With only a week left of the 2022 regular college football season the College Football Playoff is just on the horizon. TWSN analysts Marissa Myers and Isaac Nelson give their predictions of who will be the final four teams the committee selects and in the end who ends up being the National Champion.

 

Isaac: 

1. Georgia

Georgia erased any questions I had after their dominant performance over Tennessee. The team looked stellar in that game and overall on the season. With their remaining schedule, I do not foresee any losses coming to cause havoc for the Bulldogs. The offense can definitely perform well enough to get wins alone, but the defense for Georgia remains one of the best. Georgia will finish off with a win in the SEC Championship and lock themselves the top spot in the playoffs.

2. Ohio State

Ohio State has looked just dominant over every team they play, on every side of the ball. This past weekend did not look as it normally does, but they still had a solid win, and it felt like every top team has had some sort of a scare. I predict Ohio State getting this second spot as they move on to beat Michigan next week. This will likely be their toughest test of the season, and as long as they can pull that game out like I think they will, a playoff spot seems just about locked up for C.J. Stroud and Ohio State. 

3. TCU

I mentioned previously that several top teams had some sort of a scare, and this was the biggest one for me. TCU is coming off a close win against Baylor, but they still looked like a team who could compete. TCU will more than likely need to stay undefeated to make it, and I think that with the remaining couple of games they will and get themselves in. I think that the surrounding teams are important to look at, and I see Michigan having a loss to Ohio State. That helps TCU have the better ranking at number three, where they will face Ohio State in the playoffs.

4. Michigan

Michigan is a great team, and they have a tough task ahead of them in Ohio State. I have that down as a loss for Michigan, which is the reason for the fourth place ranking. The game will be close and exciting, which will keep the minds of the committee still on Michigan’s side despite the outcome. Aside from the predicted loss to Ohio State, Michigan will look dominant enough to keep themselves on the fringe and snag the last spot to get into the playoffs, and a chance to play Georgia.

National Championship: Ohio State vs. Georgia

Winner: Ohio State

The top two teams that I have ranked will find themselves victorious against their respective opponents. This brings us an exciting matchup between a couple of the best defenses in college football and two great quarterbacks. I have Ohio State pulling it out and winning the championship, and a large part of this being due to the fact that I have been more impressed by Ohio State’s offense. The difficult thing for me is seeing just how dominant Georgia was against a high-powered Tennessee team. But I think that Ohio State is more in their league and can pull it out with an impressive offensive performance despite a low scoring game.

 

Marissa:

1. Georgia 

With a remaining schedule of Georgia Tech and the SEC Championship Game against LSU, it is hard to see Georgia dropping either of those. Stetson Bennett is leading the Bulldogs’ offense efficiently as they have the seventh-best offense in the nation with a total of 5,459 yards. They don’t even have to rely on their offense, as the defense is allowing only 11.1 points per game. The Bulldogs should have the top spot wrapped up as they continue to dominate. 

 

2. Ohio State 

Unlike Georgia, Ohio State has a tough game next week with Michigan. Still, after how things went last year, it should be expected that the Buckeyes get back on track this year and beat the Wolverines. In doing so, they remain a top team in the nation. They have a balanced team led by C.J. Stroud on offense and an improved defense this season, allowing only 16.9 points per game. No matter who they may face in the Big Ten Championship Game, Ohio State will be too much. The Buckeyes schedule compared to Georgia in the eyes of the committee is what will more than likely keep them at two.  

 

3.  USC

When it is all said and done, I see USC currently being able to secure a spot in the playoffs. With projecting them to win the Pac-12 Championship Game, and wins over ranked teams at the time like Utah and UCLA, it should lead to convincing the committee to rank them in the playoffs. TCU has the case, but after a close scare against Baylor they could very well slip up, allowing USC to secure the third spot. 

 

4. Michigan 

Even with a projected loss to Ohio State, as long as the Wolverines keep it close, they have been extremely impressive to stay in the top four. We saw it last year when a one loss Georgia and Alabama team still made the College Football Playoffs due to how impressive they were throughout the season. The defense for the Wolverines is currently the best in the nation allowing the least number of yards, leading to their dominant performances. The loss to Ohio State though is why they come in at fourth on the ranking.

 

National Championship: Ohio State vs. Georgia 

Winner: Ohio State

When it’s all said and done, the most likely National Championship Game matchup will be the Buckeyes vs. Bulldogs. Georgia has the defense to get pressure on Stroud, but the Buckeyes also have the spread offensive format to truly test the Georgia defense. It would be an interesting matchup, but in the end the Buckeyes’ offense will prevail to cap off an undefeated season.