With just two weeks left in the regular season, Week 13 was about staying in the College Football Playoff picture and giving the committee the best impression.
Much of the SEC was facing nonconference opponents and getting lopsided results. Oklahoma, however, entered the week with two conference games remaining. On Saturday, the Sooners, No. 8 in the CFP rankings, hosted No. 22 Missouri.
A week after the Sooners upset Alabama, Oklahoma's defense was all over the Tigers in a 17-6 win. The Sooners forced two turnovers and sacked Mizzou quarterback Beau Pribula four times. In winning its fifth game against a ranked foe this season, OU held Missouri running back Ahmad Hardy, FBS' leading rusher, to just 57 yards.
One of several two-loss teams vying for at-large bids, Notre Dame doesn't have any ranked opponents remaining on its schedule. The Fighting Irish, ranked No. 9, certainly aimed for style points in Week 13. In a 70-7 win over Syracuse, the Irish scored 21 points before taking an offensive snap thanks to two pick-sixes and a blocked kick returned for a touchdown. Notre Dame's Jeremiyah Love rushed for 171 yards and three scores. The 70 points are the most Notre Dame has scored in a game in AP poll era (since 1936).
No. 13 Miami, which beat Notre Dame to start the season, also has two losses; both came in ACC play, meaning the Hurricanes need some help to reach the conference title game. They got some in Week 13. On top of Notre Dame's 34-17 win over Virginia Tech, Georgia Tech suffered its second conference loss in falling to Pittsburgh. The Yellow Jackets' defeat gives Miami a slim chance to claim the league crown and reach the CFP.
Here are our experts' top 12 College Football Playoff picks:
Andrea Adelson: 1. Ohio State 2. Indiana 3. Texas A&M 4. Georgia 5. Texas Tech 6. Oregon 7. Ole Miss 8. Oklahoma 9. Miami 10. Notre Dame 11. SMU 12. North Texas
Kyle Bonagura: 1. Ohio State 2. Indiana 3. Texas A&M 4. Texas Tech 5. Georgia 6. Oregon 7. Ole Miss 8. Oklahoma 9. Alabama 10. Notre Dame 11. SMU 12. North Texas
Bill Connelly: 1. Ohio State 2. Indiana 3. Texas A&M 4. Texas Tech 5. Georgia 6. Oregon 7. Ole Miss 8. Notre Dame 9. Oklahoma 10. Alabama 11. Virginia 12. North Texas
David Hale: 1. Ohio State 2. Indiana 3. Texas A&M 4. Georgia 5. Texas Tech 6. Ole Miss 7. Oregon 8. Oklahoma 9. Alabama 10. BYU 11. SMU 12. Tulane
Eli Lederman: 1. Ohio State 2. Indiana 3. Texas A&M 4. Georgia 5. Texas Tech 6. Oregon 7. Ole Miss 8. Notre Dame 9. Oklahoma 10. Alabama 11. Virginia 12. North Texas
Max Olson: 1. Ohio State 2. Indiana 3. Texas A&M 4. Georgia 5. Texas Tech 6. Oregon 7. Ole Miss 8. Oklahoma 9. Alabama 10. Notre Dame 11. Virginia 12. North Texas
Adam Rittenberg: 1. Ohio State 2. Indiana 3. Texas A&M 4. Georgia 5. Texas Tech 6. Oregon 7. Ole Miss 8. Oklahoma 9. Notre Dame 10. Alabama 11. SMU 12. Tulane
Mark Schlabach: 1. Ohio State 2. Indiana 3. Texas A&M 4. Georgia 5. Texas Tech 6. Oregon 7. Ole Miss 8. Oklahoma 9. Notre Dame 10. Alabama 11. SMU 12. Tulane
Jake Trotter: 1. Ohio State 2. Indiana 3. Texas A&M 4. Georgia 5. Oregon 6. Texas Tech 7. Ole Miss 8. Oklahoma 9. Notre Dame 10. Alabama 11. SMU 12. North Texas
Paolo Uggetti: 1.Ohio State 2. Indiana 3. Texas A&M 4. Georgia 5. Oregon 6. Texas Tech 7. Ole Miss 8. Oklahoma 9. Alabama 10. Notre Dame 11. SMU 12. North Texas
Dave Wilson: 1. Ohio State 2. Indiana 3. Texas A&M 4. Texas Tech 5. Georgia 6. Oregon 7. Ole Miss 8. Oklahoma 9. Alabama 10. Notre Dame 11. SMU 12. North Texas