Mississippi State in precarious position at No. 4 in CFP poll
Mississippi State remains perched on the edge of the College Football Playoff, holding steady at No. 4 in the committee’s Top 25.
The Bulldogs (10-1, 6-1) bullied Vanderbilt, 51-0, last Saturday and get one final chance to impress — Saturday in Oxford, Miss., against the Ole Miss Rebels.
We are fourth in tonight's @CFBPlayoff rankings. Everything we want is still there for the taking. Everything. #HailState
— Mississippi State Football (@HailStateFB) November 26, 2014
The million-dollar question: will an Egg Bowl win be enough to get coach Dan Mullen’s best team into the national semifinals?
No. 1 Alabama, No. 2 Oregon and No. 3 Florida State seem like locks to make the playoff by beating their rivals and then winning their respective conference championship games. If the Tide do beat Auburn, Mississippi State will be forced to watch from home as Alabama represents the SEC West in Atlanta.
In that scenario, Mississippi State’s only loss will have come in Tuscaloosa to the potential No. 1 overall seed, 25-20.
No. 5 TCU and No. 7 Baylor of the Big 12 have two more regular-season games, but since the league only has 10 members (ironic, we know), it can’t stage a conference championship game.
But No. 6 Ohio State, a potential one-loss Big Ten champion, will have one more opportunity to showcase itself against the Minnesota-Wisconsin winner.
The final ranking airs Dec. 7 on ESPN. Until then, Mississippi State will go through several anxious nights hoping for a spot among the country’s four best football teams.
But none of that matters if the Bulldogs don’t secure a road win against one of the most talented Ole Miss teams in years.