent play throughout the season but have looked like a much better team since their loss to Pitt. Here's the one thing you can say about Clemson. When they needed to get it done against the best teams they did so as their wins against Louisville, Florida State and Virginia Tech show.
Areas of Concern: Clemson dealt with lofty expectations to start the season after their narrow loss in last season's championship game against Alabama. They failed to live up to that early on as they nearly lost to NC State in overtime and lost a few weeks later to Pitt. Clemson has their warts but this has been one of the top four teams in the country this season. (Getty)
No. 1 Alabama Crimson Tide
Record: 13-0
Current CFB Playoff Ranking: 1st
Key Wins: USC, at Tennessee, Texas A&M, LSU, Auburn, Florida (SEC Championship)
What the Committee Will Like: Alabama went through the regular season taking everyone's best shot and answered by giving a few shots of their own. The Crimson Tide destroyed Florida to win the SEC Championship in a game that looked over in the second quarter. Bama has a defense that not only creates turnovers but scores touchdowns. The threat of Jalen Hurts at quarterback will make this College Football Playoff even more difficult for their opponent than last season. This may be the most complete team we have seen in Tuscaloosa under Nick Saban.
Areas of Concern: Sure, the SEC is not having one of its best seasons but the majority of Alabama games were not even close. There's not much to dislike about Alabama's resume. (Getty)
College Football Rankings: Predictions for Final College Football Playoff Rankings 2016-17