There are only 10 remaining unbeaten teams left in the FBS, and four of those teams play in head-to-head matchups this week.
Those who are left are starting to build their College Football Playoff case. What is the record of the teams they’ve played? Who has the toughest schedule moving forward? Who will survive Week 7?
Here’s a closer look at the answers to those questions:
No. 10 Arizona (5-0)
Last week: Beat Oregon 31-24
This week: vs. USC
Record of teams played: 13-13, .500
Record of teams left: 23-14, .622
Most attractive feature: Rich Rodriguez. The redemption narrative will continue to build with each win.
Is this a playoff team? Possibly. The lone unbeaten Pac-12 teams ranks seventh in the nation in total offense (574.0), but the Trojans are just the beginning of a tough road that features four 4-1 teams (at UCLA, vs. Washington, at Utah, vs. Arizona State). Arizona would have a case with one loss, but that needs to come with a Pac-12 championship.
No. 2 Auburn (5-0)
Last week: Beat LSU 41-7
This week: at No. 3 Mississippi State
Record of teams played: 16-11, .593
Record of teams left: 29-8, .784
Most attractive feature: The Tigers are the defending SEC champion. Enough said.
Is this a playoff team? Sure, but Auburn has unquestionably the toughest schedule of the remaining unbeaten teams. The road schedule alone (Mississippi State, Ole Miss, Georgia, Alabama) features four teams that are a combined 18-2. Could anybody in the nation get through that?
No. 5 Baylor (5-0)
Last week: Beat Texas 28-7
This week: vs. No. 9 TCU
Record of teams played: 8-18, .308
Record of teams left: 23-11, .676
Most attractive feature: Everybody loves #AmericasTopOffense, and the Bears rank first in points (51.0 points per game) and second in yards per game (583.2).
Is this a playoff team? Yes – for now. The Bears haven’t played anybody yet, and they face a top-10 defense in No. 9 TCU this week. There’s also trips to West Virginia (Oct. 18) and Oklahoma (Nov. 8).
No. 1 Florida State (5-0)
Last week: Beat Wake Forest 43-3
This week: at Syracuse
Record of teams played: 14-13, .513
Record of teams left: 25-12, .676
Most attractive feature: The defending national champion. Heisman Trophy winner Jameis Winston. The 21-game win streak. Florida State is college football’s main attraction.
Is this a playoff team? Yes. The Seminoles might not be last year’s team, but that might not matter. Florida State should be 6-0 when it faces No. 6 Notre Dame on Oct. 18, and trips to Louisville and Miami are still on the schedule.
No. 22 Georgia Tech (5-0)
Last week: Beat Miami 28-17
This week: vs. Duke
Record of teams played: 15-13, .537
Record of teams left: 24-14, .632
Most attractive feature: That triple-option offense. Georgia Tech ranks 11th in the nation in rushing (297.2). The Yellow Jackets average 5.5 yards per carry as a team.
Is this a playoff team? Georgia Tech can work into the conversation the next five weeks against five unranked teams. The last two weeks, however, loom large against Clemson and at No. 13 Georgia.
Marshall (5-0)
Last week: Beat Old Dominion 56-14
This week: vs. Middle Tennessee State
Record of teams played: 10-18, .357
Record of teams left: 18-21, .462
Most attractive feature: Marshall leads the FBS in total offense (595.6), led by Rakeem Cato.
Is this a playoff team? Maybe not, but it’s the team with the best chance to go undefeated. The Thundering Herd’s toughest-remaining game might be this week against Middle Tennessee State. The Blue Raiders beat Marshall in a 51-49 shootout last season.
No. 3 Mississippi State (5-0)
Last week: Beat Texas A&M 48-31
This week: vs. No. 2 Auburn
Record of teams played: 17-11, .607
Record of teams left: 23-14, .621
Most attractive feature: Dak Prescott. He could be considered the favorite for the Heisman Trophy at this point. Prescott has totaled 19 TDs (13 pass, 6 rush) and has another chance to make a statement against defending SEC champion Auburn.
Is this a playoff team? It’s possible. Any contender in the SEC West has a playoff chance, and the Bulldogs have a chance to knock off a Top 10 team for the third straight week. The road games at Alabama and Ole Miss, however, loom large.
No. 6 Notre Dame (5-0)
Last week: Beat Stanford 17-14
This week: vs. North Carolina
Record of teams played: 12-15, .444
Record of teams left: 24-13, .645
Most attractive feature: You’re either a Notre Dame lover or a Notre Dame hater. There is no in between. They get ratings.
Is this a playoff team? Like it or not, the Irish could be — even with one loss. Notre Dame should get to 6-0 despite not playing a true road game, but the back half of the schedule includes trips to Florida State, Arizona State and USC.
No. 3 Ole Miss (5-0)
Last week: Beat Alabama 23-17
This week: at No. 14 Texas A&M
Record of teams played: 14-13, .518
Record of teams left: 27-10, .730
Most attractive feature: It’s not Katy Perry. It’s Hugh Freeze. The Mississippi native’s passion for the program is something worth rooting for.
Is this a playoff team? Not yet. The win against Alabama was a program changer, but it won’t be easy to survive road games at Texas A&M, LSU and Arkansas. That doesn’t even factor in a home schedule against Auburn, Arkansas and Mississippi State. Then again, we said that last week …
No. 9 TCU (4-0)
Last week: Beat Oklahoma 37-33
This week: at No. 5 Baylor
Record of teams played: 11-9, .550
Record of teams left: 23-17. 575
Most attractive feature: That Gary Patterson-trademark defense. TCU ranks seventh in the nation in total defense (279.3 yards per game), and they’ll get a crack at Baylor this week. TCU beat Baylor 49-21 in their last trip to Waco in 2012.
Is this a playoff team? We’ll know in about two weeks. TCU’s front-loaded schedule features the Bears and a trip to Oklahoma State the next two weeks. Should the Horned Frogs get into late November unbeaten, the last three games (at Kansas, at Texas, vs. Iowa State) are doable. Is this the four-team playoff sleeper?
