With the first College Football Playoff Rankings releasing on Tuesday, ESPN senior college football writer Heather Dinich joined Friday’s edition of GoJo and Golic to preview what to expect and how the playoff race could unfold.
Mike Golic Jr. asked Dinich what she was excited about regarding the new conversations that would arise around the expanded 12-team playoff field. Dinich said she is THRILLED about it because media members are talking about teams like BYU, Boise State and Indiana, who typically in the past would not get as much attention in the playoff discussion. Further, she believes that this first ranking is going to be a difficult one for the committee. The top 25 is always hard, but it gets more strenuous when selecting teams in that 9-14 range;, which Dinich emphasized matters more than ever because these teams will be competing to win a national title.
Dinich also mentioned the ranking would be very different from the seeding. She stressed that college football fans should keep in mind that the committee’s approach to ranking the top 25 will remain consistent, focusing on factors like strength of schedule and head-to-head matchups, just as it has for decades. However, the challenge for the committee this year is different. When you had the four-team college football playoff, you were evaluating great teams. Now the committee will have to analyze several good teams with average or even below-average schedules.
Mike Golic Sr. asked Dinich how many potential two-loss teams could wind up in that top 12. She shared that she wanted to see what happens with Ohio State at Penn State this week because the Buckeyes will join that group if they take another loss. In terms of the SEC, LSU, Alabama and Ole Miss could also join the two-loss group, prompting Dinich to ask: “Can Ole Miss hold off an improved Arkansas team?” If not, they might be in trouble. Dinich did say that two losses seem to be the barometer for entry into the playoff because you have to have good wins on your schedule, and as competitive as the SEC and Big Ten are, if you don’t beat the only two great teams on your schedule, are you even a playoff team?
Heather added that it’s tough to predict how many two-loss teams might make it in, and thus she’s unsure if Ohio State would qualify with two losses. She explained that the committee views two-loss contenders differently, offering Georgia as an example. If Georgia runs the table and only loses in the SEC Championship game after losing to a team like Alabama while beating Ole Miss and Tennessee, they’d have one of the best two-loss resumes. On the other hand, a bad two-loss resume would be a team like Miami losing to Duke or Clemson in the ACC Championship, which would be a different two-loss conversation.
GoJo asked Heather which team she was most curious about to see how the committee ranks. Her response hit close to home because she responded with the Golics’ alma mater, the Notre Dame Fighting Irish. She said they had a top-tier win against Texas A&M and a terrible loss against NIU. As much as Notre Dame fans don’t want to hear it, people in that room on Tuesday will bring up that NIU loss, questioning how much head-to-head truly matters. It’s a tiebreaker between teams with comparable records. But the NIU loss is not a deal-breaker, and the Irish have been improving. Dinich believes it will come down to how the committee views wins against teams like Georgia Tech and Louisville and whether they balance out an embarrassing home loss. Dinich believes the Fighting Irish are between 11-13, and she contends that an 11-1 Notre Dame team gets in the playoff if they continue to play how they played against Navy last week.
Zooming out from the college football playoff selection talk, Senior asked Heather if a non-quarterback like Ashton Jeanty or Travis Hunter could win the Heisman over traditional favorite-types like Cam Ward or Dillon Gabriel. Heather confidently says, “Absolutely — if Heisman voters are paying attention.” She emphasized that Hunter’s season is “generational,” noting he’s achieving feats for Colorado not seen in decades. Heather also reminds voters that the Heisman is for the best player, not just the best quarterback, adding that Jeanty is “a machine.” She believes this year’s Heisman vote will be tough for voters.
Watch or listen to the full show below and tune into GoJo and Golic weekday mornings from 8-10 a.m. ET on DraftKings Network! See more about how to watch DraftKings Network here.
SHOW BREAKDOWN
Hour 1: Aaron Rodgers & The Jets’ Get Right Game, NFL Week 9 Acrostic and Joe Burrow Dodges Trade Deadline Questions
Hour 2: Heather Dinich on CFB Playoff Ranking Process, Notre Dame’s Resume & Non-QB Heisman Candidates + Bill Belichick’s Controversial Catch
VIDEO
Watch GoJo and Golic every weekday on Samsung TV Plus, Roku, Xumo Play, Google TV and DraftKingsNetwork.com from 8 to 10 a.m. ET. The show is also available via audio on Apple Podcasts, Spotify or wherever you get your podcasts. You can also follow Mike Golic Sr. on X at @golic and Mike Golic Jr. on X at @mikegolicjr.
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