One of the most common complaints during college football's four-team-playoff era was that the same teams were always involved and seemed to be separating themselves from the rest of the sport to a degree. By the Saturday before Thanksgiving, the number of teams with a legitimate playoff chance had gotten awfully low, and the list didn't change all that much from year to year.
Heading into Week 13 this season, 15 teams still have at least a 36% chance of making the 12-team College Football Playoff, per the Allstate Playoff Predictor, and 23 have at least a 9% chance. There are plenty of old standbys if that's your thing -- No. 2 Ohio State, No. 3 Texas, No. 6 Notre Dame, No. 7 Alabama, No. 10 Georgia -- but among the most impactful and important games of Week 13 are No. 5 Indiana at Ohio State, No. 14 BYU at No. 21 Arizona State and No. 19 Army vs. Notre Dame at Yankee Stadium. You wanted new names to join the sport's old standbys in the playoff hunt? You've got it.
Week 13 is rarely the most exciting week on the college football calendar, but damned if this one doesn't look pretty fantastic. Here's everything you need to follow over yet another loaded weekend. All times Eastern.
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Indiana-Ohio State | Army-Notre Dame
Big 12 shakeup | 8-2 SEC teams
Week 13 chaos | Week 13 playlist
Small school showcases