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It was a tough pill to swallow as the fourth quarter waned on, and the Baylor Bears completed their dominant win over the Oklahoma Sooners on Saturday. It was the first time in the Lincoln Riley era that the Sooners had lost to a Big 12 team by more than a score.
The rest of the college football world had been waiting for the Oklahoma Sooners to play a team of significance, and the Sooners fell flat in their loss to the Bears. The loss was pretty well reflected in the Sooners drop in the latest USA TODAY Sports AFCA Coaches Poll and the AP Top 25, where they fell from four to outside the top 10.
As we’ve done each of the last few weeks, let’s take a look at how FiveThirtyEight sees the Sooners after the 27-14 loss to Baylor.
FiveThirtyEight, led by Nate Silver, uses statistical analysis for polling and predicting results. For years, ESPN has used its analysis to predict the College Football Playoff participants, college football predictions, and bowl games. On Monday, FiveThirtyEight released its College Football Playoff projections, and the Oklahoma Sooners come in with the third-best chance to make it.
According to FiveThirtyEight’s projections, the Oklahoma Sooners see their chances of making the College Football Playoffs from 45% a week ago to 17% this week.
They’ve got an uphill battle ahead of them if they hope to make the top four by the season’s end. It’s not entirely out of the question, but it would take a lot of help from the rest of the country for the Sooners to find themselves positioned in the top four of the playoff committee’s rankings.
Georgia and Alabama continued to have the best chances to make the playoff. Still, much of that will hinge on the Crimson Tide’s performance against the Bulldogs in a presumed matchup in the SEC Championship game. If Georgia beats the Crimson Tide, it’s unlikely a two-loss Alabama would stay in the top four.
The Oregon Ducks have benefitted from their week one win over the Ohio State Buckeyes, but a lot will depend on how these two teams finish the season. Oregon will get a tough test from the Utah Utes while the Buckeyes still have Michigan State and Michigan to finish the season.
All the Oklahoma Sooners can hope to do is win out, and that starts with a tough matchup this weekend against an Iowa State team that will be looking to bounce back as well from a disappointing loss to Texas Tech. Playoff chances won’t matter for Oklahoma if they can’t win out. That’s the only hope they have to play in a meaningful postseason game.
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By: John Williams
Title: How does FiveThirtyEight view Oklahoma's College Football Playoff chances after Baylor loss?
Sourced From: soonerswire.usatoday.com/2021/11/15/oklahoma-sooners-football-fivethirty-eight-college-football-playoff-projections-alabama-crimson-tide-georgia-bulldogs-michigan-wolverines-michigan-state-spartans/
Published Date: Mon, 15 Nov 2021 18:30:53 +0000
